Lady Gaga Reigns In Stereoboard's Top 20 Tours Of 2010 & Top 10 Tours For 2011 (Feature)
Wednesday, 15 December 2010
Written by Dave Ball
Stereoboard have compiled a list of the best selling, and most in demand, tours that took place in 2010. We've dug out our extensive sales data over the past 18 months, covering over 44,000 UK events and hundreds of thousands of ticket sales, to bring you the definitive list of what events the people of Great Britain and Ireland have splashed the cash to see live this year.
As a ticket comparison site, Stereoboard is in a rather unique position to not only look at what tickets were bought at face value via us on the official agencies we work with but to also factor in, and bring you the lowdown, on what events sold out and where tickets were being exchanged between fans on the secondary marketplace sites.
So the numbers have been crunched and the results are in. Counting down from Number 20, here are our Top 20 most popular tours of 2010!
20. Mumford & Sons (March & October 2010)
West Londoners Mumford & Sons probably feel like they’ve had a year of Christmases in 2010. Their catchy indie-folk hit the mainstream at the back end of 2009 and they’ve moved onwards and upwards ever since. A Mercury nomination for album ‘Sigh No More’, and a pair of Grammy nominations later they’re one of the UK’s biggest new acts. Add a year of extensive touring, covering pretty much every festival as well as a lengthy tour of their own and it’s easy to call them one of the success stories of the year.
19. Paul McCartney (June 2010)
Macca was back on the road again in 2010 playing some of the biggest venues the UK has to offer. Providing fans with the usual mixture of Beatles classics alongside his own work as a solo artist and with Wings McCartney is always a huge draw and this year was no different. Headline slots at Isle of Wight festival and Hard Rock Calling came alongside solo shows at Cardiff and Glasgow. McCartney also had a boost to his record sales with the re-issue of Wings classic ‘Band On The Run’ and the addition of Beatles tracks to iTunes for the first time.
18. Rihanna (May 2010)
22 year old R&B diva Rihanna started the year winning a pair of Grammy’s for Jay-Z collaboration ‘Run This Town’ and ends it with the 18th best selling tour on our list, further proving her standing among the top female artists in the World today. The ‘Last Girl On Earth’ tour took the Barbados born pop songstress right the way across the UK selling out everywhere she went and leaving such a good impression her 2011 tour is already selling fast.
17. Pink (June 2010)
Never one to do things by half Pink surpassed even her own high standards for spectacular live performances this year while touring her ‘Funhouse’ album. With acrobatic stage shows winning her rave reviews everywhere she went. Highlighted by an impressive sub headline slot at the Isle of Wight festival, Pink re-established herself as one of the top entertainers in pop. Very active in her charity work, especially with animal rights group PETA and over 30 million album sales Worldwide Pink is likely to be among these lists for years to come.
16. Alicia Keys (May 2010)
It’s been a big year for Alicia Keys. The 29 year old New Yorker got married in July, gave birth to her first child (a son, Egypt Daoud Dean), was nominated for four Soul Train Awards and still found time to visit the UK for a 4 date tour in May covering our biggest arenas. Keys also collaborated with Jay-Z on the worldwide hit ‘Empire State Of Mind’ which kept both in the news when a brilliant parody of the song ‘Newport (Ymerodraeth State Of Mind) and the later parody of a parody from Goldie Lookin Chain ‘You’re Not From Newport’ became Youtube sensations.
15. Bryan Adams (October 2010)
Yes, he’s still going! Still most famous for the Robin Hood supporting (Everything I Do) I Do It For You’ in 1992 and the iconic ‘Summer of ‘69’ the Canadian rocker is still recording, still touring and still entertaining thousands of fans who clamour for tickets every time he comes back to the UK. Now 51, Adams still plays over 100 shows every year all over the World and 2010 gave fans a chance to see him in a rare setting as his ‘Bare Bones’ tour took him through a variety of intimate venues. Adams was also honoured for his extensive charity work, awarded the Allan Waters Humanitarian Award in January.
14. The Script (March 2011)
From the old to the new and The Script have spent 2010 rapidly expanding their fan base and show no signs of slowing down. Announcing their first ever headline tour the Irish soft rockers broke records selling 60,000 tickets for the Irish leg of their tour in less than 40 minutes. The extensive UK arena tour will take them through almost every major city in just over two weeks and they will also appear at this years’ Isle of Wight festival.
13. Flight Of The Conchords (May 2010)
Kiwi comedy duo Jemaine Clement and Bret McKenzie, better known as Flight Of The Conchords first appeared when they were nominated for the Perrier Prize at 2003’s Edinburgh Fringe Festival. Fast forward seven years and their quirky musical comedy has taken Europe by storm with their 2010 tour selling out in double quick time with extra dates added to satisfy demand. Their TV series, loosely based on their own musical travels has been a hit both in the US and UK.
