Official GNR Social Media Update / Discussion

[Top-Hatted One]

4 hours ago, WhazUp said:

And plus I remember when the Trump blow up doll thing was a big deal here on the GNR forums, some people were saying how bad it was for ticket sales and GNR's reputation but in the grand scheme of things not only was there no backlash, nobody really seems to care.  There is going to be no backfire 

Let's see how the US tour sells and the final attendance numbers first. 

[WhazUp]

Let's be honest, the only real reason why some people here would be very very bothered by Axl's views is because they are Trump fans and don't like the cognitive dissonance between a singer they love hating a President they love.  But unless Axl does some real outlandish shit like Ted Nugent, nobody is really going to turn his Twitter posts into a water cooler conversation

Realistically, the evidence that Axl talking about Trump equals lowered ticket sales is just kinda illogical at this point.  Even if the ticket sales are a bit lower this leg than last year in the US, you would have to present a ton of evidence that GNR hating Trump means ticket sales decrease in a substantial, quantifiable way.  Considering the lack of talk outside the GNR forums, hell even in the GNR forums, I doubt that Axl's view on Trump will impact ticket sales in a real way

Edited March 28, 2017 by WhazUp

[downzy]

3 hours ago, Top-Hatted One said:

Yea it seems GNR is falling into the trap of what on the surface appears to be popular opinion.

Or maybe that's just Axl's opinion, regardless of what others think.

[PsychoKiss344]

4 hours ago, Top-Hatted One said:

Let's see how the US tour sells and the final attendance numbers first. 

If someone actually didn't buy tickets to a band they like because of their political views....yikes, just yikes.

[-Jaro-]

6 hours ago, PsychoKiss344 said:

If someone actually didn't buy tickets to a band they like because of their political views....yikes, just yikes.

This!

Except in U2 case - Bono talks more politics than sings... But, while their (bands) politics are on twitter, and small rant here and there during concert why would it bother me. I like their music, don't care about his view on monetary politics of Botswana...

[Italian girl]

4 hours ago, -Jaro- said:

 

Except in U2 case - Bono talks more politics than sings... 

and he is sooo boring!

[jettesnel]

15 hours ago, WhazUp said:

Let's be honest, the only real reason why some people here would be very very bothered by Axl's views is because they are Trump fans and don't like the cognitive dissonance between a singer they love hating a President they love.  

Nah, I would say that Axl's way to express his politcal views may also be a "real" reason to be bothered.

[downzy]

1 hour ago, tremolo said:

Axl is entitled to have an opinion and express it, either on twitter or ranting during concerts.

I think what annoys us is that those are the kind of updates we get from him. Nothing regarding new music or artistic endeavours.

I agree that it would be great if/when Axl spoke publicly it was about his intentions relating to new music (or music in general).  

But let's keep this in mind: to my knowledge, Axl has given updates relating to music maybe a handhold of times in 20 plus years.  I've been attempting a count as it applies to specific dates and windows of release from Axl and I hit four or five incidents (1996 Fax, early 2000s MTV interview, statement in 2006 "there will be new music this year," tentative date letter in late 2006, 2012 Eddie Trunk interview).  

Since the mid 1990s, Axl has never been the kind of guy who speaks about his music or his intentions.  His twitter involvement has been limited to irreverent observations, thank yous, and the odd comment domestic and international event.  He's becoming increasingly public with his opinions, which is great for those interested in what he has to say on various matters.  But as it relates to himself and his work, he takes a very different track.  In that sense, he's very consistent despite it being a source of frustration for those fans who want news on music.  

[KURT19]

On 3/28/2017 at 2:19 PM, WhazUp said:

And plus I remember when the Trump blow up doll thing was a big deal here on the GNR forums, some people were saying how bad it was for ticket sales and GNR's reputation but in the grand scheme of things not only was there no backlash, nobody really seems to care.  There is going to be no backfire 

The 2017 upcoming American dates are mostly in the heartland areas of the US, i.e. no Los Angeles, San Fran or NYC.

Do a quick scan on Ticketmaster right now...I just did.  There are an absolute SHIT TON of tickets available for these shows including Pit tickets in St. Louis.  None of them are even close to selling out yet.

You can draw your own conclusions as to why this is...

High Prices? No new music? No Izzy? No Steven? Trump backlash? Set list stagnation?  But the conclusion is all the same: these dates need help to sell them out. 

