Stimulate tourism through music events

Blackpink is very hot all over Southeast Asia.

“Awakening” old and new businessmen

At the age of 66, Mr. Do Cao Bao - one of the 13 founding members ofFPT Corporation, currently a member of the FPT Board of Directors (term 2022 - 2027) considers himself an old and ancient person in music. He only likes folk songs, bolero and Trinh music (of course with a little red music). In addition, he knows very little and does not listen to any other type of music.

Then, everything changed. That was when he read the news "The Government welcomes the Blackpink band to Vietnam, will grant permission to the organizer", on the Government Information page. Then a story, whether true or fictional, appeared on the newsfeed: a young couple broke up because the girl wanted to buy tickets to see Blackpink at a price of up to 8 million VND, more than her boyfriend's monthly salary. That made an elderly businessman like him curious to find out information about the Korean band - Blackpink and their world tour.

He concluded: “It’s terrible.” Blackpink has been like a fierce hurricane sweeping through all major cities around the world over the past 9 months. Blackpink will come to Hanoi to perform 2 nights at My Dinh Stadium on July 29-30, then continue to return to the US for the second time to perform in the cities of New Jersey, Las Vegas, San Francisco, and Los Angeles.

By May 31, 2023, after only 40/62 shows, Blackpink's revenue had reached 163.8 million USD, more than twice the previous record of the legendary British group - Spice Girls. With the number of audiences and average revenue per show increasing day by day, it is very likely that the revenue of 62 shows of Blackpink World Tour will exceed the 300 million USD mark.

“It turns out that K-pop not only fascinates Vietnamese, Southeast Asian and Asian youth, but also American, Mexican and European youth. Knowing this, I realized that I was too old and outdated in music. Before, I was too surprised and confused when I saw young people crazy about and idolizing K-pop and Blackpink,” Mr. Bao shared.

Mr. Bao told himself that from now on, he will change his attitude towards K-pop. He understands, sympathizes and is not too surprised to see young people loving and crazy about Blackpink anymore.

Blackpink World Tour's 62-show revenue is expected to surpass the $300 million mark.

Expectations for a breakthrough in tourism

Looking at the seating chart and ticket prices, as well as the Blackpink ticket fever that is so hot all over Southeast Asia, it is possible that 60,000 tickets per night in Vietnam (2 nights is 120,000 tickets) will be sold out, with an average ticket price of about 6 million VND. Thus, a rough estimate, ticket sales alone will have a revenue of over 700 billion VND, not including advertising revenue.

However, what surprised Mr. Do Cao Bao the most was that there were travel companies that organized tours to see Blackpink perform. They took care of the entire package of show tickets, airfare, hotel, food, transportation, and sightseeing like the international football tours that we have been taking for a long time.

This led Mr. Bao to predict that on July 29 and 30, Hanoi will likely welcome a large number of international tourists following Blackpink's tour, not to mention visitors from Ho Chi Minh City and other provinces and cities across the country. Meanwhile, airlines will operate at full capacity, and hotels, restaurants, and eateries in Hanoi will increase their revenue.

According to Statista, global sales revenue of YG Entertainment (the company that manages Blackpink, Big Bang, Winner, G-Dragon...) in 2022 reached about 391.2 billion won, the highest level since 2014. In addition to the main source of revenue from the activities of the groups and artists that the company is managing, YG Entertainment also has other business segments such as cosmetics, advertising...

During the 2020-2021 period, the Company witnessed a sharp increase in revenue, from 255.26 billion won to 355.63 billion won, even though this was the period when the Covid-19 pandemic broke out globally, causing a series of artists' world tours to be canceled.

In 2022, YG Entertainment's profit was also at its highest level since 2014, reaching 46.78 billion won, more than double the same period last year (22.86 billion won). Part of YG Entertainment's current revenue and profit also comes from the world tours of girl group Blackpink.

What Mr. Bao expects and calculates can be seen from the way Thailand stimulates demand through K-pop concerts.

Previously, the media reported that the Tourism Authority of Thailand (TAT) sponsored a Blackpink concert that attracted more than 66,000 attendees, helping the country become a "music destination" in the region.

After a string of shows spanning North America and Europe, the South Korean group chose Bangkok as the opening night of their Born Pink World Tour across Asia. Their two shows drew more than 66,200 spectators, making them one of the most attended events in the country since Covid-19.

According to TAT, the concerts are not solely for entertainment purposes, but are seen as an important part of creating a positive image for Thailand as a “music destination” in the region. The concerts will then help generate circular income for the tourism industry and the country’s overall economy.

Not only domestic fans attended the concert. Many people from Laos, Vietnam, Singapore, Malaysia, Indonesia, Philippines... also rushed to this country, both to meet their idols and to travel.

TAT assessed that the Blackpink concert helped attract a large number of high-quality tourists in short-term markets in the region and created confidence for foreigners to enjoy this country.

Many accommodation and entertainment venues recorded a large number of booking searches and visits from foreigners before, during and after the concert.

Specifically, during the time Korean artists come to perform, they also visit destinations in Thailand. These idols indirectly create buzz for the locations and can spread local experiences or cuisine.

Thailand in particular has an advantage because a Blackpink member named Lisa is Thai. She posted photos of herself wearing a traditional sarong on social media. This has caused demand to increase rapidly. Charnruean - the shop where Lisa bought the sarong recorded a one-month waiting list after selling out of the available sarongs at 2,800 baht (about 1.85 million VND) each. Some sarong sellers in Lisa's hometown of Buriram, as well as in Si Sa Ket Nakhon Ratchasima and Udon Thani provinces said that sales have increased simultaneously. Meanwhile, Ayutthaya has more tourists, most of whom are looking for traditional costume rental services.

Thailand is considered a magnet for tourists and this economic sector also accounts for a high proportion of GDP. After Covid-19, Thailand focused on reviving the smokeless industry. It is expected that in 2023, Thailand will reach the target of welcoming over 20 million visitors.

In the first quarter of 2023, more than 20 K-pop concerts and fan meetings are scheduled in Thailand. These events range in size from stadiums that can hold tens of thousands of people to indoor convention halls. Last year, about 80 K-pop events took place in Thailand. In addition to stimulating tourism, K-pop concerts have also helped the country's event businesses recover quickly from the pandemic downturn.

Looking at the professional music industry

The above developments show that investors, companies in the event organization industry, and fans expect it to be repeated in Vietnam.

In fact, this July is an exciting month for music lovers, when famous names in the world music market have chosen Vietnam as the destination for their tours. They are male singer Charlie Puth and girl group Blackpink. Previously, Super Junior's World Tour Super Show 9 was held in Ho Chi Minh City and two shows in Hoi An by famous K-pop stars.

The fact that many international stars choose Vietnam as the destination for their concerts is the result of the movement of the domestic music industry, including changes in audience consumption habits.

It can be seen that Vietnamese audiences have gradually formed the habit of paying more money to enjoy music. This is also an important factor in forming a professional music industry. The music industry is one of the main pillars of each country's cultural industry. If we can create an environment to operate a systematic music industry with all the components, it will generate large revenues, bring many jobs, and contribute positively to GDP.

However, experts say that in order for music in particular and the Vietnamese entertainment industry to truly become the country's soft power, there needs to be a long-term strategy and vision from management agencies and artists.

Source baodautu

Source