Madonna Continues Concert Box Office Reign, But Taylor Swift Rules 2015
Madonna can still be called the Queen of Pop. According to Billboard‘s Current Boxscore chart, Madonna comes in at No. 2, No. 4, No. 6, and No. 7. Her biggest show was at the Tele2 Arena in Stockholm, Sweden. That show attracted nearly 40,000 people. It was the show Madonna performed the day after the terrorist attacks in France, where she gave an emotional speech and had the crowd in tears during a performance of “Like a Prayer.”
Madonna has also posted multiple sellout shows in Prague, Koln, and Berlin. Madonna still rules when it comes to performers who peaked around the same time she did. Janet Jackson is struggling to sell out some of her tour dates, and some haven’t even been reported, which can possibly mean that ticket sales were disastrous for those dates. Mariah Carey has been struggling to fill up shows at a small theater in Las Vegas.
Besides the box office numbers, Madonna has been earning excellent reviews on her latest outing. The Rebel Heart Tour turned Madonna-hater Lizzy Acker of the Willamette Week into a Madonna fan.
“Consider this my formal apology for any negative thing I have ever said about Madonna. I take it all back. Anything disparaging, unkind or even lightly mocking thing I ever said about Madonna. I renounce every bit of sarcasm in last week’s Madonna paper dolls,” Lizzy Acker said.
Acker was absolutely blown away by the show, and even called it the best arena show she’s ever seen. Acker liked how even though Madonna sang some older hits, she was not relying on past glory. Instead, she was showing the audience where she is now.
Madonna may be ruling the current box office now, but it’s Taylor Swift who has ruled the box office when considering 2015 as a whole. Taylor Swift’s 1989 World Tour, which started last May, has grossed more than $220 million and has become one of the most successful tours ever by a female artist. Like Madonna, Swift has garnered excellent reviews.
Perhaps one of the best reviews came from Eric Sundermann of Vice, who said the show was engineered to be the best night of your life.
“She pauses her strut at all the right times, and she is always smiling or laughing. Even though you know it’s a performance, everything about her feels flawless, which makes you feel good, too.”
Perhaps Swift has a lot to learn from Madonna, who has dealt with far more criticism than Taylor Swift could ever dream of (or have nightmares about). Madonna’s method of dealing with criticism is not paying attention to it, while Taylor Swift seems to make a statement every single time she is criticized. In any case, let’s hope that the two Queens of Pop continue to rule the music world.
[Photo by Kevin Winter/Getty Images]