12. Paramore (November 2010)
Launched into teenage consciousness when ‘Decode’ was used as part of the soundtrack for 2008’s ‘Twilight’ film Paramore have been on a steady, if sometimes wobbly rise ever since. Rumours of a band split following the romantic split between singer Hayley Williams and Josh Farro dogged the band between second album ‘Riot!’ and 2009’s huge hit ‘Brand New Eyes’ but these were premature and 2010’s tour pushed them into the higher end of the pop-punk scene. Taking in Reading & Leeds festival along the way to a career defining performance at London’s O2 it likely won’t be such an uncertain wait for the next album.
11. Linkin Park (November 2010)
Rap metal juggernaut Linkin Park made a triumphant come back in 2010 with their first new material since 2007in the form of new album ‘ A Thousand Suns’ and a massive Worldwide tour which took in 5 dates in the UK. Buoyed by the return of Rage Against The Machine the timing couldn’t have been better for the Californian rockers who appear to be hanging around for at least the next year or so following the subsequent announcement that they will be one of the headliners at 2011’s Download festival alongside the returning System Of A Down.
10. Florence and the Machine (May 2010)
Having steadily risen in popularity during 2009 after several impressive performances, notably at Glastonbury Florence Welch and her machine positively exploded into 2010. Scooping the BRIT for best album with ‘Lungs’ was just the start of a mind spinning 12 months which included a massive outdoor gig at Cardiff’s Coopers field and another huge performance at Glastonbury, drawing one of the biggest crowds of the festival. Florence’s cover of ‘You’ve Got The Love’ is among the most played songs of the year.
9. Muse (September 2010)
Haven’t spent the last few years perfecting their live shows and getting bigger and more spectacular with each album, the Teignmouth trio provided their most extravagant live shows yet in 2010 to the biggest crowds of their career. Included among the World tour was a career defining Glastonbury headline performance as well as back to back sold out nights at Wembley stadium. With a new album on its way it won’t be long before fans get chance to see Muse again.
8. Kings of Leon (June 2010)
Kings of Leon have certainly not rested on their laurels. Since 2003’s debut ‘Youth & Young Manhood’ they have produced albums and toured with barely a break and 2010 was their biggest year yet. A succession of huge singles, a new album which leapt straight to the top of the charts (‘Come Around Sundown’) and a huge summer of touring maintained their position as one of the leading live bands on the circuit.
7. Simply Red (November 2010)
After 25 years and over 50 million album sales, Simply Red decided it was time to have one final tour in 2010 and, unsurprisingly it was one of the biggest selling events of the year. The World tour scheduled as a final farewell hit the UK and Ireland in November as the very last stop on a massively successful career which made lead singer Mick Hucknall one of the most recognisable faces of British pop.
6. Black Eyed Peas (May 2010)
Among the hardest working bands in World music with each of the members keeping themselves busy with various projects outside of the band Black Eyed Peas THE E.N.D World tour hit the UK in May 2010. One of the hottest acts in World music right now, Black Eyed Peas have sold over 26 million albums and were recently announced as the half time show at February’s Superbowl. They will be back on tour in 2011 if you missed them this year.
5. JLS (December 2010)
2008 X Factor finalists JLS could never have imagined their career would take off as quickly as it has with this year’s December tour the 5th most popular tour of 2010. Their massive arena tour takes in 38 dates across the UK and Ireland, running into 2011 and was one of the hottest tickets available. Combined with their recent chart success it’s been a spectacular year for them.
4. Westlife (May 2010)
Irish boy band Westlife went out on tour for the first time since 2008 and it was a massive success. One of the biggest live acts of the last decade the band have 8 sell out World tours under their belts to go along with over 40 million album sales and a staggering 14 number one singles (only Elvis and The Beatles have more). A 2011 tour has already been announced with tickets for that selling quickly.
3. Michael Buble (May & October 2010)
Canadian heartthrob Michael Buble’s autumn tour in support of his ‘Crazy Love’ album was the 3rde highest selling tour of the year. The Vancouver native has seen his popularity soar in recent years with over 22 million albums sold Worldwide and a string of sell out live performances. The quality of his voice at live events has become legendary and his appeal has crossed over from the jazz World into pop.
2. Rod Stewart (May & July 2010)
Rock & Roll hall of famer Rod Stewart has been wowing audiences for more than 4 decades and his appeal is yet to wane. Despite possibly being better known for his celebrity lifestyle and string of glamorous girlfriends Stewarts musical appeal is still clearly as high as ever with him just missing out on top spot in our list. The tour took him through a number of the biggest arenas across the UK.
1. Lady Gaga (May & December 2010)
It’s difficult to find anything new to say about Lady Gaga who has been no stranger to the media since exploding onto the music scene. However, her ranking as the highest selling tour on Stereoboard shows that people are interested in her for her music too. The current Queen of pop, Gaga has had a string of hits with her catchy pop heavy dance music and her spectacular 2010 tour drew huge crowds up and down the UK. Ending the year with a wardrobe full of awards and the most played artist of the year it’s fair to say 2010 has been a pretty successful one.
It's also that time of year again, as one year comes to a close, another one peaks it head around the corner. So with 2011 fast approaching, and with the data to hand, we've also taken a quick peak into the most popular tours taking place in 2011. No surprise that Take That lead the way, having sold over 1.34 million tickets in the space of 24 hours, tickets are exchanging hands at incredible prices, demand is that high!
