Kid Rock Demands Congressional Investigation Into Ticketing Industry

Country rock musician Kid Rock testified before the Senate Commerce Committee on Wednesday, calling for a formal congressional investigation into what he described as rampant fraud and abuse in the live entertainment ticketing industry. The hearing, titled "Fees Rolled on All Summer Long: Examining the Live Entertainment Industry," focused on ticket sales practices, automated bot purchases, and fees charged by primary and secondary ticket sellers.

Rock, whose legal name is Robert Ritchie, told lawmakers that the current ticketing system has damaged both artists and consumers for far too long. He argued that independent venues have been crushed, artists have lost negotiating power, and fans are paying record prices while being blamed for high costs.

Background

The ticketing industry has faced scrutiny from lawmakers for years. In 1994, members of the rock band Pearl Jam testified before Congress about ticketing abuses. More than a decade later, in 2009, Congress heard testimony about the merger between Live Nation and Ticketmaster. At that time, executives from both companies promised the combination would benefit artists, fans, theaters, and other venues by increasing competition and lowering costs.

Rock pointed out that those promises have not materialized. Instead, he said, the merger created a system that has worsened conditions for everyone except the companies themselves. The hearing on Wednesday was convened by Senator Marsha Blackburn, a Republican from Tennessee who chairs the Senate Committee on Consumer Protection, Technology, and Data Privacy.

Key Details

During his testimony, Rock made several specific criticisms of how the ticketing system operates. He highlighted the role of secondary ticket markets in driving up prices for fans, noting that artists receive no benefit from these inflated resale prices. He also called out the use of automated bots that rapidly buy up large quantities of tickets, making them unavailable to regular fans at face value.

"Music fans and artists have been getting screwed for far too long by the ticketing system. This is far from a new problem."

Rock called the industry "full of greedy snakes and scoundrels" and accused executives of lining their pockets with money from talent they did not create and fans they misled. He urged Congress to subpoena contracts and deals between artists, promoters, venues, ticketing companies, agencies, and vendors, claiming such documents would reveal "mountains of fraud and abuse."

Proposed Solutions

Rock outlined several steps he believes Congress should take. First, he argued that artists should have control over who sells their tickets and how those tickets are sold. Second, he called for enforcement of regulations against brokers and bad actors in the industry, with serious penalties and consequences for violations. Third, he supported all-in pricing that shows total fees upfront before purchase. Fourth, he advocated for outlawing speculative ticketing practices.

Rock suggested that Ticketmaster and Live Nation may need to be broken up, saying the merger was presented as an experiment that has "failed miserably."

What This Means

Rock's testimony comes as the Trump administration has made eliminating ticket price gouging a priority. In March, President Donald Trump signed an executive order directing the Treasury Secretary and Attorney General to oversee tax enforcement on ticket resale activity. The order also tasked the Federal Trade Commission with enforcing federal antitrust and competition regulations in the ticketing space.

Congress has also been working on legislation to address ticketing problems. The TICKET Act, a bipartisan bill, would require all fees for an event ticket to be displayed upfront before purchase. The bill has not yet passed the Senate.

The hearing featured testimony from other witnesses as well, including executives from Live Nation Entertainment, the Ticket Policy Forum, and independent venue operators. The combination of Rock's high-profile criticism and the Trump administration's focus on the issue suggests Congress may be moving toward more aggressive action against practices in the ticketing industry.

Rock's appearance highlighted a long-standing frustration among artists and fans about how tickets are bought, sold, and priced. By connecting current problems to the broken promises made during the 2009 merger approval, he made a case that the current regulatory approach has failed and that stronger intervention is needed.