Rising star Olivia Dean is taking a stand for fans—and against the wildly inflated prices that have become all too common in the secondary ticket market.
In a move that has quickly sparked conversation across the live-music industry, Dean announced major changes to ticket resale policies for her upcoming North American tour “The Art of Loving Live,” including capped resale prices and refunds for fans who paid markups.
In an Instagram Story posted to her followers, Dean laid out the urgent need for change and the steps she and her team have taken to make concerts more accessible. She wrote:
“An update on ticket resale! After many conversations with my team, Ticketmaster and AXS have agreed to refund the difference to anyone who has paid over face value for a ticket and will cap all future ticket resale prices to face value for the North American run of the tour.
Every artist and their team should be granted the option to cap re-sale at face value ahead of on sale, to keep the live music space accessible for all.
The secondary ticket market is an exploitative and unregulated space and we as an industry have a responsibility to protect people and our community. Thank you for your patience and I’m looking forward to seeing all you real humans at the show. STOP THE BOTS. ❤️”
Her message highlights a frustration shared across the music world: fans often end up competing with bots and resellers, paying outrageous markups for the chance to see their favorite artists. Dean’s stance places fan protection at the center of her tour strategy.
Ticketmaster Responds: “We Support Olivia Dean’s Commitment”
Following her announcement, Ticketmaster publicly backed Dean’s policy shift, confirming significant changes on their platform as well:
“We support @oliviadeano’s commitment to fair ticket pricing. Ticketmaster is capping all future ticket resale prices for ‘The Art of Loving Live’ tour on its platform and refunding fans for any markup they already paid to resellers on Ticketmaster. Ticketmaster does not receive the markup on those tickets but is stepping in to absorb this refund cost for fans. Refunds will be processed by December 10 and may take a few additional days to post, depending on individual banks.”
The clarification addresses a frequent misconception about secondary market profits and helps position the company as aligned with Dean’s fan-first approach.
The immediate impact is significant:
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Refunds for anyone who paid above face value on Ticketmaster or AXS for the tour.
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A permanent cap at face value for any future resale tickets on these platforms.
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Reduced competition with bots, thanks to better protections and policies initiated by Dean.
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A more accessible live-music environment, potentially setting a precedent for other artists.
