Ah, concert season! You've scored tickets to see your favorite artist perform live. You buy a $70 sweatshirt and two drinks. You scream for whatever it's worth. Afterward, your adrenaline is still pumping as you sit in the parking lot for an hour trying to leave. Life is good.
With summer approaching, it's time for music festivals and artist tours galore. These experiences can lead to memories that last a lifetime, especially if you're lucky enough to land tickets to see a favorite musician or band do their thing.
The pinnacle of my own cruel summer will be belting from the nosebleeds at the Eras Tour, which required a couple of extra freelance writing gigs when seats were double what I expected. Within the BuzzFeed community, the average price paid to witness Taylor Swift perform tunes from her various eras was $700. This, along with my own experience, made me wonder just how much others are willing to spend for that gold rush of live music adrenaline.
It's no secret that prices of, well, everything are skyrocketing due to inflation. I know I've had to get a little more mindful of how I'm spending and reframe my budget to ensure I can still put a portion of my earnings away into savings. I'm lucky enough to have a side hustle that goes straight to building up a solid emergency fund (or, you know, Eras tickets), but without it, even on a decent salary, my wallet feels this shift.
I can't be the only one to feel this way. Maybe you took on a couple of pet-sitting gigs just to pay for floor seats to see Yoncé. Maybe you ordered less takeout to save up for a 4-day pass to Lollapalooza. Maybe you sold your house and every asset in your name to see Taylor sing "Lavender Haze."
Whatever your story may be, I want to hear it! How much money were you willing to drop for your dream concert? How did you budget for it? Who did you see? Was it worth it? What advice would you give others? If you would like to remain anonymous, submit your answer here! Or, share your experience in the comments!
