Singapore PM Concerns Taylor Swift's Concert Drama Being Monopolized
Taylor Swift - Photo: Nicky Loh/TAS
- The Prime Minister of Singapore, Lee Hsien Loong, recently spoke about the excitement of Taylor Swift's concert in his country.
What you certainly already know is that Singapore managed to become the only country in Southeast Asia that received a concert slot from the country pop diva from the United States during her world tour, The Eras Tour.
When met on the sidelines of the ASEAN-Australia Summit in Melbourne, Lee casually admitted that the Singapore government had deliberately dipped into his pockets to provide "extra pocket money" to Taylor Swift and her team.
The goal? So that Taylor Swift makes Singapore the exclusive choice for stopping in Southeast Asia.
"We chatted well, negotiated here and there, and finally managed to make an agreement with Taylor Swift to stop by and entertain us all in Singapore," said Lee, quoted by Reuters.
Lee's comments came after Thailand felt that Singapore was cheating by claiming Taylor Swift was only for herself. In fact, the Prime Minister of Thailand, Srettha Thavisin, was outspoken in accusing Singapore of having made an exclusive agreement that meant Taylor Swift only wanted to perform in Singapore.
Responding to this, Singapore's ministries, namely the Ministry of Culture and the Tourism Board, could only shake their heads and say, "We only collaborate directly with the concert organizers."
Regarding how much money was spent on subsidies for this concert, they remained silent for "kitchen secrets" reasons.
However, from a business perspective, this concert is considered to bring a breath of fresh air to Singapore's economy. According to an entertainment businessman who asked not to be named, exclusive deals like this are actually common, but it's rare for artists to want to be tied down like that.
"Usually those who have high bargaining power can ask for various things," he told AFP.
Since the pandemic began to subside, Singapore has become a magnet for international artists such as BLACKPINK, Harry Styles and Coldplay to hold concerts.
And for Taylor Swift, she will perform for six consecutive days at the National Stadium, with concert tickets already sold out. More than 300,000 fans are predicted to storm this concert.
After being satisfied with rocking Singapore, Taylor Swift is ready to continue her adventure to Europe, with estimated income from this tour reaching a fantastic figure, US$2 billion or Rp. 28 trillion. Wow, no joke!
PM Singapura Soal Drama Konser Taylor Swift Dimonopoli
Taylor Swift - Foto: Nicky Loh/TAS
- Perdana Menteri Singapura, Lee Hsien Loong, baru-baru ini angkat bicara tentang hebohnya konser Taylor Swift di negaranya.
Yang pasti kamu juga sudah tahu, Singapura berhasil menjadi satu-satunya negara di Asia Tenggara yang kebagian jatah konser dari sang diva pop country asal Amerika Serikat itu dalam rangkaian tur dunianya, The Eras Tour.
Ditemui sela Konferensi Tingkat Tinggi (KTT) ASEAN-Australia di Melbourne, Lee dengan santainya mengakui pemerintah Singapura memang sengaja merogoh kocek untuk memberikan "uang jajan ekstra" kepada Taylor Swift dan timnya.
Tujuannya? Agar Taylor Swift menjadikan Singapura pilihan eksklusif untuk singgah di Asia Tenggara.
"Kami ngobrol baik-baik, negosiasi sana-sini, dan akhirnya berhasil bikin kesepakatan dengan Taylor Swift untuk mampir dan menghibur kita semua di Singapura," ungkap Lee, dikutip dari Reuters.
Komentar Lee ini keluar setelah Thailand sempat merasa Singapura main curang dengan mengklaim Taylor Swift hanya untuk dirinya sendiri. Bahkan, Perdana Menteri Thailand, Srettha Thavisin, sempat blak-blakan menuding Singapura telah melakukan kesepakatan eksklusif yang bikin Taylor Swift hanya mau tampil di Singapura doang.
Menanggapi hal itu, kementerian Singapura, yaitu Kementerian Kebudayaan dan Dewan Pariwisata, cuma bisa geleng-geleng sambil bilang, "Kami cuma kerja sama langsung dengan penyelenggara konsernya."
Soal berapa duit yang dikeluarin buat subsidi konser ini, mereka kompak bungkam karena alasan "rahasia dapur".
Tapi, dari sisi bisnis, konser ini dianggap bakal bawa angin segar buat ekonomi Singapura. Kata seorang pebisnis hiburan yang minta namanya dirahasiakan, kesepakatan eksklusif macam ini sebenarnya lumrah, cuma memang jarang ada artis yang mau terikat seperti itu.
"Biasanya yang punya daya tawar tinggi bisa minta macam-macam," tuturnya kepada AFP.
Sejak pandemi mulai mereda, Singapura jadi magnet bagi para artis internasional kayak BLACKPINK, Harry Styles, sampe Coldplay untuk mengadakan konser.
Dan untuk Taylor Swift, dia bakal tampil selama enam hari berturut-turut di National Stadium, dengan tiket konser yang sudah ludes terjual. Lebih dari 300.000 fans diprediksi bakal serbu konser ini.
Setelah puas mengguncang Singapura, Taylor Swift siap melanjutkan petualangannya ke Eropa, dengan estimasi pemasukan dari tur ini mencapai angka fantastis, US$2 miliar atau Rp 28 triliun. Wah, bukan main!