Fans are still willing to shell out for once-in-a-lifetime experiences, but middle-sized artists are struggling to sell tickets.
Jaylon Jackson decided it’s time to slow down his spending on concerts.
The 21-year-old dog groomer estimated he spent roughly $5,500 on at least 12 shows over the past two years.
But when Hozier announced LA tour dates, with tickets selling for around $130, he decided to skip them.
« I’m very bummed out. I love his music dearly, but I really do want to value the amount of money I spend to see an artist », Jackson said. For him, that means saving his money for a top-tier production; seeing a Beyoncé tour would be his dream.
He’s not the only concertgoer making that calculation. While Sabrina Carpenter concerts with their Broadway-level sets are still selling out and Taylor Swift’s global Eras tour is wrapping up 18 months of sold-out shows, tickets for popular artists with mid-tier production value concerts are going unclaimed. Think of the canceled Black Keys and Animal Collective tours.
As the post-pandemic « revenge » spending frenzy cools, people are getting more selective with their disposable cash. Pressured by social media and overwhelmed with choice, they’re choosing to save up for the most epic concert experiences possible. At the same time, midlevel artists are having to pay more and more for tour expenses, and can’t lower prices enough to entice more fans.
« I spend a lot of time thinking about who I want to go see and how I want to make the most of what I pay for », Jackson said. And when it comes to what’s worth splashing out on, « I want to see a good production, I want to see choreography, I want to see lights. »Taylor Swift or bust
Taylor Swift’s Eras Tour tickets had an average face-value price of $254 in 2023 and a resale market price of $3,801.
Meanwhile, resale tickets on SeatGeek for a late November Kacey Musgraves concert in Texas are going for just $33, almost half the face-value price. Some tickets for a December Justin Timberlake concert in Arkansas are currently going for around $10 on SeatGeek. Later dates for both artists are going for more.
There’s an entire Twitter account devoted to tracking falling show prices, showing how it pays to wait. Data provided to BI from ticket resale company Automatiq shows that artists like Post Malone and Morgan Wallen have seen thousands of resale tickets sell below cost for specific dates.
Chris Leyden, the director of growth marketing at SeatGeek, calls this a bifurcation in the market. Right now, some artists are seeing their highest demand ever for tours. On the flip side, there are more deals out there for fans who might want them.
