During his keynote address at the fifth annual Billboard Touring Conference in New York City on November 20, music mogul Gene Simmons cracked outrageously raunchy jokes and talked about the nitty-gritty of the touring industry. But he also addressed an issue that was on many minds: Will KISS tour North America again after about 10 years off the road?
“We’ve been talking with [band manager Doc McGhee] about maybe going back out to Europe and then doing a year-long tour maybe this coming summer, but we’ll see,” the band co-founder and media star stated, also ruminating on his dream co-headlining lineup.
“KISS and Queen. That would be a smash; that would kill,” Simmons envisioned. “Doc is talking to them now. So far it’s 50/50…. We’re working on it.”
Recently when AC/DC kicked off their first world tour in almost a decade, the band announced that fan clubs tickets would be processed with Ticketmaster’s paperless technology to combat higher prices on the secondary market driven by high demand. But Simmons doesn’t seem concerned about the potential resale of KISS tickets.
Weaving through the crowds of the conference hall to a back room in the Roosevelt Hotel, the iconic performer explained exclusively to TicketNews that the contention between the primary and secondary markets doesn’t concern him, nor does the resale price of concert tickets.
“There is no secondary [ticket] market; there’s only the market,” Simmons said in the walking interview. “That’s the reality, and everything else is political jumbling.”
A self-described devout capitalist, the iconic performer stated that the market should decide how much fans are willing to pay for a ticket. “If somebody wants a ticket, they’ll buy it or they won’t,” he continued. “That’s the market.”
Though not worried about tickets potentially being priced above face value, Simmons did admit in his address he is worried about the lasting effects of lower ticket prices. He urged the audience of book agents, concert and tour promoters, and venue managers not to reduce prices as a means for selling tickets in the worsening economy.
“You’re training an entire generation of people to pay less for something and then more for something else. They won’t know what the value is and they’d rather pay less every time,” the media superstar stated, warning that lower prices would dilute the value of concerts in the long term. “If they’re used to paying $100 for a big thing, then give them $100 worth of entertainment, put 10 bands together.”
Simmons firmly continued, “You’re protecting the value, the evaluation, the perception…. Perception is worth everything. If you perceive a brand to be worth less, it will be worth less.”
The rocker is no stranger to marketing a brand. With his shrewd business sense and a 360-degree merchandizing onslaught, Simmons built KISS from the name of a band into what he called “the juggernaut of all rock ‘n’ roll brands.”
He advised that arenas and ticketing companies can build the same level of recognition in their segment of the industry, but they must be willing to change their business models and think outside the box. Simmons particularly pushed venues to embrace an approach similar to 360-degree artist deals, which include licensing, merchandising, touring and print.
“All the other medias that you think you don’t belong in, you actually do because it’s a way to clusterbomb your way through this world,” Simmons said. “You’ve got to evangelically…spread your brand and your message to people who otherwise would not see it.”
The photo accompanying this story is from NBC.com.
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Gene say’s he could care less about ticket prices but he should. The fans that put him in the place he’s in now are regular working people with family’s and kids of their own to support in today’s economy, $350.00 tickets are out of reach for them. He should consider this the next time he performs with his has been band and notice the crowd is full of privileged kids with no clue about who kiss were in their prime or are today. It’s not always about the money…unless your a “i got my money now piss off” sellout.
I hope his tour sucks and bombs out just like the forgotten reality show has been he is.
He’s not going to price his tickets for more than he can sell him for. If you really understood what he was saying is that he’ll get the most fans in their not only to see his show, but buy his merch, and remain fans and spend money on the other stuff as well
I do not know what all of you expect? .Face the fact’s this is the Man who taught viewers of his family show how to make a $1.00 bill into instant profit. Gene Simmons signed the one dollar bill. Just shows where his head is at. The bank counting all of the money he’s earned from you. And it is true when it comes to different artists people will pay whatever they can afford depending upon how badly they want to see the concert. More artist’s should take a good look at one of Rock’s biggest legends and a consumate professional, he goes by the name of Meat Loaf and keeps his ticket prices in the $38 – $45 price range.Then look at somebody like Justin Timberlake who felt that his “you know what does not stink” by offering seats as high as $500.00 for his barstool setting. AC/DC kept the ticket price stable for the BLACK ICE Tour by fixing it at about $89.00 before Ticketmaster fee’s, which under the circumstances is a fair price for several reasons. This is the first tour in nearly 8 years, staging and special effects and the mere fact they were setting up the tour when the cost of Gasoline in the States was at record highs which was another factor in determining the price point.If gasoline is $5.00 a gallon, imagine how costly it is to run those equipment trucks and tour buses for staff now while gasoline prices are dropping at a very steady rate which is down by at least 28% since they started booking the venues for this Black Ice Tour. Adding it up the fuel costs today probably would have lead to a lower ticket price. As far as Gene Simmons is concerned once the money comes in from KISS Concert sales he is smiling as he counts his cut and if he had his way he would probably be selling his own tickets at an inflateded price on what is referred to as “the secondary market”. Hopefully KISS will do a winter tour in conditions similar to the winter of 2007/2008 which put many entertainers in the difficult position of dealing with the Insurance Company,Promotor & Weather Conditions which must meet a certain criteria in order for the insurance to pay out & permit the fans to return tickets to point of purchase. Reason being fans who die in snow and ice related collisions on the way to the show mean less money in the long term for “some bands” but not all performers care if a few fans die trying to see them.
[…] His comments seem to signal a changing attitude in the singer, having previously been quoted as being broadly supportive of secondary ticketing, telling website Ticketnews in 2008: […]
[…] His comments seem to signal a changing attitude in the singer, having previously been quoted as being broadly supportive of secondary ticketing, telling website Ticketnews in 2008: […]
[…] His comments seem to signal a changing attitude in the singer, having previously been quoted as being broadly supportive of secondary ticketing, telling website Ticketnews in 2008: […]
[…] His comments seem to signal a changing attitude in the singer, having previously been quoted as being broadly supportive of secondary ticketing, telling website Ticketnews in 2008: […]
[…] His comments seem to signal a changing attitude in the singer, having previously been quoted as being broadly supportive of secondary ticketing, telling website Ticketnews in 2008: […]