Desert Trip Festival’s Gross Is Roughly $160 Million
Organizers won't know the final numbers — or if it'll even be profitable — until after the crowds clear away, but after selling out two weekends worth of festival passes, the superstar Desert Trip mega-event scheduled for this October has already cleared $160 million.
As previously reported, the festival — set to take place over the weekends of Oct. 7-9 and 14-16 — boasts a lineup that includes the Rolling Stones, Bob Dylan, Paul McCartney, Neil Young, Roger Waters and the Who. All that star power helped Desert Trip sell out in just a few hours — and rake in a ton of cash along the way.
"It turned out to be the highest-grossing show by far," organizer Paul Tollett told The New York Times. "It beat No. 2, which is Coachella, by far. The gross is approximately $160 million for the two weekends."
Quick to admit that the company will "find out in October" whether the event is profitable after paying out reportedly exorbitant fees to the performers, Tollett also sounded a cautious note for anyone expecting Desert Trip to become an annual event — or even be part of the company's plans again. Although the level of hype the shows have commanded would be hard for any promoter to resist, he seems content to treat it as a standalone experience.
"That is a unique, one-off thing," Tollett explained. "It’s not really a festival — it’s a concert, two bands a day. I just thought those six bands should play together. It’s never been done."
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