You can feel it in the air. That familiar sense of excitement before a great show. But these days, it also comes with a feeling of worry. New Zealand’s live music scene has been known for its fiercely independent attitude and passionate fans for years. But the last three years have brought a lot of problems that have left the business at a crossroads. Are we going to have too many shows, or are big-name touring performers just not paying attention to the market? The answer might not be as simple as it looks.
The Mounting Costs of Kicking Arse
Putting on a concert in New Zealand has never been cheap, but it’s getting harder and harder to make ends meet. Promoters are dealing with rising manufacturing expenses and inflation. Mark Kneebone, MD of Live Nation New Zealand, says that the expense of shipping production rigs across the Tasman Sea from Australia is a huge problem for the industry. This means that even if a band intends on touring, the money they can make in Auckland and Brisbane can be so different that some artists are choosing to leave the country for good. It’s hard to deal with when you’re a fan waiting for your favorite band to say when they’ll be in New Zealand.
The Audience Shift
The method people acquire tickets has changed a lot, which adds to the uncertainty. Mikee Tucker, a promoter for Loop, said that ticket sales and attendance at events had been “at an all-time low,” with customers waiting until the last minute to get tickets. This makes it very hard for organizers to plan and put money into events with confidence. It’s a bad cycle: if promoters can’t commit, there are fewer events, and if there are fewer shows, fans are less likely to buy tickets early.
Finding New Funding Streams
Because of these economic demands, the sector is always looking for new methods to make money. People are still talking about how the government should help and invest in the arts. In late August, the government launched a new plan called “Amplify: A Creative and Cultural Strategy for New Zealand 2025–2030.” The purpose of this plan is to make the sector’s economic contribution bigger. The plan is to make use of current financing sources instead of creating new ones. This includes thinking about other ways to make money and how the digital economy may help.
This new era of digital involvement is changing the game in more ways than just traditional finance. A lot of artists now use sites like Patreon and Bandcamp to talk to their fans directly. This is similar to the bigger changes happening in the world of digital entertainment. The rise of streaming services and online gaming, as well as the popularity of items like the best online casinos in New Zealand, suggests that people are moving toward making money from digital leisure activities and finding new ways to make money that don’t involve traditional channels. It’s all part of the same digital change that is pushing the live music business to come up with new ideas and find new ways to make money.
The Resilience of Regional Tours
Even when there are problems, there is a strong sense of strength. One successful method is to add more stops to tours in “content-starved regions.” The New Zealand band LAB recently toured regional locations and sold more than 65,000 tickets. It indicated that even while the big cities could be getting too many people, there are still dedicated fans outside of the main capitals. At Moshville, we believe that smaller shows are better for both the band and the spectators since they make the experience more personal and memorable.
What We Can Do
There is no need to worry about the future of live music in New Zealand. It’s all about changing. The industry needs to keep coming up with new ideas, and we as fans need to help. If you can, acquire tickets in advance and go to the smaller gigs to support local bands. New Zealand’s live music scene is full of talented and passionate people. We all need to make sure that it keeps growing, not simply living.
Header image created using Google AI
