Michael Rapino, the CEO of Live Nation, thinks concert tickets don’t cost enough and expects prices to continue increasing.
Today’s top musicians are putting on much larger concerts than ever before. Stadium tours are now common, and even large indoor venues aren’t big enough for superstars like Taylor Swift, Beyoncé, and Kendrick Lamar.
Even though more people are going to concerts, ticket prices have increased dramatically. A recent example is Oasis’ reunion tour, where some fans paid as much as £1000 (about $1300) just to stand in the general admission area.
The price of a ticket isn’t the full cost, though. When you buy from official sellers like Ticketmaster and Live Nation, they add extra fees that significantly increase the total price.
Live Nation CEO Michael Rapino believes concert tickets could actually be priced higher. He pointed to examples like expensive NBA courtside seats – people willingly spend tens of thousands of dollars for those – and contrasted that with criticism his company receives when charging $800 for a Beyoncé concert ticket.
— TopMob (@TopMob) September 24, 2025
Live Nation CEO hints at concert ticket prices still rising
Don’t expect concert ticket prices to drop anytime soon. According to Live Nation CEO Michael Rapino, concerts are actually cheaper than sporting events, and he sees room for prices to continue increasing.
He pointed out the irony that people will happily spend a lot of money on sports tickets-like $70,000 for courtside seats at a Knicks game-but complain about paying $800 to see Beyoncé. He feels music is often undervalued compared to sports, as he shared at the CNBC and Boardroom’s Game Plan conference.
As a huge concert fan, I keep hearing about ticket prices, but honestly, I think they’re still a great deal! They say the average is around $72, and when you think about it, that’s less than what you’d pay for a single Lakers game – and there are tons of those throughout the season! It feels like concerts have been underpriced for a long time, and we’re still getting a lot of value for our money.
Rapino noted that tour costs are increasing, citing Beyoncé’s ‘Cowboy Carter’ tour, which requires 62 trucks for each performance.
She puts on a spectacular performance every night – it’s like a Super Bowl-level event. Ten years ago, there were only about ten tour trucks needed, but now it’s much more involved.
However, the Federal Trade Commission is taking legal action against Ticketmaster and Live Nation, alleging they engaged in unlawful ticket reselling and misleading pricing practices.
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2025-09-25 12:49