Nostalgia tours have come for millennials, and they're they're no longer confined to big cities. Halifax star Sarah McLachlan is touring North America this month to celebrate the 30th anniversary of her classic album Fumbling Towards Ecstasy , while Belleville, Ont., rocker Avril Lavigne is in the midst of a "greatest hits" run celebrating her early 2000s material.
Concert listings can feel like déjà vu these days, as artists who hit their commercial peak decades ago head back out on the road. The nostalgia market pulls in big money, and brings up big feelings for fans and artists alike. Dave Brooks, Billboard's senior director of live music and touring, says the market for nostalgia "is bigger now than it's ever been.
" Brooks says the nostalgia market is now hitting millennials in their 30s and 40s, who might have more money to spend on concerts and are looking for experiences that take them back to their formative teen and early adult years. But for places like Dawson Creek, B.C.
, with an entire population that's smaller than the capacity of a big-city arena, the nostalgia concert scene is a whole new experience. Paula Abdul announced this week that she will be touring across smaller cities in Canada in September and October. (Mario Anzuoni/Reuters) Straight Up singer Paula Abdul announced an extensive Canadian tour this week, with support from fellow late-'80s pop stars Taylor Dayne and Tiffany, that excludes the usual stops in Vancouver, Toronto and Montreal in favour.
