Dead & Company, formed in 2015, is a band consisting of former Grateful Dead members Bob Weir, Mickey Hart, and Bill Kreutzmann, along with John Mayer, Oteil Burbridge, and Jeff Chimenti. As one of the most popular legacy rock acts touring today, Dead & Company tickets are in high demand and generally very expensive compared to most other touring acts.
The popularity and demand for Dead & Company
There are several key factors that drive up prices for Dead & Company shows:
- Limited number of shows – Dead & Company generally tours for a few weeks per year, playing around 20-30 shows in major markets. The limited tour schedule increases demand.
- Large fanbase – The Grateful Dead built up a massive fan following during their 30 year career, and many of these Deadheads still follow Bob Weir and the current incarnation of the band.
- Arena and stadium venues – Dead & Company exclusively plays large venues these days like arenas and stadiums. The band can command these huge venues due to their big draw.
- Festival headliners – Dead & Company often headlines major music festivals which also increases their visibility and expands their audience.
- Nostalgia and bucket lists – Older Deadheads who saw Jerry Garcia want to relive their glory days, while younger fans want to check seeing the band off their bucket lists.
- Lack of new Grateful Dead music – Aside from a couple of new John Mayer penned songs, Dead & Company primarily plays decades old Grateful Dead material, so seeing them live is the only way for fans to experience the music.
All of these factors combine to create very high demand for a relatively short annual tour. With only so many available seats, prices inevitably go up.
How ticket prices are set
Basic economics of supply and demand dictate pricing, but there are some additional factors at play:
- Venue capacity – Large stadiums like Soldier Field in Chicago where Dead & Company often plays can hold 60,000+ fans. Smaller arenas may cap out around 20,000. More seats available brings prices down slightly.
- Overhead costs – Large venues have expensive overhead which gets passed onto ticket buyers via higher face value prices.
- Fan club presales – Dead & Company offers early access to tickets for their fan club members. These presale tickets are generally sold for face value direct through the band.
- Platinum tickets – In recent years many artists including Dead & Company have utilized “platinum” or dynamic pricing where the ticket cost fluctuates based on demand. The most in-demand seats get marked up higher via platinum pricing.
- Resellers and brokers – Third party ticket brokers often acquire large batches of tickets and then mark up prices, sometimes exponentially based on demand. Broker ticket prices can reach into the thousands.
- Limited VIP/Package deals – Special packages with perks like premium parking, merchandise, and meet & greets are very limited and sold at a premium.
While Dead & Company tries to keep prices reasonable on their end, secondary market forces drive prices up substantially for highly coveted shows.
Average ticket prices
To visualize the range and extremes of Dead & Company ticket prices, here are some averages from recent tours:
| Year | Average Price | Highest Price |
|---|---|---|
| 2015 | $75 | $250 |
| 2016 | $85 | $400 |
| 2017 | $120 | $1,100 |
| 2018 | $130 | $6,000 |
| 2019 | $150 | $9,000 |
| 2022 | $200 | $15,000 |
A few key takeaways:
- Average prices have steadily increased each year, more than doubling over 7 years.
- The highest prices have skyrocketed into the thousands, with the top end exceeding well over $10,000 in recent years.
- For premium shows in New York, Chicago etc, many decent lower level seats still go for $300-$500 even before broker markup.
- Even the cheapest lawn or obstructed view seats often run $100+ now, when equivalent seats for other acts may go for as low as $25-50.
Ticket price factors
Within each tour, ticket price averages can fluctuate based on:
- Venue & city – Prices are higher in major markets like New York, Chicago, Philadelphia etc. Smaller city venues are often cheaper.
- Day of week – Weekend shows (Fri/Sat) are generally 30-50% higher than weeknights (Sun-Thurs).
- Holidays – Shows around New Years, July 4th etc see significant markup.
- Special events – MLB or NFL stadium shows where Dead & Company plays after baseball or football games have unique demand.
- Opener acts – When Dead & Company tours with an extra big opening act like John Fogerty, Jimmy Buffett etc, it may increase prices slightly.
- Historical significance – Returning to a venue the Grateful Dead played for epic shows in the past raises demand and prices, like Wrigley Field or the Greek Theatre.
Ultimately the average price is determined by the overall demand and limited ticket availability in each market.
