“UNEVEN CASH FLOW  – Fans of huge rock band left fuming as tickets for stadium show are slashed by 50% after poor sales”: https://t.ly/hCCx2

But it’s not only Pearl Jam, a thirty year old band, but newbie star Noah Kahan too:

“Noah Kahan pit tickets tonight in San Diego down $120 from yesterday. Lower Pavilion down $60. Why are you still buying tickets early? #PaysToWait”: https://t.ly/-FLNe

The music business has historically been opaque. They say one thing when the truth is another. They’ll tell you they’re adding shows because the previous ones are sold out, so you buy extra tickets to scalp, but you end up finding out they lied, the previous show was not sold out, and you can’t lay off your tickets at anywhere near face value, if at all.

But the landscape is changing. Because of information.

Let’s start with the blue dots. The Ticketmaster site is a plethora of information. You can see what tickets are still available, which ones are for resale, and when J.Lo canceled her tour no one believed it, because there were seas of blue dots all over Ticketmaster.

But that’s not all. Now we have Twitter sites that give you this information and more. I recommend you follow @underfacevalue and Ticket_Help2022 The insiders do, X provides this information.

So all we’ve been hearing about is ticket prices are artificially high because of Ticketmaster, no one in government speaks of supply and demand, but when it comes to restaurants…

You might not be following the kerfuffle. People are scalping restaurant reservations in New York. So they passed a law to try and eliminate this:

“Why NYC’s Hottest Dining Reservations Will Stay Impossible to Score – A proposed law aimed at bots and scalpers who cater to rich and desperate restaurant fans isn’t guaranteed to make getting a hot table easier.”

Free link: https://t.ly/dCZaA

I love this Bloomberg headline, because it’s exactly what insiders know about concert tickets and everyone in the government seems not to. The problem isn’t Ticketmaster, the problem is SUPPLY AND DEMAND!

If you read this article you’ll find that the average spend for dinner at these restaurants is $100 to $150. But when musical artists charge the same thing people go NUTS! The same boomers complaining about Springsteen ticket prices have no problem dropping these amounts for dinner. What gives? Each is an evanescent experience, and a concert might be once in a lifetime, the band might never come back to your town, you might never ever be able to see them again!

But no one is cracking down on concert ticket scalping, because the scalpers have too strong a lobby, they’re organized, whereas the restaurant reservation business is a nascent one.

Rising Brown junior Alex Eisler made 100k selling restaurant reservations putting in only half an hour to two hours a day. Nature abhors a vacuum. Which is why we have restaurant reservation scalpers, and concert ticket scalpers. You’d think acts would charge what the ticket is worth, but no, they’re afraid of being judged, WHY?

As for Pearl Jam… The band broke in the nineties. Their hard core fans are Gen-X’ers, now in their fifties. They have the money, but ironically they’re the ones who think twice about paying it.

But we can argue that Pearl Jam is more of an American act.

But we can say the promoter misjudged the market. That’s what happened with the Black Keys and J.Lo. What happened yesterday does not apply to today.

Yesterday, every show sold out. Demand was through the roof. Why not charge more, otherwise the scalpers will reap the benefit of the spread.

But it turns out the customer is saying no. This is the same customer who despite hearing ad infinitum how the economy is going great, finds food and other costs much more expensive.

They’re holding on to their dollars.

So what we are seeing is a price correction, in front of our very eyes. And the public is aware of this. And no one, NO ONE, likes finding out the person right next to them paid less for what they bought. We’ve learned to accept this with airlines, but the end result is everybody hates the airlines, who’ve rigged the system by consolidation and lack of competition on routes. This is Napster waiting to happen. And in reality, airline prices are coming down too. That post-Covid mania has expired.

So what sells?

Well, Noah Kahan is a breakthrough artist. But how many people has he actually broken through to? This is not an MTV act from the eighties. Most people don’t even know his name. And in reality, despite being in the marketplace for a number of years, he’s seen as a new act, and people are wondering if it’s worth it to lay down all this dough.

