OzzFest Makes $3.5 Million, Still Hated
Holy crap — according to Billboard, OzzFest grossed $3.5 million this year. Said Sharon Osbourne,
“The one thing is you want for the kids to go away and keep talking about what a great show it was, and that’s what they’re doing.”
Yeah, looks like David Draiman, singer for Disturbed is still talking about their last appearance on the tour. When asked how their current tour is compared to Ozzfest, well…
“It always seemed to me that the people who thought they were rock stars were, like, the people running the tour — not the people who were actually playing. It was like, “Remember, you’re working for us. You get paid because we fill seats.” So if I ask you to let people come up and watch us, and if I (tell you that) we don’t care, and if I let you know we want everyone to be there, then just let it happen and stop being a **** about it.”
Oh, and Between The Buried And Me practically wrote an album about how much they hated Ozzfest from a while back.
Don’t get Cody at All Metal Resource started. Oops. Too late.
“Don’t we have the decency to go see these underground bands when they come through town on their own or on smaller tours? Maybe few people don’t realize that second stage bands on Ozzfest make little to no money with little opportunity to sell their merch without the Ozzfest assholes somehow finding a way to snatch up their profits.”
Bands, labels, fans — chime in here. Is OzzFest really that bad?
11 Responses to “OzzFest Makes $3.5 Million, Still Hated”
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On 08/16/08 7:47 PM, Shanetera said:
I’ve only had fun at Ozzfests, but when I did want to buy anything it was always WAY overpriced. I mean, 40 dollars for fucking t-shirt is anal rape.
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On 08/16/08 8:49 PM, Seth Werkheiser said:
No, anal rape is anal rape. Being at a concert where tshirts are $40 is just capitalism.
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On 08/16/08 10:16 PM, Robbie said:
Maybe if they were pants….
More serious though, I haven’t even payed more than forty for a show, much less a shirt!
- Robbie
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On 08/16/08 11:38 PM, GoGoGadget Supa said:
Ozzfest doesn’t bring anyone good. They need to bring back Crazy Town again.
(yes, that was a joke.)
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On 08/16/08 11:40 PM, rojas said:
@ Seth–perfect answer to Shanetera’s comment.
Sharon Osbourne isn’t a moron (read the article below to read all about it) She knows that despite how much shit people will talk, there will be an equal amount of folks will fork over $100/ticket to see an assortment of bands.
My wife and I went to Ozzfest back in 2005. IMO, the lineup for the 2nd Stage was pretty killer. Got to see The Black Dahlia Murder, Mastodon, Arch Enemy, As I Lay Dying and Killswitch Engage.
While the lineup was good, the prices for everything were insane. My wife and I spent at least $50 in water alone so yeah, merch was pretty much out of the question.
In the end, if you want to see a ton of mainstream and lesser known bands at the same spot, it’s gonna cost ya.
http://www.dallasobserver.com/2008-08-07/news/the-ozz-man-cometh/
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On 08/17/08 1:34 PM, sammy said:
I saw Crazytown at Ozzfest and Zakk Wylde fans threw stuff at them. Also, the problem is band like Ozzy and Sliknot and stuff charging ridiculous amounts for their shirts. Other bands then have to charge the same amount. It’s in contracts and stuff.
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On 08/17/08 9:36 PM, daveage said:
ha
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On 08/18/08 6:20 AM, Howard said:
The reason the shirts (and general merch) cost so much money is that most venues for festivals are known as “Union” venues, and are subject to “Union” contracts and “Union” dues. The tour itself also charges the bands a percentage of what they sell – can be as high as 25-33%, for a total of 50%.
Local bands don’t get shite but anyone on the tour typically gets a small guarantee. (Which is usually just enough to live at the poverty level – but hey, it’s ROCK n’ ROLL! I’d do this for free!)
Every person that works at those shows gets “Union Scale” for their position, and that’s often the case for the people who run the actual tour as well (sound, lights, concession, etc.) because they run with contracts that the event promoters can rely on. Without those kinds of crews… you get carneys.
(small hands, smell like cabbage)
Add in any band dumb enough to sign a 360º contract and… *poof*
Plus: bands are all rich and drunk off their own power. -
On 08/18/08 9:13 AM, Sean Cannon said:
howard, you are too smart for your own good. hopefully you don’t make it to the fantasy draft!
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On 08/18/08 10:52 AM, Seth Werkheiser said:
What Howard just wrote is what we call, “dropping knowledge.” Bravo!
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On 08/18/08 5:27 PM, rojas said:
Damn unions with their rules. Why can’t they just not fight the power?
