Knuckles cracked, laptop charged and open, and prayers intact—the tell-tale signs of a student preparing for Ticketmaster war. Getting concert tickets these days is no easy feat, and entering a virtual queue can feel akin to walking onto a battlefield. With popular artists like The Weeknd, Kendrick Lamar and SZA, and Beyoncé touring in 2025, HHS students are vying for tickets to see their favorite artist in concert.
Junior Eden Lane, who secured tickets to Beyoncé’s tour, said “I wanted to buy tickets because I know she is known for having a very good stage presence. Her music is so empowering and I’ve wanted to go for a long time.” The tour, starting in April, will mark Beyoncé’s fifth all-stadium tour and feature hits from the album Cowboy Carter, which won Grammys for Best Country Album and Album of the Year.
Natalie Amato, a sophomore, got tickets to Tate McRae and Gracie Abrams. “Gracie Abrams and Tate McRae are two of my favorite artists,” she said. “ I love their music and cannot wait to see them live.” McRae, known for her pop hits and dancing, will kick off the Miss Possessive tour in August of this year while Abrams, who opened for Taylor Swift on the Eras Tour, will begin the Secret of Us Deluxe tour in July.
Unfortunately, the buzz surrounding concert season has greater implications than excited anticipation. There’s also genuine stress regarding the difficulty and financial burden of buying tickets. Delia Erb-Wagner, a senior who purchased tickets for Kendrick Lamar and SZA’s tour, reflected on her experience with buying the tickets through Ticketmaster, a popular and infamously challenging platform. “I used Ticketmaster to get the tickets, and it was very difficult to join the queue and wait for it during school,” she said. Erb-Wagner said she was able to score tickets by calling in backup. “My sister ended up joining first right when it opened and getting a bunch of seats for her friends and mine,” she said. “I’m so excited for the show though. I think it’s going to be great,” she said.
Whether it be Ticketmaster or outrageous prices, concert season can be tough to navigate. Those who managed to get tickets will certainly have something to look forward to in the upcoming months, and those who didn’t can always count on TikTok live streams and Instagram reels to fill them in.
