Yungblud hits out at live music prices: “It does not represent real people – I cannot play a festival where it’s £800 a ticket”

Yungblud has criticised the current price of festival tickets, saying he “100 per cent” agrees with the argument that prices have “got out of hand”.

• READ MORE: Yungblud tells us about BLUDFEST 2 and “fucking bonkers” new double album: “This is the master plan”

The artist, real name Dom Harrison, made a conscious effort to keep prices affordable for fans attending his festival BLUDFEST. The inaugural edition took place at Milton Keynes Bowl last year and it will return next month.

Regarding the soaring prices in the modern festival market, he told the BBC: “This is just dumb. Just stupid. It does not represent real people. I cannot play a festival where it’s like £800 a ticket. How can you stand on stage, and that’s okay?”

He added that part of the reason he created BLUDFEST was to offer the change he wanted to see. “We wanted to come back and do 20 bands for £65, because that’s the way it should be. In this world, there is nothing you can’t achieve if you are doing it from a place of truth, and for the right reason.,” Harrison said.

“I was tired of what the festival market was. I was tired that a lot of festival promoters didn’t take me seriously. So I was like: I’ll start my own. Why not?”

When Harrison spoke to NME about the launch of the festival last year, he made similar comments. “We’re not even making money – we’re just doing it for the fucking tunes. I’m excited. It’s all about saying ‘thank for this moment’. I’ve had so many arguments about the price-point but that’s it.”

In response to criticisms of the festival’s authenticity, he doubled down on his reasonings for keeping prices as low as possible.

“At first people were like ‘Holy fucking shit, what?’ It was important to me that you get to see seven bands, that’s like seven quid a band,” he said. “You get to see bands all day and keep the price low because I know the cost of living crisis is crazy right now and the system that is in place with gigs and festivals doesn’t represent what normal people are going through and that’s a fact. Music should be accessible to everyone, in my opinion.”

He also pointed out that BLUDFEST was cheaper than a day ticket for many other major festivals.

“It’s a one day ticket for a sick festival – Reading and Leeds is £115, Wireless is £80, British Summertime is £150 and that’s just the fact of the matter.”

The second edition of BLUDFEST takes place on June 21 at Milton Keynes Bowl, which will be Harrison’s only UK show of 2025. The line-up features the likes of Chase Atlantic, Denzel Curry and Blackbear alongside recent NME Cover stars Rachel Chinouriri and Peach PRC. Tickets are available here.

Meanwhile, Harrison is also gearing up for the release of ‘Idols’, the first part of a double album. It will arrive on June 20 and features the singles  ‘Hello Heaven, Hello’ and  ‘Lovesick Lullaby’.

Later in the year, he will be touring Europe and North America. Check out the full list of tour dates below. Tickets for the European dates are on sale from 10am CEST on Friday May 16 and available here, while US tickets will be available here on the same day from 9am local time.

Yungblud’s 2025 ‘Idols’ world tour dates are:

AUGUST
23 – Los Angeles, CA, Hollywood Palladium
24 – San Diego, CA, The Observatory North Park
26 – Salt Lake City, UT, The Union
28 – Denver, CO, The Mission Ballroom
30 – Austin, TX, ACL Live at the Moody Theatre
31 – Dallas, TX, House of Blues

SEPTEMBER
2 – Atlanta, GA, Tabernacle
6 – Washington, DC, 9.30 Club
9 – Milwaukee, WI, The Rave, Eagles Ballroom
10 – Detroit, MI, The Fillmore 
12 – Chicago, IL, Riviera Theatre
14 – Cleveland, OH, Agora Theatre and Ballroom
16 – Brooklyn, NY, Brooklyn Paramount
18 – Philadelphia, PA, The Fillmore
19 – Boston, MA, Roadrunner
21 – Toronto, ON, Danforth Music Hall

OCTOBER
4 – Amsterdam, NL, AFAS Live
5 – Brussels, BE, Forest National
7 – Dusseldorf, DE, Mitsubishi Electric Halle
8 – Paris, FR, Adidas Arena
9 – Nantes, FR, Zenith Nantes Metropole
11 – Madrid, ES, Palacio Vistalegre
14 – Munich, DE, Zenith
15 – Zurich, CH, Halle 622
17 – Prague – CZ, Sportovni Hala Fortuna
18 – Warsaw – PL, Torwar Hall
20 – Berlin – DE, Uber Eats Music Hall 
22 – Esch-sur-Alzette, LU, Rockhal Main Hall
24 – Copenhagen, DK, KB Hallen
25 – Stockholm, SE, Annexet
27 – Hamburg, DE, Sporthalle
29 – Vienna, AT, Wiener Stadthalle
31 – Bergamo, IT, ChorusLife Arena

The post Yungblud hits out at live music prices: “It does not represent real people – I cannot play a festival where it’s £800 a ticket” appeared first on NME.