Ticket Scalping Sucks — And Here’s Why

May 29

🎤 Alright, now pay attention

I used to be the problem. Pocket full of marked-up stubs, grinning outside the venue, flipping dreams for cash. But I’ve seen the fallout. And it ain’t just about money — it’s about the soul of the show.

📦 The Premise

Ticket scalping isn’t a clever side hustle. It’s a slow bleed on live music. It prices out real fans, robs bands of their people, and turns the sacred ritual of the gig into a rigged auction.

I’m not talking about the guy with one extra pass outside the gate. I’m talking about the bot armies. The warehouse resellers. The markup monsters who see a concert as a commodity instead of communion. This one’s for the believers getting boxed out.

💸 The Real Numbers

Let’s drop the mic and talk cold, hard stats:

📈 StubHub’s 2023 report: the average markup for sold-out shows is 50–100% over face value.
🔥 For major tours? Try 200–300%.
🤖 Ticketmaster admits 40% of hot-ticket inventory gets scooped by bots before humans even blink.
💀 NIVA says scalped tickets cost fans $15 billion in 2022.

You think this ain’t a crisis? Ask the kid working double shifts just to stand in the pit.

🧨 Who Really Pays

It’s not just the stub. It’s the gas money. The parking vultures charging $50 to sit in gravel. It’s the $10 warm beer and the $100 hotel bed because the show’s outta town. Add a $300 scalped ticket to that? Suddenly the night costs a damn car payment.

And that means fewer shows, fewer fans, and a scene built on exclusivity instead of electricity.

🩸 How It Hurts the Scene

For Fans:
You are the heartbeat. You bring the sweat, the screams, the spark. Scalping prices you out, and the whole room suffers for it.

For Artists:
Every head that doesn’t make it through the door is a t-shirt not sold. A record not signed. A connection not made. When real fans can’t get in, the room might be full — but it’s hollow.

⚡ Damone’s Moves

🧾 Buy direct — from the venue or the band’s official site.
🚫 Skip the scalpers — if it’s sold out, let it go. Don’t feed the beast.
🎸 Support the openers — smaller gigs, smaller rooms, bigger heart.
📢 Call out the bullshit — speak loud, speak often, speak truth.
❤️ Keep it honest — music is for the people. Don’t gatekeep the good stuff.

❌ The Attitude Rejects

💸 “It’s just capitalism, man.”
So is payday loans and pharma scams. Doesn’t mean it’s not screwing people.
🤑 “If fans really cared, they’d pay.”
Some fans care so much they sleep in their cars to make it to the gig. Don’t test their love — respect it.
🎟️ “It’s just one ticket.”
Now multiply that by ten thousand nights and a generation locked out.

🎵 Soundtrack to This Post

🎵 “Take the Power Back” – Rage Against the Machine
🎵 “I Was a Teenage Anarchist” – Against Me!
🎵 “Clampdown” – The Clash
🎵 “No Surrender” – Bruce Springsteen
🎵 “Not For You” – Pearl Jam

Heads up: We might earn a small commission if you grab these tracks through our links. Keeps the lights on and the riffs rolling.

🕯️ Damone’s Final Word

Scalpers aren’t just ripping off wallets — they’re ripping the heart out of live music. And if you’re part of that system? You’re not a fan, you’re a thief in a band tee.

Rock and roll is for the outsiders. The believers. The ones who need that night like oxygen. Don’t shut them out for a couple bucks. If the pit ain’t full of sweat and strangers, it ain’t alive. And if it ain’t alive, then what’s the damn point?

Still tappin’ — Damone

👤 Tell Damone What You Think

Have you been burned by scalpers? Ever flipped a ticket yourself? Got a better solution? Drop your confession or call-to-action in the comments. Let’s keep the scene clean.

📌 Filed Under

#TicketScalping #SceneEthics #FanFirst #LiveMusicMatters #DamoneApproved #AttitudeBlog

Jon Paul Long