In theory, it doesn’t matter how much money a tour made, so long as the bands and fans had a great time. In reality, that’s bullshit, as most musicians make their living via live performances, and a financially successful tour leads to more live opportunities. Now, live event site Pollstar has listed the most lucrative tours of 2021, and apparently there are some metal bands making bank.
The full chart, as created by Pollstar ranks the top 100 tours of 2021 according to their financial success. While most of them are obvious, some are more surprising than others. For example, Slipknot’s Knotfest Roadshow out-selling acts like Korn and the Foo Fighters is definitely unexpected, and Megadeth and Lamb of God outselling Shinedown is kind of cool. It just goes to show that at the end of the day, live metal will always be a hot commodity.
Here are the entries relevant to metal fans, as sorted out by Blabbermouth:
1. THE ROLLING STONES ($115.5 million)
7. GUNS N’ ROSES ($47.3 million)
30. KISS ($16.9 million)
42. SLIPKNOT’s “Knotfest Roadshow” ($12.3 million)
48. KORN ($10.3 million)
53. ZZ TOP ($9.4 million)
61. MEGADETH, LAMB OF GOD ($7.9 million)
63. SHINEDOWN ($7.5 million)
69. PRIMUS ($7.0 million)
Meanwhile, Korn are already getting back on the road in early 2022 with Chevelle and Code Orange, so catch them live and line their pockets at one of the following dates:
1/31 – Phoenix, Ariz. @ Footprint Center^
2/1 – San Diego, Calif. @ Viejas Arena^
2/4 – Los Angeles, Calif. @ Banc of California Stadium^
2/5 – Los Angeles, Calif. @ Banc of California Stadium^
3/4 – Springfield, Mo. @ JQH Arena*
3/5 – Kansas City, Mo. @ T-Mobile Center*
3/7 – Fort Wayne, Ind. @ Allen County War Memorial Coliseum*
3/8 – Evansville, Ind. @ Ford Center*
3/10 – Knoxville, Tenn. @ University of Tennessee – Thompson-Boling Arena*
3/11 – Greensboro, N.C. @ Greensboro Coliseum Complex*
3/13 – Huntington, W.V. @ Mountain Health Arena*
3/15 – Hershey, Pa. @ Giant Center*
3/16 – Providence, R.I. @ Dunkin Donuts Center*
3/19 – Manchester, N.H. @ SNHU Arena*
3/20 – Albany, N.Y. @ Times Union Center*
3/22 – Rochester, N.Y. @ Blue Cross Arena*
3/23 – Saginaw, Mich. @ Dow Event Center*
3/25 – Moline, Ill. @ TaxSlayer Center*
3/26 – Minneapolis, Minn. @ Target Center*
3/28 – Des Moines, Iowa @ Wells Fargo Arena*
3/29 – Madison, Wis. @ The Coliseum at Alliant Energy Center*
3/31 – Oklahoma City, Okla. @ Paycom Center*
4/1 – Wichita, Kan. @ INTRUST Bank Arena*
^ = w/ System of a Down, Helmet, Russian Circles
* = w/ Chevelle and Code Orange
***
Words by Chris Krovatin