And in my not-so humble opinion, Axl is NOT HELPING OUT with his social media presence as of late.

[marlingrl03]

15 minutes ago, KURT19 said:

The 2017 upcoming American dates are mostly in the heartland areas of the US, i.e. no Los Angeles, San Fran or NYC.

Do a quick scan on Ticketmaster right now...I just did.  There are an absolute SHIT TON of tickets available for these shows including Pit tickets in St. Louis.  None of them are even close to selling out yet.

You can draw your own conclusions as to why this is...

High Prices? No new music? No Izzy? No Steven? Trump backlash? Set list stagnation?  But the conclusion is all the same: these dates need help to sell them out. 

And in my not-so humble opinion, Axl is NOT HELPING OUT with his social media presence as of late.

There needs to be more promotion too...I asked my brother in San Antonio if he has seen any signs of advertising for Guns down there and he said no. Granted, the concert date is not until Sep...but they could still start! I really don't want to see a concert in an empty Alamodome. 

[Billsfan]

5 hours ago, Italian girl said:

and he is sooo boring!

Actually, he is

[downzy]

1 hour ago, KURT19 said:

The 2017 upcoming American dates are mostly in the heartland areas of the US, i.e. no Los Angeles, San Fran or NYC.

Do a quick scan on Ticketmaster right now...I just did.  There are an absolute SHIT TON of tickets available for these shows including Pit tickets in St. Louis.  None of them are even close to selling out yet.

You can draw your own conclusions as to why this is...

High Prices? No new music? No Izzy? No Steven? Trump backlash? Set list stagnation?  But the conclusion is all the same: these dates need help to sell them out. 

And in my not-so humble opinion, Axl is NOT HELPING OUT with his social media presence as of late.

Save for a few markets during the 2016 NA tour, most tour stops had a lot of tickets available right up to the concert date.  

Also present is the dynamic that many fans from all over the world and within North America traveled to see the band last year and perhaps aren't willing to see a band twice in one calendar year (or have their own local shows to attend). 

A fan living in St. Louis last year had their choice of Kansas City, Nashville, Chicago and Cincinnati if they wanted to see the band within a relative short distance (and at the time, who would have thought they were going to be doing a show in St. Louis the next year?).  Plenty of options for those fans and a far better explanation as to why St. Louis sales are soft right now (on top of the band's history with St. Louis). 

Personally, I plan on attending the Buffalo show but won't be purchasing tickets until a week or two out.  I think a lot of fans are in a similar boat since the risk of selling out in most markets is fairly low.  

Perhaps his comments on Trump are having an effect, but in the list of things that annoy most people about Axl (on-stage antics, no-show and late starts, etc), I have a hard time believing this is the biggest contributor to lacklustre ticket sales thus far.  

[WhazUp]

3 hours ago, KURT19 said:

The 2017 upcoming American dates are mostly in the heartland areas of the US, i.e. no Los Angeles, San Fran or NYC.

Do a quick scan on Ticketmaster right now...I just did.  There are an absolute SHIT TON of tickets available for these shows including Pit tickets in St. Louis.  None of them are even close to selling out yet.

You can draw your own conclusions as to why this is...

High Prices? No new music? No Izzy? No Steven? Trump backlash? Set list stagnation?  But the conclusion is all the same: these dates need help to sell them out. 

And in my not-so humble opinion, Axl is NOT HELPING OUT with his social media presence as of late.

With Ticketmaster a shit ton of tickets are always available, including pit tickets the night before I saw the Dodger Stadium gig with a mixture of the resale tickets available as well as the really expensive seats and pit tickets.  So what you are seeing is nothing new or anything out of the ordinary as of now

Edit:  if sales aren't as high as last year, I really honestly firmly believe it has more to do with the excitement of a newly announced GNR reunion not being as new anymore.  I cannot see any circumstance in which enough people would give a shit about a few tweets Axl made about Donald Trump to make a calculable difference on ticket sales.  

