Luhut Binsar Pandjaitan, Indonesia’s Chief Investment Minister, has proposed organizing exclusive music concerts in the country to compete with Singapore, which recently hosted a concert by global pop sensation Taylor Swift. Luhut revealed that discussions have already taken place, and a decision has been made to secure contracts with other artists and organize concerts within six months.
“What Singapore is offering, we’ll do the same for other artists. We must be willing to compete. If Singapore can profit, why can’t we?” said Luhut
The Indonesian minister acknowledged that exclusive events generate significant revenue, including foreign exchange earnings and full hotel occupancy for several days. He cited Singapore’s success in hosting Taylor Swift’s Eras Tour, which resulted in two weeks of fully booked hotels and a tourism boom in the city-state.
Taylor Swift’s exclusive deal with Singapore has sparked controversy in the region, with some Southeast Asian neighbors complaining that the deal deprives them of the tourism boom her concerts bring to hosts. Singaporean Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong confirmed that Swift was provided with “certain incentives” in exchange for making Singapore her only Southeast Asian destination on her Eras Tour. However, he did not reveal the cost of the exclusive deal or directly answer whether he had encountered any backlash from other leaders.
Lee suggested that if Singapore hadn’t struck an exclusive deal, a neighboring country might have done so, and that the arrangement had turned out to be very successful. Taylor Swift’s Eras Tour has shattered records, reportedly surpassing $1 billion last year, and her film adaptation of the tour quickly took No. 1 at the box office and became the highest-grossing concert film to date.
The Indonesian government’s move to organize exclusive music concerts is an effort to compete with Singapore and attract more tourists to the country. The success of Taylor Swift’s Eras Tour in Singapore has shown the potential of exclusive events to generate significant revenue and boost tourism. However, the move may also lead to controversy and competition among neighboring countries in the region.