Jack White’s "No Name" Tour: A Blueprint For Saving Your Music Scene
Music scenes across the nation are struggling, but Jack White’s most recent tour showcases a powerful example of how we could save them all.
The days of clubs, bars, and small music venues being packed consistently each weekend seem to be dwindling more and more each year. The weekly open mics that were once coveted breeding grounds for up-and-coming artists are becoming fewer and fewer. The overall excitement about small local venues and local bands appears to be diminishing a little bit more each year.
Several factors contribute to this decline. The revenue streams from CDs are long gone. Radio stations, either through their own doing or as a consequence of social media, are fading away. Social media itself has been destroyed by algorithms that prioritize advertising revenue, forcing artists to pay to ensure their fans see posts about new releases and tours. Our largest streaming platform, Spotify, takes the lion's share of revenue, leaving many artists struggling to make ends meet.
Meanwhile, venues face increasing overhead costs while trying to create a captivating live experience. The combination of rising expenses and shrinking attention spans creates a discouraging environment for local bands to break out and for local venues to compete with massive corporations that control the industry.
This brings me to Jack White’s current 2024/2025 NO NAME Tour, aptly named after his most recent album release, "No Name."
While Jack’s tour is scheduled to play large venues and festivals in 2025, he kicked it off in 2024 by loading up in a van with his bandmates and touring the old-school way performing at small and medium sized local venues with last minute show announcements for the keen and lucky fans who could snag tickets before they sold out.
His Texas run, for example, included shows in San Antonio at The Paper Tiger, in Austin at Mohawk and The Continental Club, and at Trees in my hometown of Dallas.
Prior to those shows, Jack was doing the same thing in other states like Oklahoma, Ohio, Illinois, Wisconsin, and many more. A scroll through his social media reveals the full extent. Each lucky town had one or two nights at their beloved local venues to watch a mega rockstar promote his new album, just like the old days.
For younger audiences, this kind of touring might seem like a novelty, but it harkens back to a time when intimate venues were the norm for big-name artists. For instance, Trees, the venue I mentioned earlier, once hosted Nirvana. The memories created in such spaces are etched into the fabric of music history.
One significant aspect that adds to the appeal of these shows is Jack's use of companies like Yondr, which lock up phones during his performances. If you haven’t experienced an event where phone usage is restricted, you might be skeptical. However, this simple measure elevates the concert experience.
Attendees are actually experiencing the music and the moment rather than watching the entire show through the screen that’s recording it for later. This approach brings back the fully engaged atmosphere reminiscent of the concerts of yesteryear.
In addition to the intimate nature of the venue, this type of touring allows local opening acts to share the stage with an established musician in front of a packed crowd. This exposure is crucial for every up-and-coming band attempting to make their mark.
So, what’s the big deal? Does it really matter that superstar Jack White plays small venues with local openers and locks up phones? I would argue that this is a pathway back to the glorious live music days of the past.
Jack’s current tour represents more than just a fantastic opportunity to watch him perform, it’s a blueprint for other artists to play their part in revitalizing these local scenes across the country.
Plan your mega tour at the largest most profitable venues so you can make your money but also, pay your respects to music lovers everywhere by also planning a tour through every smaller venue that you can manage. Support those scenes by touring their hometown clubs and putting some of their hometown bands on the shows as openers and features.
You have the power to ensure that these incredible local venues and bands (and ultimately the local music scenes) survive year after year.
In the end, we must remember that individual music scenes are vital for the larger ecosystem of music to flourish.
Jack White can be a polarizing figure to many, and it’s easy to dismiss his approach as merely a clever marketing tactic. However, that perspective overlooks the deeper significance of what he’s doing now and has done in the past.
As a long-time fan of Jack's, it’s evident that his love for music and the community far outweighs any financial motivations. The details matter, and this model of touring could help revive the music industry to a new golden age of live music.
If you’re a large touring act, this is your opportunity to help bring music into a new golden era.
Travis Wright is the host of the “I’m a fan of…” podcast. If you enjoy music and comedy, be sure to subscribe to the podcast and check out the You Tube Channel. Thanks!
