‘Something’s got to give’ as the cost of living crisis threatens to change festivals forever

Festivals in the UK could be about to collapse (Picture: Anna Barclay/Getty Images)

As the UK’s biggest festival, Glastonbury, kicks off this week, industry heavyweights are concerned that festivals could ‘wither and die’.

We are all still feeling the crunch of the cost of living crisis, with people struggling to pay rent, bills, and basic essentials. Festivals are hardly top of the priority list.

Crushing financial strains from all sides could ultimately kill off festival season, despite the seeming abundance of them in the UK currently.

From the price of tickets deterring gig-goers to soaring costs for the artists to impossible margins for the festivals – everyone is concerned about the future of music.

Glastonbury artists and fellow festival organisers have revealed to Metro.co.uk how the cost of living crisis continues to impact the music industry.

‘I think probably this year at Glastonbury, you’re going to see less big production,’ predicted Kevin Baird of Two Door Cinema Club, who are performing at Glasto on Sunday.

Artists and organisers are concerned about the cost of living crisis (Picture: Anna Barclay/Getty Images)

‘I would say all those costs have gone up,’ he continued as he reminisced about the band’s early days in the 2010s.

‘When we first started playing the levels of production that people put in, in terms of lighting, video, pyrotechnics and all the rest were relatively low. That was cost-effective 15 years ago, but now, I think that pressure is still there.’

Glasto boss Emily Eavis has previously shared that the festival has to sell out just to break even, running at about £40million to put on.

In 2015, an organiser for other festivals declared it could cost £30,000 just on waste disposal while power alone could run up to £100,000 for a 10,000 capacity event.

When scaled up to Glastonbury’s 210,000, the costs become overwhelming, with Emily revealing profits sit at around £86,000.

Sziget Festival’s CEO Tamas Kadar shared: ‘Festivals around the world face challenges such as rising operational costs, in addition to environmental sustainability and maintaining audience engagement.’

Dua Lipa will headline Glastonbury this year (Picture: Harry Durrant/Getty Images)

Budapest’s Sziget Festival is seeing increased competition in the industry (Picture: Didier Messens/Getty Images)

‘Over the past decade, the industry has seen increased competition and higher expectations for unique experiences,’ her revealed.

Oversaturation of the market has become a real obstacle in keeping the live music industry afloat, according to Sziget’s CEO of Cultural Management.

Giles Napier, co-founder of London independent festivals Gala and Rally, agreed as he revealed: ‘I’ve lost count of how many festivals are cancelled for this summer.

‘It’s difficult, obviously, there’s the cost of living crisis but there’s been a huge explosion in the festival market. Now you’re seeing new festivals pop up every year.’

Giles, who has been running Gala for a decade, explained that this ‘boom’ doesn’t equate to longevity as ticket sales dry up and the cost of production hits within a year or two.

A study by the Association of Independent Festivals (AIF), a not-for-profit trade association, previously found of the 600 UK music festivals in 2019, under 500 remained in 2023.

Two Door Cinema Club have noticed a huge increase in expenses (Picture: Andrew Benge/Redferns)

The move away from physical sales crush money-making abilities of artists (Picture: Leon Neal/Getty Images)

They revealed to the BBC last year this was partly due to the fact production costs had risen by between 30% and a whopping 80% in some areas.

However, this ebb and flow is somewhat cyclical as Dan Gillespie-Sells of The Feeling recalled a time in 2018 when festivals just disappeared.

‘There was a period where every corner of England had a festival,’ the Glastonbury performer began. ‘There was a slight festival boom and I think a lot of them just didn’t make it as far as actually being a festival.’

The UK could see this repeated now with festivals that previously managed to make it over the line, faltering under the pressure of costs.

A government committee has even appealed for a levy and tax relief for grassroots venues, as well as monetary support, to fight the ‘bleak future’.

Dame Caroline Dinenage MP, Chair of the Culture, Media and Sport Committee declared that ‘grassroots music venues are in crisis’ and music in the UK as a whole could ‘wither and die’.

Much of the industry’s money comes from big brand sponsors and commercialisation, which Giles agrees is good for existing festival goliaths but can negatively impact independent festivals as artists will ‘inevitably go the people who are willing to pay most.’

