Although in its early stages, JAY-Z‘s first solo tour in a few years is looking to be his most successful ever.
Billboard is reporting that sales for Jigga’s 4:44 Tour are up 22% compared to his last one, 2013’s Magna Carter Tour, just three days into the tour. Part of this is due to the aggressive ticket pricing for the tour, in which Live Nation is charging market rates for the prime seating throughout. This tactic was implemented in an effort to stop scalpers, who are rumored to be reselling tickets for as low as $6 on StubHub.
“Sales for JAY-Z’s tour represent a paradigm shift in concert tickets: by more aggressively pricing front row seats, VIP experiences and platinum tickets, concert promoters are getting increasingly more skilled at commanding high prices and record grosses from their best seating inventory,” the article says. “That’s bad news for ticket resellers — by pricing tickets closer to actual market value, JAY-Z and Live Nation are capturing more revenue and creating little room for brokers to mark up the best seats.”
Artists like The Weeknd, U2, and Radiohead have done similar, offering low-priced “get-in-the-door” tickets on StubHub. Live Nation has also released “large blocks of tickets” to the public 24 hours prior at a reasonable price, spiking sales prior to Jay hitting the stage. For example, the DopeHouse’s Shake went to the Las Vegas stop on October 28th, and purchased a ticket the day before for only $30.
The result of these tactics are proving financially successful, and Jay is reportedly pulling in roughly seven figures per stop.
“This might be the future of ticketing,” Patrick Ryan, of ticketing and inventory company Eventellect, explains. “We are seeing many creative pricing strategies and we are seeing artists find what works for them. You generate a ton of revenue up front, but you still have a $25 price point that makes it more affordable for individuals who want to see an arena show.”
