The “Taylor Swift economy boost” isn’t a joke but a proven metric. Throughout the North American leg of her The Eras Tour, each city along the way has reported drastic spikes in their local hospitality and culinary industries. Now, countries abroad are looking forward to the uptick when the “Lavender Haze” singer drops in for her international stops. Alas, it appears one nation in Southeastern Asia is looking to get a monopoly on those windfalls.
As stated by Sky News, during the iBusiness Forum 2024 in Bangkok, Thailand’s Prime Minister Srettha Thavisin alleged that Swift inked an exclusivity deal (between $2 million and $3 million per show), barring her from playing any other shows in the region.
Singapore! Due to overwhelming response, we are thrilled to announce 3 additional shows for Taylor Swift | The Eras Tour!
Taylor Swift | The Eras Tour
2, 3 & 4 March 2024
— AEG Presents Asia (@aegpresentsasia) June 25, 2023
Thavisin stated that following a meeting with an AEG promoter on February 12, that information was presented to him after inquiring about the potential of Swift playing a show in Thailand. “If I had known this, I would have brought the shows to Thailand,” he said. “Concerts can generate added value for the economy.”
He went on to argue the case in his keynote speech. “The Singapore government is astute,” he said. “If she came to Thailand, it would have been cheaper to organize it here, and I believe she would be able to attract more sponsors and tourists to Thailand. Even though we would have to subsidize at least 500m baht (or $13 million), it would be worth it.”
Back in 2014, Swift was set to make her concert debut in Thailand, but the show was canceled due to the political unrest at the time.
Source: https://uproxx.com/pop/taylor-swift-the-eras-tour-singapore-deal/
