“The bitch is back” for the sixth time, as Elton John tops Billboard’s monthly Boxscore report at No. 1 on the Top Tours chart. According to figures reported to Billboard Boxscore, his eight shows in November grossed nearly $60.2 million and sold 340,000 tickets.
That sixth gold medal dates to the inaugural monthly Top Tours chart, when John earned $23.4 million in February 2019. He did it twice more in 2019, once in 2020, and again just last month. With his November ’22 triumph, he extends his record for the most months at No. 1, distancing himself from Bad Bunny’s four and The Rolling Stones’ three.
John also claims four of the top 10 positions on Top Boxscores, which ranks the top-grossing concert events of the month. Those are led by his triple-header at Los Angeles’ Dodger Stadium, grossing $23.5 million from 143,000 tickets sold on Nov. 17, 19 and 20. The L.A. shows served as the last domestic concerts of his farewell tour, with the final night livestreamed on Disney+ with special guests Brandi Carlile, Kiki Dee and Dua Lipa.
Otherwise, John banked $15.7 million in Phoenix (Nov. 11-12 at Chase Field), $8.8 million in San Diego (Nov. 9 at Petco Park), $7.8 million in Las Vegas (Nov. 1 at Allegiant Stadium) and $4.3 million in Denver (Nov. 4 at Ball Arena).
The Denver show was a replacement for a Houston stadium concert that was canceled due to the Astros advancing in the World Series, and is John’s only event of the month that misses the top 10 on Top Boxscores.
Other than that last-minute switch-up, John’s been playing stadiums in North America since mid-July after touring domestic arenas for the first several legs of the tour. This string of 33 shows grossed $222.1 million and sold 1.3 million tickets, quite easily the strongest leg of the entire run. At $6.7 million and 40,500 tickets per show, it paced close to 2:1 against any previous stretch, including the European stadium run over the summer.
John is eclipsed on Top Boxscores by fellow British pop-rockers Coldplay. The band grossed $29.8 million and sold 377,000 tickets over six shows at Estadio Unico Ciudad de La Plata in Buenos Aires. Those were part of a 10-show run that began in October, earning $49.7 million in total.
Harry Styles also notches a top five placement with carryover shows. After playing six concerts at Inglewood’s Kia Forum in October, he mounted another six in November. His monthly gross there was $19.3 million, part of a $38.1 million total. He’ll play another three shows at the arena in 2023, after rescheduling dates due to illness.
Recently named the top touring act of the year, Bad Bunny begins the ’23 tracking period at No. 2 on Top Tours with $38.3 million. While falling short on the chart, he finishes November with the most tickets sold, having played to 493,000 fans throughout the month in Latin America. Bunny previously reigned on the Top Tours ranking in February, March, August and September of this year.
The year-end Top Tours continues to overflow into the November chart with Styles and Coldplay at Nos. 4-5, repeating their respective year-end ranks. Rounding out the month’s top five, Daddy Yankee is No. 3, who placed at No. 13 for the year-end list.
A pair of festivals at Autodromo Hermanos Rodriguez make the open-air concert venue the top-grossing locale of the month. Corona Capital ($21 million; 242,000 tickets) and Coca-Cola Flow Fest ($13 million; 193,000 tickets) combined to $34 million and 435,000 tickets, surpassing the Buenos Aires stadium for its six Coldplay shows.
