Don’t expect Live Nation’s Joe Berchtold to be quoting Taylor Swift’s “Anti-Hero” during Tuesday’s Senate Judiciary Committee hearing on ticketing. Unlike the pop star’s “I’m the problem it’s me” chorus-turned-meme, the company’s president and CFO plans to take aim at who he says are the real culprits behind Swift’s disastrous Nov. 15 presale: scalpers. While the Live Nation-owned Ticketmaster was villainized for weeks following the presale for Swift’s upcoming The Eras Tour that both broke single-day sales records and threw fans into a fury over service issues, according to a prepared opening statement reviewed by Billboard, Berchtold plans to lay much of the blame on scalpers who used illegal bots to attack the online sale. The statement — to be delivered Tuesday (Jan. 24) in Washington,...
Swedish House Mafia has canceled five more shows on its upcoming 2022 Paradise Again arena tour on Friday (July 22). The newly canceled shows include July 31 at the Amway Center in Orlando, Aug. 2 at Madison Square Garden in New York, Aug. 9 at TD Garden in Boston, Aug. 11 at Verizon Arena Washington D.C. and Aug. 17 in Detroit at Little Caesars Arena. Many arena acts are facing sluggish ticket sales, especially at the arena level where a number of first-time tours are playing to half-empty houses. Festivals too have struggled amid a wave of oversaturation and reduced consumer spending. Editor’s note: This story is in the process of being updated. [flexi-common-toolbar] [flexi-form class=”flexi_form_style” title=”Submit to Flexi” name=”my_form” ajax=R...
Swedish House Mafia has canceled five more shows on its upcoming 2022 Paradise Again arena tour on Friday (July 22) after months of anemic sales, despite promoter Live Nation’s best efforts to move tickets at discounted rates. The newly canceled shows include July 31 at the Amway Center in Orlando, Aug. 2 at Madison Square Garden in New York, Aug. 9 at TD Garden in Boston, Aug. 11 at Verizon Arena Washington D.C. and Aug. 17 in Detroit at Little Caesars Arena. The tour’s poor ticket sales and struggles to generate interest have been widely known in the live music business, and many arena acts are facing sluggish ticket sales, especially at the arena level where a number of first-time tours are playing to half-empty houses. Festivals too have struggled amid a wave of oversaturation and redu...
The hip-hop heavy Day N Vegas festival was canceled on Friday (June 1) due to poor ticket sales, making the event financially unsustainable, according to sources familiar with the situation. Promoter Goldenvoice knew there was an issue the day after tickets went on sale, June 10, sources tell Billboard. Ticket sales simply did not meet the sales goal that day, or the days that followed. By canceling Friday, with the start of the festival still more than 60 days away, AEG only has to pay 50% of the artist fee — a compromise that was reached with the major talent agencies last year amid touring’s return from the pandemic. Day N Vegas’ disappointing ticket sales came as a surprise for many since it was Travis Scott‘s first concert since the disastrous Astroworld festival in Houston last Novem...