It was only a matter of time before a politician awkwardly quoted Taylor Swift at Tuesday morning’s Senate Judiciary Committee hearing on Ticketmaster, Live Nation and the U.S. ticketing market.
“May I suggest respectfully that Ticketmaster ought to look in the mirror and say, ‘I’m the problem. It’s me,’” Sen. Richard Blumenthal, D-Conn., told Live Nation Entertainment’s President and Chief Financial Officer Joe Berchtold, referencing the chorus to Swift’s No. 1 song, “Anti-Hero.” “The reason is, quite simply, that you are the ones ultimately responsible for the astronomically rising prices, the exorbitant hidden fees, the sold-out shows and the bots and scalpers.”
In November, Ticketmaster bungled the on-sale for Swift’s upcoming stadium tour, prompting outcry from demoralized fans who were left ticket-less and, soon thereafter, criticism from a range of politicians and a class-action lawsuit from disgruntled Swifties. Tuesday’s hearing, led by Senators Amy Klobuchar, D-Minn., and Mike Lee, R-Utah, showed bipartisan skepticism towards the Live Nation/Ticketmaster conglomerate, which dominates the live music market.
