Billboard: Cancelled Tours Suggest Brutal Summer

[kingofpain]

LOL @ Rihanna's cancellations, not to mention poor Ke$ha as the opening act. Wasn't she also scheduled to appear at several Lilith Fair concerts too? I wonder if those got canceled as well? Jinx!

[as485y]

I think the thing with Rihanna is shes not a headliner yet.... her names doesnt sell things and people know she cant sing or perform worth a lick

[The Orignal Kevin]

LOL, that sucks for them

Glad kelly had a amazing world tour with no cancellations

[$uperb@tDuDe]

Jul 10, 2010 11:30:26 GMT -5 as485y said:

I think the thing with Rihanna is shes not a headliner yet.... her names doesnt sell things and people know she cant sing or perform worth a lick

She should just stick to touring Europe and the Pan Pacific, they seem to like her there. I mean Chris Brown couldn't even get into the U.K. They don't play 'bout Rihanna there lol.

[tsw2008]

Ouch for Rihanna. Anyone else still think the article was/is exaggerating ?

[Deleted]

I know Perez(disgusting douche)keeps reporting about Rihanna's cancelled and struggling tour. Lillith Fair's going all to hell but there still some big money maker tours.

Rihanna and Beysus should tour together, add Jay-Z and Solange and make it a family affair :)

[jj99$ - - LeLe]

Don't think Beysus would want to share her tour money with anyone else to be honest, as she will be bringing in the most.

[wjd]

What a lot of people seem to be forgetting and what Pollstar are omitting is that last year Celine Dion & Madonna were breaking records worldwide with tours that grossed nearly $300m each (original legs only). This year, the only true mega tours were AC/DC & U2. And U2 cancelled theres due to Bono's injury. And U2 were averaging about $7m per show with this tour

[rosemoor]

I noticed that Maroon5 are doing a lot of smaller venues this tour too. Some of them with capacity of only 5k-7k. They used to sell out 15k arenas.

[americanjesus]

Live Nation Says Ticket Sales Down 12 Percent
July 15, 2010 - Touring

By Associated Press

Concert promotion giant Live Nation Entertainment Inc. said Thursday that ticket sales for the Top 100 bands are down 12 percent in the first half of the year, and sales will likely fall further in the second half. Shares of the company plunged.

Shares dropped $1.84, or 16 percent, to $9.59 in afternoon trading Thursday. That's the lowest point since before Jan. 25, the day it announced it had consummated its merger with Ticketmaster Entertainment following approval by the U.S. Justice Department.

Chief Executive Michael Rapino told investors in New York that the weak economy has taken its toll on the concert industry.

But even he appeared surprised at the massive sell-off his presentation had caused.

"We had a real buzz kill at about Slide 9 when I saw the e-mails go out," he said.

Executive Chairman Irving Azoff, who presented via video conference, chided investors for the sell-off.

"I'm hoping that what I'm seeing as all you guys e-mail back to your offices to dump the stock isn't indicative of the fact that we have a group of investors that are so shortsighted," Irving said.

The company said a further 15 percent drop in concert ticket sales for the Top 100 tours could occur in the second half.

Adjusted operating income for 2010 is expected at $405 million, down from $445 million last year, despite the benefits of its merger this year with Ticketmaster.

A rash of cancellations from bands has also hurt sales. U2's postponement of its tour until next year will cost the company $6 million this year.

From Billboard.biz


The presentation today was brutal, as Live Nation's stock fell 10% in trading.

Several interesting things:

-Live Nation is looking to buy their last 25% stake in Front Line Management.
- Looking to reduce ticket prices for 2nd and 3rd tier artists, like maroon5 and other artists who can't sell out shows. Move them to smaller venues, charge less for their tickets, etc.
-Diversify their branding by turning the House of Blues franchise into a music discovery business.

And many more that I can't be bothered to type out right now.

[tsw2008]

Interesting. Not surprised, the recession has taken its toll on many businesses and the touring business is no exception especially as some of these acts are charging WAY too much for their tickets.