Bastille’s Dan Smith tells us why he’s backing a new hub to tackle ticket touts and bring ‘genuine change’

Bastille‘s Dan Smith has told Rolling Stone UK why he’s teaming up with O2 for the launch of Stamp It Tout – a new information hub that has been launched to help music fans buy gig tickets without being ripped off by touts.

As part of the campaign, Smith is also urging fans to share their experiences of the ticket resale market as the government prepares to close a landmark consultation into the resale market, which was detailed to RS by Culture Secretary Lisa Nandy earlier this year.

The online hub can be found from today at stampittout.co.uk, but a physical “consultation station” can also be found at the The O2 in London on the 1^st, 2^nd and 3^rd April, allowing fans to submit their views on touting before the consultation closes. The views gathered across the three days will then form part of O2’s own response to the consultation to ensure the voices of music fans are being heard and represented. 

“Ticket touting is a real frustration of mine – both as a music fan and someone who is lucky enough to have toured over the world – so I’m more than happy to lend my voice to the campaign,” Smith explained.

“It’s unfair and frustrating that the tout industry ultimately rips off a lot of people who want to part with their hard earned cash to go to a gig. But what’s good with this campaign is that people can share their stories on the stampittout website, and there are unfortunately many of them, of being ripped off, paying way too much for tickets, or buying tickets that aren’t real.”

Smith added: “It’s incredibly important that people can have a space to share their experiences and lend their voice to this. It will show the government how much this matters to people and hopefully it will lead to some genuine change.”

The new website aims to inform bands by providing tips about how to avoid being ripped off, an guide to the government’s consultation and O2’s continued partnership with the Fan Fair Alliance.

It comes as Smith gears up to hit the road with Bastille later this year to mark 15 years as a group. The UK arena group marks his first project since 2024’s solo project of sorts & (pronounced Ampersand), which saw him delving into the lives of historical figures and satisfying a long-standing creative itch.

“We’re not a band that often goes over the past and thinks about the things that we’ve been lucky enough to do,” said Smith.

“We’ve had a bit of time away over the last couple of years, but the idea of doing this tour away from new music or an album cycle just felt like it would be really different. It’s been really nice, the four of us getting together to look back at everything we’ve done for the first time ever. The Re-orchestrated shows, the collaborations, all of it. It was surreal looking back, but we’re really motivated to put together a fucking awesome show that I think will be just really, really fun and really brilliant.”

Could any new music be on the horizon before then?

“I’m always writing and always working on things,” he said. “There’s no grand plan, but this came from us hanging out in the studio with no intentions other than spending some time together.”

He added: “It’s still incredibly surreal to me that there are people who want to come and spend their evenings with us and listen to our music. It’s a short and sharp dream tour and we’re really excited.”