G-DRAGON's concert with 100,000 spectators: Vietnam is a promising entertainment market in Asia

100,000 spectators came to G-DRAGON 2025 WORLD TOUR [Übermensch] organized by 8Wonder on November 8 and 9 in Ocean City, Hanoi, bringing Vietnam into the group of the most attractive emerging entertainment markets in Asia.

G-DRAGON's world tour in Vietnam stunned everyone when it attracted about 100,000 fans, including many international audiences - Photo: Galaxy Corporation

National Assembly Delegate, Associate Professor, Dr. Bui Hoai Son - member of the National Assembly's Committee on Culture and Society - told Tuoi Tre :

"In the global entertainment machine, where each stop of a world tour is weighed against market data, purchasing power, organizational capacity, legal environment and media potential, Vietnam's selection shows a major shift in our cultural and creative position."

Be happy with what has happened, but don’t be too optimistic. We need to step back and look at the bigger picture.

Musician Huy Tuan

For more than 2 hours, G-DRAGON took the audience through his 16-year musical journey - from classic hits like Heartbreaker, Crooked, Untitled 2014 to new compositions in the album Übermensch - Photo: Galaxy Corporation

Vietnam is no longer standing outside

Saying "officially" because before that, despite the bright spots from the Born Pink World Tour of the band BlackPink with about 60,000 spectators in two shows that "exploded" My Dinh Stadium in 2023, and then continuously domestic concerts with tens of thousands of spectators, there were still many doubts about the Vietnamese entertainment market, which was more or less unstable and unsustainable.

Not to mention there are still some opinions that Vietnam is a "stage" for stars who are out of date or on the decline in their careers.

This stems from the fact that some Western or Asian artists past their prime often choose Vietnam as a stopover, with ticket sales based mainly on nostalgia rather than contemporary appeal.

While many contemporary stars fly back and forth from Singapore, Thailand to Japan, China but do not stop in Vietnam, except for BlackPink in 2023. Fans who want to follow their idols can only wish or "pack their backpacks and go".

However, the world tour of "K-pop king" G-DRAGON in Vietnam with 100,000 people recently erased everything.

Immediately after the artist finished the Vietnam leg, photos and videos of the performance continued to go viral on social media. The international fan community was amazed by the number and enthusiasm of Vietnamese fans.

Koreanophiles fanpage commented that "the success and scale of the tour marks a new era for Vietnam's presence in the world tour market".

Because bringing a world tour to a market is really a big calculation, not every location is in the sights of world stars.

The decision of an international star like G-DRAGON to bring his world tour to a new country like Vietnam is the result of a very strict market assessment process, carried out by management companies, tour organizers and local partners. The three most important factors are market potential, logistics and technical capabilities and legal environment.

National Assembly Delegate Bui Hoai Son

National Assembly delegate Bui Hoai Son said G-DRAGON's presence in Vietnam is not accidental but the result of a comprehensive assessment process, and is also an international recognition of Vietnam's potential: a young, populous, energetic market, becoming a new attraction for world-class cultural and entertainment events.

"This is a signal that Vietnam has entered the group of the most attractive emerging markets in Asia, where cultural consumption demand is growing rapidly, especially among the youth segment - a force with modern tastes, increasing spending ability and a strong spirit of global connectivity," he said.

According to Mr. Son, the biggest attraction of the Vietnamese market lies in the young population and the need for direct cultural experiences. If we look at it internationally, each world tour chooses a destination not only because of the market demand but also because that place can position a "national brand for cultural experiences".

Mr. Son commented that in recent years, Vietnam has proven that it can enter the game with confidence. The events that have attracted audiences in the past few years are all important touchpoints that have gradually positioned Vietnam as no longer standing outside the global performance map.

In the context of globalization and the explosion of digital platforms, Vietnamese audiences are no longer passive but have become active consumers, capable of creating strong media waves, contributing to the network effect for international tours.

National Assembly Delegate Bui Hoai Son

G-DRAGON was confused when Vietnamese fans called him "Anh Long" (the nickname Vietnamese fans call their idol) at G-DRAGON 2025 WORLD TOUR [Übermensch] in Hanoi - Clip: DAU DUNG

Need a more diverse consumer market

Musician Huy Tuan shared with Tuoi Tre that over the past 2-3 years, Vietnam has had a new generation of audiences who are civilized and willing to spend money on their musical interests.

100,000 audiences in G-DRAGON's two recent shows are "a positive signal showing a potential market, a destination for other artists to consider".

However, according to Huy Tuan, the tastes of Vietnamese audiences and markets are very unique. The artists who can create "miracles" like the recent ones are all global K-pop phenomena such as BlackPink, G-DRAGON, or BTS...

"It's very difficult for other segments to reach this number, including Taylor Swift or Beyonce, not to mention artists in less popular segments," he expressed his opinion.

The musician explained that in the Vietnamese market, aesthetics and enjoyment needs are still too different and uneven.

We are only interested in famous phenomena through multimedia networks, there is not really a rich enough music consumption market for artists in other segments to succeed here.

According to Huy Tuan: "If you want to have a more sustainable market development, you cannot rely on one music genre or a few artists from the K-pop market."

International fans praised Vietnamese fans for their enthusiasm and willingness to spend - Photo: Galaxy Corporation

In addition to the infrastructure and accompanying supporting institutions, we still need more dedicated and bold organizers to expand the range. In parallel with doing business, we should also take the opportunity to introduce other faces of the vast world music market so that the audience can know, thereby having more choices to enjoy.

Huy Tuan added that current music festivals will be where audiences have this opportunity. Previously the Monsoon Music Festival in Hanoi, now Hozo in Ho Chi Minh City (from December 27 to 31) is continuing to introduce rich and unique artists and music genres from countries with developed music industries.

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Source: https://tuoitre.vn/concert-cua-g-dragon-voi-100-000-khan-gia-viet-nam-la-thi-truong-giai-tri-sang-gia-o-chau-a-20251113094050667.htm