Big names like Bon Jovi and Paul McCartney fail to sell out arena concerts after decade of growth in gig market
Bon Jovi failed to sell out their tour last year, as the gig market appeared to be cooling. Photograph: Kevin Mazur/WireImage
It was billed as the saviour of the music industry, and the way to make money while CD sales dropped further each year. But the live music industry stuttered last year, analysts have revealed.
In the UK, live music revenues dropped by 6.7%, after a decade of growth that saw income increase by 9.4% in 2009 and 13% in 2008, said Chris Carey, economist at PRS for Music, the rights collecting body.
Bon Jovi failed to sell out their arena tour last year, while fans of Paul McCartney could get tickets at less than face value before his Hard Rock Calling gig in Hyde Park last summer.
In Europe the picture was worse – with arena music gigs seeing a 16% drop in attendances. But ticket sales for European festivals, like Soundwave in Croatia where young revellers dance day and night at boat parties, were still healthy, he said. There was a 6% increase in attendances in 2010, a 15% increase in capacity and 10% more EU festivals sold out.
Speaking at the Great Escape conference in Brighton, which finished this weekend, Carey said the live market was cooling down, after 10 years of successive growth but was not in grave danger.
"I don't think this is a disaster, I think it is a blip, I'm not worried about the future of live music," said Carey. There had been a lack of big name live acts touring last year, which was set to change in 2011.
"Take That going back on tour with Robbie is a game-changer," he said. "Our opinion is that live is cooling to a more sustainable growth level."
The picture is much bleaker for recorded music, which saw an 11% drop in trade value, the amount which goes back to the record label, in 2010. A look at the charts from 2009 to 2010 was more worrying still, three of the top 10 albums of 2010 were also in the top 10 of 2009, while five of the top 10 selling albums in 2010 were not released that year.
"Is this measure of some very successful albums like Lady Gaga's The Fame that has been re-released or a cause for concern that there were not five or six new albums fighting for that space?," said Carey.
The phenomenal success of Adele, who's 21 and has the best-selling digital album of all time, spending 14 of the past 15 weeks in the top spot, would help 2011 sales figures, although the health of the recorded market would depend heavily on the future of HMV. "The role of supply on the high street is going to be critical," said Carey.
Experts worry that the drop in the music industry takings is resulting in a lack of investment and fewer new bands making it into the charts. During a panel called; "How to make money from music", David Bianchi from Various Artists Management argued that there were very few new bands coming through the charts because record labels were only putting money into a smaller number of acts.
"When there is a spark of life, like Plan B or Adele, they invest the whole farm on it," he said. "But new acts simply aren't coming through because there is a lack of investment on all sides."
But new bands had to be willing to get their hands dirty he said. "If you want to do it, just do it. Sleep in tents and in laybys, look filthy, be dirty."
Source http://www.guardian.co.uk/
In the UK, live music revenues dropped by 6.7%, after a decade of growth that saw income increase by 9.4% in 2009 and 13% in 2008, said Chris Carey, economist at PRS for Music, the rights collecting body.
Bon Jovi failed to sell out their arena tour last year, while fans of Paul McCartney could get tickets at less than face value before his Hard Rock Calling gig in Hyde Park last summer.
In Europe the picture was worse – with arena music gigs seeing a 16% drop in attendances. But ticket sales for European festivals, like Soundwave in Croatia where young revellers dance day and night at boat parties, were still healthy, he said. There was a 6% increase in attendances in 2010, a 15% increase in capacity and 10% more EU festivals sold out.
Speaking at the Great Escape conference in Brighton, which finished this weekend, Carey said the live market was cooling down, after 10 years of successive growth but was not in grave danger.
"I don't think this is a disaster, I think it is a blip, I'm not worried about the future of live music," said Carey. There had been a lack of big name live acts touring last year, which was set to change in 2011.
"Take That going back on tour with Robbie is a game-changer," he said. "Our opinion is that live is cooling to a more sustainable growth level."
The picture is much bleaker for recorded music, which saw an 11% drop in trade value, the amount which goes back to the record label, in 2010. A look at the charts from 2009 to 2010 was more worrying still, three of the top 10 albums of 2010 were also in the top 10 of 2009, while five of the top 10 selling albums in 2010 were not released that year.
"Is this measure of some very successful albums like Lady Gaga's The Fame that has been re-released or a cause for concern that there were not five or six new albums fighting for that space?," said Carey.
The phenomenal success of Adele, who's 21 and has the best-selling digital album of all time, spending 14 of the past 15 weeks in the top spot, would help 2011 sales figures, although the health of the recorded market would depend heavily on the future of HMV. "The role of supply on the high street is going to be critical," said Carey.
Experts worry that the drop in the music industry takings is resulting in a lack of investment and fewer new bands making it into the charts. During a panel called; "How to make money from music", David Bianchi from Various Artists Management argued that there were very few new bands coming through the charts because record labels were only putting money into a smaller number of acts.
"When there is a spark of life, like Plan B or Adele, they invest the whole farm on it," he said. "But new acts simply aren't coming through because there is a lack of investment on all sides."
But new bands had to be willing to get their hands dirty he said. "If you want to do it, just do it. Sleep in tents and in laybys, look filthy, be dirty."
Source http://www.guardian.co.uk/
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