Byron Bay Bluesfest director fears for the future of music festivals as belts tighten in 2023
A year after its triumphant return, the annual Byron Bay camping event is struggling to shift tickets, mirroring recent shortfalls at other major events as household budgets tighten.
When Byron Bay Bluesfest returned to the event calendar after a three-year absence last Easter, it was a defibrillator to the heart of the live music sector, as unrestricted trading resumed.
About 100,000 people attended across five days, as Midnight Oil, Crowded House and Paul Kelly topped a line-up largely stacked with local talent.
Yet 12 months later, Bluesfest 2023 is struggling to shift tickets.
Headlined by Gang of Youths, The Doobie Brothers, Paolo Nutini and recent Grammy song of the year award-winner Bonnie Raitt, sluggish sales at the annual Byron Bay camping festival mirror recent crowd shortfalls at other major events, as household budgets tighten.
This month, Laneway Festival averaged 20,000 attendees at each of its five capital city events; across the New Year period, Falls Festival attracted 65,000 to its events in Melbourne, Byron Bay and Fremantle, according to figures supplied by organisers.
Speaking with The Australian, Bluesfest director Peter Noble said: “If festivals are impacted, it impacts the entire industry, and that’s my fear at the moment: we don’t have an industry if part of it is hurting. Falls, Laneway, and potentially Bluesfest are all looking at a pretty ordinary year, as people are uncertain whether they’ll have discretionary spending.”
According to Noble, the squeeze is being felt behind the scenes, too, as talent booking agents wise up to the reality of broader economic factors resulting in fewer ticket sales.
“There’s acts who were asking me for $500,000 to play exclusive at Bluesfest a few months ago that are (now) saying, ‘Any chance I get on the bill for $150,000?’” he said. “That’s going on industry-wide. I can’t name that band, but it’s the truth.”
“People think that I’m a billionaire or something; I mean, I put on a blues fest, with all due respect,” said Noble. “The land’s worth money (Byron Events Farm at Tyagarah); we don’t make much of a profit, because we’re dedicated to what we do.”
“Fortunately for Falls, they’re owned by Live Nation; fortunately for Laneway, they’re owned by TEG, so they do have a buffer,” he said. “But they’re basically owned by multinationals, and they can more easily trade through dips in the economy than the Australian-owned festivals can. I’m the last [one] standing of the major events that’s independent. I don’t want to sell; I am proud of the fact that we’re independent.”
Asked if he was worried for the future of his event, to be held April 6-10, Noble replied, “Worried about the industry in general. Bluesfest will get through. We can deliver the event this year – but it’s going forward that I fear.”
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