Hawaii music lovers have been gifted with a glut of national acts recently. Concerts by multiple national acts from a variety of genres have rocked here of late. When it was announced that two multi-platinum monsters of rock will perform at Aloha Stadium in December, Hawaii social media went into a tizzy. Concerts by major acts in the 48,000- seat stadium are a big deal. Aloha Stadium concerts are back!
Perennial supergroup The Eagles are scheduled to perform on Friday, December 7. The following night, Saturday December 8, rock and roll bad boys Guns ‘N Roses will take the stage. Concerts at Aloha Stadium are few and far between. Consecutive nights of major concerts by two of the most famous rock and roll bands in the world is remarkable.
Some might remember The Eagles performing for their cheekily-named “Hell Freezes Over” Tour in 1996 at Aloha Stadium (22 years ago? Wow!). It was a huge success, and December’s show seems certain to surpass it in ticket sales. Advance press says that Hawaii musical superstar Jack Johnson, who has his own millions of fans worldwide, will be featured.
This leads to speculation that he will take the place of founding Eagles member Glenn Fry, who passed away in 2015. He may do a lot more than just open the show with his own brand of folk rock. It seems a perfectly plausible theory.
Guns ‘N Roses have never performed in Hawaii. They were the biggest act in the world for a time following the release of 1987’s Appetite for Destruction, but they never made it out here to play for their Hawaii fans. After lukewarm response to their later work, the band drifted apart amid rumors of caustic personal differences and substance abuse problems. Whatever the case, their 2016 “Not in This Lifetime” reunion tour became the 4th largest of all time, grossing nearly $500 million. Their 2018 tour is called the “Larger-Than-Life Not in This Lifetime Tour.”
Concert ticket presale numbers in Hawaii are notoriously sluggish. Unless, of course, the act has reached stratospheric fame and fortune. Michael Jackson, Janet Jackson, the Rolling Stones, Pearl Jam, U2, and ZZ Top/Run DMC have all filled Aloha Stadium to near capacity over the years, among others.
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If the furor over the recent presale debacle over tickets to November’s Bruno Mars concerts is any indication, would-be attendees are well advised to get their tickets for The Eagle and Guns ‘N Roses early. Response to the announcement of a Blaisdell Arena show prompted organizers to move the Mars concert to Aloha Stadium. Two more concerts at the stadium have been added. Thousands of fans complained angrily that tickets were snatched up by greedy scalpers with online “bots” that crowded out residents for tickets.
Like destination weddings, concert ocean cruises have become fashionable among travelers around the world, particularly in the Caribbean. We think Hawaii is a far better alternative for concert-seeking travelers. After all, some cruises have been described as “jail with a chance of drowning.”
Perhaps with the success of the upcoming concerts at Aloha Stadium, music and travel industry bigwigs will see that Hawaii can become as popular for “destination concerts” as it is for destination weddings.
Click here for Aloha Stadium concert ticket information.
