Singapore Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong said on Tuesday that a closed-door deal for Taylor Swift to perform in the city-state ensured she would not perform in other Southeast Asian countries during her Era tour.
“(Our) agencies have negotiated an arrangement for him to come and perform in Singapore and make Singapore his only stop in Southeast Asia,” he said at a press conference at a regional summit in Melbourne, according to Reuters. .
The statement is the first confirmation from the city-state that Swift’s contract to perform in Singapore contained special terms barring her from performing in other countries.
On Monday, Edwin Tong, Singapore’s Minister of Culture, Community and Youth, refused to answer this question twice during a parliamentary session.
He also did not disclose the size of the grant to Swift, but said the amount was “nowhere near as high as has been speculated”.
![Is Singapore's 'Grant' saving Taylor Swift concerts good business or unfair to other countries?](https://image.cnbcfm.com/api/v1/image/107381538-17095165881709516586-33572152444-1080pnbcnews.jpg?v=1709516587&w=750&h=422&vtcrop=y)
“For reasons of business confidentiality, we cannot disclose the specific size of the grant or the terms of the grant,” he said.
The issue gained prominence on February 16 when Thai Prime Minister Saratha Thavisin accused Singapore of paying Swift’s team between $2 million and $3 million per show in exchange for not performing in other regional cities. , according to the Bangkok Post.
Diplomatic scrutiny
Swift’s grant payments to promoters have become a diplomatic thorn in Singapore’s side, drawing criticism from neighboring countries for making a deal that shut them out of the highest-grossing tour of all time.
Philippine House of Representatives member Joey Salceda said this is “not what good neighbors do” and added that such agreements are against ASEAN principles, according to local media.
Lee disputed the characterization on Tuesday, saying, “It’s been a very successful arrangement. I don’t see it as unfriendly.”
Taylor Swift performs at the National Stadium in Singapore on March 2, 2024. Singapore and Tokyo are the only stops Swift is making in Asia during her World Era tour.
Ashok Kumar/tas24 | Getty Images Entertainment | Getty Images
Swift’s six concerts in Singapore are expected to pump between $260 million and $372 million into the island’s economy, assuming 70 percent of concertgoers come from overseas.
During her first three concerts in Singapore, Swift asked her audience to clap – first the locals, then those who had traveled from overseas to come to the show. On each occasion, the applause of the passengers was loud.
Average daily rates at hotels in Singapore rose from $256 to $400 this week, with bookings coming from travelers from Malaysia 92%, Thailand 111% and Indonesia 189%, according to travel software company RateGain. According to the company RateGain.
Swift’s tour before Eras, her Reputation Stadium tour in 2018, included only one stop in Asia – Tokyo.
But his previous tours – the Speak Now, Red and 1989 tours – included stops in Shanghai, Hong Kong, Indonesia, the Philippines and Malaysia.
Smart or selfish?
The Singapore deal has sparked a debate over whether it’s just smart deal-making or greed.
“This was definitely a bold, smart strategic move for Singapore,” said Selina Oh, Singapore-based communications director.
But others say a winner-take-all mentality hurts regional tourism industries, which are still recovering from the pandemic, as well as fans who can’t afford high travel prices to see Swift in person. .
“A bit selfish with only Singapore in mind and not the wider region. Clearly [Singapore authorities] They don’t care much about anyone else [than] myself,” said Christian de Boer, managing director of a hotel in Cambodia.
You have to do your own calculations and do what is in the best interest of Singapore and Singaporeans.
Edwin Tong
Singapore Minister for Culture, Community and Youth
Some liken this case to how cities host major sporting events, such as the Olympics, the Super Bowl and the World Cup.
“Did anyone protest when F1 decided to come to Singapore? Is anyone suggesting that there were no financial or other material considerations?” said Irene Hoe, a Singaporean editorial consultant.
Concerts – which see artists traveling from city to city to reach their fans – haven’t always been this competitive.
But that could change as experience-led tourism pushes concerts into money-making juggernauts, with fans willing to travel across continents to see their favorite artists.
A ‘mean’ deal?
During Monday’s parliamentary session, Singaporean politician Gerald Gim Tong asked whether the Singapore government had discussed making the island Taylor Swift’s only “vacant space” in Southeast Asia, referring to her smash hit of the same name.
“And was it felt that it might be perceived by some of our neighbors as mean?” he asked.
Tong replied, “You have to do your math and work out what’s in Singapore and in Singapore.”‘ best interest.”