The most iconic and highest-grossing Las Vegas residencies

By Stacker

Published July 24, 2024 2:20 AM

Denise Truscello // WireImage

The most iconic and highest-grossing Las Vegas residencies

Celine Dion returns to headline residency show at The Colosseum at Caesars Palace in 2015 in Las Vegas, Nevada.

While Las Vegas is commonly known for its bright lights and glitzy casinos, some of the world’s most famous musicians have played to sellout crowds week after week in what’s known as a Las Vegas Residency.

Concert residencies have been a staple of the Las Vegas Strip since they were pioneered by Frank Sinatra back in the ’40s, and since the likes of Elvis Presley, Elton John, and Britney Spears have graced the strip with their iconic tracks.

Pop-star Adele has been performing at a Vegas residency since 2022, and it’s set to become one of the highest-grossing residencies of all time once all 60 shows have been performed.

But how will it compare to the previous all-time highest-grossing Vegas residencies? The team at OLBG looked back at the iconic residencies of the past to see which were the highest-grossing, and has predicted how Adele’s will compare.

The primary gross figures have been adjusted for 2024 inflation.

Celine Dion: A New Day … – $565.73 million (Actual $385 million)

Taking the top spot as the highest-grossing Vegas residency of all time is A New Day … , the iconic residency by singer Celine Dion at The Colosseum at Caesars Palace. While the residency was only meant to last for three years since it began in 2003, the show was so successful, that the residency was extended for a further two years.

Dion played a total of 717 shows across its run from 2003-2007, and a total crowd of nearly three million people watched the show across the five years.

Celine Dion: Celine – $352.75 million (Actual $296 million)

Deja vu? That’s right, Celine Dion is also in second place for the highest-grossing Vegas residencies. Due to the success of A New Day … , Dion returned to The Colosseum at Caesars Palace in 2011 with her new show simply titled Celine.

From 2011 to 2019, Celine Dion played a total of 427 shows to a crowd of 200,000 people across the eight-year run.

U2:UV Achtung Baby Live at Sphere – $244.5 million (Actual $244.5 million)

In third place is Irish rockers U2 and their residency at the recently created Sphere. The residency celebrates the 30th anniversary of their acclaimed 1991 album, “Achtung Baby,” incorporating the album’s iconic tracks along with spectacular visual effects, creating an unforgettable experience that merges their powerful music with innovative stage production.

From 2023 to 2024, the 40 shows generated a total of $244.5 million at an average of $6.1 million per show. Still some distance behind Celine Dion’s top-two entries, but an impressive amount of revenue all the same.

Elton John: The Red Piano – $240.01 million (Actual $169 million)

Next on the list is the Rocket Man himself, Sir Elton John, whose Vegas residency titled The Red Piano, is the third-highest grossing of all time. Originally only meant to be 75 shows over three years at The Colosseum at Caesars Palace, it soon became 247 shows over six years.

Containing John’s biggest hits, including “I’m Still Standing” and “Tiny Dancer,” the residency ran from 2004 to 2009 and was seen by an audience of hundreds of thousands.

Britney Spears: Piece Of Me – $170.29 million (Actual $137.7 million)

Britney Spears performed her first Vegas residency with Piece Of Me, a show on such a large scale the venue it took place at, The Axis in the Planet Hollywood Resort & Casino, had to be revamped especially to accommodate her show.

Before Spears had even played her first show, the residency was extended due to exceptionally high demand and lasted from 2013 right up to the end of 2017, with a total of 146 performances.

Elton John: The Million Dollar Piano – $158.95 million (Actual $131 million)

The Rocket Man returned to The Colosseum at Caesars Palace in Las Vegas for a second residency after the resounding success of The Red Piano, with his brand new, still piano-themed show The Million Dollar Piano. The title comes from Elton John’s makeshift Yamaha piano used for the concerts, kitted with screens and acrylic panels.

Across the show’s seven years, from 2011 to 2018, John played 197 shows to thousands of concert-goers, and its success even saw a show recorded in 2012 see a home-media release and even cinema showings.

Bruno Mars: Bruno Mars at Park MGM – $114.3 million (Actual $114.3 million)

Although not strictly in Las Vegas, the city of Paradise runs parallel to its Sin City neighbor and with the amount of revenue that Bruno Mars’ residency has generated across its 74 shows to date, we deemed it worthy of inclusion on our list.

The residency labelled All I Have means that superstar Mars has a fair amount of dollars in his bank account. Admittedly, he will not collect all the $114.3 million that the show has currently generated in sales, but he will certainly collect a fair portion at the same time.

With this also being an ongoing residency, the Hawaii-born performer will be eyeing up both Elton John and Britney Spears in terms of soon overtaking both those entries on our list.

Jennifer Lopez: All I Have – $123.64 million (Actual $101.9 million)

Up next is the most famous Latin pop star in the world, Jennifer Lopez. Her Vegas residency, All I Have, was critically acclaimed, in turn boosting its box office numbers.

Running for two years from 2016 to 2018 at Zappos in the Planet Hollywood Resort & Casino, Lopez performed 121 shows to nearly half a million people, making her first-ever residency a resounding success with average earnings of $850,000 per show.

How much could Adele make from her ongoing residency?

British pop superstar Adele has an ongoing Vegas residency at The Colosseum at Caesars Palace, and early predictions are stating that she’ll make this list of having an all-time highest-grossing residency.

Across the total 60 nights set for Adele’s residency, she’s set to make an average of $1.75 million per night, potentially increasing to $2 million per night on her latest leg of shows. At an average of $1.75 million across 60 nights, the total gross of the residency would be $105 million.

This would make Adele level with Jennifer Lopez on this list if the earnings predictions are correct. But who knows, with the residency’s resounding success, the dates could be extended further, potentially putting Adele in the top five of the all-time highest-grossing Vegas residencies.

This story was produced by OLBG and reviewed and distributed by Stacker Media.