That’s why Harry Styles doesn’t play in Sweden

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While the “best albums of 2025” lists are still fresh in my mind, I’m disappointed to note that neither FKA Twigs nor Rosalía, responsible for two of last year’s most acclaimed records, have concerts planned in Sweden this year. To see FKA branches you have to go to Copenhagen. Rosalía’s “Lux” tour next stops in Berlin.

Someone who won’t be there either is Harry Styles. To see the global star, you have to have the time and money to go to Amsterdam. His “Together, Together Tour” won’t go any further north. The tour is described as a series of residencies in seven select cities – including 30 concerts at Madison Square Garden in New York.

Fans who are not lucky enough to live in one of the residence cities have to pay not only the ticket but also travel and accommodation costs to see their idol

When the tour was introduced, Thomas Johansson, CEO of Live Nation Norden, was interviewed here on DN. He described it as a clear trend: artists parking in the same place to save on tour costs. He believes international touring could decline in the future. And to attract big names to Sweden, Johansson says we need bigger arenas than the ones we have.

Currently under construction an outdoor arena in Frihamnen in Stockholm with space for 30,000 visitors. At the same time, the arena boom is driving up ticket prices. “Are you going to have a child or go to a concert? It can be a difficult decision today,” as Aftonbladet’s Markus Larsson sourly noted.

And the unreasonably high ticket prices of the arena shows – from SEK 1,700 to SEK 14,000 for Harry Styles, for example – continue to cause anger. Fans who are not lucky enough to live in one of the residence cities have to pay not only the ticket but also travel and accommodation costs to see their idol.

For music-loving Stockholmers, this is a problem we struggle with every summer: emptying the coffers on a festival weekend in Gothenburg, right?

The fact that Way out West keeps bookings in tune with the times is old news. Alongside headliners like Charli XCX last year, hyped debutant Mk.gee and pop phenomenon Lola Young made their only Swedish appearances at last year’s edition. This year, Live Nation’s own festival has once again booked a whole host of acts that I want to see: Blood Orange, Dijon, Oklou, Clipse and Geese. They’ve all been on many best-of-the-year lists for 2025, but none of them can be seen in a club scene in Stockholm.

According to the music critic Andres Lokko has turned Stockholm into a “dead concert city”. In an interview with Hymn, he describes how many interesting artists these days go to festivals that gain exclusivity instead of playing in the capital. According to Lokko, Live Nation has had a system in place for several years to save the hottest names for Way out West. Is that really true?

Talking to promoters of medium-sized music scenes in Stockholm, I hear more about the exclusivity clauses (agreements that prohibit an artist from playing on other stages in the same country within a certain period of time) that are common in the live industry. A booker who does not want to give his name says that the regulation already existed at the time of the Hultsfred festival. The difference was that the time frames were significantly shorter in the past. During Hultsfred, the international artists were not allowed to play in Sweden for three months before and two months after the festival. In connection with Way out West, both autumn and spring could disappear, says the booker. Once the festival appearance is over, the artist has often become too big to play on smaller stages.

Admittedly, there is no death in Stockholm like there was back when many stages had to close around 2019. On the contrary: there are more stages in the city today than there have been for a long time – but they need an audience

A program manager for In another scene, we learn that smaller venues want and try to book the hot names well in advance, but are finding it difficult to compete with what the big festivals have to offer. For medium-sized acts like Dijon and Geese – who aren’t yet big enough to sell out the halls – an internationally recognized festival like Way out West is often a safer bet financially than club gigs: higher fees, greater exposure, no risk of playing to half-full halls. The fact that the acts share the same stages, the same technology and the same marketing also increases the profitability for the organizer – compared to if he were to arrange individual performances for them in major cities.

And Way out west continues to attract visitors – with 78,000 visitors last year, it set an audience record for the fourth time in a row. The largest providers such as festivals and arenas continue to grow, while smaller venues are having a harder time. Admittedly, there is no death in Stockholm like there was back when many stages had to close around 2019. On the contrary: there are more stages in the city today than there have been for a long time – but they need an audience. And instead of spending energy on something not is booked, as a music writer I should emphasize what actually is comes Here an organizer reminds me. He’s absolutely right.

DN applied for Live Nation.

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Harry Styles chooses residency instead of tour – new trend among world artists

Fans rage against Harry Styles – ticket prices are too high