Concert Pulse: U2 Lights Up The East Coast; Willie Nelson, John Prine Hit The Chart

Kevin Mazur / Getty Images for NLM – U2
U2 plays Madison Square Garden Arena in New York

The Top 5 of the Pollstar Global Concert Pulse remains unchanged from last week, with mammoth stadium tours from Taylor Swift and The Rolling Stones grossing around $10 million per city while, although a distant third, Jay-Z and Beyoncé’s European stadium tour still grosses more than $5 million per market, showing the health of this summer’s touring business. 

While U2’s still-awesome $3.6 million per market may look lackluster in comparison, it’s important to remember Bono and the band already did 50 shows in 2017, mostly stadiums, which put the band on top for the year with $316 million grossed worldwide. 

Considering that, it’s extra impressive the boys from Dublin were No. 6 on Pollstar’s Mid Year Top 100 North American tours, with $59.9 million grossed on 26 shows after just wrapping a North American arena leg, hitting many markets they played just last year.  

Either way, the numbers are still huge, with sellouts at multiple nights at iconic venues such as Madison Square Garden, with three nights June 25 to July 1 moving 55,575 tickets and grossing $8.7 million. That was after two nights at Boston’s TD Garden, June 21-22, which sold out 35,139 and grossed $5.5 million. Bell Centre in Montreal also got two nights of U2, with June 5-6 selling out 42,974 and grossing $4.58 million, as did the Wells Fargo Center in Philadelphia ($3.5 million) and Capital One Arena in Washington, D.C., ($4.3 million).  

In August the band kicks off another 30 dates in Europe, with six dates in Germany, four in Italy, six in the UK, and the whole 2018 Experience + Innocence Tour wraps with four shows at 3Arena in the band’s native Dublin, Ireland, Nov. 5-10. 

John Davisson – Willie Nelson In Concert
SXSW, Austin, TX

New on the Global Concert Pulse this week is the Red Headed Stranger himself, Willie Nelson at No. 51, who has been on the road again, sometimes with Alison Krauss, sometimes with the Family. Recent boxoffice reports include May 27 at The Anthem in Washington, D.C., which was configured for 2,881 capacity and grossed $310,335 with Cris Jacobs and Sturgill Simpson also on the bill.

With  Krauss, he played KFC Yum! Center May 23, with 5,863 tickets sold and $398,551 grossed, and State Farm Center in Champaign, Ill, which moved another 5,452 tickets and grossed $414,485. Being a model of consistency, he also sold 5,065 tickets May 16 at BOK Center (Krauss co-bill), grossing $441,335, and two nights at Whitewater Amphitheatre in New Braunfels, Texas, for the smokers’ holiday  April 20-21, where he sold out 10,590 tickets and grossed $532,590. 

Over the last three months he’s put up an average gross of $329,566 per market with 4,772 tickets sold and $69 being the average ticket price. 

At 85 years old, Nelson has recently had to postpone concerts due to illness and a few shows were stopped short citing shortness of breath, but he seems to be having no trouble out there now. He has dates into August with Krauss, multiple nights of his Outlaw Music Festival and more solo dates in the fall.

 Another country youngster to hit the chart this week is John Prine at No. 64, who is grossing an average of $180,989 per market and 2,383 tickets sold. Recent boxoffice submissions include Filene Center at Wolf Trap June 1 (5,080, $295,330), and a co-bill with Sturgill Simpson at Radio City Music Hall April 13, which sold 5,986 tickets and grossed $452,178.