Pollstar (03/25/22) Allen, Bob
Pollstar's first-quarter (Q1) 2022 review highlights two categories of touring artists: those who started early in the current year as well as those who were active in the final months of 2021. An overview of the top 10 tours indicates six (including BTS, Trans-Siberian Orchestra, Andrea Bocelli and the Rolling Stones) were ranked mainly based on late 2021 event totals. Yet Eric Church, Sebastian Maniscalco and Bad Bunny had a similar number of dates in both years, while Tool was the only top 10 act to earn a ranking from performances in January and February. This year's assessment is defined by the ongoing process of pandemic recovery, and estimates a worldwide gross surpassing $1.09 billion during the three-month eligibility period, up from last year's $30 million gross but still down significantly from 2020. Most events staged in 2020 and early in 2021 were small scale, with greatly reduced seating and social distancing. Reported figures include sales totals from major stadium events with capacity crowds and multi-million-dollar grosses, with Q1 stadium dates primarily occurring in November and December as fall tours were concluding for the year. New York's Madison Square Garden won the No. 1 arena slot worldwide based on a Q1 box office total of $32.15 million, and for hosting 18 performances for a total ticket count of 249,960.
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