🔗 Share this article

Picture being gifted with a open night. You feel rejuvenated, open to experience, and looking to shake up your usual routine of relaxing at home. The world is your oyster! Could you prefer a) going to a gig or b) engaging in intimacy? The outcome, as frequently seen with these types of questions, is clearly: “That depends.” Reasonable people may reasonably inquire: what's the show? Who's the companion? Will it be expected to be enjoyable?

Few would select a Limp Bizkit/Slipknot/Korn triple bill if the other option was a magical night with a beloved celebrity. But adjust one side of the equation, and it turns less obvious. For the 40,000 people presented with this choice by a live event company, no further details was offered – and the answer emerged decisively and heavily in favour of gigs.

Research Findings Show Surprising Choices

A global study, polling 40,000 people from 18 and 54 across 15 markets, showed that concerts currently stand as the world’s top leisure activity, surpassing athletic events, cinema and – indeed – intimacy. Given the choice to only one option of activity forever, nearly four in ten picked live music, compared to going to the cinema (17%) and athletic competitions (14%). The group was significantly more as inclined to prefer watching their top musician live (70%) over sexual activity (30%).

You show up expecting to be delightfully amazed – and quite often you’ll end up with someone else’s hair in your mouth

Perspectives and Analysis

Of course it’s not surprising that a marketing research carried out for a live event company should come out so overwhelmingly preferring live shows – and, in the freewheeling tone of a would-you-rather, if your preferred musician is, say a legendary singer, one can appreciate why seeing him may be chosen instead of a ordinary situation. Yet this either-or decision between gigs or sexual activity, plainly ridiculous even if it seems, is fascinating to reflect on given the odd moment we experience with these two aspects.

The Transformation of Concert Culture

In recent years, gig-going has grown beyond a shared activity but a competitive sport. Live organizations appropriately highlight that stadium attendance has “grown significantly annually”, and live events are fully reserved more rapidly than previously. Just obtaining passes now requires military-level planning, instant reactions and deep finances (or a substantial budget). Although you succeed, that alone won't do to just show up and enjoy the show. There’s now an expectation, at least among music enthusiasts, that you can boost your return on investment by seeing several shows (including overseas trips), studying the performance lineup in advance and memorizing the cues to hit and audience interactions developed through earlier audiences.

Numerous attendees describe being affected by their experience at popular events: what felt like a scripted production of thousands of people, to which some individuals arrived not knowing the protocol. Those lengthy tour, generating billions, demonstrated of the lengths to which fans will travel to feel part of a historic occasion and see their favourite artist perform, even if the real performance seems increasingly secondary to the show.

The State of Contemporary Sexuality

Intimacy, conversely – a relatively cheap and common experience – experiences challenging circumstances. According to contemporary studies, nearly one in four of people were intimate in an average week, while about three in ten were abstaining. In a different nation, modern figures revealed that over a quarter of people reported not having sexual activity even once in the past year, rising from fewer people in the past. Across these regions, the change has been attributed to reduced intimacy among younger people. Contrast this with the industry booming for major events and the intense rivalry for admissions. Of course it's more complicated as a straightforward choice between both alternatives – “do you prefer attend a huge concert multiple times, or stay celibate?” – but it might be an signal of what is viewed as the more dependable enjoyment.

Surprising Parallels

Relationships and gigs are closer aligned than one may assume. They both embody the commencement of a connection, a practical trial of impressions or promise that may have developed solely in your imagination. You arrive with a basic expectation of what might happen, but expecting to be delightfully amazed – and if it turns out good or bad depends very much on if your enthusiasm and expectations align with others. Frequently you’ll end up with another person's locks in your mouth, and afterwards be waiting around for a break and personal space alone. And, in both cases, drugs and alcohol can sometimes improve or detract from the situation (but absolutely assist the most dire experiences more bearable).

Achieving Equilibrium

The appeal to concerts and intimacy depends on discovering that elusive sweet spot between the known and the new, sameness and variation, challenge and comfort. Naturally it's uncommon – but it's the recollection of successful moments, the understanding that it can happen, that drives us to attempt once more: to {