Year In Australia: Live Sector Is Concerned Concert Boom Is Bypassing Local Music

International tours have been generating huge attendance numbers and substantial customer cash splash Down Under, but the Australian live sector is calling for government aid as two recent reports showed streaming algorithms were working against music fans’ exposure to domestic acts.

This intensified problems already faced by grassroots venues and emerging artists.

The two major exceptions were AC/DC and Rüfüs Du Sol who were among the 32 major tours that criss-crossed the continent in November alone. Rüfüs Du Sol set new venue records shifting 180,000 stubs, the biggest totals for a local EDM act. AC/DC’s “PWR/Up” tour delivered its second biggest tour in Australia with 565,000 stubs, according to TEG Van Egmond, after 600,000 for the “Black Ice” run in 2010. In Melbourne, they played to 160,000 at two shows at the Melbourne Cricket Ground.

Welcome-back events including a free tribute concert to 10,000, a world record of bagpipes collectively playing to their “It’s A Long Way To The Top” and an upgrade of AC/DC Lane, generated A$1.2 million ($796,252) for the city of Melbourne.

A NAB (National Australia Bank) analysis found the week Oasis, Metallica and the Melbourne Cup staged in Melbourne resulted in a 70% rise in consumer spend and A$270 million ($179.1 million) generated.

Metallica played to 50,000 in Melbourne at Marvel Stadium during six stops in six cities. Oasis did 320,000 over five shows in Melbourne and Sydney. When AC/DC and Metallica rolled into Sydney, the NAB surmised a $190 million ($126 million) spike for businesses over 10 days. It included a 131% jump in merchandising, 81% in accommodation, a 49% leap in bars and pubs, 34% spike for fast food, and 24% for restaurants.

“Concerts like this aren’t just cultural highlights, they’re economic powerhouses,” stated NAB small business executive Krissie Jones.

But the Australia Institute’s analysis of the data of the top 10,000 artists streamed in Australia from 2021-2024 showed a stark decline in the number of and frequency of Australian artists being streamed domestically (down 20% and 32%, respectively). Music rights organisation APRA AMCOS revealed in its Year In Review report a 31% decline in local content consumption on streaming services between 2021 and 2025. 

In dollar value, that was a loss of A$40 million ($26.5 million) for Aussie artists.

The Australia Institute recommended “upping government support for Australian artists to tour internationally, which will help build their fanbases and give them more weight in the streaming algorithms.” The Association of Artist Managers (AAM) also pushed for this as a solution.

It also called for “improved radio quotas and conditions to improve Australian’s familiarity with local artists, amplified government funding (and) the growth of Michael’s Rule for more artist exposure to domestic audiences.”

Michael’s Rule is a live industry initiative that makes it compulsory from 2025 to include Aussie support acts as support for international artists’ tours.

“Promoting Australian acts has been in our DNA since day one for Frontier Touring, and it’s important to let international artists and agents know how valued our domestic acts are,” said CEO Dion Brant.

Nicholas Greco, co-founder and managing partner at Untitled Group, added, “Michael’s Rule has created a cultural shift and has prompted promoters to think more intentionally about showcasing local artists. 

“The strong industry support behind the initiative suggests we will see more tours featuring Australian supports, announced earlier and given stronger production standards.”