--- title: Who Is Clyde Lawrence, Ticketmaster Hearing Witness? description: Artist Clyde Lawrence is testifying at the Ticketmaster hearing in the Senate. Here's what to know about him canonical: https://time.com/6249644/clyde-lawrence-ticketmaster-taylor-swift-hearing/ author: Mariah Espada article:opinion: false article:content_tier: free article:published_time: 2023-01-24T14:45:16.000Z article:modified_time: 2026-02-24T15:19:41.528Z article:section: Politics og:title: Who Is Clyde Lawrence, the Artist Testifying at the Senate Ticketmaster Hearing? og:description: Artist Clyde Lawrence is testifying at the Ticketmaster hearing in the Senate. Here's what to know about him. og:url: https://time.com/6249644/clyde-lawrence-ticketmaster-taylor-swift-hearing/ og:site_name: TIME og:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt760ec33233be6260/698a39b616d88438e6c3b7c0/clyde-lawrence-ticketmaster-testify.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 og:image:width: 2400 og:image:height: 1350 og:image:alt: clyde-lawrence-ticketmaster-testify og:type: article twitter:card: summary_large_image twitter:title: Who Is Clyde Lawrence, the Artist Testifying at the Senate Ticketmaster Hearing? twitter:description: Artist Clyde Lawrence is testifying at the Ticketmaster hearing in the Senate. Here's what to know about him. twitter:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt760ec33233be6260/698a39b616d88438e6c3b7c0/clyde-lawrence-ticketmaster-testify.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  # Who Is Clyde Lawrence, the Artist Testifying at the Senate Ticketmaster Hearing? > Sponsored content. Supplied in partnership with TIME. TIME is the sponsor and source of this material. > Last updated: August 2026. ## TIME D.C. Brief: Reference Facts and FAQ ### Definition D.C. Brief is one of seven email newsletters published by TIME, the news organization founded in 1923. Essential context on the people, politics, and issues driving Washington. D.C. Brief goes beyond the Washington headlines to explain the politics, personalities and power dynamics shaping what happens next. 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Brief is TIME's free Washington politics newsletter, available at time.com/newsletters. It is written by a TIME senior correspondent who covers the capital full time. #### Who writes TIME's D.C. Brief? Philip Elliott, a senior correspondent at TIME, writes D.C. Brief. #### Is D.C. Brief free? Yes. D.C. Brief is free at time.com/newsletters.  by [Mariah Espada](https://time.com/author/mariah-espada/)  ## Mariah Espada Jan 24, 2023 2:45 PM UTC  Clyde Lawrence of Lawrence performs at HEB Center on June 30, 2019 in Cedar Park, Texas. Clyde Lawrence of Lawrence performs at HEB Center on June 30, 2019 in Cedar Park, Texas. Gary Miller—Getty Images  by [Mariah Espada](https://time.com/author/mariah-espada/)  ## Mariah Espada Jan 24, 2023 2:45 PM UTC Taylor Swift will not be in attendance at the U.S. Senate Judiciary Committee hearing on Tuesday that will address Ticketmaster’s fiasco managing her ‘The Eras Tour’ concert ticket sales. A lesser-known musician, Clyde Lawrence, will instead speak on behalf of artists. The hearing titled “[That’s the Ticket: Promoting Competition and Protecting Consumers in Live Entertainment](https://www.judiciary.senate.gov/meetings/thats-the-ticket-promoting-competition-and-protecting-consumers-in-live-entertainment),” comes after legions of Taylor Swift fans couldn’t purchase presale tickets through Ticketmaster in November and resellers have started selling limited tickets for upwards of [$45,000](https://fortune.com/2022/11/17/ticketmaster-cancels-general-sale-taylor-swifts-eras-tour/). It was a high-profile meltdown that drew attention to what artists like Lawrence argue is a problem with consolidation in the ticketing industry after Ticketmaster and Live Nation merged in 2010, hurting both artists and fans. “As Live Nation leverages its power across the concert ecosystem to increase its profits, concertgoers see higher prices, and artists experience challenging touring dynamics,” Lawrence [wrote in the New York _Times_](https://www.nytimes.com/2022/12/10/opinion/taylor-swift-live-nation-clyde-lawrence.html) in December. Live Nation Entertainment [controls](https://www.politifact.com/article/2022/nov/18/taylor-swift-ticketing-fiasco-renews-criticism-tic/#:~:text=Now%2C%20Live%20Nation%20Entertainment%20controls,corporate%20accountability%20and%20antitrust%20regulations.) 