Counting down from Number 10, here are the results for the most popular tours taking place in 2011.
10. Foo Fighters (July 2011)
After a break of a few years working on various side projects, most notably Dave Grohl’s supergroup ‘Them Crooked Vultures’, Foo Fighters are back for 2011. Headlining performances at Isle of Wight and T will be supplemented by a 2 night stop at the MK Bowl for a pair of solo shows which sold out even before ex Led Zeppelin bassist John Paul Jones dropped hints he was keen to join the band on stage. A new album is due in the New Year too.
9. Blink 182 (July 2011)
2010’s headline spot at Reading and Leeds festivals were the Californian punk rockers first performances in the UK since 2005, during which time drummer Travis Barker was injured in a plane crash and swore never to fly again. The performance was so well received and enjoyed so much by the band they decided to scheme a way to get back to Europe and will play an arena tour next summer which sold at incredible speed.
8. Roger Waters (May 2011)
As soon as Waters announced he would be touring ‘The Wall’ over 30 years after its release this was always going to be a big selling tour. Things got even bigger when rumours of David Gilmour joining Waters on stage at some of the gigs surfaced and this is already one of the most highly anticipated performances in years. The original Wall tour was famously complex and spectacular and Waters assures us there will be plenty of pyrotechnics as well as the famous crashing aeroplane and inflatable puppets.
7. Bon Jovi (June 2011)
New Jersey hair rockers Bon Jovi have been selling out tours all over the World for over 20 years now and their popularity shows no signs of letting up. With a new greatest hits album to promote they will once again hit the UK following their massively successful residency at the O2 arena recently. The tour will be headlined by a massive show at London’s Hyde Park.
6. Drake (January 2011)
Grammy nominated Drake will hit Europe on a headline tour for the first time in 2011 and tickets have flown out for this one. In the midst of a surge in popularity behind platinum debut album ‘Thank Me Later’ Drake has been to the UK before in support to Jay Z but this will be the first time he strikes out on his own. The ‘Lights, Dreams & Nightmares’ tour has already received rave reviews across North America including two sold out shows at Radio City Music Hall in New York.
5. Katy Perry (March & October 2011)
It’s been quite a 201 for Katy Perry with several huge hit singles, a new album which soared to the top of the charts and her much publicised wedding to comedian Russell Brand. 2011 looks likely to be just as successful with her already having been nominated for four Grammy awards. The pop sensation will hit the UK in autumn of 2011 and tickets are already selling fast.
4. Justin Bieber (March 2011)
16 year old global sensation Justin Bieber will be bringing Bieber fever to the UK in 2011 and fans are already going mad for his tour. Already a platinum selling artist the teenager has 6 million Twitter followers, over 15 million Facebook friends and a staggering 1 billion Youtube views. He will work his way through the UK during March of 2011.
3. Usher (May 2011)
Multi platinum selling R&B icon Usher will hit the UK in 2011 for the first time in 6 years and demand pushes him to #3 on the best selling tours so far for 2011. Having recently acted as a mentor for Justin Bieber Usher brings his OMG tour across the pond in May performing his greatest hits alongside tracks from his sixth studio album ‘Raymond V Raymond’ as well as the deluxe version of ‘Versus’, also released this year.
2. Kings of Leon (June 2011)
Not content with one of the highest selling tours of 2010 the Tennessee rockers are already one of the hottest tickets for 2011. A headline slot at Isle of Wight will sit alongside a pair of headline performances at London’s Hyde Park as the Followill’s continue to promote latest album ‘Come Around Sundown’. After last year’s 65,000 sell out at Hyde Park this year’s shows are already hotly anticipated.
1. Take That (May - July 2011)
After moving the boundaries for what could be done with a pop concert with their massively successful ‘The Circus’ tour where they seamlessly merged pop performance with theatre style sets Take That are back for what they promise will be a bigger and better tour.
With former band mate Robbie Williams back with the band ticket sales for the 2011 ‘Progress’ tour. 1.34 million tickets were sold in 24 hours, smashing box office records and crashing internet servers and phone lines right across the UK.
We don't run any advertising! Our editorial content is solely funded by lovely people like yourself using Stereoboard's listings when buying tickets for live events. To keep supporting us, next time you're looking for concert, festival, sport or theatre tickets, please search for "Stereoboard". It costs you nothing, you may find a better price than the usual outlets, and save yourself from waiting in an endless queue on Friday mornings as we list ALL available sellers!
20. Mumford & Sons (March & October 2010)
18. Rihanna (May 2010)
16. Alicia Keys (May 2010)
14. The Script (March 2011)
12. Paramore (November 2010)
10. Florence and the Machine (May 2010)
8. Kings of Leon (June 2010)
6. Black Eyed Peas (May 2010)
4. Westlife (May 2010)
1. Lady Gaga (May & December 2010)
10. Foo Fighters (July 2011)
6. Drake (January 2011)
4. Justin Bieber (March 2011)
1. Take That (May - July 2011)
