Alison Wonderland Calls Out Ticket Bots Ahead of Denver Show

Producer Takes Aim at Scalpers on Social Media

Alison Wonderland took to X this week to express frustration over ticket bots and fees inflating prices for her Halloween-themed performance at The Arch on Saturday, October 31st. The show in Denver's RiNo district features a back-to-back set alongside hyperpop breakout Tiffany Day.

"Man I'm so pissed. Fuck bots and fees making all the money on my Denver show," Wonderland wrote. "I'm literally LOSING money putting this show on for u guys and other people profit off it."

She explained that she had originally intended to offer tickets at a lower price, but fees and apparent scalping activity undermined those efforts. "This sucks for both me and my fans," she continued, apologizing to attendees and explaining that the event's production costs were already substantial. "We have to bring in all the production and are spending the rest of our money fitting the place out with a bunch of halloween stuff, which I hope y'all like."

A Persistent Industry Problem

The Australian producer's frustration reflects a longstanding problem in the live music industry. Automated bot software allows scalpers to acquire large quantities of tickets during high-demand sales windows, sometimes before genuine fans have an opportunity to buy them. Those tickets can then appear on secondary marketplaces at excessive markups.

The problem is especially pertinent in electronic dance music, where highly anticipated shows can sell out within minutes. Even artists who deliberately keep face-value prices affordable can find their intentions undercut by third-party resellers and bad actors.

Artists Seek Workarounds

Some artists have experimented with in-person ticket sales and other restrictions to combat automated purchases, but such measures present logistical challenges at scale. Skrillex's team worked with AEG to reclaim tickets from fraudulent buyers following the on-sale for his 2023 Red Rocks show, then made them available to fans through a lottery-based registration system.

The Arch has not publicly commented on the ticketing situation. Wonderland's Halloween show takes place this Saturday, October 31st.