Live data from Hacker News

Musicians are manufacturing sold-out shows

bloomberg.com

31–40 of 80 posts

Re: Musicians are manufacturing sold-out shows

#33
post #20

Marketing 101. I don't go to concerts often, but there was one last year. Tickets for the thursday show were sold out within minutes, but oh look, they tried Really Hard and revealed they were going to do an EXTRA show on the Friday! (they already had it planned but wanted to make sure the first show on the less popular day was sold out first)

Or they didn't want to commit to the extra shows until demand was clear

> Or they didn't want to commit to the extra shows until demand was clear

I think the whole point is that only Superstar Divas used to be able to operate like this.

Now, even "starving artists" are employing grey-area price-gouging techniques.

My anecdata is that concert fatigue is real.

I doubt this is going to bode well in the mid or long term.

My crystal ball doesn't work any better than anyone else's though...

Re: Musicians are manufacturing sold-out shows

#35
I've been in and around the music business since the 90s. This is not new. There's even a term for it, it's called an "underplay".

Just a preference for the artist. If you go for bigger venues and stretch a little bit, you might end up filling it, and then you'd make more money. If you underplay, then you're guaranteed to have a good vibe at the show, which musicians care a lot about.

That's really, I think, the dynamic that most people use. There is an aspect of it that is public perception-facing, but I've been around a lot of musicians ranging from just starting out to household names, I think it's mostly a trade-off between those two options. Just about every musician prefers smaller venues because they're more fun to play, and less financial risk.

Like anything there are exceptions. For example, an artist who wants to headline Madison Square Garden for the first time might make a different choice. But I don't think the strategy is that much about cleverness. It's just about preference.

Re: Musicians are manufacturing sold-out shows

#37
post #5

I don't think this is "sneaky" - to use the term from the article. Yes, on the one hand a band could maximize by playing in a larger venue, but maybe doing so diminishes the experience for more people. Smaller venues, greater precision, and budgeting, and a better experience for the audience seems like a win. Not quite sure this is an issue that needs an article in Bloomberg

And from what I’ve experienced: bigger shows aren’t cheaper! Smaller for the win.

The best shows I've been to the last 10 years have been at Reggie's in Chicago. Cheap, not too crowded, and lesser known but really talented bands. Reggie's hasn't changed over the years much - in the best kind of way.

Re: Musicians are manufacturing sold-out shows

#38

Marketing 101. I don't go to concerts often, but there was one last year. Tickets for the thursday show were sold out within minutes, but oh look, they tried Really Hard and revealed they were going to do an EXTRA show on the Friday! (they already had it planned but wanted to make sure the first show on the less popular day was sold out first)

I often see ads on Facebook for products where it says "selling out really fast" or "first batch already sold out" type of thing and my first mental response is "okay, I probably won't be able to get one then, I'll wait for your supply chain to catch up to the demand"

Re: Musicians are manufacturing sold-out shows

#39

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Livenation provides a useful role as a punching bag to the most popular artists. They need to seem accessible to the commoners, but their demand is so high, they can earn more money catering only to those willing to pay them the most.

Yes, Live Nation and Ticketmaster literally serve as "the bad guy" in the transaction. The truth is, due to market realities, ticket prices (MSRP, not reseller prices) need to be high so that everybody gets their cut. All those fees people lose their minds about? Those more or less pay out the promoters, because the artists are too chickenshit to roll the full costs into their bare ticket prices, and unrealistic tick…

This is not a reasonable take on what's actually happening. It's never been a reasonable take, but posting this today after Live Nation has literally just been found liable by a jury shows deep confusion.

The ticket prices are not high because of market realities. They're high because of illegal monopoly behavior that inflates costs and then steals the money and gives it to Michael Rapino and his friends. The behavior of Live Nation has been shown to be much closer to organized crime than what most people think of as standard business practice.

There's extensive on-the-record testimony and an official federal court verdict backing up my side of this argument.

Re: Musicians are manufacturing sold-out shows

#40

I don't think that this is a primary dynamic for music. Partly, but not really to fans. I don't think fans are extra hyped because something sold out. It helps, but I don't think that's a motivating factor. Within the industry - I can see that. Producers, managers, booking, PR, etc everyone loves the bandwagon. And a big artists not selling as they would is kind of negative news, but I don't think that has anything t…

[deleted]
Post reply on HN