Music is more accessible today than ever before in history because of Spotify, Apple Music, and other streaming services. While there is still an industry of collecting CDs and records, these items are no longer required to access music, but with this music accessibility, comes changes in how new artists are found. With more and more artists getting their start on social media, there is less of a need to expand fan bases through performance. This begs the question, what is the role of concert openers?
Beyoncé jump-started this conversation in recent years making the choice to forgo an opening act for her 2023 “Renaissance World Tour” and her upcoming “Cowboy Carter Tour.” However, this is not the norm even among large artists. P!NK’s recent “Summer Carnival 2024 Tour” featured Sheryl Crow, The Script, and KidCutUp as her opening act. Coldplay’s recent “Music of the Spheres World Tour” featured openers Arya Starr, Elyanna, Jasleen Royal, Marf, Shone, TWICE, and Willow. Even Taylor Swift, who just set the record for the highest grossing tour ever with “The Eras Tour,” still has opening acts.
Notably, artists often have multiple openers for different legs of the tour, but at any one show there is usually only one. Generally, additional openers are added when countries mandate that a local artist is given the opportunity to perform at an international event.
For example, in Australia, “Michael’s Rule” explains that international artists must have one local artist as a part of their supporting acts (openers). This comes in an effort to expose more people to smaller local artists and maintain their music industry. In the UK, there is no such national law, but it is common for venues to require it as a boost for ticket sales.
Furthermore, there are benefits for the artists hosting the openers as well. For many, it enables them to give back to the music community by fostering performance from smaller artists today who may be tomorrow’s big-name. This gives them good public images, and outwardly demonstrates their commitment to music for future generations. Additionally, it can foster collaborations with artists. For example, Gracie Abrams and Taylor Swift spent so much time together on tour that they co-wrote a song for Gracie’s Album “The Secret of Us” titled “us.”
While some artists may believe that their performances are tarnished by opening acts and consequently reject them, there is still a place for small artists within the industry and opening acts are one way that commitment is proven.
