A few weeks ago, Priceonomics' Zachary Crockett published a list showing how much bands, singers and artists charge to play concerts at colleges.
Except Crockett couldn't verify the veracity or timeliness of the list, and discovered some rates he found strange: One Direction, Britain's most successful boy band of all time, was only listed at "$150-200k+" per show. The site he sourced the data from Degy Entertainment, no longer appears to list any of the large number of acts that Crockett published listed on its site. Drake only had a minimum of $300,000, and Pharrell only had a minimum $150,000. Degy did not return requests for comment.
So we went to CelebrityTalent.net, a site that is able to reach out to managers of the famous to find current booking fees, and which claims to update its list daily, to find a more comprehensive and current list of rates.
Here's how CelebrityTalent introduces the booking process:
The biggest names in music, like Sting, Rihanna, Elton John, Paul McCartney, Taylor Swift and Justin Timberlake, will always ask for over $750,000+ for a US event and even more for an international event. These acts very often turn down offers from buyers they do not know, but CTI as an experienced major name talent buyer, can help you get a name confirmed if a buyer has the budget to confirm the act.
Speakers like Arnold Schwarzenegger, Bill Clinton, Tony Blair and Richard Branson, have a speaking fee of over $200,000 and also a private jet needs to be provided or paid for by the client.
The list, which is belowy, is highly revealing.
The first thing to note is just how many different rate brackets there are — 14 in total. It must be quite frustrating to know you haven't been able to break into — or have recently sunk below — the six- or seven-figure range.
On the music side, many of the most important artists of all time, like Bob Dylan (min. $250,000) and Patti Smith (min. $250,000), can be had for an arguably shameful bargain. It also appears possible to order specific band members individually, and it's interesting to see who costs more: Don Henley (min. $250,000) is the most expensive Eagle, followed by Glenn Frey (min. $150,000) and Joe Walsh (also min. $150,000). The band itself costs at least $750,000.
There are also a lot of surprising one-hit wonders, like The Hives and Puddle of Mudd (min. $100,000) that still command a decent premium
Actors are cheaper than bands, and start coming in at $250,000, which will net you people like Ben Stiller, Harrison Ford, and Helen Mirren.
Finally, there appear to be lots of Heisman Trophy winners and Hall of Famers with a lot of free time.
Check it out.
