At first glance, the world tour industry seems to be doing well.
Living nationThe biggest concert promoter and ticket company, reported earlier this month that he had an incredible year. Until now, more than 100 million tickets have been sold for events in 2025. Compare this with 2019, the last big year before COVID-19, when Live Nation has made 98 million tickets for the 12 months.
Economic slowdown? Prices related problems? Fans rebellions against the high cost of tickets? None of these disastrous predictions seem to be realized. Live music has a record year!
Well, maybe for some.
Coachella was not sold for the second consecutive year and among those who have been there, more than half financed their ticket purchases.
Other festivals have been canceled. According to Tracker Wizard of the Music Festival44 events have disappeared from the global concert calendar so far this year. In the United Kingdom, the promoters shook by the 72 cancellations of festivals last year are preparing for more problems. Some Australian festivals will not occur due to the increase in costs. Four-day general admission tickets for Lollapalooza are sold in an hour, although one-and-two tickets as well as VIP pass are still available. This week, a festival company called Wannasee has abandoned more than 10 events through Great Britain. The company has entered below.
The current American administration does not help things. After unilaterally increasing the price of visas for foreign acts, there are all stories of internal security problems at the border. Who wants to risk setting up an expensive American visit when a border patrol agent can refuse you the entrance because … well, for any reason they choose. Something on your social media flow found on your phone they don’t like? You do not enter. You could even be detained for a while before being expelled.
If you are a high -level interpreter, you could be safe from these small concerns, but even Beyoncé had problems with her Cowboy Carter tour, with thousands of tickets invented even as the opening evening approaches. This date of April 28 in Los Angeles had trouble selling the 3,200 remaining tickets. She even had to lower prices to fill seats on other markets, boring fans who bought tickets early. The power of the stars, it seems, is not always enough.
There are light points – Lorde’s fall tour in North America and Europe was cleaned and all the tickets for the reunion of Oasis 2025 disappeared last year – but these seem to be the exception. Many artists choose to stay at home.
According to How the musical graphicsThere was a constant drop in the number of artists on tour between 2022 and 2024.
Although it is not covered, it is tempting to extrapolate these figures to include emerging artists. For them, the costs have increased so much that many have reduced their tour plans, while others have chosen to stay at home entirely. Transport, accommodation, equipment rental, roadies – they have all increased spectacular from COVID -19. Those who take the risk find that the margins are extremely low and the difference between turning a slight profit and losing a lot could depend on one or two poorly assisted concerts.
Another problem is the low ticket sales. Small acts often survive sales and goods sales while the place earns its money at the bar. Covid-19 seems to create a change where young people do not go out to see live music in a club as previous generations have done. And those who go there do not drink as much. I had several conversations with owners of bar and clubs in the past year on this subject.
One hypothesis is that at least two cohorts of young spectators missed this period of transition to adulthood where they were finally allowed to see live music in an authorized establishment. Combine this with the cost of drinks, the availability of cheap and legal cannabis and meeting applications, and there are millions of young people who prefer to stay out.
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Conclusion? The entire world ecosystem is evolving to respond to these new economic realities. And there have been developments.
Live Nation is a chief $ 30 ticket offer which covers hundreds of acts. Artists really like this plan because it does not affect their results. Once they have obtained fees guaranteed by concert, it is up to Live Nation to make a profit. Because the company has so many amphitheats and has so many transactions in place, Live Nation obtains income from food and drinks (in particular alcohol, which is not cheap), parking and its usual selling of goods. The artists get their full salary and play in front of more people than they could otherwise.
In the United Kingdom, the government has created the UK Live Trust. An additional book is added to the price of a ticket sold for a stadium or an arena show (any place with a capacity of 5,000 or more), which is then reassured to smaller sites across the country. Mumford & Sons, Pulp and Diana Ross are among the artists in support of the initiative. So far this year, more than 500,000 pounds have been raised so far, the windfall in small Lizard Point clubs in the south to stack in the Shetland Islands in the North. This in addition to the independent deputy Jeremy Corbyn A summer to save music Series of concerts.
Here in Canada, we will not have a budget before fall, and it remains to be seen if the Liberals of Carney will listen to the arguments of the artistic community. I guess we will know it in the fall.
Musicians will always love playing live and there are audiences who love them. But it becomes more and more difficult to make this connection. The good news is that you can help. Make yourself and your little local place and your emerging artist and spend an evening with live music. If you really want to help, get a show on a Tuesday or Wednesday when pedestrian traffic is slow. And whatever you do, buy merch and vinyl when leaving. It will make a difference.
& Copy 2025 Global News, A Division of Corus Entertainment Inc.