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Any way you look at it, 2010 was a challenging year for the touring business. There are, of course, plenty of ways to look at it. And, to be sure, business wasn't down for everyone. Certain sectors -- including country, most major festivals and tours by superstars in pop, urban and dance/electronic-performed well.
The enduring draw of superstars is reflected by the achievements of the year's top touring acts, including Bon Jovi, U2, AC/DC, Lady Gaga and the Black Eyed Peas. Other veteran talents account for the balance of the year's top 10 tours: James Taylor/Carole King, the Eagles, Metallica, the Dave Matthews Band and Paul McCartney.
But for various (announced) reasons, tours or concerts were postponed, canceled or reconfigured this year by a diverse group of acts and tours, including Lilith Fair, Christina Aguilera, Jonas Brothers, American Idols Live, the Eagles, Simon and Garfunkel, Rihanna and Limp Bizkit.
Overall the numbers reported to Billboard Boxscore are way down, and while those numbers are certainly telling, they're only part of the story.
Even so, Boxscore numbers are at least a place to start. Worldwide, $3.3 billion in grosses was reported from 14,795 shows that drew slightly more than 65 million people. That's a 26.4 percent decrease in gross, a 12.3 percent decrease in attendance and, after years of increased show counts, a 14 percent decrease in the number of shows reported.
In North America, which seems to have born the brunt of a tough year, the numbers showed a similar slide: $2.1 billion in grosses from 11,555 shows that drew 38 million people were reported, down 26 percent in gross, 24.4 percent in attendance and 15.8 percent in the number of shows. The red flag in North America is attendance, which is down double what global numbers reflect.
In short, an industry that weathered a brutal economy in 2009 struggled in 2010. The big question is, Why?
Leading up to last year's strong touring business performance, concerts were given the mantle as the savior of the music business and in large part impervious to economic recessions. That view is out the window this year, not just for concerts but also for live events in general.
Live Nation Entertainment CEO Michael Rapino says consumers didn't single out concerts when choosing where not to spend their money in 2010.
Rapino tells Billboard via e-mail that reports from ticketing giant Ticketmaster, which merged with Live Nation in 2010, show that ticket sales were down 11 percent for the global concert industry, down 13 percent for performing arts events, 5 percent for sports events and 5 percent for family shows. "Everything got hit in 2010," Rapino says.
Many believe that there is more at play here than an economic recession. "To say that because of unemployment or the economy that people stopped going to shows generalizes what actually happened," AEG Live CEO Randy Phillips says. "If an artist is hot, people are motivated to find a way to go. If they're not, I don't care how much money you spend on marketing or how you package things, it's not going to work."
Marc Geiger, contemporary music head for William Morris Endeavor, say it was indeed a "quite challenging year" for the concert industry, and much of the reason why has to do with customer satisfaction.
"The feeling here is we need to re-engage and figure out a new way to make (customers) feel better than the standard concert experience to regain the growth" and retain customers, Geiger says. "We need a product that's new and improved. That's what's needed, and doing it among disparate companies, artists, promoters and venues is a challenge. We need real leadership."
(Editing by Bob Tourtellotte)