Blog: touring

Another day, another record for Taylor Swift. As Wall Street Journal broke down this week, the superstar is now on track to achieve the first $1 billion tour in music history. A billion factors and decisions led up to this moment, with Swift’s songwriting artistry and business savvy high among them.

The live music industry is now facing the reckoning we predicted last spring, as it is increasingly clear that touring is not financially sustainable for most artists, while superstars are facing backlash for skyrocketing ticket prices.

The news is everywhere: concerts are back. Coachella heralded the return of a roaring festival season, hundreds of acts are back on the road, and Live Nation says it is expecting a record year. But other headlines paint a different picture: Little Simz canceled her tour because it was not financially viable for her as an independent artist, reporters are calling out many venues for taking a 25% cut of merch sales, artists everywhere are struggling with the financial — not just health — risk of contracting coronavirus on tour, live music revenue has not yet bounced back , and tweets like these are going viral.