It is no secret that the costs of events, such as concerts, have risen, and dangerously quickly at that – but why are prices so high? For however long now, there has been an increased concern with constantly rising ticket costs. High school students all over the country want the experience of seeing their favorite bands or artists on tour–for most, it’s on their bucket list.

However, there are many factors that play into students being unable to turn that dream into reality. While many of the school’s population work a job on the side, it may be rather challenging for students to attend due to the simple fact that tickets — especially complimented with added fees —  just cost too much money, and that is gratuitous.

Landon Snodgrass (11) went to go see Metallica at Gillette Stadium in Foxborough, Massachusetts this past summer. “Everything was really expensive, but they put on a great show,” Snodgrass said, “We were in the second section of seats and we paid $270 a ticket before tax.”

Ticket prices are typically chosen by the artists and/or sports teams, according to Ticketmaster’s website. However, that isn’t entirely true, so why are ticket prices so expensive still? According to Ticketmaster’s website, the insanely high additional fees are added on as service fees, to cover the concert venue and promoter’s side of the contract.

However, this isn’t all that Ticketmaster has to say. In 2010, Ticketmaster, who then owned a 70% market share in the ticket sale market, merged with Live Nation, the world’s largest concert promoter, claiming a monopoly over the market. Because Ticketmaster owns a majority of the market, they also control the prices of tickets, as well as any additional fees.

“I understand that concerts are supposed to be expensive because the band has to pay for the stadium and they need to make their money, but for Metallica being one of the biggest bands in the world, I think it was way too expensive,” Snodgrass said.

Ticket prices have come a long way. In 1976, artists like Elton John sold off tickets for prices of $10. In 1989, that price rose by almost 60%, as metal giants Metallica sold tickets for their 1989 “Damaged Justice” tour show in Seattle for $16.50. Today, those prices have skyrocketed.  In 2023, ticket prices were on average $122.84, up approximately 25% from 2019, where tickets were on average $91.86.

Ticket prices have gotten to be rather insane in recent years, especially due to hidden fees, and that is just unfair. It’s unfair to the people who want to go out and see their favorite artists and make fun memories, but are prevented from doing so because they can’t afford tickets. Hidden fees are destroying the culture of music.

While every generation before us has had the opportunity to go out and attend concerts and get that experience, due to the nature of such fees, that may not be possible for most of us — and it may not be for the generations of music lovers after us, either. In order to keep the age-old tradition of keeping the live music culture alive, the promoters and ticket-sellers must be more transparent about fees.