The majority of adults say they prefer not to record live performances of their favorite songs, new data shows.
Concerts have taken center stage this year with Beyoncé and Taylor Swift's massive world tours. The "Renaissance World Tour” and “Eras Tour” together accounted for nearly 40% of StubHub’s total global concert sales over the summer, according to the ticket marketplace.
While a sea of cell phones is a common sight at live performances, survey results show that most adults say they'd rather put the phone down.
When asked about their recording habits at concerts, 78% of adults between the ages of 18 and 93 said they "like to put their phone down when their favorite song plays,” according to a StubHub survey conducted by YouGov that polled nearly 2,500 people across the country about trends related to live music events. The survey was shared exclusively with TODAY.com.
The ongoing debate of whether to record concert experiences or enjoy the moment resurfaces every few years. A 2017 thread on Quora overwhelmingly supported putting phones down.
“Unless you have concert documentation as your hobby (or profession) I’d say limit your filming/photography to only a few mementos and then enjoy the concert as much as possible,” one commenter wrote.
“Enjoy the moment because concert photos and videos always end up looking like garbage anyway,” another added. “Also — nobody I know ever goes back and looks at those crappy photos and videos long after the concert is over.”
A dangerous trend made headlines this summer of concertgoers throwing items at performers from the audience — including cell phones. Bebe Rexha was hospitalized after she was hit in the face with a cell phone hurled at her by an attendee. Drake also had a phone thrown at him mid-performance.
Still, there are advantages to capturing moments at concerts. When posted on social media, it gives people who didn’t attend a glimpse of what happened, from the viral videos of Diana Ross singing happy birthday to Beyoncé, to Kendall and Kylie Jenner seemingly confirming their relationships with Bad Bunny and Timothée Chalamet, respectively.
YouGov and StubHub's survey also asked respondents about their concert-going habits, the value of front-row seats and the unique perspective of Gen Z.
A whopping 60% of Gen Z respondents said they’d skip a major life event to be front row for their favorite artist.
Millennials were most likely to seek nostalgia, with 75% of respondents from the generation saying they'd want to attend a show by the first performer they ever saw in concert.
When it comes to missing responsibilities, 43% of Gen Z respondents said they'd call in sick to work to attend a show or a championship game, compared to 31% of millennials.
Other findings from the survey include:
- 26% of respondents said their first concert was “a better memory” than their first kiss.
- 47% of millennials have had a first date at a live event.
- 20% of millennials have attended at least one concert alone.
- 43% of Gen Z respondents would give up alcohol for six months for the chance to have front row seats to their favorite artist’s performance, 34% would give up caffeine and 24% would give up sex.
The full survey results can be found here.
