In 2004, Daddy Yankee’s “Gasolina” broke ground — not just for reggaeton, but for non-English music entering the U.S. mainstream. That spark has since grown into a global current, reshaping music trends and fan experiences worldwide.

“Non‑English music is breaking through in ways we’ve never seen before, and it’s not just Latin artists entering new markets,” says Rich Levy, senior vice president of Artist Rights, Media & Sponsorship at Live Nation. “We’re seeing Korean, Japanese, and Punjabi acts like Stray Kids, Babymetal, and Diljit Dosanjh headline festivals and sell out tours across the globe.”

He adds: “The geographic boundaries that once defined success in music no longer exist.”

To better understand what fans in the U.S. are listening to — and where they’re showing up IRL — the Mastercard Economics Institute analyzed, aggregated and anonymized concert spending data from 2023 through mid-2025. The result? A genre-by-genre snapshot of live music spending across the U.S. to find out where certain sounds really struck a chord.

Western Colorado came out strong for rock, with fans allocating the highest percentage of their concert spending to the genre — 48% — compared to the national average of 32%.

Meanwhile, the heart of Latin music fandom appeared to be El Paso, Texas, where fans allocated 44% of their live music spending to Latin concerts, surpassing the national average of 9%. 

This genre had, by far, the broadest geographic fandom across the U.S., with higher-than-average spending across the South, Midwest, Northeast, and Pacific Northwest.

“The internet and social media have completely changed the trajectory of country music," Levy said. “Beyonce’s ‘Cowboy Carter’ album and world tour is definitely part of that shift, putting country music front and center in popular culture, and when you add in breakthroughs by artists like Megan Moroney, Lil Nas X and Morgan Wallen, it’s clear this genre is going places it never has before. And with two in three Gen Z fans listening to more country now than a few years ago, it’s clear this wave is only just getting started.” That broader appeal could be why country fans are showing up all over the map.

R&B and soul saw their strongest followings in cities like Atlanta, Montgomery, Birmingham, Memphis, and Detroit, with Detroit rising to the top.

“The South has always been a stronghold for R&B and soul,” Levy said, “and that legacy is louder than ever. From Victoria Monét and Summer Walker in Atlanta to Brent Faiyaz in Maryland, SZA in St. Louis, and Ari Lennox in D.C., Southern artists are shaping the mainstream sounds of today.”

Atlanta claimed the top spot for pop concert spending, with Las Vegas and New Orleans rounding out the top three cities. 

Levy attributed Atlanta’s No. 1 spot to its status as an epicenter for songwriting and production that’s shaped several genres, not only pop. “Add in its role as a global travel hub with one of the busiest airports in the world,” he said, “plus a thriving venue and festival scene, and it’s no surprise pop music is putting down roots here. Atlanta is a place where music doesn’t just happen, it takes off.”

In all, Mastercard found that rock had the most total spending of all the genres reviewed, followed closely by pop and country and folk. But the real story is how fans are showing up — not just for the music, but for the full experience. Because as fans discover new artists online and connect IRL, the next big hit could come from any genre, any city and any language.