Central Park will again play host to the Global Citizen Festival this September, welcoming some of music’s biggest acts to the stage while simultaneously celebrating the launch of the United Nations’ Global Goals Sustained Development agenda. The project has been created to combat inequality and completely eradicate extreme poverty globally by the year 2030. The music festival, which will be held on September 26, is calling upon headlining superstars Pearl Jam, Beyoncé, Coldplay and Ed Sheeran to campaign the message, and fans hoping to attend this year’s festivities will need to be proactive to get their hands on tickets.
Conventionality takes a backseat in the 2015 festival's ticketing scheme, which encourages potential concertgoers to take eight “Global Steps” before their name is entered in a raffling system. The Global Steps range anywhere from tweeting the U.N.’s Global Goals to signing petitions that bring awareness to global leaders about the Global Food Security Act, economic empowerment for girls and women and water sanitation and hygiene. In a given action journey, all eight tasks must be completed before an entry can be made.
Six different ticket drawings will be held between July 29 and September 21 and 48,000 free tickets will be given away in the process. 24,000 winners will be selected and each will receive a pair of tickets. There is no limit on how many times fans can enter so long as they complete all eight Global Steps each time. To start the action journey, fans must register and create an account at globalcitizen.org.
Of course, there are ways to purchase tickets without participating in the Global Steps initiative. Beginning Friday, July 10 at 10am, VIP tickets will go on sale through Ticketmaster. Three exclusive VIP sections will be made available at the concert, dubbed the “Ultimate, Premier and Global” VIP areas based on proximity to the stage. Those participating in the VIP on sale will find tickets ranging between $150 and $250 contingent on the section tier.
Those looking to dodge the Global Steps contest and lacking a Citi card account will be best served perusing the secondary market for tickets. According to TiqIQ, 2015 Global Citizens Festival tickets can be found for as low as $241 in the General Admission Lawn area. VIP 3, the cheapest-tiered section, is offering tickets for as low as $471. The least expensive VIP 2 tickets start at $576 while VIP 1 tickets to the “Ultimate” area begin at $1,212.
Just like the measures being taken to rid the world of extreme poverty, the festival is taking preventative action against the secondary market. A ticket delivery delay system is in place for this year’s concert series and fans won’t physically receive their tickets until September 23 - just three days prior to the festival. However, a three-day window still leaves ample time for resellers to expedite their tickets.
Pearl Jam, Beyoncé, Coldplay and Sheeran won’t be the only artists taking center stage in Central Park in September. The festival’s main website notes that it will continue announcing more acts throughout the summer, including an array of different hosts set to make appearances.
The festival has become a staple in the heart of New York City since its inception in 2011. Greater than 60,000 concert-going advocates attended the first installment four years ago and over $1.3 billion has been raised through the festival’s efforts. That number will continue to grow in 2015, as Central Park prepares for another day of promise and hope for a better future.
