Satire article says Jason Aldean surpassed Taylor Swift tour attendance
Users have shared images with variations of the text
(Reuters) - Country singer Jason Aldean does not have a tour titled, “You Can’t Cancel America,” contrary to posts on social media, and narratives saying his tours have surpassed attendance rates of Taylor Swift’s Eras tour stem from a satirical article.
Users have shared images with variations of the text: “Breaking: Jason Aldean's 'You Can't Cancel America' Tour Shatters Taylor Swift's Concert Attendance Record."
Aldean has upcoming U.S. tours set to begin in April and May, but they are called “Rock the Country” and “Highway Desperado.”
The former is a seven-stop tour across small U.S. towns with Kid Rock, while the latter is homonymous with his latest album. The “Highway Desperado” tour took place in 2023 and was extended to new dates for 2024.
There is no record of a past tour called “You Can’t Cancel America,” although the tour name has circulated online since at least Aug. 5, 2023, in an article labeled as “satire.”
Meanwhile, an article by the website Esspots.com is the earliest example of the narrative that a supposed “You Can’t Cancel America” Aldean tour surpassed Swift’s attendance rates.
The website doesn’t share real news, however. It has a disclaimer that reads, “Welcome to Esspots.com, a website that specializes in satire, parody, and humor. Before you proceed to read our content, we would like to emphasize that nothing on this website is real.”
Concert industry publication Pollstar reported that Swift’s “Eras Tour” grossed over $1 billion and sold 4.3 million tickets.
Pollstar reported that the 2023 leg of Aldean’s “Highway Desperado” tour grossed $39.5 million, with an attendance of 628,966. Aldean’s team did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
VERDICT
False. Social media posts on Jason Aldean’s tour surpassing Taylor Swift’s tour stem from a satirical article.
