are concert culture & fan entitlement worse than ever? | Internet Analysis

TIME STAMPS:
0:00 - intro
3:39 - thanks, Milanote!
4:52 - tbt to buying tickets at the box office
6:29 - what it's like to buy tickets now
7:48 - credit card presales
9:10 - the Eras Tour sale disaster
10:25 - ABSURD PRICES
12:09 - and the FEES!
13:46 - the resale market
15:51 - some artists participate in ticket inflation!
17:19 - fans compete; who deserves tickets?
19:36 - bad concert etiquette & the worst offenders
20:44 - (rudely) competing for front row
21:17 - disruptive photos & videos
22:37 - desperate acts to get your fav's attention
23:44 - the Maggie Rogers Hollywood Bowl situation
26:44 - is live music about community or individual experiences?
28:11 - solutions??

RESOURCES & REFERENCES:

TIKTOKS:

Tiffany Ferguson (she/her), 27 years old. #internetanalysis #concertetiquette #concerttickets

This episode was co-written by Sheriden Smith!

FTC: This video is sponsored by Milanote. Links with * are affiliate, meaning I am compensated monetarily if you join or make a purchase.

[juliahamilton]

Something I’ve noticed a lot lately has been really poor concert etiquette during openers! Even if you aren’t interested in an opening act, there’s always been an understanding that performers are to be respected in venues! At least don’t be on your phone and ignore the act if you’re in the front rows!

[fulgurixx]

one of the aspects of “new” concert behaviour that tends to give me anxiety when going to shows is how comfortable people are with filming others and putting them online (esp. on tiktok) 😭 as a plus sized woman with a limited, mostly plain black wardrobe, being filmed and put in a video that’s meant to “analyse how x city dressed for a show” (which i have seen done for beyoncé’s renaissance tour, and where people in the comment section are incredibly uhhh.. “generous” in sharing their fashion criticism) is literally one of my biggest fears

[LoveAndSnapple]

Honestly, I’m getting really tired of people using lockdown and quarantine as one of the reasons for people’s horrible behavior. You’d think that we were in quarantine for like 50 years under some gigantic Simpsons dome when the pandemic was at its strictest for like, two years.

Being socially delayed for 2 years doesn’t mean people need to become a public menace for all time. 😒

[grey.poupon]

For Bad Bunny's recent tour in Puerto Rico he did multiple things right in the sales that more should follow, I think.
He sold the tickets only in person, which makes it inaccessible to everyone but also guarantees that only locals can go to the show- which is a huge problem we've had before. He also prohibited resales and limited tickets per person.
The first day of the concert he had multiple livestreams going- 3 official 'viewing centers' which were packed and 100% free, as well as multiple unofficial ones too and livestreaming on a cable network. So really everyone had a chance to enjoy the concert and I think more artists should take ideas from him.

[mfuentes]

I feel like the online culture of toxic stans/fandoms overgrowing and flourishing throughout the pandemic is a significant reason as to why general concert behavior has deteriorated. People get emboldened when they’re not held accountable for their toxic behavior online and it makes them think that that type of bad/entitled behavior is tolerated in public spaces.

[oliviabrazier]

I was hanging out with this girl who was trying to buy tickets to the eras tour movie, and she was really nervous about not getting opening day tickets. When I talked to her later she told me she had been able to get the tickets, but she “had” to sit in a handicapped seat. This girl isn’t disabled. I was so appalled that she would be that entitled. What if a disabled person had wanted to go? It didn’t even occur to her that what she was doing was wrong.

[marlieblue]

Lately I’ve been feeling like music is just another thing that belongs to the wealthy. It’s extremely disheartening as a musician to contend with the fact that i probably wouldn’t be able to afford tickets to my own hypothetical shows lmfao

[Thegrandpineapple]

Streaming concerts at theaters would actually be a really good idea to utilize dying theater spaces as well.

[gothmoth]

Camping for concerts has also become out of hand. Before, you could get barricade if you showed up three hours before. Now people are camping for DAYS, sometimes even a WEEK for artists like Harry Styles or K-Pop Groups. It’s not only unsafe, it’s also disruptive and just unnecessary to go through.

[-chloe-]

something i’ve noticed with some younger fans is that they’ll barely engage with the concert. they’ll be texting the whole time, talking about random stuff, take selfies etc. i went to mcr and got weird looks for singing along and dancing, i was so confused, esp since it was a rock show.

