“It’s just kind of a slap in the face,” said Jenn Lawrence, a 19-year-old Swiftie from New Brunswick, in an interview with The Varsity. “So many people weren’t given the chance [to attend the Era’s Tour] because of the way Ticketmaster goes about things… It was just honestly a nightmare.”
For many of us, attending a concert is more than just a night out — it’s a milestone of connection and fandom. But for fans of pop artists like Taylor Swift and Sabrina Carpenter, that opportunity is slipping out of reach. Soaring ticket prices, bots, scalpers, and the dominance of Ticketmaster and Live Nation have turned a dream into an uphill battle, prompting fans to ask if live music has become a luxury only the privileged can afford?
The ticketing monopoly fans can’t escape
Ticketmaster and Live Nation have become untouchable giants in the live music world, holding a near-monopoly on major concerts. Fans are left to navigate a system that feels stacked against them, where getting tickets seems impossible unless they’ve got deep pockets, the luck of the Irish, or an insider connection.
Take Azaan Sabherwal — a third-year student studying finance and economics, and an avid concert-goer — who tried to get tickets for Carpenter’s Short n’ Sweet Tour in Toronto last September. He was in the ticket queue right as people were allowed to line up and yet, he recalls that “There were 30,000 people [in front of me.] Scotiabank’s capacity is 20,000, can you believe it?” Despite his early preparation, he had no choice but to pay inflated resale prices — a common frustration.
The Eras Tour’s presence in Toronto was impossible to miss — every corner of the city seemed to celebrate Swift. However, the overwhelming advertisements and promotions also revealed how commercial interests now dominate what was once a fan-first experience.
“Every other street sign — it’s not needed,” said an employee at a major US entertainment and record label conglomerate, who asked to remain anonymous. “All the ads started going up and like all the billboards started happening, It was never gonna impact their ticket sales… the only thing impacted was resellers upping their price astronomically to like about 10,000 dollars”
These monopolistic behemoths hold so much power that it feels like the entire live event industry operates on their terms. Fans aren’t just upset about high prices, they’re angry that the system is rigged to benefit everyone but them.
In 2023, the US Department of Justice (DOJ) held an antitrust hearing to investigate whether Ticketmaster and Live Nation’s merger was unfairly stifling competition, creating an environment where they control pricing and access to tickets. The hearing occurred after the DOJ sued the companies for illegally monopolizing various markets within the live entertainment industry, and the case continues to progress through the legal system. For many, instances like the antitrust lawsuit make it clear that these giants have become too big and are exploiting their dominance at the expense of the fans who built this industry. In the meantime, fans are left feeling helpless in a system that prioritizes profit over accessibility.
Scalpers, bots, and the exploitative resale market
While Ticketmaster’s practices are troubling, it is only one part of the bigger issue. Scalpers — resellers who buy tickets in bulk to flip for profit — and automated bots designed to purchase tickets instantly have further exacerbated the situation. These bots swoop in to buy tickets the moment they’re released, then resell them at outrageous prices. According to Statista, the average concert ticket price in 2024 soared to 135.92 USD, up from about 78 USD in 2015.
Lina Nguyen — a 23-year-old concert-goer I met on X — told The Varsity in a phone call, “I [used to] quite literally [buy] tickets for big artists for honestly, like, barely $100… fast forward, like five plus years and I think to even try to see a concert at a decent view you have to splurge.”
The issue deepened in Ontario after Premier Doug Ford’s government removed the cap on resale prices in 2019. Before that, tickets could only be resold for up to 50 per cent above the original price. Now, scalpers can go as high as they please, and bots can secure the best seats before fans even have a chance.
To combat this issue, Ticketmaster introduced its Verified Fan System, promising to prioritize real fans over bots. Unfortunately, the promise hasn’t been delivered, with many fans expressing frustration over their inability to get verified and system delay following bot attacks. Lawrence said, “It was letting the same people into the queue every time it would open… So it’s just hard for anybody who hadn’t gotten a chance.” Verified or not, many fans are left staring at empty carts, only to see tickets appear on resale sites at inflated prices.
Ticketmaster’s controversial dynamic pricing model adjusts prices based on demand. While artists can opt-out, Carpenter chose not to for her tour. The result was price surges and sticker shock for fans, who The Independent reports were left disgruntled, “absolutely appalled,” and under the impression that their favourite pop star was little more than “incredibly greedy.”
