Young Men Prefer Live Music To Live Football Finds IPC’s Today’s Man: Live

IPC Media today unveils research into 16 to 34-year-old men and their passion for music, finding that attending live music events even beats going to the footy for this group.

The findings are the latest in IPC’s Today’s Man research – a major programme of research into the lifestyle, habits and media consumption of young men.

Today’s Man: Live! shows that music is hugely important to young men, with 69% saying that it is part of their identity and defines who they are. Seven in 10 also believe you can tell a lot about a person from the music they listen to.

Going to live music events came out as the top ’live’ leisure activity among young men, even outdoing football: 63% attended a live music event in the last year compared to just 55% who’d gone to a football match. Going to gigs was the most popular of live music events – 55% had been to a gig in the last year, beating festivals, which were attended by 31%.

Positive news for marketers is that the majority of young men (62%) pay attention to the brand sponsoring a live music event and 64% say they view those brands more favourably.

Andrew Goldsmith, group advertising director of IPC Media’s men and music brands, says: “Having an enjoyable way to relax and unwind is more important than ever and live music is topping the list for many young men. The escapism, social experience and atmosphere of live music are hard to beat so brands targeting young men should definitely be tapping in to this area.”

The Today’s Man: Live! research – undertaken by research specialists Lightspeed and encompassing a nationally representative sample of UK men – also discovered the most popular types of music for young men. Rock/metal took the top spot, enjoyed by 61%; followed by indie (53%); pop (49%); dance (44%); and R&B (35%). Hip hop, electronica, drum & bass, soul and urban took the last five places in the top ten.

Paul Cheal, NME publishing director, adds: “Young men love music and the NME audience in particular are complete fanatics. They’ve attended four times more gigs than the average young man and are twice as likely to have been to a festival in the last year. They’re also music influencers, deciding which live events to go to and then persuading friends to come along.”

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Notes to editors

About IPC Insight
IPC Insight is the division of IPC Advertising responsible for spearheading consumer research across IPC Media. It generates and co-ordinates a broad range of research initiatives and, as the authority on consumer behaviour across IPC’s core markets and sectors, it works closely with key clients to ensure they develop more effective relationships with consumers and measures the effectiveness of their communications.