And if you’re running on fumes, out playing your greatest hits…

Well, hopefully you’re doing it at the shed, where the promoter has other streams of revenue besides tickets, where there is oftentimes a cheap lawn, because if you put up your show at the arena, GOOD LUCK!

But Taylor Swift shows sold out and parents couldn’t buy their kids tickets so someone must be at fault.

The truth is Swift was a genius. She put up all her U.S. tickets at once to create mania to guarantee she went clean. Yes, the dirty little secret of the previous tour was she didn’t sell every ticket. But when you get caught up in the maelstrom…you don’t want to be left out. And never underestimate the power of parents. They’re vicious when it comes to delivering what their kids want.

So what happens now?

Interesting question.

As for the universal boomer bands… They’re close to the end, so everybody is truly wondering whether it’s the last time. However, people have been speculating on the last time for years now. But, these bands have been going out at astronomical prices for a long time, so the public is used to it, and they are genuine superstars.

How many acts of the last fifteen years have reached this status, where everybody in America knows their tunes? Absolutely no one. Period. However, there are more people in America than ever before, and music is a unique visceral experience in a world where we all own the same devices. So it’s a large cult audience and… No one goes to one of these shows on a whim, they’re just too expensive.

And why do they keep canceling festivals? Are they too expensive or is the lineup not attractive enough or both?

And sometimes you can lower the prices and people still don’t want to come.

So if you’re planning a tour now… The data is just coming in. You could put up shows and do lousy business or put up shows and sell out and wish you played bigger buildings at higher prices.

And where is the government on this? Nowhere to be seen.

We are seeing a correction. The good old days are behind us. Are there new good days to come?

Well, we thought when the classic acts passed that everybody would be playing smaller buildings, but there are more stadium shows than ever before. Audiences are narrower, but they are very deep.

So here you find the essence of concert promotion. Nothing is guaranteed, it’s a bet. AI ain’t gonna tell you, data only means so much, it’s a gut decision, and great music hits you in the same way, the gut.

But the bottom line is people don’t want to pay as much as they’ve been paying for the past two years to see most acts. How much of this is the act, how much of this is the economy, how much of this is music’s place in the landscape?

Let’s ask the government. Ha!

Netflix trailer: https://t.ly/kiSF8

This is better than “Drive to Survive,” which I stopped watching after Red Bull stole the championship from Lewis Hamilton, after Verstappen started winning all the races, and I stopped watching the races too. Sure, there is human drama, but the problem is the machines. If you’re in a lousy car, there’s no way you can win. Whereas with the Tour de France…it’s not about the bicycle, it’s about you.

And the team, of course, especially if you’re going for the GC, which is the overall title. There is strategy, but sometimes riders throw the strategy out the window and just ride for themselves, which the owners/coaches hate, unless said rider wins.

I wrote about this series last year, this year is even better.

It’s inherently flawed because you don’t get a feel for the overall landscape, you’re never told how many teams/riders are involved, how much money is involved, and that is frustrating, but it does not detract from your overall enjoyment of the series.

You see bike riding is dangerous. You can be going as fast as a motorcycle, and when you crash, which happens all the time, you’re not wearing leather but a thin jersey… Talk about road rash!

But it really comes down to personalities. I hate, hate, HATE Jasper Phillipsen, who doesn’t ride fair, he squeezes his competition into the barriers.

And I’m not a huge fan of Jonas Vingegaard either, he’s quiet and skilled, but he’s involved in the biggest controversy of the season. If you win by too much, if it’s inhuman, did you…DOPE? Yes, that underlies cycling to this day.

Everybody takes it so seriously. You’d think the rest of life, politics, global warming, doesn’t even exist. Which makes the series a great respite from everyday life. Big girls may not cry, but big men do, especially with joy, when seemingly impossible goals are achieved.

Do you root for the winner or the underdog? Is winning everything, or is how you win important?

There are twenty one stages and each is different. And the landscape is jaw-dropping.

There are other bicycle races, but this is the big kahuna. As for the athletes, it’s a herculean feat, to be able to ride these distances, climb these mountains, day after day after day.

