Why big music stars like Harry Styles and Celine Dion are embracing residencies

NEW YORK (AP) — For Harry Styles’ dedicated audience, it is the can’t-miss event of the year: Tens of thousands have descended on New York City’s Madison Square Garden each night of his 30-date residency, rushing to catch the show before it concludes Halloween weekend. The stint follows the artist’s 2022 blockbuster run, when he performed 15 consecutive nights at the famous arena. And he’s not the only one embracing the format.

Residencies in Las Vegas, once viewed as the final stop at the end of a long career, have attracted younger performers like Usher, Katy Perry and Lady Gaga. In 2024, Adele embarked on a 10-date Munich residency. And last year, Bad Bunny’s 31-date residency in Puerto Rico single-handedly boosted the island’s fragile economy, generating over $200 million while extending his efforts to elevate the U.S.

Celine Dion, who holds the record for the highest-grossing residency in Vegas, recently embarked on one just outside Paris. It’s her first concert series since revealing her diagnosis with stiff-person syndrome. Industry insiders and artists alike say there are many reasons why residencies have taken hold in the music business, despite arguments that the format may shift costs to fans who could save money attending a tour in their hometown rather than spending the cash on travel.

Residencies fulfill evolving needs Residencies aren’t exactly a novel concept, explains Mitch Rose, Creative Artists Agency’s head of North American touring, who represents artists including Styles and Perry. “Go back in time to early Vegas, in the ’60s when Frank Sinatra had a residency and Tony Bennett had a residency,” he said. “They played multiple shows across a year at a hotel.

That was the birth of a residency.” Over time, however, Vegas residencies became synonymous with a particular kind of artist: one close to retiring. That changed in the 2000s, when Dion revitalized the format with her yearslong “A New Day …” and “Celine” runs. John Meglen, co‑CEO of Concerts West, was instrumental in both the Vegas residencies and the one in France.

“Most people thought we were crazy,” he said, noting the expense. “It was 200 shows a year, 40 weeks a year. Across 16 years and 1,141 performances, Dion grossed $681.3 million, according to Billboard.