What Ticketmaster Doesn't Want You To Know: Concerts Were Cheap For Decades

Ticketmaster and Live Nation have destroyed the concert experience. But it didn't use to be this way. Today, Oasis and Taylor Swift tickets might go for thousands of dollars, but back in 1955, you could see Elvis Presley in concert for less than the modern-day equivalent of $20.

We investigated further and found ticket stubs from the biggest acts between 1970-1989, and they all cost around $45. Now you’re paying exorbitant service fees and indie venues are getting squeezed, all because two corporations gobbled up the industry.

So how did they do it? Watch our full deep dive into the history of concerts over the last 70 years and how corporate greed turned one of the most populist forms of entertainment into a luxury good.

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[BeardOfRiker]

Ticketmaster being allowed to have their own secondary market to re-sell tickets and collect even more fees is insanity.

[tarabooartarmy]

Funny how ticket scalping is illegal, but Ticketmaster can do whatever it wants.

[untitledpnk]

This is why I no longer go to big shows. Local shows, local venues; buy the tickets directly from the venue. And buy merch.

[solidsnake]

The bit where the CEO literally admitted their goal is to turn accessible life experiences into luxuries akin to designer bags made me sick to my stomach.

[Roger-vzol]

I honestly can't think of one business that is not plagued by monopolizaton. It is a ferocious cancer that is literally destroying this country. 🤬🤬🤬

[SnarkyRamit]

Stop Going to Concerts. Inflated Tickets, $20 Beer, $75 Going.

[ohiasdxfcghbljokasdjhnfvawehr]

that guy is a true american hero. if you think you're too good to hold a plunger, then you don't deserve to be in charge of anyone.

[raccoontrashpanda]

Watching Ticketmaster destroy huge numbers of small live music scenes around the globe the past couple of decades has been really depressing.

[axelvetter]

In July 2024 Taylor Swift played two concerts here in Hamburg, Germany. I met several Americans who had flown to our city to see her and spend a week in our city. I asked them why they didn't attend a concert in the US. They replied tickets were between US$ 1, 300 and 2, 500 in the States but US$ 200 in Germany so they actually saved some money while going on vacation.

[adziak]

Core problem - monopoly. Tickets should be available to purchase directly from artist, label not a third party.

[pierrenavaille]

I bought a ticket to see Led Zeppelin in 1977 for $10. That was the year Robert Plant's son died, and they cancelled the tour. They refunded my ticket and gave me 25 cents for my trouble.

[princesskaguya]

I am dumbfounded that artists can literally be forced to use a service they want nothing to do with. Crazy

[JeantheSecond-ipqm]

Back in the 90s, some musicians I liked testified in front of Congress about the Ticketmaster monopoly. Government siding with corporations got us here.

[miladyhelen]

When I told my my son I saw Metallica in 1988 (plus Van Halen plus Scorpions plus Dokken) for like $40 he looked at me in complete disbelief.

[seanmolloy]

Ticketmaster is the ultimate scum of the earth and is ruined everything they've ever touched. I stopped going to any kind of venue of any sort that Ticketmaster was involved with because the nickel and dime you with fees every step of the way till the tickets are twice the price of what they should be.

[steventaylor]

I used to wonder how my parents afforded all the concerts they would tell me about, cause they sure as hell didn't have money. Things make a lot more sense now.

[THE_BEAR_JEW]

My dad told me he was able to see guys like RHCP, Beastie Boys, Spin Doctors, Jane's Addiction, Nirvana, Pearl Jam, etc for like $20 in the 90s. Crazy to think about how these days that might not even get you a beer at a concert.

[greaty]

I went to a few concerts in Korea. Even for top artists, I paid like $90 plus some $2 service fee, and that price is fixed no matter how much demand there is. Meanwhile Ticketmaster pretends they need to sell a $50 seat for $500 or else they'll go broke 🤡

[everythingmatters]

I'm a former musician. I've boycotted all concerts with Ticketmaster fees for 22 years. As long as others continue to support Ticketmaster with their consumer dollar they will continue to buy our politicians and thrive. The American public could put this evil corporation out of business in one year if they would simply all agree to a boycott.

[SamAsm]

I remember when Pearl Jam challenged Ticketmaster in congress. I didn't think anything of it because when I was a kid, that's what artists did. I think something of it now.