Las Vegas Strip Sphere closes huge rock band residency

The Las Vegas Strip added a huge, spectacular venue in 2023 when U2 opened Sphere Entertainment’s (SPHR) Sphere on Sept. 29 with its U2: UV Achtung Baby Live at Sphere residency.

U2 stretched the residency, which was originally set for 25 shows, to 40 shows and finished its historic initial Sphere engagement on March 2, 2024.

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When U2 started selling tickets for its Sphere residency, rumors were claiming that former One Direction member and popular solo artist Harry Styles might be the next performer to take residency at the Sphere after U2 departs. British tabloid The Sun reported that Styles has been offered $50 million for a residency at the new venue.

The Styles residency never materialized, but another rumor that was floating around at the same time did become reality.

Instead of Styles, popular jam band Phish followed U2 at the sensational venue performing four shows April 18, 19, 20 and 21. The band’s website said that these would be the band’s only shows at the Sphere in 2024.

Rumors began circulating again regarding the next performer at the Sphere, but an obvious successor to Phish signed up to be the third residency.

Ultimate jam band Dead & Company arrived at the Sphere on the Las Vegas Strip on May 16 for what would be a 30-show residency, performing three shows on 10 weekends on its “Dead Forever Live at Sphere Las Vegas” engagement.

It was as if Phish was an opening residency for Dead & Company. It was a perfect setup for the Grateful Dead veterans Bob Weir and Mickey Hart

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Grateful Dead spinoff band Dead & Company, which completed its final concert tour at Oracle Park in San Francisco on July 16, 2023, will close its first Las Vegas Sphere residency on Aug. 10.

Tickets for the final performance of Dead & Company’s Sphere residency are priced from about $106 to $296 through Ticketmaster.com.

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Dead & Company fans at the Sphere will experience the world’s highest resolution LED display that wraps up, over and around the audience creating a fully immersive visual environment, according to the Sphere’s website. The Sphere also features the world’s most advanced concert-grade audio system, Sphere Immersive Sound.

Established in 2015, Dead & Company completed 10 tours and 235 shows that were attended by over 4 million fans.

The August 10 Dead & Company show might be their last one at The Sphere for a while as legendary rock band, The Eagles, have signed up for a residency at the Sphere for 20 shows on five weekend nights each month from Sept. 20 through Jan. 25, 2025.

The next singer or band to sign up for a Sphere residency is still a mystery. Sphere Entertainment, however, is considering an $80 million investment to bring an 80-minute version of “The Wizard of Oz” to the Sphere, the New York Post reported.

That production would likely be presented when residency shows are not performing.

A survey of 3,000 people by Casino.org in early 2024 revealed that the top three artists favored to perform the next residency at the Sphere are Lady Gaga, Beyonce and Coldplay. Lady Gaga is the only one of those who has expressed an interest in performing a residency anytime soon, but she is more likely to return with a new show to Park MGM in the next year or so.

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