The Booming Concert Economy

Catherine Anderson
Staff Writer

Taylor Swift’s Eras Tour has helped some cities recover from the economic tolls they suffered during the pandemic, writes the Wall Street Journal. In each city where Swift performed, fans came in droves to see her. The concertgoers did not only fill stadiums- they took up space in hotels, restaurants, bars, and frequented other small businesses, boosting local economies continues the Wall Street Journal. 

In many cities, these fans included both people who had tickets to the show, and thousands of others who would gather outside stadiums just to listen to Swift’s performance. In Cincinnati, writes the Wall Street Journal, thousands of people gathered in parks near Paycor Stadium during both nights’ performances. In May, when Swift was in Nashville, the Country Music Hall of Fame displayed a pop-up Taylor Swift exhibit; that month was the highest grossing month in the museum’s history, writes the Wall Street Journal. When the Eras Tour came to Minneapolis, a local donut shop posted pictures of Taylor Swift themed donuts-fans lined up on the street, and the store could only sell 150 boxes before it had to stop taking orders, continues the Wall Street Journal.

While on the local level, it seems that the Eras Tour was economically beneficial, on a national level, it is unclear whether the tour, as well as other large-scale tours, cause more economic harm or good. As CNBC News reports, some economists argue that Swift’s tour, as well as Beyonce’s and other large artists, could actually be contributing to high inflation rates. Concert ticket prices are high, but they are only part of the problem; the costs of food and drink in concert venues is high, and so are travel and accommodation prices, writes CNBC.

An example of the direct economic relationship between concerts and a national economy occurred in Stockholm, Sweden, when Beyonce performed there. Around the time of the show, reports CNBC, many hotels in the area were fully booked, and prices of accommodations were significantly higher than they normally would be around that time of year. Some economists argue, however, that a single artist cannot significantly affect a country’s economy, especially in a developed nation. According to The Economist, not only is it highly unlikely that a single artist could cause prices to rise to the point that it would impact the consumer price index, but even if they did, it is not likely that the rising costs of concert tickets could contribute to a rise in cost of other goods, like hotels.

In smaller countries, The Economist continues, it is more likely that a single event could affect goods like hotel prices. In March, for example, Swift will perform in Singapore, which will be her only show in Southeast Asia, and thousands of fans are expected to fly in. According to the Economist, it is possible that Singapore, and other small countries, could see a “small bump” in inflation around these tour dates.

It is not possible, however, for hotels in the area to charge these higher rates year-round. Regardless of whether Swift, Beyonce, or other artists are directly causing inflation, it seems clear that people are spending more than they did in pre-pandemic times on concerts. This is likely because the pandemic left people with a stronger desire to go out and socialize, reports the Wall Street Journal. Additionally, according to CNBC, the pandemic allowed people to save more money, which means that they have more to spend on expensive concert tickets.

As Yahoo Finance reports, Swift’s tour, Beyonce’s tour, as well as the summer’s “Barbenheimer” release combined to add $8.6 billion to the U.S. economy. These high prices are, in many cases, higher than they actually should be. As Reuters writes, even with many countries seeing inflation rates decrease, concert ticket prices have remained high. Ticket prices for Swift’s tour, for example, were especially high on resale sites like Stubhub. Additionally, on sites like Ticketmaster, people struggled to get tickets; as one concertgoer told Reuters, some fans created multiple Ticketmaster accounts and spent thousands of dollars just to get tickets. For him, and many, the hassle and the costs were worth it–in part, because the pandemic left people with a higher-than-normal demand for these types of experiences.

Congress, as well as the Senate, have both introduced measures to make the ticket purchasing process easier and more user friendly. As Barrons reports, Congress recently introduced an act that would ban ticket sellers from hiding fees from consumers, and would ban third party apps from selling tickets they don’t already own. A similar act, discussed in the Senate, would prevent bots from buying up concert tickets, preventing potential concertgoers from accessing them themselves.

Image courtesy of Getty Images