The issue, however, isn’t just limited to international pop stars — independent artists and smaller artists like Gracie Abrams face similar struggles in keeping ticket prices fair and accessible. Abrams built a dedicated fan base through intimate performances and online connections during the pandemic. However, after opening for Swift, her shows have been plagued by resellers, bots, and inflated prices. Whether for big or small artists, the core issue remains the same: the system is broken, and it’s the fans who are paying the price.
The VIP divide in concert culture
While fans struggle with high prices and endless queues, influencers and corporations seem to glide through the system effortlessly. Many influencers gain access to free tickets or VIP experiences, often thanks to the artist’s team or corporate sponsors. At Carpenter’s Short n’ Sweet tour, the stark contrast between fans’ frustrations and influencers’ seamless experiences was hard to ignore.
To dig deeper, I reached out to influencers and brands involved in both the Short n’ Sweet and Eras tours. Despite contacting people like Sammy Talukder, Jess Bosnjak, Nick Pillai, Brianna Renee, and Sahar Dahi, as well as brands like Tarte, Levi’s, Elf and Rogers, most didn’t respond. Those who did eventually skipped the interview.
At the Eras Tour, Aveeno’s photo booths and free samples epitomized the shift in concert culture. As someone who stood outside Rogers Centre for two days and eventually overpaid for Eras Tour tickets, I saw firsthand how these corporate sponsorships have infiltrated the fan experience. Eve McKenzie — an intern at an indie public relations agency — explained, “At the end of the day, it’s just business.” Meanwhile, for fans watching influencers enjoy VIP perks, it served as a harsh reminder of how deeply brands and influencers now shape the concert-going experience.
Corporate involvement was especially evident with Tarte Cosmetics, which flew US-based influencers to Toronto shows, despite there having been 52 previous Eras concerts across the US. This didn’t sit well with local Swifties, who struggled to secure tickets for one of the only nine Canadian stops.
This corporate-backed access created an even greater divide between artists and their fans. While influencers enjoyed special treatment, regular fans were left scrambling for tickets. From a business perspective, however, influencer partnerships make sense. As the anonymous employee from an entertainment conglomerate explained, “When you’re being flashy to a client or someone that you’re potentially interested in working with, you wanna show them [you’re pulling out all the stops] so like, getting them merch, giving them access to stuff”
But even they see the downside. “I’m a little bit salty because, like, I wish that the company just maybe did a little bit more research as to who’s a fan,” they admitted, highlighting the tension between fan frustrations and the brand-driven concert culture.
Reclaiming concerts: where do we go now?
The Eras Tour highlights a rapidly growing trend. Brands are becoming more embedded in concerts, festivals, and major events, by targeting key consumer demographics: Gen Z and millennial music fans, high-income concertgoers, and influencers.
To address this, the ticketing system needs to be reformed to ensure fair access for all fans. Stronger tools to detect automated purchases and stricter penalties for scalpers are necessary to ensure tickets reach real fans. Countries like Ireland and Belgium have implemented laws to cap resale prices, which could serve as a model for Canada. It’s about protecting both wallets and the essence of live music, an experience that should be accessible to everyone.
But it’s not only up to fans and governments — artists must take action, too. By opting out of dynamic pricing and supporting fan-first policies, they can challenge these exploitative systems. Some artists are already leading the way. Shawn Mendes, for example, sold tickets directly through the venue for his Friends & Family tour — yes, I went, and yes, it was surreal — bypassing traditional ticketing systems to give fans more access.
Others, like Pearl Jam, have gone even further by boycotting Ticketmaster entirely. After unsuccessful negotiations to lower fees in the ’90s, the band took a stand by boycotting Ticketmaster for their 1994 tour. While not a perfect solution, it’s a step toward a better model that prioritizes fans.
The fight for fair access to live music
The concert industry stands at a turning point. As 19-year-old Sheridan College student Olivia Davidson put it, “[Sabrina Carpenter’s] one of my top three [artists] me and my friend really wanted to attend it but since I’m in college, I’m not gonna be spending so much money.”
Davidson highlights the emotional and financial toll fans face. Live music, once defined by its accessibility and communal spirit, is now overshadowed by exclusivity and profit-driven barriers: high ticket prices, scalpers, and inflated resale markets.
If concerts are to remain a place for connection, artists, companies, and fans need to push for change. The energy and passion of fans are what make live shows unforgettable, and it’s time the industry prioritized those who have always been at its core. Reclaiming live music starts with fairness — creating a system where the joy of a concert doesn’t come at an impossible cost.
