 |
| Read Michael Hann's article here. |
This is either despicable exploitation or a sensible means of countering the reduced revenues from record sales: the trend for pop/rock acts to offer premium gig packages which include meet and greets amongst other things. Would you pay £215 to meet Avril Lavigne and have a photo taken 'with' her (standing apart with a clearly faked, fixed grin)? Clearly for a lot of folks the answer is
mais oui, but she's just one of many plying this field:
On Kiss's forthcoming US tour, for example, you can pay $1,250 (£737) for a package
that includes a seat in the first 10 rows, a meet-and-greet, a photo
with the band, autographs from the band, sitting in on the sound check
and a selection of merchandise. A similar package for Def Leppard, who are opening for Kiss, is $750 ($441). The lower the star power, the lower the price. For example, £159 will buy you the chance to meet Michael Bolton on his UK tour – and get the inevitable photographs and array of merch.
