Source: Washington Post / Reuters

HOLLYWOOD, Florida (Hollywood Reporter) - Faced with continuing declines in attendance and a potentially disastrous void as the cash-cow classic acts from the '60s and '70s retire, concert promoters searching for answers might do well to examine the enterprising route taken by Jon Bon Jovi.

Along with Madonna, Kenny Chesney, Tim McGraw and Dave Matthews Band, Bon Jovi and his eponymous band have emerged this summer, perhaps surprisingly to some, as one of the few sure things on the road. Business is so strong that the group is bypassing arenas and amphitheaters in favor of much larger outdoor stadiums, at roughly 50,000 seats per show. In recent years, only Matthews, a resurgent Green Day, Metallica and a handful of others have been able to attract that many fans.


This month alone, the band is expected to earn more than $25 million from nine dates, with grosses for the entire tour (which launched in November with the first of about 90 dates) exceeding $100 million.

While most free-spending, over-40 concertgoers now seem to prefer comfortable indoor shows to the event-style concerts in football stadiums that once ruled, for some acts the big outdoor show remains very much a part of the equation. For Jon Bon Jovi, a guy mistakenly written off years ago as little more than a big-haired '80s novelty, regularly filling such venues worldwide seems testament to the more unorthodox decisions he has made through the years.

---


Read the rest of the article by following the link below...

Related URL: http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2006/07/06/AR2006070601938.html

back to news index / central page