The Minnesota State Fair is known for displaying the state's biggest pumpkin and biggest pig. The fair set a record Friday for — drum roll, please — the highest ticket price ever at the grandstand. A whopping $194 for the Zac Brown Band.
Whoa!
Last year's top ticket price was $88 for Tim McGraw. In 2017, the floodgates opened — $101 for Toby Keith, $97 for Usher and $90 for Stevie Nicks.
This year, Florida Georgia Line commanded as much as $106 for their last gig for the foreseeable future. Comic Jim Gaffigan — just a man, a microphone and a stool — got up to $94. In 2017, his top grandstand ticket cost $60. That's a 56% jump in five years. The only inflation there is, um, ego.
But back to Zac Brown Band in its State Fair debut. The rationale for the steep ticket price is the popular country hitmakers are essentially a stadium attraction performing in a smaller venue. They rocked Target Field in 2016 and '18 (top price $121.50) and Twin Cities Summer Jam 2021 at Canterbury Park. This summer, ZBB has been gigging in stadiums and amphitheaters — venues with much larger capacities than the grandstand, which was sold out Friday with 13,185 fans.
In other words, ZBB requires a hefty fee — about $1 million — and the ticket prices reflect that.
Was Friday's concert worth $194? Or even $75 for the least expensive seat?
Here's our subjective analysis:
