U2 and Christina Aguilera Cancel Concert Tours, opening the door for The Eagles

[vivfox]

Published May 25, 2010 by:
Ron Hart

An Older Band Cancels Because of Medical Issues, a Newer Act Can't Sell Tickets While a Band Wrapping it Up Has a Last Gasp
The summer concert season was turned upside down today, as mega group U2 and solo star Christina Aguilera canceled their tours.

U2 canceled their shows due to their lead singer Bono's injured back while Christina Aguilera claimed that her work on two upcoming projects, a film called Burlesque, and her upcoming album, Bionic, did not leave enough time for her to rehearse fully for the tour.

While it has been well documented that Bono needed recent emergency back surgery and that U2 remains a very strong draw on the concert circuit, skeptics are saying that Aguilera's decision may have more to do with weak ticket sales than anything else.

With the economy struggling, and with music fans now consuming music in a very different fashion than they did twenty and thirty years ago, the future of the concert business is very much in doubt.

There remain a handful of huge concert draws, including U2, Bruce Springsteen, the Eagles, and some country acts. In many ways, though, Bono's injury only serves to underscore the fact that major concert draws are ageing quickly and the days of the mega-concert based on one band, much less a solo artist, may very well be drawing to a close.

Even the Eagles, arguably the biggest overall concert draw over the past fifteen years, have had to cancel concerts this year as their fan base ages. Recent announcements on the cancellation of Eagles shows, in which they were supposed to appear with the Dixie Chicks and Keith Urban in both Philadelphia and Hershey, Pennsylvania have come with no explanation. Weak ticket sales are the only really plausible explanation, it would seem.

Historically, concerts were mostly means to promote albums and new music. But as the rock and roll generation aged into their peak earning years, concert ticket revenue for some elite acts actually surpassed album sales as a source of profits for big name rock bands. But as these acts aged and as the old music industry business model splintered, even the newer acts have been forced to look for other revenue streams.

With U2 cancellation, and with Bruce Springsteen on the sidelines this summer, the remaining 'dinosaur' concert tour is the Eagles. While their ticket sales seem to have been tepid to date, undoubtedly the U2 cancellation will help move, at least, incrementally, ticket sales in markets, such as New York City, where the Eagles and U2 were competing for the concert ticket dollar.

But as all of these acts age, the future of concerts beyond 2010 remains very uncertain.

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