The knock-on effect on the rest of the industry is immense. There are many factors at play, but the ones with the power here are the big artists
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n October 2024, Heat magazine’s list of the UK’s 30 richest celebrities under 30 ranked Harry Styles at the very top, with an estimated wealth of £200m. (He’d doubtless have fared well in last year’s survey, too, but he’s 31 now.)
Whatever your views on the fabulous wealth accrued by a small elite of megastars, and regardless of your opinion of Styles’ musical merits, that figure doesn’t sit well next to the headlines he is now making.
Styles announced a record-breaking 12-date residency at Wembley stadium this week, with ticket prices for seats ranging from £44.10 in the faraway stands right up to £466.24, while bog standard general standing tickets will set you back £144.65 – and a berth in the fancy Circle, Disco, Square and Kiss standing enclosures up to £279.45. Furthermore, access to the presale was restricted to American Express cardholders and anyone who pre-ordered Styles’ new album, Kiss All the Time. Disco, Occasionally, which will be released on 6 March. The pricing has sparked an enormous backlash among Styles’ fans for making the shows inaccessible to vast swathes of his audience, a significant proportion of whom are very young.
