Kid Rock Calls for 10% Price Cap on Ticket Resales in Congressional Testimony

Kid Rock called for a price cap on resale event tickets and called the 2010 merger of Live Nation and Ticketmaster a monopolistic "experiment" that "has failed miserably" during a Senate hearing on Wednesday.

The Details: The hearing comes after the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) filed a lawsuit this fall that alleged Ticketmaster knowingly turned a "blind eye" to ticket scalpers in order to generate secondary revenue fees on its resale platform. 

Kid's Position: Rock said, "This industry is full of greedy snakes and scoundrels, too many suits lining their pockets off talent they never had, and fans they mislead… The problem is that ticketing lobbyists push these reforms as cover while fighting to keep tickets in an open market and lets them exploit fans under the guise of capitalism. Do not be fooled by these tactics." Rock said Congress should subpoena contracts between all parties involved in concert production and would find "mountains of fraud and abuse." He also said that, in addition to splitting up Live Nation and Ticketmaster, resale tickets should be capped at a 10% increase.

Live Nation's Position: Live Nation legal chief Dan Wall said the company "consistently stands… in opposition to ticket brokers and other resale marketplaces." Sen. Marsha Blackburn (R-TN) said she was "quite disappointed" by reading in the FTC suit that a Ticketmaster executive admitted the platform turns a "blind eye" to ticket scalping. Wall replied, "I think that was taken very much out of context, Senator. Our actions speak louder than anything else… Our bot defenses are second to none in the world." Sen. Cynthia Lummis (R-WY) asked Wall if the companies constituted a monopoly. He said "no" and believes the Justice Department has miscalculated Live Nation's market share.

For Context: In March, Rock joined President Trump in the Oval Office when he signed an executive order that aimed to enforce competition laws, tax codes, transparent pricing, and President Obama's Better Online Ticket Sales (BOTS) Act. In April 2023, the Senate made a bipartisan push to enhance ticket market fairness when Senators Ted Cruz (R-TX) and Maria Cantwell (D-WA) introduced a bill that eventually was passed in May 2024. Rock has been a longtime vocal supporter of President Trump and an advocate for making concerts more affordable.

How The Media Covered It: Music magazine Billboard (Left bias) focused more on Wall's comments and interactions with politicians than political news outlets, which focused more on Kid Rock's statements.

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