Are you a fan of the legendary Bruce Springsteen? If so, you may have heard about the recent news that the magazine and website, Backstreets, that has served his fans for 43 years is shutting down. In this blog post, we will discuss the reasons behind this decision, and how it affects Springsteen fans everywhere.
At first glance, Backstreets seemed to be an unusually robust publication that imposed journalistic rigor on its writing and photography, while leaving no doubt of its fan worship. However, the complaints about high ticket prices for Bruce Springsteen’s current tour left people there “dispirited, downhearted and yes, disillusioned,” according to the publisher, Christopher Phillips.
The uproar amongst some Springsteen fans when tickets first went on sale last summer was mainly due to Ticketmaster’s dynamic pricing model, which sent tickets soaring to $5,000 or more when there was high demand. At a congressional hearing last month following the fiasco over Ticketmaster’s handling of Taylor Swift tour tickets, U.S. Sen. John Kennedy of Louisiana suggested major artists like Springsteen and Swift should demand fee caps.
Springsteen’s team has defended the prices as being in line with what is charged today by many of his peers. Like many artists, he says he’s annoyed when unscrupulous ticket brokers — not the musicians — benefit from high markups.
Many Springsteen fans have been with him for decades, appreciating his working class New Jersey roots, and can remember when a ticket for a four-hour, high-energy show on the “Darkness on the Edge of Town” tour in 1978 could be had for $7.50. That’s not reality anymore. Springsteen hasn’t backed down, telling Rolling Stone magazine that fans unhappy with the price after seeing the show can have their money back.
The publisher of Backstreets wrote that many readers have lost interest because they can’t afford to go to the show. He said he hadn’t given up on being a fan of Springsteen’s music, and that others shouldn’t, either.
In this blog post, we have discussed the reasons behind Backstreets’ decision to shut down, and how it affects Springsteen fans everywhere. We have also discussed the controversy surrounding the high ticket prices for Bruce Springsteen’s current tour, and how the artist has defended the prices. Finally, we have discussed the publisher’s thoughts on the matter and his encouragement to fans to not give up on being a fan of Springsteen’s music.
If you are a fan of Bruce Springsteen, this blog post is an important read for you. Stay tuned for more news and updates about the legendary artist.
Source: fortune.com