‘I think that will always be the way, there are really established artists who expect a certain level of fee — if you don’t pay it, you don’t get them, regardless of what the opportunity is.’

His comments come as some artists revealed they turned down Glastonbury as the fee was not high enough.

Two Door Cinema Club’s Kevin joked that it’s ‘no secret’ the Worthy Farm fee is low but artists go for the experience and the iconography, not the paycheck.

Giles and his Rally co-founder Jonathan Edwards are careful not to ‘get involved in bidding wars’ and focus more on ‘curating’ a festival that is ‘bigger than the sum of its parts’.

He added: ‘I think the festivals are a lot more name-driven, they are at artists’ mercy and their margins become [tiny] – I don’t even know how some find that sustainable.’

However, on the other side of this coin is the artist, as The Zutons frontman Dave McCabe lamented: ‘We’re not making any money.’

The Valerie hitmaker revealed it took over 20 gigs before they broke even on their latest tour, despite their established fan base.

‘It’s not a cash grab, it looks great and you see loads of people in the crowd but the reality is by the time you’ve paid for the bus, the lights, the crew, and the musicians, you’ve got nothing left.’

This ‘cost of touring crisis’ (as Dame Caroline put it) is much more precarious for rising stars such as Caity Baser who revealed how she is painfully aware of this knife-edge margin.

‘I mean, the price for a Glastonbury ticket is actually wild,’ she laughed awkwardly, thankful her performer ticket was free as costs have crept up to a huge £340 per person.

Staging, pyrotechnics, and production has all come at a cost (Picture: Jim Dyson/Getty Images)

Caity Baser wouldn’t pay for a Glasto ticket as she’s ‘not a mug’ (Picture: Anthony Devlin/Getty Images)

She’s not alone as a study by Opinium in January 2024 found that over half of Brits feel music festivals are no longer accessible and 47% say festivals are no longer worth the money.

On average people were willing to spend around £192 for a weekend camping, with one in 10 maxing their budget at £100 – well below Glasto’s £340.

Caity, who caps her own ticket prices, continued: ‘I always say, “I’m not skint but I’m not a mug”. I couldn’t always go to gigs as I couldn’t afford it then, let alone now.’

While touring is at the forefront, The Feeling’s Dan believes some of this struggle comes from how the music industry ‘economically works’ and ‘the way [they] get paid.’

He describes the 00s as a ‘stupid mad time’ when physical sales disappeared and the record labels were in ‘freefall’, handing distribution over to the likes of Apple and Spotify.

Most of us wouldn’t consider paying more than £200 for a festival (Picture: Jim Dyson/Redferns)

As the cost of living continues to hit, we’re less willing to splash out on festivals (Picture: Getty Images)

‘We’re still fighting for our little tiny slice of the pie in order to survive,’ Dan continued.

‘Mid-level artists [now] don’t make a living. It’s not sustainable if you just want to be an artist at a normal human, sane level.’

If musicians can’t make a living, fans can’t afford gigs, and small festivals are collapsing, there are very few spaces for artists – especially lesser-known ones – to turn to.

The Love It When You Call hitmaker vented: ‘Where is that middle ground in the music industry? Where’s that space?

‘You can’t tour in Europe anymore because of Brexit. There’s lots of things that unless you’re mega mega star, it just becomes madly expensive to operate as a band or as an artist.’

There’s small festivals across the country buckling under the costs (Picture: Peter Byrne/PA Wire)

Giles warned ‘something’s got to give'(Picture: Anthony Mooney)

The strain is clearly being felt across the entire sector as Sziget’s Tamas added: ‘The constant changes in the festival industry and the diversity of the visitor’s needs encourages us to develop year on year. 

‘Finding the right balance between affordability and offering an exceptional experience is crucial.’

Gala’s Giles believes a ‘reset’ is due as things ‘can’t continue’ as they have done, recommending festivals focus on bringing something unique to the table.

He sighed: ‘Unless the cost of living crisis eases and people have more money to go out and we see people going to four or five [festivals a year], that’s fine.

‘I guess something’s got to give, it’s either people get more money and that appetite rises. Or unfortunately, there are fewer festivals.’

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