More and more artists ban cell phones at their concerts. It’s just an exercise in technophobia

They already warn it on the concert poster itself: “This show will be a phone-free experience. Cell phones will be secured in Yondr bags. Guests will be in possession of their phones at all times.” It is the message that the concert will be cell phone free. What started as a suggestion from artists is becoming a direct ban.

From Bob Dylan to Ghost (and many more). The first major artist to directly decide to ban mobile phones was Jack White in 2018. Since then, many groups and artists have followed in his footsteps opting for the same solution. Bob Dylan is doing it during his last tour, the group Arctic Monkeys during a concert in New York, Tool in 2019 and Ghost has recently announced it, for all the concerts of his tour in 2025.

The excuse: listen to the artist and not the motive. The problem is obvious. Artists want their audience to pay attention to them and enjoy the show. What is sought is to prevent attendees from being more focused on recording than enjoying. And that is in the best of cases, since many are distracted by notifications, messages and so on.

The objective of this measure is clear: that everyone really sees the concert. And it is something that most will agree on. Because let’s not fool ourselves, the concert videos don’t sound anywhere near the same. And many times they are published on the networks or saved and forgotten. Beyond sharing it momentarily with our acquaintances, the usefulness of recording the concerts is rather nil.

📱Let’s focus on the business: free advertising. Recording and sharing a concert on social media has the potential to convince others to sign up for that artist’s next concert. It is simply free and sincere advertising.

What interest could artists have in banning cell phones? Beyond the supposed improvement of the experience, there are reasons why artists would be interested in avoiding mobile phones.

📵 One of them is exclusivity. We know that many concerts are not only surprising for their sound quality, but also for their production. There are artists who put on authentic shows, with all kinds of lighting, fire and scenery effects. Limiting your cell phone means that if you want to live that experience, you are forced to go to the concert. If we don’t know what that concert will be like, the mystery is fueled.

📵 The surprise factor. If we have already seen the recording of a concert, when a certain action happens or the artist does a special thing with a certain song, it will no longer be so funny. Because we will have already seen it. It is true that no one goes to see a movie having seen parts of it, but unlike in the cinema, with concerts we do not usually have trailers. If there are no people recording, many more will be surprised at the concert.

📱Remembering indelible memories. At concerts there is time for everything. To jump, to sing, to listen. And also to record if we want. Because yes, the Rammstein stage with ‘Deutschland’ leaves an indelible memory, but having it recorded helps us return to it as many times as we want. It’s not just a question of sharing it, that too, but of ourselves.

📱They are already part of the show. Using your cell phone and enjoying the concert is not incompatible. In the end, phones are something else that we carry with us. One can record with one hand and raise the horns with the other. Because recording does not necessarily imply keeping an eye on the mobile screen.

Mobile phone use is circumstantial. A good artist will know how to capture our attention directly. Furthermore, having your cell phone has already become a tradition at many concerts, where the flashlight is the perfect substitute for the old lighters.

📱This is not school, let’s let everyone enjoy it in their own way. When we talk about cell phone bans, the first thing that comes to mind is school. There is a clear trend to ban cell phones in many schools. And in fact the same Yondr bags are used. However, there is a big difference.

Basic education is mandatory. Going to a concert is optional. In the first we have to maintain certain attention requirements, in the second the personal freedom to enjoy each person in the way they consider must prevail.

Fear Factory guitarist Dino Cazares sums it up well: “I don’t care if you bring phones to our show. What I see is that when you Buy a ticket, you do whatever you want as long as no one gets hurt. And always that the venue and its rules allow, if there are any.

Is it legal to record concerts? It is an issue that is not being openly debated, but the ban on mobile phones anticipates a position that may go through the minds of some artists: deep down, what they do not want is for their concerts to be recorded and shared for free.

We talked about Intellectual Property and the legality of recording a concert. Singers are considered performing artists and have the “exclusive right to authorize the fixation of their performances.” They also have the exclusive right of reproduction and public communication. In addition to their own image rights.

Following these rights included in Organic Law 1/1982, artists have the power to authorize or not authorize the recording of their concerts. There is no law like Cinema 55/2007 that directly prohibits recording, but it is a possibility available to them. Fortunately, most artists understand that they are simply another element. And that a good concert goes far beyond the influence that the mobile phone may have.

Image | Jorge Gordo

In WorldOfSoftware | Reselling tickets online is a headache for artists. Rammstein has decided to take action