Source : the age
A fear of missing out is driving Australians to spend up big on seeing international music stars live, sometimes at the expense of local acts, research has found.
Ticket costs are the primary barrier to music attendance, but some fans are willing to “break the bank” to attend shows that are considered once-in-a-lifetime opportunities.
Australians are spending on big name stars like (clockwise from top left) Billie Eilish, Lady Gaga, Oasis, Taylor Swift and Paul McCartney – but not on smaller local gigs.Credit: Artwork by Marija Ercegovac
The findings come in the first of a three-report series from Music Australia, a dedicated federal body established to support and invest in the local industry.
They land amid a rush of overseas acts touring Australia, including Taylor Swift, Green Day, Paul McCartney and Kiss in 2024, and Billie Eilish recently, to be followed by Lady Gaga and Oasis later this year.
Australians were some of the world’s biggest consumers of music, and attendance at gigs and concerts was a “quintessential part of Australian life”, the report said.
In 2024, Australians purchased more than 14 million tickets to contemporary music events and festivals, generating over $1.8 billion in revenue.
The report, Listening In: Insights on live music attendance, indicates there is a strong appetite for Australian music and support and recognition for Australian music acts.
But it also found a disconnect between these supportive attitudes and actually seeing emerging Australian musicians live.
Attendance is declining for live music at pubs and clubs, fertile ground for local musicians to find and grow their audiences.
Festivals were also moving through a period of “significant adaptation”, facing changing patterns of audience behaviour and later purchasing of tickets, the report said. Dozens of music festivals have been cancelled since the COVID-19 pandemic.
There has also been a drop in the number of Australians featured on Australia’s ARIA charts and triple j’s Hottest 100.
“This changing behaviour corresponds with a spate of big international acts touring Australia after the pandemic and an excitement to get back to big, live events,” the report said.
The findings come on the eve of the election as the lobby group, Save Our Arts, has run a series of forums on the future of Australian music.
“We’ve seen Australian stories squeezed out of global streaming platforms with just 3 and 5 per cent Australian content there. Emerging Australian musicians are increasingly hard to find and buried in Spotify,” said campaign director David Latham.
The report’s findings are based on four audience surveys and focus group studies with Australians, primarily aged 18-55.
Each survey – distributed via social media and other channels – garnered over 3500 respondents, skewing geographically to Victoria and female fans.
Half of those surveyed said they would like to attend more events featuring Australian artists but didn’t know where to find out about them.
Cost was the primary barrier: almost three-quarters (72 per cent) had saved up money to attend one or more major live music events in the past 12 months.
Director of Music Australia, Millie Millgate, said the research confirmed Australians valued live music, even in tough times.
“People still save for gigs that matter to them, showing there’s still strong appetite for live music – especially experiences that feel rare and bring people together.”
Find out the next TV, streaming series and movies to add to your must-sees. Get The Watchlist delivered every Thursday.
