By Jacob Oliveira
On March 5th, Aftershock, the yearly festival held in Sacramento, put their tickets on sale and revealed their lineup for this year’s event. The show had one of its biggest lineups, with bands such as Deftones, Blink-182, and Korn headlining, along with big names such as Perfect Circle, Rob Zombie, Flyleaf, and Three Days Grace. With such a big event with so many big names in the industry, it is a sure thing that many would be interested in the event.
The biggest issue arrived with their ticket pricing. A single day was priced at over $170 for a single guest, and all 4 days were priced at $512.22, a more than 120$ increase from 2 years ago. However, this isn’t the end of their options. You can “party like a rockstar” for the price of $888.08. Some of the perks coming with this far more expensive option seem like things that should be open to all guests. One example is getting access to air-conditioned and flushable restrooms, or access to water refill stations. Many guests would think at the already high price point they would have access to these pretty simple “perks,” but they are also hidden behind an even grander paywall.
In the past, we have seen other concerts and venues charge ridiculously high prices. My Chemical Romance charged average prices of $671.49 but reached highs of close to 20 grand. The Taylor Swift Eras tour reached $500 for official prices, while resellers on trusted sites sold tickets for close to 7 grand. When will all these prices become too high so that the average fan can no longer afford to support their favorite artist? These concerts have already become a luxury event that many have to miss out on due to the greedy pricing. Soon enough, these prices will no longer be a financially viable option without severely hurting one’s financial standings.
Only 30 years ago, famous lead singer Kurt Cobain was shocked at Madonna charging $50 for ticket prices, stating, “Who charges that much money?” Now, that price seems like a pipe dream for any worthwhile event. These events have far exceeded the inflation of the dollar and grow more implausible for the average fan to attend.
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