The Cure’s Robert Smith has slammed Ticketmaster following the launch of their North American tour.
The band completed a UK run in December, a series of extraordinary career-spanning shows. With a new album slated to land this year, it seems that 2023 is going to be an important year for fans of the iconic British group.
Taking their live show to North America, The Cure announced plans for a huge North American run. Refusing to use dynamic pricing, the band aimed to make entrance to the shows as fair as possible.
Tickets went on sale yesterday – March 15th – and fans were surprised at the fees being added. Images of ticket stumps quickly went viral, with many feeling as though the band had perhaps over-promised in the pre-launch hype.
Robert Smith took to social media – in his traditional ALL CAPS style – to say he was “sickened” by Ticketmaster, and called the roll-out a “debacle”.
He writes: “I AM AS SICKENED AS YOU ALL ARE BY TODAY’S TICKETMASTER ‘FEES’ DEBACLE. TO BE VERY CLEAR: THE ARTIST HAS NO WAY TO LIMIT THEM. I HAVE BEEN ASKING HOW THEY ARE JUSTIFIED. IF I GET ANYTHING COHERENT BY WAY OF AN ANSWER I WILL LET YOU ALL KNOW. X”
I AM AS SICKENED AS YOU ALL ARE BY TODAY'S TICKETMASTER 'FEES' DEBACLE. TO BE VERY CLEAR: THE ARTIST HAS NO WAY TO LIMIT THEM. I HAVE BEEN ASKING HOW THEY ARE JUSTIFIED. IF I GET ANYTHING COHERENT BY WAY OF AN ANSWER I WILL LET YOU ALL KNOW. X
— ROBERT SMITH (@RobertSmith) March 16, 2023
StubHub began re-posting tickets, which was against the band’s plans – The Cure want all passes to be sold through official channels, removing scalpers from the equation. Robert Smith added: “I HAVE BEEN TOLD: StubHub has pulled listings in all markets except NY, Chicago, Denver (IE. CITIES IN STATES THAT HAVE LAWS PROTECTING SCALPERS). PLEASE DON’T BUY FROM THE SCALPERS – THERE ARE STILL TICKETS AVAILABLE – IT IS JUST A VERY SLOW PROCESS… X”
Robert Smith vowed to continue pushing on Ticketmaster fees, writing: “I WILL BE BACK IF I GET ANYTHING SERIOUS ON THE TM FEES… IN THE MEANTIME, I AM COMPELLED TO NOTE DOWN MY OBVIOUS RECURRING ELEPHANT IN THE ROOM THOUGHT… THAT IF NO-ONE BOUGHT FROM SCALPERS… THEN… X”
Tickets are on sale now for all North American dates.
