Stray Kids’ “MANIAC” Tour Sells Out, But STAYs Claim Barely Any Fans Got Tickets
Tickets for Stray Kids‘ second world tour dropped Friday, and fans quickly tried to snag tickets before they sold out. Organizers of the event even added new dates due to popular demand. But, not all fans are happy.
US based fans were excited when Stray Kids announced the North American stops for their world tour, Stray Kids 2nd World Tour ‘MANIAC’. They were anticipating the sale for the original dates on April 22.
The shows quickly sold out, and due to the demand, organizers released additional dates for Newark and Los Angeles which will be on sale April 25, 3 PM local time.
But, fans are saying the initial ticket sales weren’t fair.
Everybody who has used Ticketmaster to purchase tickets is probably familiar with the dreaded queue. This system is Ticketmaster’s way of beating bots.
The idea is that the system acts as a virtual line. A purchaser will join the waiting room ten minutes before the sale and then gets placed in the queue randomly, in order for every fan to get a fair chance at tickets.
However, Ticketmaster states that the queue is not a guarantee.
Just like before, tickets are always based on availability, demand, and are not guaranteed.
Along with the ticketing system, which was confusing for some, fans were already anxious about ticket prices. Live Nation only announced them the day before the sale. Though, many fans were happy about the seemingly reasonable price range: $49.50 to $179.50 USD.
Along with the prices, Live Nation announced the VIP Package, and while they didn’t announce the prices until the time of the sale, most fans were pleased with what the price ended up being: $320 USD. This package included a PL 1 seat, access to soundcheck, and more.
When tickets finally did go on sale though, fans noticed that they sold out very quickly. Some never even had a chance to make it through the queue.
However, those that did have the opportunity to try to purchase tickets, noticed that not all of the tickets were listed at the previously stated prices.
Instead, they were listed under Ticketmaster’s Official Platinum label. These “premium tickets” are said to give fans fair access “to some of the best seats in the house.”
Official Platinum Seats are premium tickets to concerts and other events made available by artists and Event Organizers through Ticketmaster. They give fans fair and safe access to some of the best seats in the house.
Though they’re meant to give fans fair access, some fans claim selling these tickets is unfair.
Other fans were confused when they spotted these ticket prices and assumed they were being resold, however this was not the case. Instead, Ticketmaster utilizes “market-based pricing” for popular events. They are not resale tickets.
No. Official Platinum Seats were not purchased initially and then posted for resale; they are being sold for the first time through Ticketmaster. Ticketmaster’s Official Platinum seat program enables market-based pricing (adjusting according to supply and demand) for live event tickets, similar to how airline tickets and hotel rooms are sold. The goal is to give the most passionate fans fair and safe access to the best tickets, while enabling artists and other people involved in staging live events to price tickets closer to the true market value.
Some fans have a problem with the language used to describe these seats. Ticketmaster says that these tickets are a chance to give “the most passionate fans” a chance at the best tickets, but with such an outrageous price mark-up, fans are wondering why passion has to be linked to the amount of money one has to spend on tickets.
the fact ticketmaster is selling $120 tickets for $3250 based on “demand” to make it “fair for the most passionate fans” is so beyond fucked up.
trying to tell people who would die for these boys that they “aren’t passionate enough” because they don’t have $3000 to burn is FUCKED— stan mayfly ☻ (@sunnyhyunnie) April 22, 2022
However the issue with fans getting tickets to the tour doesn’t end with Ticketmaster. Just hours after the initial sale, resale tickets became available.
The blue dots are what’s left of Ticketmaster’s Official Platinum seats, but the pink dots are all tickets that are being resold. Some venues have more of these tickets than others.
These are also being sold at highly marked-up prices.
Even the originally lowest priced tickets ($49.50 USD) are being sold for around $400 USD in some venues.
And highest reseller prices, for the best tickets, are in the $2000 USD range and above. These tickets were originally $179.50 or $320 USD for VIP.
Upset fans are wondering if a pre-sale code could have prevented this.
they should have done fanclub presales or presale in general bc it was listed on the skz shop website originally and then they took it off. istg if there are empty seats bc scalpers bought the tickets i’m gonna be so pissed.
— leah ☻ (@skzzphoria) April 22, 2022
The majority of the tickets being resold, it seems, are from people that only bought the tickets with the purpose to resell and make a profit.
it’s actually so frustrating to see ppl that don’t even stan skz getting tickets JUST to resell them while witnessing my mutuals go through hell just to get one or not even get one at all… if you’re not going get tf out of that queue
— 🧚🏽 (@hyniskz) April 22, 2022
What’s more unfair are the VIP benefits that might be lost. Usually the original purchaser needs to be present with a valid ID to claim these benefits.
basically dont try and get soundcheck tickets from resellers / scalpers because unless theyre willing to give you all their ID information then none of the vip benefits will come with the ticket https://t.co/X9FTy8QhLo
— public enemy #1 (@lattedoie) April 23, 2022
According to Ticketmaster Fan Support, anyone buying these tickets would need the purchaser’s order number, the last 4 digits of the purchasing card, and a copy of their photo ID to receive benefits. Soundcheck could potentially have less people than intended, which would be unfortunate.
If someone want to buy by a reseller a VIP package for stray kids tour in USA you will need this info, so you can get the benefits like soundcheck etc. So Be careful !#straykids #maniac_skz #2ndworldtour_maniac pic.twitter.com/wr3wTyEA3u
— wilou ☻︎ (@ilominho97) April 24, 2022
Many fans are urging fellow STAYs to reconsider before purchasing high priced tickets from resellers.
Instead they have a few strategies in mind. Since Official Platinum pricing is dynamic, the prices should eventually lower.
every “official platinum” ticket you see is ticketmaster themselves selling the tickets for a higher price due to demand 😭 do NOT buy ANY platinum tickets and the price will lower when they see that no one is buying them
— ☻ katie 🌘 IS SEEING SKZ (@channietreks) April 22, 2022
The same goes for reseller tickets. Theoretically, if no one buys the high priced tickets, resellers will be forced to lower the price.
Good morning STAY!
It looks like prices for some shows are decreasing but please hold off on buying any resales for now.
The less people that are buying the lower resellers will be forced to go. We know you all really want tickets but let’s just wait for now🥺❤️
— Stray Kids USA ☻︎ (@skz_usa) April 23, 2022
Additionally, some desperate STAYs are urging fans to contact JYP Entertainment and Republic Records to try to resolve the issue.
we all need to email republic and jype non stop until this gets fixed. i cant let my boys have an empty soundcheck. https://t.co/htVqxsemHU
— leah ☻ (@skzzphoria) April 23, 2022
Some fans are claiming that Stray Kids will be performing to empty rows unless something is done.
Not "SOLD OUT" due to Fan demand! Only about 5k US STAYS GOT TICKETS and only 500 GOT VIP and the remaining 500,000 + of us… NOTHING! The tickets are scalped and price gouged. @Stray_Kids will be preforming to empty rows and 1/2 full stadiums unless @jypnation changes this! pic.twitter.com/KTVpufYxgN
— Makayla_STAY (@Makayla_STAY) April 23, 2022
Though it’s unclear the best route to take, hopefully this issue will be resolved and deserving fans will be able to see Stray Kids perform. Both STAYs and Stray Kids deserve it.