I don’t watch much sports on TV anymore. Can I say it’s a time-waster? Especially baseball, which used to be my favorite big league sport. I guess the essence is gone, and sure it comes down to the speed of the game, i.e. it’s slow, but changing all the pitchers, swinging for the fences…

And now I’m going to hear from all the baseball lovers. All I’ll say is I don’t know where you find the time.

As for the NFL… John Madden said you play one game and your body will never be the same. I don’t quite know why everybody’s addicted, even the wimps who never played in high school or even on the sandlot. You may think you’re an expert, but the true experts will tell you you don’t really know what is going on on the field.

And then there’s soccer/football, the world’s game. Some say there’s not enough scoring, but I don’t watch that either.

I guess I can say that watching sports on television is no longer a priority, with so many other options available. There are things I’d rather do than spend hours watching sports. That’s what the internet age has wrought, and that’s what people can’t get over. Why don’t you listen to my record? Because it’s a very low priority. If I heard you were the greatest thing since sliced bread, I might check you out, assuming I heard it from people I trust.

But I hope you trust my television recommendations.

I don’t care if you’ve never gotten on a bike. I don’t care if you don’t understand how bike racing works. Neither will detract from your enjoyment of this series.

Bob Costas famously said that sports are a metaphor for life. And you see it all in this series. Which makes you feel human. You’re involved. You don’t feel the sport is at a distance, but it’s right there. They’re not talking down to you, they’re just trying to win.

And not everybody can. And you can be a great rider and have a difficult personality…

CHECK THIS OUT!

You can’t have a contrary opinion.

Let me restate that…you can’t VERBALIZE a contrary opinion. You’re supposed to adhere to the orthodoxy of your tribe, or else you become a pariah.

You can’t say that Biden is old if you’re a Democrat. You can’t say you support Israel in Gaza if you’re a Democrat.

This is political. Unfortunately, the Democrats are becoming who the Republicans said they were. Let’s start on college campuses. Everything is seen through the lens of oppressor and oppressed, facts be damned. If you’re the little guy, you have the advantage, someone must support David in his battle with Goliath, even if David is a terrorist.

And then there’s the woke orthodoxy. And this is complicated. Because I don’t believe that many are woke as the term is incorrectly defined by the Republicans. But they’re afraid to stand up and say otherwise. If you’re a Democrat you’d better beware of the language you use. You must employ the right pronouns, you must not step on anybody’s toes, you must be fearful, for if you make a mistake you might be excommunicated from the tribe, your career might be ruined. Funny how the party that’s supposedly a big tent requires everybody to have the same viewpoint.

I’m not saying we shouldn’t look out for everybody’s rights, I’m not saying all people are not created equally, I’m not saying that racism doesn’t exist in America, it’s just that Democrats believe we live in a fantasy world more akin to a Disney movie than reality.

As for the Republicans… They were the first political party to demand absolute fealty with no questions asked. The Democrats may deny that Biden is old, but the Republicans see a doddering old man who can’t put a sentence together who demonstrates no knowledge of the political landscape and is a convicted felon and say…THAT’S MY GUY!

We can add in the ignorance leavened into the equation by the internet, where everybody gets their own news from a different source, and only the news that supports their view, but what I’m lamenting here is the lack of discussion, of analysis in America, to its detriment. And sure, many people who’ve been taught to the test lack the power of analysis, but even those who possess this skill have parked it for fear of excoriation.

And it’s not only politics. If you don’t think Taylor Swift is a talented cultural icon, the biggest act in the world, who can do no wrong, then you’re wrong. And will be shouted down by every female in America.

At least K-pop fans used to keep to themselves. And One Direction fans before them. But now, if you believe in an act you must let everybody know they’re inviolate, and nothing opposite can be said.

Which is kind of why there’s a news blackout in the “left wing press” about the success of Morgan Wallen. These outlets are fearful that their readers will go bananas if something positive is written about the country superstar. Didn’t he use the “N-word” (in a colloquial way that he learned from rap records) and throw a chair off the roof? Furthermore, no one on the left can see why anybody would support Wallen. And his fans know it. You know when you sit on the wrong side of the fence. Even if you’re silent.

