Last week I said we're seeing a remarkable comeback in in-person activity thanks to sports and entertainment -- and that may be the future of where. But not all entertainers or athletes may benefit.
The ABBA Voyage experience in London offers an interesting counterpoint to the Taylor Swift phenomenon while reinforcing your core thesis about the future of in-person entertainment. While Swift generates billions through traditional touring, ABBA has innovated a new model that generates approximately $5.2 million per month through their avatar-based concert venue, which runs multiple shows daily since May 2022. The "concert" creates a novel hybrid between a traditional concert experience and immersive entertainment that is so fun (I've been).
This format solves several issues you've highlighted: it's a sustainable "pop-up" business model that can run indefinitely, it creates consistent economic activity for its location (unlike one-off tour stops), and it demonstrates how established artists can monetize their brand without the physical demands of touring. The fact that fans repeatedly return to see the same show suggests that, like Swift's Eras Tour, it's not just about the music—it's about the shared experience.
ABBA Voyage might actually point to a third way in your "superstar vs. smaller venue" dichotomy. It shows how legacy acts can create compelling in-person experiences that drive consistent economic activity without requiring actual touring infrastructure. This could become a template for how other major artists transition from traditional touring while maintaining the kind of "special event" draw you describe as crucial to future urban activity.
Yes, I was thinking about the ABBA Voyage thing as I wrote this. My wife and her sister went to London and saw it, and now they want to go back to London before it closes. Makes me think that Las Vegas is, in a weird way, a good model -- musical acts that may come to your town only very occasionally play every night there. Also interesting to note that the paper in San Diego had a story the other day about how the Padres now rent out Petco Park far more often to musical acts and other one-time events, so that part of downtown (which is wher emy office is) is no longer dead if there's game.
The ABBA Voyage experience in London offers an interesting counterpoint to the Taylor Swift phenomenon while reinforcing your core thesis about the future of in-person entertainment. While Swift generates billions through traditional touring, ABBA has innovated a new model that generates approximately $5.2 million per month through their avatar-based concert venue, which runs multiple shows daily since May 2022. The "concert" creates a novel hybrid between a traditional concert experience and immersive entertainment that is so fun (I've been).
This format solves several issues you've highlighted: it's a sustainable "pop-up" business model that can run indefinitely, it creates consistent economic activity for its location (unlike one-off tour stops), and it demonstrates how established artists can monetize their brand without the physical demands of touring. The fact that fans repeatedly return to see the same show suggests that, like Swift's Eras Tour, it's not just about the music—it's about the shared experience.
ABBA Voyage might actually point to a third way in your "superstar vs. smaller venue" dichotomy. It shows how legacy acts can create compelling in-person experiences that drive consistent economic activity without requiring actual touring infrastructure. This could become a template for how other major artists transition from traditional touring while maintaining the kind of "special event" draw you describe as crucial to future urban activity.
Yes, I was thinking about the ABBA Voyage thing as I wrote this. My wife and her sister went to London and saw it, and now they want to go back to London before it closes. Makes me think that Las Vegas is, in a weird way, a good model -- musical acts that may come to your town only very occasionally play every night there. Also interesting to note that the paper in San Diego had a story the other day about how the Padres now rent out Petco Park far more often to musical acts and other one-time events, so that part of downtown (which is wher emy office is) is no longer dead if there's game.