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Bill Radke: This summer’s been a bust for a lot of music acts. Revenues are down 12 percent for concert promoter Live Nation — Christina Aguilera cancelled her tour because of slow ticket sales. But one music festival keeps bucking the trend: Lollapalooza. The tour kicks off this Friday in Chicago, and tickets are selling. Marketplace’s Janet Babin looks at why some acts are not singing the recession blues.

Janet Babin: Lollapalooza’s expected to sell out, despite an antitrust investigation into the festival’s promoters. Fans will shell out more than $200 to see dozens of bands, including this one, the Drive By Truckers:

[Sound of the Drive By Truckers]

Paul Resnikoff publishes Digital Music News. He says the recession has made fans more frugal. But they consider Lollapalooza a bargain:

Paul Resnikoff: It’s about more than just music, right, it’s this huge get-together and experience and lots of bands, there’s just a lot there.

And the recession can actually work in a smaller act’s favor. David Lowery fronts the ’90s rock band Cracker, that’s in the midst of its summer tour:

David Lowery: Let me spin this the way a politician would. Our gross is probably about the same as last year. Our net is probably actually a little better.

Lowery says the band increased profits by playing less expensive smaller venues, and corporate sponsored events for a guaranteed fee.

I’m Janet Babin for Marketplace.