What Harry Styles 2022 Residency Tour tells us about the Live Music Industry
The concept of a concert residency began in 1944 with Liberace, an American pianist, singer and actor, who pioneered the concept by hosting a series of shows on the Las Vegas Strip. He was followed by the likes of Frank Sinatra with the Rat Pack and Elvis Presley. Since then, commanding the Las Vegas strip for multiple nights has been a staple and a badge of honor and status for artists who are able to do so. In 2003, when Celine Dion stepped foot into the Colosseum at Caeser’s Palace for her first set of residency shows that ran through 2007, she managed to change the concept for modern residencies. In an article by the Daily Beast, Jon Gray, general manager of Palms Casino Resort mentioned, “Vegas was a place where singers go to die. Celine changed that.”
Following her footsteps, acts like Britney Spears and Lady Gaga have found themselves on the strip, establishing themselves as superstar acts with concert residencies in Vegas under their belt. In 2019, after sixteen years and 1,141 shows, Celine Dion ended her record-breaking residency at Caesars Palace, but she has inspired the concept to thrive, in Vegas and outside of it.
Back in May 2022, Harry Styles announced a residency tour in the US and Canada to support the release of his platinum-selling GRAMMY-nominated album ‘Harry’s House.’ The tour saw him host multiple shows in major cities including Toronto, Chicago, Austin, and a record-breaking 15 nights each at Madison Square Garden in New York and The Kia Forum in Los Angeles. The consequent selling out of all dates is a reminder of the trajectory that the “As It Was” singer has been on — from his One Direction days to his GRAMMY-award and an official banner celebrating his 15-night residency at The Garden.
Every arena was meticulously marketed to its unique audience through separate merch-colors for each show, wristbands with different lyrics almost every night, and venues having their own Harry-inspired drinks like ‘Watermelon Sugar,’ ‘Grapejuice Blues,’ and ‘Tastes Like Strawberries’ at Austin’s Moody Center. The last night at Madison Square Garden included all seats getting feather boas while The Kia Forum decorated their pillars with song lyrics from ‘Harry’s House.’ With venue marketing exceeding expectations, fans dressed to the nines in glitter-y outfits, and Harry Styles' own charisma bringing the house down every night. You can’t help but agree with how iconic the extended ‘Love On Tour’ dates seem to have been. Wherever he went, he truly made the arenas Harry’s Houses.
Looking into the tour as a whole - beyond the great music and fabulous outfits - we get insight into how artists are adapting to post-pandemic touring challenges, with some major stars opting into concert residencies to reduce Covid-exposure as well as show cancellations. Harry is but one artist who is diving into the venue residencies, which includes an extended number of dates at one venue. BTS also took part in this trend last year with their 4-night ‘Permission To Dance On- Stage’ mini-residency at So-Fi stadium and Taylor Swift will embark on a similar 5-night residency at So-Fi in August 2023 as part of her ‘Eras Tour.’
The post-pandemic era has been a popular time to witness the rise of tour residencies beyond the Las Vegas strip, and Harry Styles residency tour is a clear example of that. Why does it make so much sense in the current live music environment? According to the New York Times, the reasons for the popularity of residencies include “the reasons include clever branding, the protection of artists and crews in the pandemic and a cold calculation of financial efficiencies.” On top of that, looking into the inflationary market conditions, residencies seem to help reduce the burden of the supply-chain shortages in adjacent industries (New York Times).
With the turn of the pandemic, the return of live music saw an endless amount of force-majeure clauses being put into effect due to Covid-related cancellations and postponements. A venue residency allows for artists and their teams to generate income, engage their fans, and reduce mental and physical instability that comes with touring. However, only superstar acts can meet the demand, with their fans willing to make the trip to see them in a particular city. Upcoming and mid-level acts still have to enforce the general touring routes to generate income and keep fans engaged.
But still, residencies define the dedication of fans who are willing to travel to different cities and countries, and camp outside the venues for barricade on multiple occasions to see their favorite artist perform. Just ask Harries who have come fresh off the highs of the 2022 US Residency Tour, which ended on November 15 at Los Angeles’ Kia Forum, and are awaiting when the next one might take place.
