Pollstar Live! 2025 Panel Preview: Power Players – Are We In A Market Correction?

Moderator
Jeffrey Azoff | CEO, Full Stop Management

Speakers
Lee Anderson | President, Wasserman Music
Mac Clark | Music Touring Agent, Creative Artists Agency
Lesley Olenik | SVP of Global Touring, Live Nation
Rich Schaefer | President of Global Touring, AEG Presents

As the world transitioned to living post-pandemic, most entertainment companies have seen exponential growth in the past few years with fans’ newfound appreciation for the live experience, higher ticket sales and willing artists hitting the road.

It’s something Pollstar called the “Golden Age” of live, but that growth flattened in 2014 and it’s not clear where the market is headed. It’s a topic some of the most seasoned players in live entertainment will discuss at an upcoming Pollstar Live! panel. Jeffrey Azoff (CEO of Full Stop Management), Lee Anderson (President, Wasserman Music), Lesley Olenik (SVP, Global Touring, Live Nation), Mac Clark (music touring agent at Creative Artists Agency) and Rich Schaefer (AEG Presents president of global touring) will gather at the Beverly Hilton on April 16 for “Power Players: Are We in a Market Correction?” to talk trends and how to keep the momentum going for global touring.

Pollstar’s year-end and recent first-quarter analysis of the biz indicated somewhat of a plateau from 2024’s record-breaking year, with flat revenues and a slight dip in ticket sales. The Q1 numbers show that the average ticket price dropped — a rarity since the COVID shutdowns — by about 20%. The most recent data shows an average ticket price of $98.40, down from 2024’s Q1 average of $123.25, but attendance was up.

The lack of shows from megastars like Taylor Swift could have affected those figures, but it could also signal a change in consumers’ spending habits amid a period of high-priced groceries and economic uncertainty.

Back To Pollstar Live! 2025 Hub

“For all the people worried the sky is falling, you still look at on-sales every week and there’s arenas and stadiums that are blowing out,” Schaefer recently told Pollstar (see page 24). “The best tours are the ones pricing themselves correctly, choosing the right venues; they’re not trying to overreach because another artist they consider a peer is playing in that size room. It’s about smart decisions and smart choices.”

Finding the right rooms and putting on the right kind of show can drive up sales and prices.

“Touring, when you get it right, is just an incredible medium,” Azoff told Pollstar last June, pointing out that beyond being a leading revenue producer, touring can also serve as a powerful marketing tool. “When you do it well, [live] is a great business for artists, but at the same time, when you have people posting from shows, it markets not just the show, but the artist, as well.”

Clark is also doing good business at CAA by bolstering the agency’s Latino representation and Latin music roster, knowing how essential the genre is to the touring business. He and CAA’s Rudy Lopez Negrete have brought in stars like Peso Pluma and Feid.

“When we take a step back and think about what we do, our goal is to represent people who have grand ambitions and huge dreams, and our goal is to help those dreams come true in a multitude of shapes and sizes,” Clark said in December.

Azoff looks forward to sharing such insights and catching up with his fellow peers: “I’d like to find out why Rich and Mac were willing to do a panel that I am moderating. Especially after last year. Seems like a bad idea to me,” he joked. “Really looking forward to seeing if Ray [Waddell] invites me back after the trainwreck that this will inevitably be!”