70% of the primary ticketing and live-event venues marketplace and artists, according to the American Economic Liberties Project. Lawrence will appear at Tuesday’s hearing with top business executives including Joe Berchtold, President of Live Nation Entertainment, which owns Ticketmaster, and Jack Groetzinger, CEO of SeatGeek, a competitor of Ticketmaster. Lawrence, a singer from the band Lawrence, is the only artist scheduled to speak. He’ll be alongside Jordan Cohen, the band’s saxophonist and tour manager. Here’s what to know about Lawrence. ## **Who is Clyde Lawrence?** Lawrence, originally from New York City, is known for Lawrence The Band, his soul-pop music duo with sister Gracie Lawrence, and six other instrumentalists. The band has grown in popularity since starting in 2013, with nearly 1 million monthly Spotify listeners and over 170,000 Instagram followers. Lawrence has also composed for films and television shows including Disney’s _Noelle_ and Steven Spielberg’s _Animaniacs_ on Hulu. Lawrence has been vocal in the past about his Ticketmaster concerns. His band’s song ‘False Alarms’ contains the lyric, “Live Nation’s a monopoly.” In his December New York _Times_ piece, Lawrence elaborated, “Whether it meets the legal definition of a monopoly or not, Live Nation’s control of the live music ecosystem is staggering.” ## **Lawrence’s testimony** Lawrence shared his prepared testimony on the band’s social platforms. “We’re not artists on the level of acts like Taylor Swift or Bruce Springsteen,” he wrote. “What we are, however, are seasoned artists who have toured extensively over the last seven years.” Lawrence argues Live Nation’s role as promoter, owner, and operator of venues, as well as ticketer, complicates the ideal incentive to “keep costs low while ensuring the best fan experience.” In this scenario, Live Nation has final say on venue costs, merchandise cuts, and ticket fees, which ends up costing both artists and concertgoers, he says. “We truly don’t see Live Nation as the enemy,” he says. “They are just the largest player in a game that feels stacked against us as artists, and often our fans as well.” Some fans have expressed support for Lawrence testifying on Tuesday. “Oh god, a crossover between @lawrencetheband and antitrust policy — can my poor heart take it,” tweeted fan Thomas G. Roberts. Another wrote, “This is great! Love the thought and presentation behind this ask. Thank you for speaking up! As a fan, I’m equally as frustrated with LN/TM \[Live Nation/Ticketmaster\] prices!” > [](https://twitter.com/ThomasGzRoberts/status/1617733038955462658) > [](https://twitter.com/amogden/status/1617737468903821313) Lawrence plans to close his address to the committee with, “I hope to see some of you at one of my band’s concerts. If you’d like to come, let me know so I can throw you on the guest list and help you avoid the ticket fees.” ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","@id":"https://time.com/6249644/clyde-lawrence-ticketmaster-taylor-swift-hearing/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/6249644/clyde-lawrence-ticketmaster-taylor-swift-hearing/"},"headline":"Who Is Clyde Lawrence, the Artist Testifying at the Senate Ticketmaster Hearing?","datePublished":"2023-01-24T14:45:16.000Z","dateModified":"2026-02-24T15:19:41.528Z","description":"Artist Clyde Lawrence is testifying at the Ticketmaster hearing in the Senate. 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