MIDiA, Bandsintown release landmark ‘Return to live’ study

Top music and entertainment consultancy MIDiA has released a landmark report, ‘Return to live | Post-pandemic music fans’ based on data from top global live event discovery platform Bandsintown.

This survey of 2691 US and UK live music fans from Bandsintown’s community of 80 million offers the clearest picture yet of today’s live music audiences and where the live music is headed.

MIDiA and Bandsintown asked what motivates them to buy tickets, how much they spend, their favorite live genres, the impact of rising ticket prices, and more, with some surprising results.

Growth in live music is far from over, but…

39% of concertgoers surveyed say they will attend more shows this year than last, and just 15% said they’d go to less.

But customer willingness to spend cannot be taken for granted. According to the study, “the higher-spending audiences for superstar shows at arenas and stadiums are the ones most aggravated by rising prices, added fees, and the purchasing experience” Those same fans are a;so the most likely to attend fewer concerts in 2023 than in 2022.

“The takeaway is clear: there is high demand for live music experiences, but these fans cannot be taken for granted,” said Tatiana Cirisano, Senior Music Industry Analyst and Consultant, MIDiA Research

Fandom rules

The study found that Fandom is the primary driver for attendance, with 90% of respondents citing it as their top reason for attending live shows, followed far behind by show location and ticket price. 44% are even willing to fly to see their favorite artist perform if they can’t see them close to home.

Fandom “is the driving force for the live music industry, and it will become increasingly important for younger audiences who are more selective about their live experiences. While fandom pulls people in, the cost of tickets is what will push them away,” said Kriss Thakrar, Consultant, MIDiA Research

New Artist Discovery

While “it was my favorite artist – I could not miss it” won by a landslide in the survey, only a quarter of fans are most motivated by the desire to see an artist for the first time.

Those curious and active fans are key for artists building a fanbase that will buy tickets and reaching that audience has been central to Bandsintown For Artists and its free toolkit since its inception. The study also suggests that “live music and recorded music teams should be more closely linked and aligned on fan development.”

“Despite the challenges for more established artists, revealed in this landmark study,” said Fabrice Sergent, Co-Founder, and Managing Partner of Bandsintown, “explosive demand for live experiences, together with online discovery platforms, provides an unprecedented opportunity for rising acts to build fandom and sell tickets and merch.”

Rock is still #1, but that’s changing

65% of concertgoers name Rock among their top-three preferred music genres. But that could be changing. 16-19-year-olds prefer pop music (68%) as their top live genre. “The dominance of rock in the live circuit will likely diminish over time as the younger generation’s preference takes hold,” according to the study.

Find more on “Return to live | Post-pandemic music fans’ and how to purchase the full report here.

MORE: Bandsintown passes 80 MILLION registered live music fans and 589,000 artists

Bruce Houghton is the Founder and Editor of Hypebot