The Rolling Stones top Pollstar's list of top-grossing North American tours of 2019

Posted By: Staff
December 16, 2019 @ 4:01 pm
Music News

Credit: Dave Hogan

Plenty of U.S. Rolling Stones fans got what they wanted in 2019, as the British rock icons returned to the States this summer for their first tour there in four years. According to Pollstar, which tracks the live entertainment business, the band’s No Filter trek was the top-grossing North American tour of the year, raking in $177.8 million over just 16 shows.

At #2 is Elton John, whose ongoing Farewell Yellow Brick Road trek grossed $157.4 million in the U.S. and Canada over 81 concerts.

Bob Seger & the Silver Bullet Band are #3 on the list thanks to their Roll Me Away farewell tour, which grossed $97 million over 71 shows. The other veteran rock acts on the tally are KISS and Fleetwood Mac, at #7 and #8, respectively, with gross earnings of $81.6 million and $77.5 million.

Impressively, The Rolling Stones had 13 of the top-20 highest-grossing concert engagements of 2019, with their August 1 and August 5 shows at MetLife Stadium in East Rutherford, New Jersey, topping the tally with $25.5 million.

The Stones, which only played shows in the U.S. in 2019, are #5 on Pollstar’s year-end list of top-grossing worldwide tours.

Pop star Pink is #1 on the tally, as her Beautiful Trauma tour grossed more than $215 million over 68 performances. Elton John is #2 with $212 million earned. Other veteran rock artists in the top 10 include Metallica at #4 with $179 million in gross earnings, Bon Jovi at #7 with $134.2 million, and Fleetwood Mac at #10 with $112.2 million.

Here’s the full list of Pollstar’s Top 10 2019 North American Tours:

1. The Rolling Stones — $177.8 million, 784,652 tickets sold
2. Elton John — $157.4 million, 1,155,510 tickets sold
3. Bob Seger & the Silver Bullet Band — $97.0 million, 867,925 tickets sold
4. Pink — $87.9 million, 624,419 tickets sold
5. Ariana Grande — $82.6 million, 700,053 tickets sold
6. Jonas Brothers — $81.7 million, 769,310 tickets sold
7. KISS — $81.6 million, 800,302 tickets sold
8. Fleetwood Mac — $77.5 million, 544,286 tickets sold
9. Garth Brooks — $76.1 million, 856,000 tickets sold
10. Justin Timberlake — $75.6 million, 568,449 tickets sold

And here’s the list of Pollstar’s Top 10 2019 Worldwide Tours:

1. Pink — $215.2 million, 1,818,933 tickets sold
2. Elton John — $212.0 million, 1,566,241 tickets sold
3. Ed Sheeran — $211.7 million, 2,455,718 tickets sold
4. Metallica — $179.0 million, 1,742,908 tickets sold
5. The Rolling Stones — $177.8 million, 784,652 tickets sold
6. BTS — $170.3 million, 1,334,325 tickets sold
7. Bon Jovi — $134.2 million, 1,310,860 tickets sold
8. Ariana Grande — $118.3 million, 1,096,462 tickets sold
9. Michael Bublé — $115.8 million, 1,002,363 tickets sold
10. Fleetwood Mac — $112.2 million, 795,371 tickets sold