The music industry is facing a significant challenge as late-night TV shows reduce their musical performances, impacting artists' opportunities to market their albums and expand their audiences. This trend has been years in the making, with shows like Jimmy Kimmel Live! cutting back on musical guests, leaving The Tonight Show as the last major late-night program with consistent musical performances. This shift has been particularly concerning for developing artists, who may struggle to get booked as fewer slots mean shows will prioritize bigger acts to boost ratings.
Chloë Walsh, a co-founder of publicity firm The Oriel, calls this trend a "decimation of the music industry's middle class." Both she and Big Hassle Co-Founder Jim Merlis, a PR veteran, agree that the dearth of late-night bookings is most concerning for emerging artists. Merlis predicts that there will be fewer opportunities for "let's take a chance" bookings, emphasizing the loss of the middle class in music. Walsh estimates that the number of late-night performance opportunities for recording acts has fallen from 17-21 per week in 2023 to about eight max now, dropping to around six after Colbert's show ends.
While late-night bookings may not always lead to a spike in sales, they still hold value in boosting radio play or securing tour dates. Walsh notes that TV bookings provide exposure not just in the US but internationally via YouTube and music site coverage. Merlis argues that the importance of a TV spot was "overstated 20 years ago, and now it's maybe a bit understated." However, late-night performances can be costly for artists, with expenses reaching up to $100,000, making it hard to justify the costs if there's no clear return on investment for music sales.
Despite the challenges, some legacy TV spots still hold luster. A Saturday Night Live musical guest appearance, for example, is a coveted opportunity to promote the biggest albums of the year and cement up-and-comers' superstar status. Even if late-night live performances don't take off, they can still get online write-ups from press outlets and help secure interviews with other outlets. As the performance opportunities fall and other legacy media outlets continue to decline, these résumé-builders that help lead to long-term careers for artists are disappearing. Walsh emphasizes the importance of late-night bookings in an artist's career, the impact they can have across media, radio, touring, and even across other territories via YouTube and social media.
