The king of country music is once again the king of the road. George Strait had higher selling tickets for any journey of country music in 2014, according to a new list released by StubHub, and he was second only to the British pop sensation One Direction in general. Luke Bryan comes after fellow troubadour country at number three on the list by year-end website ticket resale, beating Justin Timberlake at number four.
"I do not think we realize how big country music," Lehrman said StubHub executive Glen Ad Week. "Traditionally, we think of pop music like that will drive the greatest interest in ticket sales - its Beyonce, Katy Perry, Lady Gaga ... George Strait did not have many dates, but his last concert ever was in . For one of the biggest events we had in 2014. "
That final Strait show in the AT & T Stadium in Arlington, Texas (home of the Dallas Cowboys), attended by 104,793 fans. The record for the largest indoor concert in North America was established, surpassing the previous record of assistance established by the Rolling Stones in 1981. The star studded show (surprise guests including Miranda Lambert, Faith Hill and Eric Church) marked the end of the Strait of illustrious 33-year career on the road, but retirement is still a four letter word. The icon of the country has promised at least five other albums of new material in the coming years.
As Bryan place in the list of StubHub, Billboard begs to differ: 2014 tour is placed at number one among countries, but generally walks 14th. Strait it is listed as number 16, and agrees that One Direction was the artist of highest grossing tour of the year.
Bryan, current CMA Entertainer of the Year, had 1.7 million fans attending their shows this year - combined numbers of three different trips: that is my Kind of Night Tour, the Tour Farm, and Spring Break 2014 Tour.
"We played all kinds of shows this year," says Bryan. "It's so exciting to play for smaller capacity crowds during a course of two days at the northernmost point of Canada as it is for 60,000 screaming fans in stadiums shows ... or" the first fan who may have never gone concert to the Farm Tour came to a small rural community.
StubHub expected large numbers in 2015 from a different culture of traveling artists (or be-touring rumored-to-): Adele, Coldplay, Foo Fighters, Taylor Swift and U2.