Edited March 29, 2017 by WhazUp

[beautifulanddamned]

People (who aren't us) aren't paying attention to Axl Rose's Twitter account. Certainly not the kind of casuals who are filling stadiums. No one cares what the members of GNR think because they aren't culturally relevant anymore. If Taylor Swift came out swinging politically, the media might care. Might. The Dixie Chicks are not an apt comparison for many reasons- when shit went down for them it was fairly soon after 9/11 and Bush was considered a wartime president. They were also a country music act and that is a genre that tends to appeal to a largely conservative fan base that exists primarily in the USA. They were expected to toe the line, Axl is not. And they were at the height of their popularity. It was also before the explosion of social media where everyone, famous or not, feels the need to express their opinions all the time. Loudly. Obnoxiously. Relentlessly. It becomes white noise after a while. Madonna got up and said some ridiculous shit in person, in front of the White House, the day after the inauguration and it was only barely covered. It was a very minor story with no legs. Because no one cares about Madonna anymore and it's a drop in the bucket at this point.  And as we learned last year, it's way too early to say the shows aren't selling well. People just waited.

[James Bond]

So, uh...

It sure was nice of Slash to wish Frank a happy birthday wasn't it? He even beat Dizzy to the punch.

[Epson]

 

[KURT19]

WTF?!  Nothing says #GnFnR like flaming blue hair.

Seriously, I think they just enjoy trolling us.

 

[Padme]

9 minutes ago, KURT19 said:

WTF?!  Nothing says #GnFnR like flaming blue hair.

Seriously, I think they just enjoy trolling us.

 

That is the official video for the AFD 30 year anniversary  

[Jane M.]

1 hour ago, Epson said:

 

OMG! Izzy is back! 

[soon]

Money and same setlist was main reason I wasn't going to a second show, having seen them in 2016.  But then I found out it will be free of Turmp supporters, so now Im definitely going!  

[Stizzyfan01]

1 hour ago, Jane M. said:

OMG! Izzy is back! 

How do you no Izzy is coming back?  Just hoping like me?

[Jane M.]

1 minute ago, Stizzyfan01 said:

How do you no Izzy is coming back?  Just hoping like me?

I know a lot of things. 

Nope. That's just the usual me being a little mofo. 

[RONIN]

On 3/29/2017 at 3:04 PM, beautifulanddamned said:

People (who aren't us) aren't paying attention to Axl Rose's Twitter account. Certainly not the kind of casuals who are filling stadiums. No one cares what the members of GNR think because they aren't culturally relevant anymore. If Taylor Swift came out swinging politically, the media might care. Might. The Dixie Chicks are not an apt comparison for many reasons- when shit went down for them it was fairly soon after 9/11 and Bush was considered a wartime president. They were also a country music act and that is a genre that tends to appeal to a largely conservative fan base that exists primarily in the USA. They were expected to toe the line, Axl is not. And they were at the height of their popularity. It was also before the explosion of social media where everyone, famous or not, feels the need to express their opinions all the time. Loudly. Obnoxiously. Relentlessly. It becomes white noise after a while. Madonna got up and said some ridiculous shit in person, in front of the White House, the day after the inauguration and it was only barely covered. It was a very minor story with no legs. Because no one cares about Madonna anymore and it's a drop in the bucket at this point.  And as we learned last year, it's way too early to say the shows aren't selling well. People just waited.

Nailed it. You changed my mind on this one. 

They aren't relevant and nothing they do now will create a press frenzy for people to feed off of unless Axl causes another riot. GnR are not going to create waves in the same way that someone like Beyonce or Coldplay would with controversial statements.

I will say this -- it's interesting that there isn't a single rant or even much interaction with the audience from Axl. Either he has a contractual muzzle or is in a happy place and doesn't have much to rant about. The latter seems plausible until you see his twitter feed. 

Edited March 31, 2017 by RONIN

[MrSoftie]

4 hours ago, RONIN said:

Nailed it. You changed my mind on this one. 

They aren't relevant and nothing they do now will create a press frenzy for people to feed off of unless Axl causes another riot. GnR are not going to create waves in the same way that someone like Beyonce or Coldplay would with controversial statements.

I will say this -- it's interesting that there isn't a single rant or even much interaction with the audience from Axl. Either he has a contractual muzzle or is in a happy place and doesn't have much to rant about. The latter seems plausible until you see his twitter feed. 

They literally brought Mexican fans on stage to hit a Trump piñata... lol

[RONIN]

3 hours ago, MrSoftie said:

They literally brought Mexican fans on stage to hit a Trump piñata... lol

That was in Mexico, not Tennessee