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Concert Pulse: Travis Scott, The National, Jack White Enter Chart
John Davisson – Travis Scott
Travis Scott brings it on for the crowd at Okeechobee Music & Arts Festival in Florida March 3.
With the new year finally in full swing, Pollstar has new concert data from several new artists, some of whom have headlined or put on major festivals in recent years.
The top slots on the Global Concert Pulse chart – which ranks average grosses from reports submitted within the last several months – are still occupied by 2018’s big winners, including Taylor Swift, Jay-Z/Beyoncé, and Ed Sheeran.
Travis Scott is the highest ranking new entry, coming in at No. 23 with an average gross of $1.13 million in his eight submitted reports. His average ticket price for those shows was at $67.28, lower than every artist that appears on the chart before him. He was averaging 16,867 tickets per market appearance in his “Astroworld: Wish You Were Here” arena tour.
La Flame’s submitted reports include a $921,508 gross at Talking Stick Resort Arena in Phoenix Dec. 18 and a $1.07 million gross at Oracle Arena in Oakland, Calif., Dec. 16. Both of those shows reported more than 15,000 tickets sold.
After major success on the road and the sales charts last year, Travis Scott is slated to perform as a special guest at the halftime show of this year’s Super Bowl, and he will headline Boston Calling and Firefly Music Festival. Last year he replaced Childish Gambino’s top slot at Austin City Limits, played festivals like Lollapalooza and launched his very own Astroworld Festival with promoter ScoreMore Shows.
“Astroworld, in Houston, is the vision of Travis Scott,” ScoreMore Shows’ Sascha Stone Guttfreund told Pollstar last year. “[That] festival almost sold out without the announcement of a lineup. [It’s a] great example of what can happen when music truly connects with the people.”
The next new entry on the chart is The National at No. 70, with an average of $237,492 grossed over nine reports. The National is scheduled to play Bonnaroo this year and the band once again organized its own “There’s No Leaving New York” festival last year. The band also organized the Homecoming festival last year in Cincinnati, but announced it wouldn’t be returning for 2019.
The band’s Scott Devendorf spoke to Pollstar about Homecoming last year, saying: “The audience seemed to really enjoy it, we lucked out with good weather, the park and the ease of coming to it and interacting with it was pleasant. I’m all for that sort of experience.
“Our thing is everyone having a great festival experience, from the audience to the bands feeling welcome and included and not lost in the noise that can be a giant festival. That’s super fun but it’s not for everybody. It’s also nice to come and go as you please and see what you want to see.”
Jack White also hopped onto the chart this week at the No. 71 position, with an average gross of $235,414 and 4,245 tickets per show in nine reports. The former White Stripe was in full festival mode last year, headlining Governors Ball, Boston Calling, Shaky Knees, Bunbury, Arroyo Seco, and Lollapalooza. He also worked with the company Yondr to give artists a way to keep cell phones and their attendant distractions out of the audience.
Other new entries on the Concert Pulse chart this week are Noel Fitzpatrick Supervet at No. 85; Goo Goo Dolls at No. 86; Jo Koy at No. 93; and Troye Sivan at No. 98.