We’ve all heard the chatter: the local music industry is doing it tough right now and the economy is to blame. From Falls Festival to Spilt Milk, festival cancellations are popping up everywhere we look, and it’s hard not to get down in the dumps wondering what will become of our beloved Aussie music industry.
However, a new report from ticket resale marketplace Tixel and culture marketing agency Bolster Group has crunched the numbers, and the result is (dare we say it) a glimmer of hope. The report surveyed nearly 3,000 music fans in order to take an annual snapshot of the nation's live music landscape, as well as how and when music fans buy tickets.
If you’ve read the news lately, you’d be forgiven for thinking that essentially no one is forking out for gigs anymore, but the report, titled Front Row Centre, has revealed that this sentiment might be a bit of an overstatement. Yes, almost everyone is tightening their belts right now as inflation continues to hit us for six, but it turns out that for most Aussie fans, live music is still high up on the must-do list.
Despite the current state of the economy, 56 per cent of respondents said they still consider live music a priority. Better yet, two-thirds of fans said they attended either the same number or even more live music events than they did last year. These encouraging stats are music to our ears, because we all know that local artists need our dollars more than ever right now.
Speaking of supporting local musos, one major way to do that is by making sure you buy your gig or festival tickets early. Why? Several major festivals that have sadly cancelled this year have said a lack of early sales was a blow to their financial viability.
Anecdotally, we reckon there’s been a shift towards buying tickets later and later as resale platforms have become more prevalent. The good news is that this can go both ways – 75 per cent of fans also said that confidence in easily reselling their tickets was a “key factor” in forking out early.
While things are changing fast, we’re looking forward to a summer of cracking gigs in Melbourne, as is Tixel CEO and co-founder Zac Leigh.
“A lot of people are trying hard to get to the live events they love, even if money is tight,” he said.
If you want to read more, you can find the full report here.
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