The logistics of a stadium show are an absolute fucking nightmare. They’re obviously a nightmare for the vast production teams that must scramble to turn hulking concrete bowls into one-night fantasy lands; that’s why every stop on a stadium tour involves a small army of technicians putting in insane herculean efforts. But those logistics can also be a nightmare for the regular people who pay vast sums of money to get inside the stadiums. Football stadiums are the largest structures that can serve as readymade non-festival concert venues in the United States. If you’re among the tiny group of acts who can headline a stadium tour in 2025, you have ascended to the highest heights of the music business. But is the spectacle of the stadium show truly worth it? Kendrick Lamar and SZA’s Grand National tour got me thinking about that question — less because of the show itself, more because of the civic clusterfuck that surrounded it.
