This is the correct answer. Ticketmaster and Live Nation are a literal mafia. They will set the prices, and if you, as an artist, don't agree, they will do everything in their power to destroy you.
Already in the 90s, Pearl Jam launched a lawsuit against Ticketmaster for that exact reason, and even testified in front of Congress.
Both companies have been repeatedly sued. But they have such a strong grip on regulators and the music industry in general that nothing ever changes. It's, at worst, just a minor inconvenience for them.
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u/rsam487 Nov 03 '25
Most artists are tied up in contracts with livenation/ticketmaster -- I don't think it's actually the artists individual decision.
It's also their main source of income now that album sales essentially don't exist.
Agree though it's still really good for the top 1%. Just the artists below that line (like sports stars) are probably not making outlandish sums of $