Today’s music is as good as it ever was. Look at the statistics, Mariah Carey, Swift, others have the same chart numbers as the Beatles! Never mind it’s not the same chart. And SAT scores are higher, never mind that they were so low that they added a hundred points to everybody’s score a couple of decades back.

Problems either don’t exist or they’re the worst in the world. Climate change? There can be no rational debate on that, not if you’re on the right side of the fence, and I mean Republican. You’ve got to fall in line if you’re an elected Republican official. Want to know how it works? If you were anti-Trump, if you thought he needed to be impeached, you lost your seat. Doesn’t matter if you toed the line on every other Republican issue. Can you say “Liz Cheney”?

And if you’re a Democrat you cannot fight back vociferously. You cannot live in the twenty first century. You must be civilized, because the Republican game is dirty and uncouth and if you employ it you will be stooping to their level and lose. When they go low, we go high. How’s that working for you Michelle’s minions?

And groupthink goes even further. Isn’t there anybody who’s going to say enough with the 808? A four decade old computerized sound which seems to appear on every hit record?

It goes on and on, ask any questions and you’re the problem. You need to be quiet.

Meanwhile, those outside the discussion scratch their head and laugh. Biden is old and presents old. Sure, Trump is almost as old, but doesn’t present in the same way. He isn’t physically stiff and doesn’t beam into the crowd like a Moonie.

America was founded by the rugged individual, we’re drawn to they who have an individual opinion, that they’ll fight for, who have charisma.

Today we’re told to fall behind an intellectual construct, that oftentimes doesn’t align with our emotional state. Follow your instincts, your gut? If you do that today you’re going to find yourself out of step, I hope you like it alone out on the prairie, because that’s where you’re going to be. And that’s lonely and most people can’t handle it, they need to be a member of the group.

And there is nothing I’ve said above that you don’t know. Everything is evident and obvious. But you’ve been taught not to acknowledge it, not to believe your eyes. And ears.

Yes, the movie and music businesses are so busy trying to hit grand slams that they keep releasing me-too product that doesn’t resonate with the majority of the public. You’d think someone would go a different way, but not the major labels. And then these same labels try to rig the system in their favor, wanting more streaming payouts for stars and less for non-stars. Why? To ensure the longevity of their game. Which is kind of funny, since they’ve been disrupted again and again in the last twenty five years and never have they seen any of it coming. And Daniel Ek single-handedly saved the recorded music business, SINGLE-HANDEDLY! But if you don’t say he’s the devil, if you don’t think streaming payments are unfair for small artists and wannabes, you’re sold out to the man and your opinion doesn’t count.

And sure, many of the opinions above are my own, but the dirty little secret is they’re working for me. By expressing what people feel inside that they’re afraid to say…that’s the key to my success. What are you gonna do, read a trade publication saying everything’s groovy? Or a consumer rag that avoids the real issues, and when it stumbles on them gets them wrong?

Hell, I get a monthly music magazine that gives every act a positive review. Each and every record. How does that help the reader?

Let your freak flag fly. That’s how you’ll gain success. And stop whining that the game is rigged against you. The game is just the game, you have to learn how to play it so you can win. And in life there are so many ways to win. I could delineate the multiple potential revenue streams of a musical act today, but all I’ll get in response are STREAMING RATES ARE TOO LOW!

An artist goes down the road less taken. And you never know where inspiration will come from. And institutions oftentimes breed conformity. Which is why so many college graduates are bores going through the steps, whether at the bank or the tech company.

One person disrupted politics, Trump. One person disrupted recorded music consumption, Daniel Ek, but we’re continually told the individual doesn’t matter, and if you don’t fall into line you’re done.

This is untrue.

Tune in Saturday June 15th to Faction Talk, channel 103, at 4 PM East, 1 PM West.

Phone #: 844-686-5863

Twitter: @lefsetz

If you miss the episode, you can hear it on demand on the SiriusXM app. Search: Lefsetz