METALLICA, KISS, TRANS-SIBERIAN ORCHESTRA Among POLLSTAR's Top-Grossing '2019 Midyear' Tours

According to the music industry trade magazine Pollstar, TRANS-SIBERIAN ORCHESTRA, METALLICA and KISS were among the top-earning hard rock and metal tours of the “2019 Midyear” reporting period, which covered the six-month range from November 22, 2018 to May 22, 2019.

In that time, KISS‘s initial North American concerts of their “End Of The Road” farewell tour grossed a combined $58.1 million from 44 dates. With an average ticket price of $110.57 and an average per-show attendance of 11,952, the band grossed an average of $1.32 million per show.

The 20th anniversary tour by Yuletide rock theater stalwarts TRANS-SIBERIAN ORCHESTRA also did big business, as the group’s two touring troupes pulled in a combined $57.3 million during its 88 performances during the reporting period. (Another 18 TSO concerts took place during the two weeks prior.) In that time, the band sold nearly 900,000 tickets, with an average per-show gross of more than $1 million.

METALLICA‘s ongoing “WorldWired” tour continued to be a hot ticket, as the group’s 21 North American arena shows during the reporting period grossed a total of $41.7 million, good for an average per-show gross of $1.99 million. With an average attendance of more than 16,000, the band moved nearly 350,000 tickets altogether.

On a per-show basis, METALLICA did even better internationally, as five of the six European stadium concerts the group performed in May grossed a combined $28 million thanks to an average attendance of more than 58,000. (Figures for the sixth date are unknown.) Altogether, the band grossed $69.7 million in the six-month reporting period, making the group the fourth highest-grossing act in the world during that time behind only Elton John, Pink and Justin Timberlake — each of whom sold fewer tickets but had a higher average ticket price.

Although the band performed just nine shows as part of their ongoing “Deuces Are Wild” Las Vegas residency during the reporting period, AEROSMITH nonetheless grossed $9.2 million, thanks in large part to an average ticket price of more than $200. That figure was enough to rank the group 40th on the “North American Tours” chart and 62nd on the “Worldwide Tours” chart.

Grosses from select hard rock and metal artists appear below.

Pollstar 2019 Midyear Worldwide Tours:

04. METALLICA ($69.7 million)
07. KISS ($58.1 million)
08. TRANS-SIBERIAN ORCHESTRA ($57.3 million)
48. Roger Waters ($11.9 million)
51. DISTURBED ($11 million)
62. AEROSMITH ($9.2 million)
75. SHINEDOWN ($8.1 million)
100. DEF LEPPARD ($5.6 million)

Pollstar 2019 Midyear North American Tours:

05. KISS ($58.1 million)
06. TRANS-SIBERIAN ORCHESTRA ($57.3 million)
12. METALLICA ($41.7 mllion)
35. DISTURBED ($10.6 million)
40. AEROSMITH ($9.2 million)
44. Roger Waters ($8.6 million)
48. SHINEDOWN ($8.1 million)
74. NINE INCH NAILS ($4.8 million)
80. GRETA VAN FLEET ($4.5 million)
81. FIVE FINGER DEATH PUNCH / BREAKING BENJAMIN ($4.4 million)
96. BRING ME THE HORIZON ($3.6 million)