Big acts follow in Tay Tay’s footsteps

AUSTRALIA’S live music scene is set to boom this summer as international artists tap into the market that Taylor Swift’s Eras Tour sparked last February.

In a landmark event that spotlighted Australia as a powerhouse market for the global music industry, Swift sold an astonishing 600,000 tickets in seven sell-out concerts across Melbourne and Sydney, injecting an estimated $559 million into the economy.[1] Now, artists like Billie Eilish and Kylie Minogue are hoping to capture their share of sell-out shows and big returns. 
 
An analysis by Stage and Screen a travel management subsidiary of Flight Centre Travel Group specialising in the creative, retail, sports and entertainment industries, revealed a significant increase in international music artists planning Australian concerts in the same quarter that Swift toured in 2024.
 
Stage and Screen compared international music acts at 13 of Australia’s biggest arenas and stadiums in Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane, Adelaide and Perth for the first quarters of 2024 and 2025.

From January to March 2024, only a handful of major international acts including Pink, Blink 182 and the Jonas Brothers were held at these venues, all of whom were eclipsed by Swift.

In comparison, in January to March 2025 no less than 14 international acts will take to major arenas and stadiums, with February being the most popular month.

Bryan Adams, Billie Eilish, Drake, Kylie Minogue, Keshi, Chris Stapleton and The Prodigy are all pencilled in for the same month that Swift took Australia by storm. 
 
The findings are encouraging for an industry that has been challenged by huge increases in production and touring costs, streaming platforms and changes in the way audiences prefer to experience music.

Several music festivals have been cancelled in recent years due to poor tickets sales and rising operational costs.

A Stage and Screen survey found that 89 per cent of young Australians chose not to attend music festivals citing multiple deterrents such ticket prices, regional locations, exposure to the elements, safety concerns and a swing toward standalone headline acts in city stadiums with almost a third (31%) of respondents preferring a headline act, such as Taylor Swift and P!NK, in a city stadium to festivals.
 
In conjunction with the survey, Stage and Screen analysed Flight Centre bookings to the Taylor Swift Eras Tour concerts in February. It discovered an 88 per cent increase in flight bookings to Sydney around the concert dates (23-26 February) compared with the week prior. Flight bookings to Melbourne around Swift’s concert dates there (16-18 February) increased by 89 per cent on the week prior.
 
The latest available report on Australia’s live performance industry showed total ticket sales of $3.1 billion in 2023 with contemporary music and music festivals accounting for 58.7 per cent of revenue and 46.7 per cent of attendance. NSW and Victoria were the biggest markets for live performance, contributing 64.7 per cent of revenue and 61.2 per cent of attendance in 2023.
 
Adam Moon, General Manager of Stage and Screen says: “There is enormous demand for live music concerts in Australia, as demonstrated by the hype around Taylor Swift’s tour. She played to 96,000 people at her opening concert at Melbourne’s MCG, the biggest crowd of her career. That’s extremely encouraging for other tour companies and international artists who might have been toying with the idea of coming to Australia but were unsure of the market for ticket sales.” 
 
“Major concerts like Taylor Swift’s Eras Tour are a catalyst for travel and a significant boost to the local economy of the host city. We’ve observed a surge in travel bookings surrounding these events. This influx fills hotels, restaurants, and shops, providing a substantial economic uplift to local businesses.
                                                                                       
“Given our distance from the rest of the world, Australians have fewer opportunities to see major artists perform here, so the appetite for it and excitement when artists do come is huge. There is also a fear of missing out among Australian fans because they know it’s unlikely that their favourite artist will return any time soon. 
 
“The increase in shows for the first quarter of 2025 is a good sign and I expect that upward trend to continue. I certainly encourage tour companies and international artists to put Australia on their tour list.”
 
International artists performing at major arenas and stadiums across Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane, Perth, Adelaide in January-March in Q1 2025: