Easily Cite a Concert or Performance

If you are writing a paper about a musical artist or band, you may want to cite a concert you saw in person in your references. But how do you go about adding a live concert or performance to your bibliography or source page? This article will tell you everything you need to know to properly cite a concert in MLA format, APA, and Chicago styles.

BibMe.org offers thousands of other specialty citation styles, dozens of source types, and an annotated bibliography sample to help you cite just about anything in any way you need it! Also, check your music review for unintentional plagiarism and tighten up your writing with the BibMe grammar and plagiarism tool!

What you will need

The information required to cite a concert is different from what you would need to cite a book, although the citation formats are similar. To cite a live concert you will need:

1. The name of the artist

2. The name of the concert tour

3. The date, month, and year of the performance

4. The name of the venue where the concert took place

5. The city and state where the concert took place

MLA references for a concert

Formula for MLA references:

Artist’s Last Name, First Name. Concert. Day Month Year, Venue, City.

Artist’s Last Name, First Name. Concert Title. Day Month Year, Venue, City.

Example in MLA style:

Eilish, Billie. Concert. 7 June 2019, Silverstein Eye Centers Arena, Independence.

Formatting notes

Artist’s name

Write the artist’s name with their last name first, followed by a comma, and then their first name followed by a period, just as you would the author of a book. If the artist is a band with multiple musicians, put the full name of the band instead.

Concert

Add a period following the artist, and follow this information with the word, “Concert.”

If the concert has an official title, follow the artist’s name with a period, but then include the concert title, capitalizing and italicizing the title as you would the title of a book.

Eilish, Billie. When We All Fall Asleep Tour. 14 June 2019, Leader Bank Pavillion, Boston.

Date and location

Next, write the date of the concert in the format of day-month-year, followed by a comma. Then put the name of the concert venue, followed by a comma, and the city of the venue, followed by a period.

APA references for a concert

The concert was viewed in person and isn’t accessible to the reader, so it would fall into the category of “personal communication.” Personal communication references are only cited in the text of the paper. Include the name of the artist and the date the concert took place. 

If, however, the concert is accessible to the reader, perhaps on YouTube or another viewing or listening website, cite the source by following the instructions for citing a video, streaming music, or music recording. 

APA citation format in the text:

Include the artist’s name and the year. 

Example:

The use of blue fluorescent lights throughout the Billie Eilish concert in 2019 promoted a feeling of calmness and serenity. 

Chicago references for a concert:

This specific style recommends including information about the live performance in the text of the paper, or in footnotes, and excluding it from a bibliography. 

Chicago style citation in the text of the paper:

Include the performer, the date of the performance, and the name and location of the venue in the writing of the paper. 

Example:

Billie Eilish’s concert at Silverstein Eye Centers Arena in Independence, Missouri, on June 7, 2019, was filled with bright fluorescent lights that promoted a feeling of calmness and serenity. 

Chicago Style Format in the footnotes:

1. Name of Performance, music and lyrics by Performer’s Name, Name of Venue, Location City, State, Month Day, Year. 

Example:

1. When We All Fall Asleep, Where Do We Go?, music and lyrics by Billie Eilish, Silverstein Eye Centers Arena, Independence, Missouri, June 7, 2019.

We hope your summer concert was a blast! Even if it wasn’t, you’ll want your review to sparkle, so check out the BibMe grammar guides for inspiration! They can help you with everything writing, including a list of adjectives, how to use conjunctive adverbs, examples of interjections, and more!