95% of Taylor Swift’s ‘Verified Fans’ Just Got Shafted

Only 5% of Taylor Swift’s ‘Verified Fans’ were able to purchase a concert ticket through Ticketmaster. Several months ago, in a move that riled the singer’s most loyal fans, Taylor Swift teamed up with Ticketmaster to launch a new program. The ‘Taylor …

Historic Austin Music Venue Is Being Sold on eBay

Want to own a historic music venue?  Bids start at $1 on eBay. Pete Townshend.  Slash.  Tom Yorke.  Alt-J.  ZZ Ward.  Shakey Graves. These are several of the big-name artists who have performed at Austin’s renowned Sixth Street music venue, The Parish….

Jay-Z’s Lawyers Back Off After Issuing a Litany of Baseless Threats

After threatening Digital Music News with ridiculous legal claims, Jay-Z’s lawyers are backing off. Looks like we were right about Jay-Z’s disastrous ‘4:44’ tour.  After sending in the legal brigade to threaten Digital Music New…

A Surprisingly Large Number of People Want to Ban Phones at Concerts

A strikingly large number of people now favor outright bans of phones at shows.  But what about the ones that want to use them? We all know the problem really, really well. Phones in the air, filming entire concerts and making it hard to see the actual…

Amazon Scraps Plan to Compete Against Ticketmaster, Sources Say

In the end, despite offering venue owners millions of dollars, Amazon found that it just couldn’t compete against Ticketmaster and Live Nation. Earlier this year, Amazon announced the surprise purchase of Whole Foods.  The news sent the company’s stock…

Amazon Scraps Plan to Compete Against Ticketmaster, Sources Say

In the end, despite offering venue owners millions of dollars, Amazon found that it just couldn’t compete against Ticketmaster and Live Nation. Earlier this year, Amazon announced the surprise purchase of Whole Foods.  The news sent the company’s stock…

Earthcore Festival Death Watch: Major Artists Bail Over Failed Payments

More than 10 artists may pull out of the Earthcore festival days before the event will begin. 2017 hasn’t been a great year for music festivals. Ja Rule’s much-hyped Fyre Festival, aimed at rich, young millennials, went down in flames.  Festivalgoers e…

Now You Can Buy Concert Tickets Directly from YouTube

What will the YouTube / Ticketmaster deal mean for major labels and the touring industry in the long-run? How much does YouTube truly pay artists when fans stream their music? According to top YouTube executive and former Warner Music Group CEO Lyor Co…

This Startup Already Knows What You’ll Pay For a Concert Ticket

Over $2 billion in ticket inventory.  $15 million in Series A funding.  What’s next for Broker Genius? How much are fans willing to pay for the hottest concert events?  Broker Genius claims to know. Earlier today, the New York-based startup compa…

Jay-Z Brags of ‘Record Attendance’ In New Orleans as Entire Sections Remain Empty

Despite several empty sections, Jay-Z claimed record-setting sales in New Orleans last week. And we thought Steve Jobs’ reality distortion field was powerful.  At last week’s ‘4:44’ tour stop in New Orleans, Jay-Z doubled down o…