Although I’ve been yapping about the ills of corporate America for years, I’m not here to drag anyone through the mud. In fact, I know a number of good people who have, directly or indirectly, worked for Live Nation; in my role as musician, I’ve also played shows with tickets sold by Ticketmaster. I still have the stubs.

But concern regarding the planned merger between these two giant companies is justified. Most people seem concerned with the economics of the deal, citing a potential stranglehold on ticketing prices and other “fixes” which could yield an environment hostile to artists, promoters, unions, etc. – that is, hostile in a financial sense. Like I said, these concerns are surely justified. 

But the real threat posed by the creation of such a live-music monolith lies in the potential for centralized control of content – more specifically, it puts into question the quality and diversity of the content and performances which will be available to the public at the mainstream venues controlled by a possible TicketNation or LiveMaster. Live music performance is a huge component of Western culture – should the vast majority of those performances be controlled from coast to coast by one large corporation? Remember, a corporation’s primary interest is not necessarily the products and services it sells. By definition, a for-profit company’s number one motivation needs to always be the pursuit and acquisition of cash money profit – not powerful music or providing the people of America with moving performances.

Everyone knows that diversity is good for just about everything – biology, ecosystems, decision-making bodies, blah, blah, blah. Of course, that means diversity is also good for the marketplace of ideas that we shape with interesting songs, concept albums and reactionary haircuts. Despite reassurances or pandering meant to hush those questioning the intellectual and cultural safety of the Live Nation/Ticketmaster merger, profit motive eclipses any other possible rationale for such a merger. That should be of concern to anyone who believes music is an important form of cultural expression.