‘Smart’ move: Singapore’s grant for Taylor Swift earns praise and brickbats

He has since vowed to attract top performers to Thailand, with a range of new measures in the pipelines.

“We can bring A-listers and world-class acts to Thailand. This must be done,” Reuters quoted Srettha as saying on Thursday.

He added the government will offer visa-free travel, change the rules on drinking alcohol at concerts, and adjust operating hours of entertainment venues and when liquor can be sold.

Industry observers said, however, that grants to attract international performers and events were not uncommon.

“It’s a common strategy for governments to incentivise concerts and events expected to bring economic benefits. Similar support has been observed in various instances, with one of the more prominent examples being the Singapore Grand Prix since 2008,” said Kevin Wee, a senior lecturer in hospitality and tourism at Nanyang Polytechnic’s School of Business Management.

Singapore offered to pay a Taylor Swift a grant to perform in the city state. Photo: EPA-EFE

In a joint response to media queries, the Singapore Tourism Board (STB) and the Ministry of Culture, Community and Youth (MCCY) said a grant was given for Swift’s concerts as they were likely to “generate significant benefits to the Singapore economy, especially tourism activities such as hospitality, retail, travel and dining”.

“In the case of Taylor Swift, MCCY and Kallang Alive Sport Management recognised that there will be significant demand from Singaporeans as well as fans across the region for her to perform in Singapore, and worked directly with AEG Presents for Taylor Swift to perform in Singapore,” the statement said.

The ministry said it was unable to respond to This Week in Asia’s questions on the amount of the grant and whether it was given on the condition of an exclusivity clause “due to business confidentiality”.

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Some fans were incensed by Thavisin’s comments, taking to social media to express their frustration at missing Swift’s tour, which skipped all other countries in Southeast Asia.

“Feeling super defeated that the Asian fan base had to fight for just the 8 to 9 shows [in Singapore and Japan] and so many had to settle with just The Eras Tour movie,” one online user wrote on Reddit, referring to the name of Swift’s tour.

However, others praised the Singapore government for securing the city state as the only Southeast Asian stop on her tour.

“It’s really smart because there’s an obvious gap in Southeast Asia for it, and they’re [Singapore] trying to be the destination for A-list concerts in the region like Tokyo, London, or New York,” wrote another.

“Speaks volumes on Singapore not resting on their laurels despite already doing so well the past 10 to 15 years. Always pushing and forward-thinking.”

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Others took the opportunity to criticise their government for not being able to bring Swift to their own country. “Meanwhile, the minister in Malaysia grants nothing but a kill switch,” one user tweeted on X, formerly Twitter.

Malaysia’s communications ministry had ordered a “kill switch” to cut off the power supply of a concert by 1975 to prevent it from proceeding after the UK band’s vocalist Matty Healy criticised the country’s anti-LGBTQ laws during their performance.

Kevin Cheong, managing partner at a tourism and destination development consultancy Syntegrate LLP, pointed out that there might be a “risk” in such grants, as unexpected events might prevent Swift from performing.

“Such events are usually insured but what if she falls ill and there’s no show,” he said. “Many things could happen as well … in reality, the risks are high.”

Football superstar Lionel Messi recently caused a furore in Hong Kong and mainland China after he sat out a friendly match between his American club Inter Miami and a local team, citing an injury. The organiser eventually agreed to refund customers 50 per cent of their ticket price and withdraw a bid for a HK$16 million (US$2 million) government grant.

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Not a zero-sum game?

Countries across the region are vying for top stars, whether in sports or entertainment, as their presence offers a much-needed boost in tourism post-pandemic.

“Amid Hong Kong’s fierce competition with other cities that have been striving to improve themselves, we have to be relentless in our efforts to lure mega events including matches, sports events and cultural events,” said Hong Kong Chief Executive John Lee Ka-chiu on Tuesday.

Swift’s six sold-out shows at Singapore’s 55,000-seat National Stadium, with the first set to start on March 2, sparked a frenzy for tickets in the city state and across the region, with some queuing overnight for a chance to snag tickets.

Passes for Swift’s shows have shown up on the resale market, including on the e-commerce platform Carousell, and are going for as much as S$3,000 (US$2,200) for a VIP ticket. Her tickets cost from S$88 to S$1,228, depending on the category.

The economic benefits of Swift’s concerts are staggering.

Swift’s The Eras Tour has the potential to generate US$4.6 billion in consumer spending in the US alone, according to a data report from research company QuestionPro. A Japanese economist estimated that Swift’s concerts in Tokyo over four days earlier this month boosted the country’s economy by US$228 million.

Women pose for a selfie before Taylor Swift’s concert at Tokyo Dome in Tokyo on February 10. Photo: AP

It is estimated Swift’s global tour is likely to surpass US$1 billion in revenue by March, according to a report by Pollstar, a trade publication for the concert and live music industry.

“If we look at the number of incoming visitors [to Singapore] and the length of their stay and their spending, I would think that it would outweigh the grant provided,” said Cheong from Syntegrate LLP.

Beyond the one-off bump in visitors and tourist spending, Swift’s concerts – which Cheong likened to the F1 Grand Prix race in terms of scale – if done well, would cement Singapore’s position as the top choice in the region for organisers to hold concerts.

“It reminds the world that Singapore is here and we are moving towards the direction of attracting high-yield and high-quality tourism. Concerts like these put us on the world map, just like the F1,” he said.

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He said that having these performances also serves as a “destination revival strategy”, which is even more important post-pandemic, with greater demand for live events and travelling.

The grant was highly unlikely the only push factor for Swift’s team to make Singapore her only Southeast Asian stop, industry observers said.

Other considerations such as infrastructure, connectivity, stability and rules are also important considerations for organisers, according to Christopher Khoo, managing director at tourism consultancy MasterConsult Services.

He cited how Beyoncé was forced to cancel her concert in Malaysia in 2007 after protests by Muslim groups, suggesting that such challenges were less likely to happen in Singapore.

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“All the pieces must fit together for concert organisers to consider a country [a good spot to hold a concert].”

But it isn’t necessarily a zero-sum game, he said, adding that the rest of the region also stood to gain if a high-profile concert ran smoothly in Singapore.

“If we show these organisers that Southeast Asia is a lucrative market, some will choose to include other stops like Bangkok and Jakarta rather than just fly to Australia. That way – the whole region wins.”

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Tags: singapore-tourism