Why fans pay so much
Despite very high prices compared to most concerts, Deadheads continue to snap up Dead & Company tickets year after year. Here are some of the key reasons fans are willing to pay a premium:
Seeing founding Grateful Dead members
Mickey, Bill and especially Bob were integral parts of the Grateful Dead experience. For old and new fans alike, seeing original band members is a huge draw worth the price.
A taste of the vintage live Dead experience
The unpredictable setlists, jamming and overall vibe of a real Dead show is partly recreated. For those who never saw Jerry, this is the closest they can get.
John Mayer’s guitar skills
Mayer has genuinely impressed Deadheads with his ability to handle Jerry’s old parts and add flair. His talent and star power is a big factor.
Community and party atmosphere
Like a Grateful Dead show, the parking lot scene, people watching, crowds and overall party atmosphere is a huge attraction.
Bucket list item
Younger fans in particular want to cross seeing some derivative of the Dead off their concert bucket lists, even at high prices.
Escapism and nostalgia
For older Deadheads who toured with the Dead back in the day, going to a Dead & Company show allows them to reminisce and pretend they are young again following the band for one more tour.
Limited opportunities to see band
With only a brief tour each year in mostly large cities, Deadheads know this may be their only chance to catch a show, so they pay up.
FOMO
The fear of missing out drives many fans to overpay for tickets. Scalpers feed off this FOMO profitably.
Rare chance to hear favorite Dead songs live
Hearing epic classics like “Terrapin Station”, “The Other One” or “Morning Dew” played live is a joy many fans will spend heavily to experience.
How fans try to get affordable tickets
Despite the challenges, savvy Deadheads have found some ways to reduce costs:
Join fan club for presale access
The Dead & Company fan club offers members early access to buy face value tickets direct from the band before the general public sale.
Look for fan ticket exchanges
Cashortrade.org and other fan sites facilitate face value ticket exchanges and trades between fans.
Enter ticket lotteries
Some shows have ticket lotteries where a lucky few fans can score seats at or near face value through luck of the draw.
Find last minute deals
Right before shows some brokers will slash prices to offload inventory. But this is risky with no guarantee.
Go for general admission and lawn seats
The highest demand and prices are for reserved seats upfront. Opting for GA floor or lawn seats is often much cheaper.
Buy partial tour ticket bundles
Bundles offering discounted tickets for multiple shows may bring down the per show cost slightly.
See shows in smaller markets
Tickets generally cost less in cities outside of the major markets the band plays.
Go solo
Single tickets are much easier to obtain below face value compared to multiples.
Will prices keep going up?
Some factors that could impact future Dead & Company ticket prices:
Band members aging and retiring
The band members are all in their 60’s and 70’s now. Retirement tours in the near future could spike demand further.
Continued success of John Mayer
If Mayer’s star power grows, demand may rise even more.
TV broadcasts or concert films
High profile special broadcasts on HBO, Netflix etc could expand and energize the fanbase.
New fans from younger generations
Gen Z kids getting into 60s rock via their parents could broaden the demand base longer term.
Band infighting or member changes
Any instability like key members leaving could also dampen interest.
Exhaustion of hardcore older fans
Older generations of hardcore Deadheads willing to tour may start to decline, lowering demand ceiling.
Competing heritage rock acts touring
If bands like The Rolling Stones, The Who etc are also touring, it may divert some fans.
Economic factors
During recessions, fans tighten budgets which can reduce what they will pay.
Despite some potential mitigating factors, the overall trajectory still seems strongly upwards for Dead & Company ticket prices as long as demand continues to robustly outpace their selectively limited tour schedule.
Conclusion
In summary, Dead & Company tickets are expensive compared to most shows due to significant demand driven by their legendary Grateful Dead roots combined with their limited annual tour schedule focused mostly on large metro markets. While prices often get inflated substantially in the secondary market by brokers and resellers, even face value ticket prices have risen steadily as the band maintains their position as a huge arena/stadium concert draw. Hardcore older Deadheads remain willing to pay the high costs to relive their youth following the band, while younger fans view seeing any incarnation of the Dead live as a bucket list cultural experience. Dead & Company has cracked the code of how to maintain the mystique and community of a Dead show decades later for massive financial gain. Unless the band members retire or dramatically increase touring frequency, expect Dead & Company tickets to continue exceeding the price level of most classic rock peers in the coming years.
