As Gen Z Turns Live Music Into Vacation Events, Credit Cards Offer Savings On Shows And Trips

Forbes

5 days ago

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Ask any music fan, and they might tell you that music is the closest thing humanity has to magic, or they might compare it to a time machine that whisks listeners through their memories. To add color to their lifestyle, consumers are increasingly prioritizing live music. Despite stock plunges, rising tariffs and jokes about 'recession indicators' on TikTok, the live music industry is proving not just sturdy, but booming.
While Americans are intentionally budgeting for music, Gen Z is finding ways to agilely spend their time and money, squeezing in a vacation alongside a Lorde concert in one go. Financially, smart fans can double down on maxing out tangible savings with credit cards.
Not Just Resilient—Music Is Recession-Proof
In the eyes of a growing consumer base, live music experiences have become an investment.
Serona Elton, director of the University of Miami's music industry program, explained that the pandemic shifted perspectives of listeners globally, who underwent nostalgic longing for live music during the Covid-19 pandemic.
'They didn't realize how important music was to them until they didn't have that option. Music not only made a comeback, but it came back stronger post-pandemic,' she says.
A key contributor to the live music industry's success, Elton adds, is the depth of the relationships built with its consumers, compared to live entertainment sectors like sports.
'[Music is] unlike going to a sporting event where you're a fan of the team but you may not have a whole bunch of memories that you connect with the sport,' Elton says. 'Music and live music performances tap into a very personal set of experiences that you have had with that music.'
Live Nation Entertainment, the company that acquired Ticketmaster, unveiled in its 2025 Q1 earnings report that fans were liberal with not just ticket spending but once on-site, opened their hearts—and wallets— to supporting hospitality and service sectors.
Live Nation venues hosted approximately 10 million fans in Q1 2025, up double digits from a year prior, with boosted on-site spending across food and beverage and fan spend on 'premium experiences.'
While people certainly seem open to dishing out more for live entertainment, the data reveals that fans' eagerness may have had an unintended result—cheaper admission. In North America, ticket prices are down 5.4% since 2024, and 5.5% globally, according to a Pollstar report.
According to Pollstar, it's the steepest global drop since 2012. Artists, like Passion Pit's founding member Jeff Apruzzese Drexel, believe that the correlation might be in artists' desire to level the playing field for fans.
'We might have finally gotten to the place where the average cost of tours might need to settle down a little bit,' Drexel says.
'We're starting to see a lot of artists now who are prioritizing offering certain tickets for less because they want to have a cheaper get-in price, just to get their fans in the door and not feel like they're alienating them. It's a delicate balance of how you achieve the maximum amount of revenue while also not feeling like you're stripping your fans of like every last dollar and not giving them the opportunity to attend.'
How Fans Can Save Further
Splurging on concerts and festivals doesn't mean that the average music fan isn't still being savvy.
Collinson International, owner of Priority Pass, found that in 2023, members of Gen Z drove spikes in music tourism, with over half (56%) attending events more than once annually, and 22% attending three or more. Concert attendees turned events into full vacations, frequently arriving up to three days early (78%) and staying up to three days post-event (80%).
The frequency of repeat concerts and the cost of travel can be offset with the help of credit cards, especially those that provide entertainment perks.
Capital One Savor Cash Rewards Credit Card: An all-rounder entertainment credit card that offers a steady 3% cash back on dining, entertainment, popular streaming services and grocery stores (excluding superstores like Walmart® and Target®), 5% cash back on hotels and rental cars booked through Capital One Travel, 8% cash back on Capital One Entertainment purchases, and 1% on all other purchases. Plus, music fans can take advantage of the $200 cash bonus after spending $500 on purchases within the first 3 months from account opening to put towards admission tickets or travel expenditures. A generous APR introductory period of 15 months even gives fans time to finance their live entertainment purchases for over a year, all for an annual fee of $0.
Citi Custom Cash® Card * : The Citi Custom Cash® Card also offers incredible bang for your rhetorical buck, clocking in at $0, with 5% cash back on purchases in a top eligible spend category up to the first $500 spent each billing cycle, 4% cash back on hotels, car rentals, and attractions booked through Citi Travel and 1% cash back on all other purchases. The list of eligible 5% categories includes concerts, live sporting events, live theatrical productions, amusement parks, and orchestras, with no activation schedule to keep track of.
: The Citi Custom Cash® Card also offers incredible bang for your rhetorical buck, clocking in at $0, with 5% cash back on purchases in a top eligible spend category up to the first $500 spent each billing cycle, 4% cash back on hotels, car rentals, and attractions booked through Citi Travel and 1% cash back on all other purchases. The list of eligible 5% categories includes concerts, live sporting events, live theatrical productions, amusement parks, and orchestras, with no activation schedule to keep track of. Wells Fargo Attune® Card
* : Offers cashback on a broad definition of entertainment, including 4% cash rewards on eligible purchases for gym memberships, entertainment, sports, recreation, at spas or salons and select additional categories, 1% cash rewards on other purchases. Live entertainment, including concert and festival tickets, qualifies, and best of all, like all the other cards on this list, the Attune boasts an annual fee of $0. It's a win-win.
Alternatives to the Capital One Savor Cash Rewards