It’s obvious that Taylor Swift’s concert tour was a hit—it crashed ticket websites, sold out hotels, and caused seismic activity comparable to an earthquake.
According to trade newspaper Pollstar, it also earned over $1.04 billion (£829 million) in gross sales during its first 60 performances.
According to music sales tracking website Pollstar, that is a new record.
The pop singer’s rise coincided with a record-breaking year for the concert industry, which has recovered spectacularly from Covid lockdowns.
According to Pollstar, the top 100 worldwide tours generated gross sales of over $9 billion (£7.17 billion) this year, up 46% from 2022, which had seen record-breaking spending.
Bruce Springsteen, a rock musician, and singer Beyoncé completed the top three performances of the year.
But Swift didn’t simply earn more money than everyone else—her tour began in Arizona in March.
Pollstar claimed that in addition to her increased speed, she performed only in stadiums because of her immense fame, which drew larger audiences.
- Taylor Swift is the 2023 Person of the Year in Time Magazine
- She is the most streamed artist in the UK
On the other hand, Elton John’s five-year farewell tour, which took place during the pandemic, required 328 performances to earn $939 million (£749 million).
“While the data is staggering, Swift’s massive success this year shouldn’t come as a surprise to any sentient being,” Pollstar stated.
This is Swift’s most recent record in a year full of them, having been named Time Magazine’s Person of the Year.
The remastered version of her ten-year album 1989 also happened to be the year’s best-selling album, and the concert film has brought in almost $250 million (£199 million).
Ms. Swift sold over 4.3 million tickets for her Eras tour. According to Pollstar, that works out to about $239 (£190.4) per ticket, which is the seventh most expensive of the top tours of the year.
This is in contrast to the top 100 tours, which have an average price of about $130 (£103.60).
Although the publication’s tracking of Ms. Swift came to an end in November, her global concert tour is still going strong.
Pollstar estimated that if she performs at every scheduled show, her tour may bring in about $2.16 billion (£1.72 billion).
