Concert Pulse: As The Crow Flies, Comedy Charts High With Kevin Hart, Martin Lawrence

Dia Dipasupil / VMN18 / Getty Images for MTV – Kevin Hart and Tiffany Haddish
handing out hardware at the MTV VMAs at Radio City Music Hall in New York Aug. 20

The Pollstar Global Concert Pulse chart sees little movement at the top, but new entries from Chris Robinson’s latest project “As The Crow Flies” and a clear trend of successful comedy tours have made their mark.

As The Crow Flies, latest Chris Robinson project with the band playing hits by Robinson’s old band The Black Crowes, has wrapped its first tour with nine dates grossing $529,365 and 12,633 tickets sold on nine shows, putting it at No. 93 on the chart this week. 

The biggest report was from the Fox Theatre in Oakland, Calif., which sold 2,679 tickets and grossed $105,892 May 11 for promoter Another Planet Entertainment, followed closely by the first show of the run, at the Capitol Theatre in Port Chester, N.TY., which sold 2,124 tickets and grossed $101,910 April 17. The project has been billed as in between Chris Robinson Brotherhood touring. 

Meanwhile, Kevin Hart tops a whole slew of comedy tours on the chart, at No. 27 with an average gross per city over the last three months just shy of $900,000. Hart is long established as a touring workhorse and in 2015 came in at No. 12 for the year worldwide with more than $82 million grossed on a staggering 137 shows. That dollar figure put him in the same league as pop culture mainstays like Paul McCartney, Elton John and Madonna. 

While some major comedians, such as Jerry Seinfeld, Chris Rock or Dave Chappelle, have done huge business in residencies and multiple-show engagements in major markets, and others like Jeff Dunham have toured steadily for years, no one has put up single-year touring numbers close to Hart according to Pollstar’s annual Top Tours charts going back to the early 2000s. 

This year’s “Irresponsible” tour is sure to give 2015 a run for its money, as the star has more than 130 shows booked into late October, with gigs clear across the world including three at The O2 London, a full run in Australia, and even dates in markets like Iceland, Singapore and … Milwaukee. 

Recent reports include July 22 from Van Andel Arena in Michigan, which sold out at 9,452 tickets and grossed $692,199, and Rogers Arena in Vancouver, which sold 15,610 tickets and grossed $969,701 June 16. 

Leon Bennett/Getty Images) – Martin Lawrence
Lit AF at the Microsoft Theatre in Los Angeles April 5.

One comedy tour that has just wrapped up (and reported in full) is the Martin Lawrence-hosted and starring “Lit AF Tour” that included Adele Givens, DeRay Davis, Michael Blackson, Benji Brown, and “Curb Your Enthusiasm” alum J.B. Smoove, among others, which sold 159,291 tickets and grossed $10.3 million on 16 shows from late March to mid-June promoted by AEG Presents.  

Standout reports include June 9 at Capital One Arena in Washington, D.C., which sold out at 13,260 tickets and grossed $890,972, May 11 at AmericanAirlines Arena in Miami, which sold 11,989 tickets and grossed $714,234, and a double at Microsoft Theatre in Los Angeles April 5-6, which sold a combined 13,862 tickets and grossed $944,774. The tour is No. 35 on the Concert Pulse with an average gross of $627,725.

Some of the other comedy tours on the chart include Jerry Seinfeld (No. 48, average gross $309,362), Jeff Dunham (No. 43, $346,618), “Daily Show” host Trevor Noah (No. 50, $ $276,879) “Mr. Fluffy” Gabriel Iglesias (No. 65, $ $177,781) and “Tater Salad” himself Ron White (No. 77, $118,345).

Another to keep an eye on is Jo Koy, who has a lot of dates coming up through December including four nights at Blaisdell Arena in Honolulu, Hawaii, in November. That could break a record he already set with 11 sold-out shows and more than 23,000 tickets sold to the Neal S. Blaisdell Concert hall in the same city last November, the most ever by a comedian in the state. That run was reported to Pollstar as grossing $869,795.

“I just can’t believe the incredible love and support Hawaii has been showing me,” Koy told Pollstar via email when the fourth Blaisdell Arena show was added. “I was only supposed to go on sale with one show this week, and now I’m adding a fourth. This ‘Break The Mold’ tour has been insane this year. Adding multiple arena shows was not expected at all and now I’m told I could break a record at the Blaisdell Arena where iconic artists like Journey have played! It’s so surreal and crazy. I’ll keep adding more shows as long as Hawaii will have me.” 

Koy’s manager, Joe Meloche of Arsonhouse Entertainment and who also manages Gabriel Iglesias, told Pollstar more Blaisdell dates could be added.