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Top Act Of The Decade: DMB
Pollstar has compiled its year-end research from 2000 to 2009 and come up with the highest-grossing touring artists of North America for the decade.
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Click here to see the Top 50 chart in PDF format
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Coming in at No. 1 is touring juggernaut
Although it’s no surprise that three major
The top three – Dave Matthews Band,
Chip Hooper, chief of West Coast music operations at
“Dave Matthews Band is without question the touring story of the last 10 years,” Hooper told Pollstar. “What they have accomplished is truly unprecedented. Many artists tour often, but not as consistently and not even remotely at the same level.
“Another very important point is that this band has never rested on its laurels,” he said. “Every time they approach something, whether it’s writing a song, recording a record or playing a show, they truly bring it. They never, ever let their fans down. That’s why this band is so successful. We are thrilled and proud to have the opportunity to play a role in their career.”
Manager Coran Capshaw provided a statement on behalf of
“Dave Matthews Band is thankful for fans old and new who’ve made it the top-selling live act of the decade,” Capshaw said. “DMB is a great live band, providing audiences with a unique concert experience. It’s an honor to be a part of their continued success.”
Dion spent much of the decade as the centerpiece attraction of Caesars Palace in Las Vegas – a performance model that she helped pioneer. But even after she left the nightly performances at the Colosseum, Dion spent three years traveling to perform for her fans.
“It’s about longevity,” John Meglen, co-CEO of
Meglen compared Dion to Neil Diamond – not just because of the work ethic but because of the effort Dion has made to perform for “everything in between” New York and Los Angeles.
“She’s attractive to middle America, middle Canada, the real people worldwide,” he said. “And she has an amazing manager in her husband who to this day blows me away. Good management today is so important. And you can see it out there with the managers we work with, whether it be Roger Davies and what he did with
“I still don’t think [Chesney] gets the recognition he deserves,” said Louis Messina, president of
Messina also noted that both DMB and Chesney have kept their ticket prices low. And Chesney – who even in his forthcoming “off” year is playing a good dozen huge shows – is expected to return in 2011 with an enormous tour.
“It’s something people don’t recognize, except when you tell them they’re not playing next year,” he added. “Then they all say, ‘How can you do that? It’s going to ruin my bottom line!’ I’m not sure what we’ll do next year. Maybe we’ll go sell blood or something.”
Finally, the numbers should also invalidate the argument that the concert business relies solely on headliners from the ’60s and ’70s.
With names like Dave Matthews Band, Chesney and
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Click here for the chart in PDF format, which includes tour gross and ticket sales.
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