With a pandemic hanging over the touring industry, Live Nation's first quarter earnings released Thursday revealed the damage caused since concerts were widely suspended in mid-March: Compared to Q1 2019, concert revenue dropped 24.6% and ticketing revenue fell 15.8%.This year, Live Nation will host virtual concerts, is testing drive-in concerts -- these started popping up in parking lots as early as mid-June -- and will later give superstar artists multiple theater dates rather than a single arena concert.
And nothing in the Q1 earnings call suggested the leadership team feels anxious about guiding the company through a financially dangerous tumult. "We don't want to rush," said CEO Michael Rapino. "We're playing long ball."Then again,.