Chapter 182: The Huge Tour Plans

[Chapter 182: The Huge Tour Plans]

Late at night, a group of friends sat on the floor of a stadium, surrounded by numerous pizza boxes adorned with the Papa John's Pizza logo. A bald man with a patchy goatee lifted a slice of pizza to his mouth, his arm shaking slightly as he did.

He was the drummer of Taylor's band and the eldest among them.

"Al, you're getting old!" a man with an exaggerated "radioactive" hairstyle chuckled. His name was Grant, the lead guitarist of the band. Those who had seen Taylor's live performances would easily remember him as the "Black Lion."

"We aren't going to keep doing this until the concert starts, are we?" Caitlin Evanson asked, the band's violinist who also occasionally played guitar and provided backup vocals.

"That wasn't in the contract," Liz whispered from beside her; she was Taylor's background singer during the shows.

"According to Ryan, the stage will be ready in three days," Taylor chimed in, hearing the band members' conversation as she leaned over, a slice of pizza in her mouth. She joined the group for dinner, then stood up to distribute the remaining slices of pizza to the others.

"Thanks," said bassist Amos Heller, who didn't have an eye-catching appearance but sported a sideburn style reminiscent of Elvis Presley. He had worked hard all day yet seemed unfazed about it. As of 2024, he was still with Taylor.

"Give me some more; I'm starving," said Paul Sidoti, the lead guitarist, a man with a straightforward and hearty look.

Also present were Ben Clark, who played mandolin and banjo, and Daniel Sadonik, who looked after percussion. Together, these eight formed Taylor's band. Along with five girls and two guys as backup dancers, the entire performance team counted sixteen members.

...

At that moment, Taylor walked over to Ryan, bearing a worried expression as she contemplated a few matters.

The main steel structure of the stage had already been mostly completed, with finishing touches planned for the morning, followed by the installation of soft furnishings in the afternoon. Equipment installation was also scheduled, with staff from the manufacturers supposed to arrive for the large screens in the afternoon, along with lighting, sound, power, and hydraulic lifts. If everyone worked overtime these two days, the stage could be ready by noon the day after tomorrow. At that time, the steel structure for the second stop in Jonesborough would be set up, allowing those workers to continue laying things out there. Simultaneously, the crew working on the stage would move on to the third stop in St. Louis. Everything appeared to be falling into place.

Ryan finally let out a sigh of relief. Setting aside additional costs, at least Taylor's tour wouldn't be delayed. A delay could be disastrous; aside from hurting the fans' feelings, it also involved canceling tickets and incurring extra expenses. Surrounding the tour, three teams added up to around 150 people, and the truck costs alone were substantial. When factoring in meals and other needs, it could get quite expensive in just one day.

Ryan roughly calculated the wages for core band members during the shows, ranging from $300 to $500 a day (due to downtime, performance pay was generally higher). Some key positions, like those overseeing lighting and sound, earned more, while stage workers and movers made about $150. Senior management, like the tour manager, earned $1,000 a day.

Altogether, daily wage costs alone could hit $50,000.

With food and lodging averaging $150 per person daily, that added up to over $20,000. When adding miscellaneous costs like transportation, security, and other expenses -- at a minimum, $15,000 was needed. In total, the daily expenses during the concert period approached $90,000.

The confirmed cities now included 39 states across the US and Canada with a total cost of $5 million. That didn't even consider venue costs, which were substantial as well, plus additional expenditures for the two shifts of stage workers and technicians.

"Taylor, what's the average ticket price for this concert?" Ryan asked.

"About sixty bucks," Taylor replied. (That figure had been verified; at that time, it was the average ticket price.)

"That's less than the club cover charge?" Ryan blinked in surprise.

"The concert market is really competitive. If tickets cost more, they won't sell," Taylor explained.

There were 11,000 seats in the stadium, and subtracting one-fifth for the backstage area, in a full capacity scenario, ticket sales would amount to nearly $500,000. After ticketing service fees, the takings would probably come to about $350,000.

The stadium was rented for five days at a basic daily rate of $15,000, with an additional $5,000 in expenses on concert day (for cleaning, security, and ticketing). Considering this was the first concert, there would be extra preparation time. Ideally, they could at best break even for this concert, though the next two would likely be profitable.

The profit margin would depend on attendance; if the venue was full, they could expect at least $200,000 in earnings per concert. This was for a mid-sized venue; if they held it in a larger one with higher ticket prices, earnings could potentially multiply.

That said, this money was shared with Taylor. At minimum, she would take half, but ultimately, this cash was just "temporarily stored" with her, and she hadn't made it through her dad's approval yet.

...

That night, sounds of distress came from Taylor's room.

"Ow, that really hurts."

"You hurt me."

"Be gentle." "Ouch."

Ryan had merely touched a bruise on Taylor's back.

"I told you not to push yourself. You're too thin for that kind of work," Ryan said, a touch of concern in his voice.

At that moment, Taylor's fair skin bore a mark on her back, neck and collarbone, which were caused by the earlier heavy lifting.

"Well, you started it, so I can't just stand by. I've got to set a good example," Taylor said, furrowing her brows. What hadn't bothered her earlier was now starting to sting more.

"Next time something like this comes up, just do light work, like running to fetch drinks," Ryan said as he poured some ointment into his palms. 

"Hiss..." Taylor gasped in pain as Ryan applied it.

"Almost done." Ryan finally put on an ice patch to help with circulation.

Taylor adjusted her neckline.

"I should be okay in a few days, but if it doesn't get better, you'll have to cover it up with makeup. I'd rather people not see images online saying I abused you," Ryan joked lightly.

"Believe it or not, that could honestly happen," Taylor smirked, adjusting her neckline.

Ryan took an orange from the bag and peeled it specifically for Taylor.

"Open wide." Ryan extended the orange segment to her.

Taylor parted her lips and bit into the fruit.

"So sweet." Taylor's eyes narrowed with a smile.

"Lucky I showed up this time; otherwise, whether or not this tour would happen on time would've been a real question mark," Ryan lamented dramatically.

"Yeah, my dad can't really handle these things," Taylor had to admit.

"What's the plan now? What does your dad think?" Ryan subtly inquired.

"With the economy as it is, my dad said he's focusing more on me," Taylor replied.

This meant her dad wasn't planning to step away from the tour.

"But your dad's getting older," Ryan reminded her, noting that he was born in '52 and was now fifty-six.

"True, I also think that it's better to let him retire early, but he also said he wants to start a talent agency, using my lucky number as the name, and he mentioned he would leave the stock to me in a few years," Taylor continued.

"I think he should just give you the shares outright and have him as a high-ranking executive at the company," Ryan suggested thoughtfully.

Having Taylor's parents hold shares wouldn't be as advantageous as having her control them directly.

"Besides, you know all the tricks your dad has done. I don't want a penny of the money you are going to make. You can control it as you like," Ryan discerned that this was the right moment, wrapping his arms around Taylor from behind, kissing her neck softly.

At this point, overtly trying to seize control would be too blunt, needing Taylor to handle her parents. As for Taylor herself, if she wasn't on her husband's side, who would she stand by?

"With the cash I've got, aside from buying a house, I don't really see what else I could do..." Taylor mused as she traced her fingers over Ryan's arms around her waist, sinking into thought.

"Well, you need to think about it. If your dad is holding the money, doesn't your brother get a cut too? This money is rightfully yours." Ryan urged her.

"Good point." Taylor turned around to face him.

"I've got to plan for our little family, so it's settled. Tomorrow, I'll go to talk to my dad with you," Taylor nodded affirmatively.

*****

https://www.patreon.com/Sayonara816.