10/16/2024
Yup. Artists need to take a stand.
The Cure frontman Robert Smith has hit out against dynamic pricing and the current state of the ticketing industry, which he blames on greed.
In 2023, during their North American tour, Smith found himself in a dispute with Ticketmaster over the cost of admission to their concerts. The Cure made a portion of tickets for their shows $20, however, fans who purchased these tickets ended up paying more in fees to Ticketmaster than on the concert tickets due to hidden costs.
The band made a commitment to making sure their shows were affordable to all, and refused to incorporate dynamic pricing, which was recently used on tickets for Oasis’ reunion tour for 2025.
To coincide with The Cure’s new album, Songs of a Lost World, they are set to play an intimate show at The Troxy in London on November 1st. While tickets for the show could have easily fetched hundreds of pounds, The Cure have capped prices at £50.
In a new interview with The Times, Smith explained his stance: “I was shocked by how much profit is made. I thought, ‘We don’t need to make all this money.’ My fights with the label have all been about how we can price things lower. The only reason you’d charge more for a gig is if you were worried that it was the last time you would be able to sell a T-shirt.”
Smith then said that he wants to keep prices at an affordable rate so that fans can afford to see The Cure on many occasions, stating, “If people save on the tickets, they buy beer or merch. There is goodwill, they will come back next time. It is a self-fulfilling good vibe and I don’t understand why more people don’t do it.”
After Oasis denied being aware dynamic pricing would be used on their tour and subsequently not using it for their international dates, Smith said of the technique: “We didn’t allow dynamic pricing because it’s a scam that would disappear if every artist said, ‘I don’t want that!’ But most artists hide behind management. ‘Oh, we didn’t know,’ they say. They all know. If they say they do not, they’re either f***ing stupid or lying. It’s just driven by greed.”
