DD wants to spend £800 on concert ticket

[11112222]

DD (17) has just inherited £1800 from the sale of her grandfathers car who recently passed away.
She is autistic, and has special interests which change after around a year or so.

At the moment it's Taylor Swift, which is the concert she wants to buy a ticket for next year. She reckons it will cost £800 for a 'pit' ticket, where you will (might) be close to the stage.

In a few years, she will need to buy a car, and also needs a laptop.

How would you feel if this was you?
She is quite right when she says it's her money, she can spend it how she likes, but I think it is such a waste of a lot of money.
AIBU?

You know full well I wasnt referring to that part of your post!

The idea that any artist restricts the pricing of their tickets due to having young fans is a bit fanciful. Im sure there are the odd one or two who try to control that or issue free tickets to certain fans or vulnerable groups but she , like most artists, are business people, they need to be paid for their craft.

Hi. I am a huge TS fan. She is (apparently) going to be touring next year. I would DEFINITELY let your daughter get herself a ticket. The pit tickets should NOT cost £800 but there are packages that your daughter might be tempted to go for eg signed tour brochure and merch. If you want to compromise with your daughter then you could agree she could buy the ticket (through a reputable ticket agency only, not resale like viagogo or the like) and just buy the ticket not the extra stuff? But 10000000000% she will have the BEST time and it’s worth the price of the ticket (probably max £150???) to see TS in concert. She is incredible. I hope this helps.

If they haven't even released tickets yet I would say, 'OK.' Then I'd get an alert for ticket sales and make sure if she is still interested that she gets a face value price which surely can't be more than about £250. Then she could sell it on if she loses interest.

I have been to a Taylor Swift concert

She made a real effort to ensure that those in the cheap seats got to see her, with lift contraptions

She is also well known for putting herself out for her fans, listening parties and so forth.

Genuinely one of the nice ones. Of course I speak positively of her, I'm her fan.

@11112222 I’ve been to her last three big events and I can’t say it’d have cost anywhere near that much to be honest.

I don’t think anyone should worry until the tickets are released. Will she have access to the money now or when she’s 18?

Is there a guarantee she would even get the tickets, I thought they were almost sold out the minute they're released?

If Taylor Swift charged £800 for a ticket (excluding a corporate box), I think she’d be hauled over the social media coals? I think if she can get a reasonably priced ticket if would be a great way of ensuring the money was used well. I once spent a lot of money on a band I wanted to see and I remember it vividly. Better than spending it on crap.

You need to stamp down hard on this one. Yes she can get a ticket but not an £800 ticket. Also tell her if she can cope at a concert she can cope anywhere and she can stop using that excuse.

You will presumably be expected to buy the lap top if she runs out of money but what would you have done without inheritance?

Can't see why she needs a car but £800 is a drop in the ocean of the cost of buying and running a car.

Still, she needs to learn she isn't miss moneybags. You need to help her learn to be more sensible in life otherwise problems will ensue.

Definitely won't be £800 for a pit ticket, unless she's looking at one further away & has included flights hotel etc!

For ref I paid £150 each for pit tickets for Harry Styles for next year. With ticketmaster's "dynamic pricing" thing it could be £200-£300 potentially but honestly I don't think they'll be any higher than that, and that itself is unlikely.

Taylor Swift's last ever tour?

There are artists still doing stadium tours age 70+, it is such a big money spinner for them.

I am sure Taylor has one or two tours left in her.

As an adult it is mad but I always tried to think will it matter in ten years? If it won't I let them get on with it. I mean if she was wasting a £100k inheritance I wouldn't be happy because that would still have an impact in ten years, £800 not so much.

And who would go with her for another £800??

I'd have given my first house for a ticket to see my favourite band, tbh.
Genuinely. The experiences we all cherish are different and you never know when you get these opportunities again.
I can't see a ticket being £800 but it's her money.
It might be a waste to some, but others not. Would I want to was money on someone's abroad hen do or wedding? Nah but people do.
Taylor Swift is one human she adores, autistic or not. (My son is autistic btw, but only small) Taylor swift might retire, die, anything and this opportunity is available to her.
I understand how people feel about the money but when we're on our death beds do we wish we'd had a new laptop as opposed to a Facebook market place one for a hundred quid? I think we value experience.
I've friends who've travelled from New Zealand to NYC to see one gig.

If she regrets it once the money is gone, she has learned a lesson of what she values more, if she doesn't regret a penny, then this experience will have enriched her life.

My concern is that she will be going on her own more than anything.

I'd be saying if you can get someone to go with you, you can go.

I can agree with her that it will be a once in a lifetime type of thing as she will probably be touring her last 4 albums all together, and there's definitely a chance it's her last tour, but I can 100% promise it won't be £800 for a single pit ticket.

Is she possibly budgeting for 2 at the very max price?

I would simply look into all of the options for her. Lay it out, written down, look at all the other prices.

Price up other items and show her she can have Taylor Swift (different ticket) PLUS nice laptop PLUS clothes PLUS make-up (or whatever she likes) just by having a slightly different seat that might even be better.

It does sound like a waste of money, but at the same time, someone might spend £800 on a holiday, and it may well be that she would enjoy this concert way more than a holiday. I guess it would depend on the balance - does she really do anything else/have any treats and so on.

At 17 I don't know if it's up to her or you!

The OP might just possibly have some idea of what her own father might think.

800 quid?! Christ! I must go to 8-10 concerts a year since I was 18 and I've never paid more than £200 for a ticket, I'd want Taylor Swift to give me a private concert for that.

It's an insane amount of money but it is her money. And she'll still had £1k left! The memories will last.

Last time is was £150 ish for the normal pit tickets but the VIP pit tickets were over £500 so she’s maybe planning on the VIP ones.

They won’t be that much she’s just guessing and more like £200 is my guess, but neither of us know.
Nothing wrong with paying for experiences over things though especially as she knows she has to get a job to pay for a car, and laptops good enough for uni can be picked up cheap using uni loan and DSA.

Ticketmaster and their dynamic pricing is robbery.

Make sure she signs up for Taylor swifts newsletter to get access to any presale.

£800 would be a firm no for me but it is her money. I’d do my best to talk it through with her.

But the money has been left to his granddaughter, she gets to choose how to spend it. Are people really this controlling?

@MissingNashville for Taylor or for Harry?

I'm not sure of Taylor's prices tbh but I've never see a concert ticket sold for more than £500, apart from resale!

So unless she's assuming she might miss out on general sale and is going off resale prices?

Let her do it. This will be a great memory for her. The laptop that needs replacing in a couple of years won't be. it's her money, and if I left someone some money I'd hope they'd go and have fun and not buy something practical with it.
How would she get the laptop if she didn't have the inheritance?! Work? Well she can still do that.