MCR face backlash over ticket prices
Earlier this month, the band dropped a cryptic teaser image, with many fans wondering if they may finally be getting some new music. Other than a surprise song release back in 2022, they've been more of a touring act than anything and fans have been thirsty for some new tracks or information ever since. To some fans delight and some's disappointment, the teaser actually turned out to be for yet another tour. Not just any tour, this would be a stadium tour on the back of what many consider to be the band's magnus opus, The Black Parade - a fan favorite that the band once swore they would never again perform in its entirety. Although many fans were disgruntled by what they perceived as a bait-n-switch, the majority were happy to open their wallets, gearing up for the infamous sport that is modern day ticketing. UNTIL...
Fans aren’t happy about My Chemical Romance’s ticket prices: “$695 is NASTY WORK”
The band will embark on a US stadium tour celebrating 'The Black Parade' next summer https://t.co/Mh2T5B0ICW
- NME (@NME) November 16, 2024
Fans were only given 3 days notice before ticket sales were open, so people were pretty anxious about the possible prices - with no time to work extra shifts or set aside extra money, many were worried the tickets would cut into their holiday budgets. On Friday, November 15th, sales officially opened... and the prices were even worse than expected. Fans who logged in as early as 9 AM sharp were forced to sit in queue for tickets that quickly soared to a smuch as $800 or even $2,000 a piece. Three things were to blame for the pricing.
1. Base prices were already too high for most. The worst nose bleeds in the entire stadium already started around $75 a pop, with pit tickets starting somewhere in the $300-400 range BEFORE fees, which brought many tickets as high as $600-700 straight out the gate. Anyone whose been to a stadium show knows that those worst seats are borderline useless - many not even facing the stage, and so far away that you're lucky to see anything with binoculars.
2. Dynamic pricing. Dynamic pricing allows ticket prices to wildly, quickly fluctuate based on the number of clicks. This led to $75 nosebleeds almost instantly becoming $200, then $300, and eventually even $600 or $700 nosebleeds for shows in New Jersey and California. Contrary to popular believe, dynamic pricing is NOT up to Ticketmaster. This has recently been confirmed by other artists, such as Taylor Swift, Ed Sheeran, Oasis, and The Cure, who all publicly chose not to allow it (although Oasis only opted out after their first batch of tickets received intense backlash for the prices). Ticketmaster would LIKE for artists to opt in to dynamic pricing, but they are able to opt out. Most simply choose not to. You can hear Robert Smith of The Cure talk about it in detail here.
3. No cap on resale prices. Another Ticketmaster feature allows artists to put a cap on resale tickets, only allowing them to be sold directly through Ticketmaster at face value. This makes it MUCH less profitable for scalpers, although there are a few work arounds. The band (like, sadly, many others) chose to opt out of resale caps. This led to the vast majority of pit and floor tickets IMMEDIATELY selling out to scalpers. Due to scalper, panic buying, and the band labeling this concert a "once in a lifetime experience", many fans bit the bullet and dished out as much as $2500 or more for tickets closer to the stage. Ironically, in somse cities, there are still many tickets sitting unsold due to people's inability to afford the scalper fees.
This has led to quite a bit of unrest in the fandom. Some believe the band did no wrong and deserve every cent they can get their hands on, while others feel like the band let them down. Since some of the band's past works and concepts have conveyed a vaguely left-of-center, anti-establishment sentiment at times, many were hoping they'd "be one of the good ones" and set things in motion to protect fans, particularly after all the good press bands like The Cure received this year for demanding affordable ticket and merch prices, refusing to bend the knee for Ticketmaster's demands.
Basic things like a cap on resale prices or disabling dynamic pricing (which, again, are ultimately up to the band - NOT Ticketmaster) would've made the tickets, while still pricey, slightly more accessible for your average fan. With most MCR fans being in their 20s and 30s, few have an extra $1500-2000 laying around to put on concert tickets, and few want to dish out $400 for nosebleed stadium seats with basically no view. In cities where you can still find a few $200 tickets (in many, they're all long gone to scalpers), most get up to $400+ after fees.
Many wonder if they'll be sitting in a half empty stadium thanks to sheer number of tickets that were nabbed by scalpers.
Of course, prices will fall closer to the show - but with the tour having only 10 dates (2 in California), many who were planning to travel for their nearest show will not be able to buy last-minute markdown tickets the day of. This has led to a bit of a fandom meltdown on various social media platforms, with some fans feeling a bit disappointed to find their millionaire, punk-of-center rockstar faves just might be... capitalists, going out of their way to let ticket prices fly high to the skies. This has become the emo kid's equivalent to the Taylor Swift Eras Tour, but maybe worse, because even she spoke out against dynamic pricing (although her face value prices were already insane).
