Olivia Dean came out victorious when she was able to secure her fans a partial refund from Ticketmaster and AXS after she slammed ticket companies as “exploitative.”
Life & Style breaks down everything to know about Dean’s stance on how resale tickets are sold and how she managed to get her fans some money back.
Olivia Dean Previously Slammed Ticketmaster, Live Nation and AEG Over Resale Concert Prices
Dean took to her Instagram Stories on November 21 to address the inflated prices of her concert tickets ahead of her The Art Of Loving Live tour.
“I’m sorry that there seems to be an issue with ticket re-selling and pricing,” she wrote at the time. “My team are currently looking into it. It is extremely frustrating as the last thing I want is for anyone to be scammed or overcharged for our show.”
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She went on to say that Live Nation, Ticketmaster and AEG “are providing a disgusting service,” directly telling the companies that “the prices at which you’re allowing tickets to be re-sold is vile and completely against our wishes.”
“Live music should be affordable and accessible and we need to find a new way of making that possible,” Dean continued. “BE BETTER.”
Dean issued the statement after she learned that some resale tickets for her North American tour were listed at more than 14 times their original face value price. Some of the resale tickets even cost as much as $1,000.
Olivia Dean Managed to Get Fans Partial Refunds to Her Concerts
One week after she slammed the ticket companies, Dean took to Instagram to reveal that Ticketmaster and AXS agreed to refund the difference to anyone who has paid over face value for a ticket. She then added that the companies will cap all future ticket resale prices to face value for the shows on her tour in North America.
“Every artist and their team should be granted the option to cap re-sale at face value ahead of on sale, to keep the live music space accessible for all,” she wrote. “The secondary ticket market is an exploitative and unregulated space and we as an industry have a responsibility to protect people and our community.”
Dean added, “Thank you for your patience and I’m looking forward to seeing all you real humans at the show.”
Ticketmaster Breaks Their Silence Regarding Olivia Dean’s Backlash
Michael Rapino, who is the CEO of Ticketmaster’s parent company Live Nation Entertainment, also issued a statement on the matter.
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“We share Olivia’s desire to keep live music accessible and ensure fans have the best access to affordable tickets. While we can’t require other marketplaces to honour artists’ resale preferences, we echo Olivia’s call to ‘do better’ and have taken steps to lead by example,” Rapino said, per the BBC.
Ticketmaster has previously given artists the power to cap ticket resale prices, which musicians such as Hayley Williams and Chappell Roan have been open about exercising. However, it’s unclear why Dean’s team was not able to implement that power.
