The stats are in the big tours for 2012. Bruce Springsteen played for the most people, but finished second money wise. That’s because he charged less money per ticket than Madonna, who finished first in box office take but was second to Bruce in numbers of people she entertained. Yes, it’s a fine line between greed and good. This year, Madonna also had the album that dropped the most from number 1 in the history of the charts– her “MDNA,” which was DOA thanks to a wonky system of including CDs and download with ticket sales. “MDNA” got no Grammy nominations. Bruce’s “Wrecking Ball” held up better, and merited a couple of good Grammy nods after all. Springsteen also probably beat Madonna in amount of time spent singing live on stage and not lip-synching. Madonna beat Bruce for number of times she infuriated an international government, offended a local audience, or started her show late.
Roger Waters, Michael Jackson/Cirque du Soleil, Lady Gaga, Coldplay, and Van Halen were the other big grossers of the year. LiveNation’s Arthur Fogel was voted by this column as hardest working concert producer for 2012. He may still be touring with U2 somewhere near Neptune.
According to Billboard:
1
Madonna
Total Gross: $228,406,085Â Â Â Â Number of Shows: 72
Total Attendance: 1,635,176Â Â Number of Sell-Outs: 72
2
Bruce Springsteen & The E Street Band
Total Gross: $199,371,791Â Â Â Â Number of Shows: 72
Total Attendance: 2,165,925Â Number of Sell-Outs: 54
