Bands just wanna have fans
Would you like a backstage pass, photograph, program, autograph, T-shirt and fries with your next concert ticket?
Hundreds of music fans are now prepared to spend up to $1000 for a concert ticket with the lot instead of queueing overnight to secure a precious front-row position.
Promoters and bands have become increasingly savvy about reaping maximum profits from an Australian tour by charging premium prices for the best seats.
The trend began with the Madonna Girlie tour in 1993 with cashed-up fans paying $200 for limited Gold tickets at the front of the stage.
As the Australian dollar slipped and production costs and artist fees rose, promoters introduced tiered ticketing systems, charging higher prices for premium seats and less for those in the rafters.
“The older fans of your major acts don’t want to queue all night or day to get the better seats and we started to see that with the big stadium tours of Madonna, Billy Joel and Elton John and The Eagles,” promoter Michael Chugg says – “so they will pay extra to guarantee they are in the first lot of seats.
Even with acts like Robbie Williams, about 600 fans paid $450 each for their tickets, dinner and drinks.”
Band fan clubs have also developed packages offering “money-can’t-buy” extras from backstage meet-and-greets to limited edition collectibles and merchandise.
“Bands will ask us to keep a certain amount of tickets aside for fan club members and in most cases, there will be extra stuff for the fans.”
One of the most popular premium packages offered recently were the $1000 packages for the Prince concerts last October.
Promoter Paul Dainty and Prince’s representatives devised the packages where up to 200 fans in each city spent a day and night, including sitting and dancing on stage, with the superstar.
“We could have sold those tickets 100 times over,” Mr Dainty said.
From an article by Kathy McCabe on The Daily Telegraph