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U2 tour has the concert business getting dizzy
By Edna Gundersen, USA TODAY
After bolstering 2004's flagging record sales with its hit album, U2 is now poised to revitalize the ailing concert business with a world tour starting March 28 in San Diego.
Vertigo 2005, the year's most hotly anticipated tour, could gross up to $250 million from roughly 110 shows, according to Billboard.
"It should be as big as U2's Elevation Tour, and that was the third-biggest tour of all time," says Gary Bongiovanni, editor of Pollstar.
In 2001, Elevation racked up $109.7 million in ticket sales in North America, with tickets priced at $45 to $135. This time, admission averages $90 with a range of $49.50 to $165. The lowest-priced ducats allow general-admission floor access. U2.com subscribers can reserve tickets before public sale dates.
Kings of Leon will open shows on the 13-city first leg, which ends in late May in Boston. After a stadium jaunt in Europe, a second U.S. swing is expected in mid-August.
Given U2's unchallenged status as one of the world's best live rock 'n' roll acts, sellouts are almost certain.
"Even without a hit record, people would want to see U2," Bongiovanni says.
"Equally as important, they continue to attract new fans, so they're not just appealing to the baby boomers. The setup for the new album has been incredible."
Vertigo, the Grammy-nominated single heavily promoted in iPod ads, has sold nearly 300,000 downloads. Since its No. 1 debut two months ago, the How to Dismantle an Atomic Bomb album has sold 2.3 million copies in the USA and 8.5 million worldwide. Even with speculation about possible treks this year by the Rolling Stones, Paul McCartney and Bruce Springsteen, "the first half of the year is U2's ballgame," Bongiovanni says.
http://www.usatoday.com/life/music/news/2005-01-23-u2-tour-dates_x.htm
By Edna Gundersen, USA TODAY
After bolstering 2004's flagging record sales with its hit album, U2 is now poised to revitalize the ailing concert business with a world tour starting March 28 in San Diego.
Vertigo 2005, the year's most hotly anticipated tour, could gross up to $250 million from roughly 110 shows, according to Billboard.
"It should be as big as U2's Elevation Tour, and that was the third-biggest tour of all time," says Gary Bongiovanni, editor of Pollstar.
In 2001, Elevation racked up $109.7 million in ticket sales in North America, with tickets priced at $45 to $135. This time, admission averages $90 with a range of $49.50 to $165. The lowest-priced ducats allow general-admission floor access. U2.com subscribers can reserve tickets before public sale dates.
Kings of Leon will open shows on the 13-city first leg, which ends in late May in Boston. After a stadium jaunt in Europe, a second U.S. swing is expected in mid-August.
Given U2's unchallenged status as one of the world's best live rock 'n' roll acts, sellouts are almost certain.
"Even without a hit record, people would want to see U2," Bongiovanni says.
"Equally as important, they continue to attract new fans, so they're not just appealing to the baby boomers. The setup for the new album has been incredible."
Vertigo, the Grammy-nominated single heavily promoted in iPod ads, has sold nearly 300,000 downloads. Since its No. 1 debut two months ago, the How to Dismantle an Atomic Bomb album has sold 2.3 million copies in the USA and 8.5 million worldwide. Even with speculation about possible treks this year by the Rolling Stones, Paul McCartney and Bruce Springsteen, "the first half of the year is U2's ballgame," Bongiovanni says.
http://www.usatoday.com/life/music/news/2005-01-23-u2-tour-dates_x.htm
