Study Shows ‘Steep Decline’ in Touring for Artists of All Sizes

The live entertainment sector is in decline according to data gathered by Chartmetric. Rising costs, low ticket sales, and strict visa rules are reshaping what the touring landscape looks like in 2025.

Artists across the globe are facing new barriers to touring, with data showing that there just aren’t as many touring artists on the road anymore. Chartmetric looked at both mid-level and superstar-level artists from 2022 and 2024, comparing how many were still touring. 44% of superstar-level artists were touring in 2022, while only 36% were in 2024. That decline is even more dramatic in mid-level artists, which declined from 19% touring in 2022 to just 12% in 2024.

Photo Credit: Chartmetric

Chartmetric’s methodology was an analysis of the top 1,000 artists from each career stage in both years. Touring artists are defined as those who performed at least ten shows in the span of a year—highlighting the steep decline for both mid-level and superstar-level artists. The data seems to indicate that star power alone is no longer enough to guarantee a successful tour.

High profile acts like Jennifer Lopez, The Black Keys, and Lauryn Hill & the Fugees cancelled shows due to low ticket sales last year. Meanwhile, larger festivals are also feeling the pinch as this is the second year that Coachella did not achieve sell-out status within days of tickets going on sale. Coachella took nearly a month to sell out in 2024 and data shows that nearly half of the general admission attendees this year used payment plans to buy their tickets.

Another mounting challenge for international artists is the strict via situation in countries like the United States and the United Kingdom. The cost of artist visas nearly quadrupled from $460 to $1,615 per musician last year—the first bump in price since 2016.

Governments interested in helping protect the live sector can support touring infrastructure so smaller venues don’t close down. That’s something the UK is doing with UK Live Trust, which reallocates money from stadium and arena tours to smaller venues by donating £1 per ticket sold at larger venues.

The globalization of live touring is also becoming more prevalent as big acts include Asia in their touring plans. Lady Gaga, Tyler, the Creator, Blackpink, Coldplay, Oasis, and Billie Eilish all have Asian dates planned for their upcoming tours.