Indy's live music scene turns up the volume

• Plus, going to concerts is good for your health.

By the numbers: Data from Mordor Intelligence estimates the U.S. live music market will grow from $15.6 billion in 2025 to $23.5 billion in 2030.

Between the lines: Researchers say the uptick is driven by consumers who are prioritizing experiences over material possessions post-pandemic.

• Record-shattering tours like Taylor Swift's "The Eras Tour" are also credited with pushing revenues to new heights.

State of play: Indianapolis' live music landscape is growing alongside the city's presence as a tourism hotspot.

• Live Nation plans to bring a 4,000-seat venue to the old CSX site at 230 S. Pennsylvania by 2027.
• HI-FI & MOKB Presents is moving HI-FI Annex to its permanent, 1,200-capacity home in Fountain Square's Murphy Arts Center in early 2026.
• The Fishers Event Center opened in November with its first show being a Turnpike Troubadours concert, and the venue will host country music megastar Blake Shelton next month.

The intrigue: Existing venues are making changes, too, like the Indianapolis Symphony Orchestra planning a multimillion-dollar renovation of Hilbert Circle Theatre.

Zoom in: Outdoor concert options are also plentiful, with Rock the Ruins at Holliday Park, the Fishers Summer Concert Series at the Nickel Plate District Amphitheater and The Alley Sessions at The Cabaret.

• Forty5, the production company that operates venues like The Vogue and The Tobias Theater, is celebrating the success of the Turntable following its October 2024 opening and preparing to bring a pilot live music series to Broad Ripple Park in August.
• Forty5 CEO Jenny Boyts said her team is also booking Indy Pride's new two-day "WORD OF MOUTH" music series that will bring acts like Natasha Bedingfield and Tinashe to Indy this June, and collaborating with GANGGANG on more than a year of programming that will culminate with the second I Made Rock 'N' Roll Festival in May 2026.

Yes, but: It's not all good news for live music fans. One of Central Indiana's most prominent venues, Ruoff Music Center, eliminated the Lawnie Pass program for the 2025 summer season and is charging for all parking for the first time.

Existing venues welcome newcomers

Operators of existing venues don't seem worried about the incoming competition.

Why it matters: For Boyts, growth across the industry is a boon to Indy's cultural scene that should be celebrated, not feared.

What she's saying: "Increased competition means the quality of the artists are just going to get better ... but I also think that's good for the city," she said. "You're introducing new folks to Broad Ripple when you come up here. You're experiencing Fountain Square and all it has to offer when you see our friends at HI-FI. There's an entry level into the neighborhoods that I'm just really excited about, and music provides that vehicle."

• Ultimately, she wants to see Indianapolis be known as a music city the same way it's known for racing or sports.

Jeffrey McDermott, president and CEO of Allied Solutions Center for the Performing Arts, said the growth of the Indianapolis metro means more opportunities all around.

• "People have asked me if the number of new venues that are going up or have gone up is a concern, and I would truthfully say they're not. And I don't mean that in any way other than I'm pleased with the fact that people are going out and enjoying music to such a degree that it is driving the market to open up even more venues," he said.
• "Each year post-pandemic our ticket sales have topped the year before. Last year we broke a record, and this year we're on track to break it again. So the demand is there."

Follow the money: The center, which operates the 1,500-seat Palladium, the 500-seat Tarkington theater and the black-box Studio Theater, announced a seven-year sponsorship agreement with Carmel-based Allied Solutions last fall.

• Financial terms of the deal were not disclosed, but McDermott told Axios the partnership provides the center the stability and freedom to try new things.
• "We bring in such a wide variety of artists and genres that most for-profit venues would never do."
• "We'll bring in artists who we know aren't going to make money for us, but they're just important artists to bring into the community and to expose people to."

How it works: McDermott attributes much of the center's success to his 11-person programming team run by Dan Kemer, an industry veteran who previously served as president of Live Nation Indiana and is currently a partner/VP for HI-FI & MOKB Presents.

• McDermott said the team works to be reflective of the community's interests, and they even take requests.
• "We have people who come up to us at venues and sometimes hand us a list of 25 artists that they would love to see, and we run them down," he said. "I think if people feel like they give us a suggestion and that just goes into a drawer someplace ... it doesn't."

Boyts said Turntable's arrival strikes a similar community-focused chord in Broad Ripple by welcoming an 18-and-up crowd to see new acts in a new space.

• "When people walk in, they're not just excited about the space itself. They're excited about a new place to experience their own city. They're excited about a new place to go with friends," she said. "Turntable has done amazing things for our business model, but it also is just a lot of people really happy leaving here after seeing their favorite artists, and that feels transformative in lots of ways."

Live Nation, which operates Old National Centre, Ruoff Music Center and Everwise Amphitheater at White River State Park, did not respond to Axios' request for comment.

The bottom line: Expect Indy's live music scene to turn up the volume in 2025 and beyond.

• "Rising tides make us all a little bit better, and my hope is that it just continues to push folks to buy tickets, support artists and have a little fun while they're at it, too," Boyts said.

Go deeper: Your spring 2025 concert guide ... 10 concerts worth traveling for