What's the most you've ever paid for concert tickets, ONTD?
SOURCE: T witter, YouTube, Exclaim! Magazine
Fans aren’t happy about My Chemical Romance’s ticket prices: “$695 is NASTY WORK”
The band will embark on a US stadium tour celebrating 'The Black Parade' next summer https://t.co/Mh2T5B0ICW
- NME (@NME) November 16, 2024
Fans were only given 3 days notice before ticket sales were open, so people were pretty anxious about the possible prices - with no time to work extra shifts or set aside extra money, many were worried the tickets would cut into their holiday budgets. On Friday, November 15th, sales officially opened... and the prices were even worse than expected. Fans who logged in as early as 9 AM sharp were forced to sit in queue for tickets that quickly soared to a smuch as $800 or even $2,000 a piece. Three things were to blame for the pricing.
1. Base prices were already too high for most. The worst nose bleeds in the entire stadium already started around $75 a pop, with pit tickets starting somewhere in the $300-400 range BEFORE fees, which brought many tickets as high as $600-700 straight out the gate. Anyone whose been to a stadium show knows that those worst seats are borderline useless - many not even facing the stage, and so far away that you're lucky to see anything with binoculars.
2. Dynamic pricing. Dynamic pricing allows ticket prices to wildly, quickly fluctuate based on the number of clicks. This led to $75 nosebleeds almost instantly becoming $200, then $300, and eventually even $600 or $700 nosebleeds for shows in New Jersey and California. Contrary to popular believe, dynamic pricing is NOT up to Ticketmaster. This has recently been confirmed by other artists, such as Taylor Swift, Ed Sheeran, Oasis, and The Cure, who all publicly chose not to allow it (although Oasis only opted out after their first batch of tickets received intense backlash for the prices). Ticketmaster would LIKE for artists to opt in to dynamic pricing, but they are able to opt out. Most simply choose not to. You can hear Robert Smith of The Cure talk about it in detail here.
3. No cap on resale prices. Another Ticketmaster feature allows artists to put a cap on resale tickets, only allowing them to be sold directly through Ticketmaster at face value. This makes it MUCH less profitable for scalpers, although there are a few work arounds. The band (like, sadly, many others) chose to opt out of resale caps. This led to the vast majority of pit and floor tickets IMMEDIATELY selling out to scalpers. Due to scalper, panic buying, and the band labeling this concert a "once in a lifetime experience", many fans bit the bullet and dished out as much as $2500 or more for tickets closer to the stage. Ironically, in somse cities, there are still many tickets sitting unsold due to people's inability to afford the scalper fees.
This has led to quite a bit of unrest in the fandom. Some believe the band did no wrong and deserve every cent they can get their hands on, while others feel like the band let them down. Since some of the band's past works and concepts have conveyed a vaguely left-of-center, anti-establishment sentiment at times, many were hoping they'd "be one of the good ones" and set things in motion to protect fans, particularly after all the good press bands like The Cure received this year for demanding affordable ticket and merch prices, refusing to bend the knee for Ticketmaster's demands.
Basic things like a cap on resale prices or disabling dynamic pricing (which, again, are ultimately up to the band - NOT Ticketmaster) would've made the tickets, while still pricey, slightly more accessible for your average fan. With most MCR fans being in their 20s and 30s, few have an extra $1500-2000 laying around to put on concert tickets, and few want to dish out $400 for nosebleed stadium seats with basically no view. In cities where you can still find a few $200 tickets (in many, they're all long gone to scalpers), most get up to $400+ after fees.
Many wonder if they'll be sitting in a half empty stadium thanks to sheer number of tickets that were nabbed by scalpers.
Of course, prices will fall closer to the show - but with the tour having only 10 dates (2 in California), many who were planning to travel for their nearest show will not be able to buy last-minute markdown tickets the day of. This has led to a bit of a fandom meltdown on various social media platforms, with some fans feeling a bit disappointed to find their millionaire, punk-of-center rockstar faves just might be... capitalists, going out of their way to let ticket prices fly high to the skies. This has become the emo kid's equivalent to the Taylor Swift Eras Tour, but maybe worse, because even she spoke out against dynamic pricing (although her face value prices were already insane).
What's the most you've ever paid for concert tickets, ONTD?
SOURCE: T witter, YouTube, Exclaim! Magazine