[elise]

In France we can't resell concert tickets for a higher price and it works pretty well. Ticketmaster resell site does comply with the legislation as well

[gLp]

the amount of people who filmed their own reactions the entire Eras tour show was CTAZY. a girl in front of me made her friend take pictures of her during every song. it was wild and
kind of upsetting

[Aerfoxes]

I have the best time at small, local shows where the main focus is the music, and not the idolisation of those on stage!! Besides that, I really want to say that you’re one of my favourite creators on youtube :) You always upload with captions, have ethical and logical sponsorships that are genuinely interesting and you’re well-paced, not clickbaiting or spamming pictures so people will have to pause and rewind (which helps pushing videos in the algorithm) So, thank you!!

[gwendolynmitchell]

To share a more positive concert experience, I saw Harry Styles last summer and about halfway through the show I fainted from overheating. Overall quite a traumatic experience for myself and my partner (who had to carry me out to get medical attention) BUT the fans around us were so amazing! One fan followed us out, carrying all of our stuff for us. And when I was cleared to go back inside we got up to our seats and everyone asked if I was okay. An usher followed us up and offered for us to sit somewhere quieter so we followed him back out and a fan (having not heard the convo, and thinking I was getting kicked out) started chanting “let her stay! let her stay!” 😂

[laura-zbux]

i was at the london boygenius gig. one person insisted shoved me back so that their three late friends could take my place and then accused me (queer) of being homophobic for protesting, and threatened to knock me out. the other people were lovely but i have definitely noticed the huge rise in entitlement - i suspect that they are emboldened by online echochambers

[junkiemozart]

I think that Boygenius is such an interesting band to be involved in this, solely because of the fans. I went to one of their gigs and at this particular one the band had a native hold a land acknowledgment. The crowd would not stop cheering as he detailed stories of horrific colonization, and he was obviously very uncomfortable with the response. It was a really cool thing for them to do, but unfortunately wasn’t given as much attention as it should have.

There were also fans who screamed 5+ times, "LUCY, take my flag!!" and she would glance over at them and obviously ignore it. In my opinion the combination of TikTok echo chambers and niche communities really lends itself to turn into this monster of a crowd. Everyone ends up thinking that because they’re in this group that their behavior is excusable, whether it be of how big of a fan they’re trying to be, or what TikTok told them was okay, or trying to garner similar attention that they saw someone else get popular for.

[SilverstreamPJ]

I do think it's worse, it's like people forgot how to behave outside. Even going to the movies, people will NOT S T F U. I have to CONSTANTLY shush both adults and teenagers having full blown conversations at normal voice volume in the middle of an effing movie. This had NEVER happened to me before the pandemic, and now it's a constant every time I go see a movie.

[babyg]

It’s weird b/c I’m gen z & going to concerts was always on my bucket list when I was younger. Now, it’s damn near impossible. The cost of 2-3mos rent for tickets to still only be able to view them on a LARGE SCREEN(just like you can at home) is asinine. Not too mention the trampeding affect becoming the norm since the astroworld fatalities. Concerts are basically now for the aesthetic—not the music. Ppl are literally going brok or in deep debt to get the perfect outfit, perfect pics etc. concert culture will die soon just like club culture b/c once again….social/media/tech/cell phones ruined it!!!

[Bandwagons]

A few years ago, Nine Inch Nails went on tour and only sold tickets at the venue. No online sales, you had to line up to get them. It sounded like a great solution but ended up being such a mess. In my city, it was 90 degrees with no shade around the venue. A few people needed medical attention. Because the theater wasn't used to this kind of sales, they didn't have the staff in the box office that was needed for that many people, making it take much longer than expected.

Plus anyone who couldn't dedicate an entire day to it just didn't get to participate - I was privileged enough to be able to schedule my work hours that day and still almost didn't make my closing shift at 5 pm (I'd been in line since 6 am). So it still discriminates against disabled and low income people, just in a more physical way instead of purely monetary.

[poeticwillow]

I went to a Waterparks show a few months ago, and the crowd was unbearable. They were screaming at the singer, throwing money at him when he told them to stop, and throwing things like bracelets onstage- the guitarist nearly slipped on one. They also kept making lewd comments about the band and screaming them out, and there was absolutely ZERO crowd etiquette. Totally ruined the experience that we spent all day traveling for :(