From Blackpink concert, looking at the prospect of Vietnam's music industry

It has been a long time since Vietnam has had a music event with world-class big names in the true sense of a solo artist concert. When the globally famous Korean girl group Blackpink decided to hold 2 concerts in Hanoi at the end of July, the Vietnamese online community was really "stirred up".

Blackpink member wearing conical hat given by Vietnamese fan. Photo: Twitter Blackpink Fan

For fans, it is an opportunity to see their idols. For those interested in the entertainment industry and the economy, it is a “test” to assess the prospects of music concerts in Vietnam: Is the mechanism open enough for events to take place? Can the organization ensure quality for international artists to come to Vietnam? Is the spending power of fans large enough to fill stadium concerts (music nights taking place at stadiums) with a capacity of up to 40,000-50,000 people?

All of the above questions seem to have been answered after 2 concerts of Blackpink’s “Born Pink”. Domestic audiences are optimistic about the prospects for music concerts in Vietnam and those working in the culture and entertainment industry truly see this as a “golden goose” for the economy.

Is Vietnam ready for international shows?

The success of the two “Born Pink” concerts partly shows that Vietnam is more ready to welcome top international stars to perform. Vietnam’s “readiness” is reflected in many factors: The infrastructure system - from sound and lighting to modern stages, has met the needs of professional performances, the stadium is large enough for stadium tours with a capacity of tens of thousands of people, the hotel system and diverse services serve visitors to the event, the safety factor is emphasized.

However, the most important factor contributing to the success of this event was the quick cooperation and neat procedures from the cultural management units. From the time of announcement to the official event taking place in less than 2 months, all problems arising before the event were neatly resolved by the Ministries, Departments and Branches, creating trust and support among the public.

The thank you letter from Chairman of Hanoi People's Committee Tran Sy Thanh is not only a message to the Blackpink band and their fans; it is also a signal that Vietnam always welcomes major artists from around the world to perform in Vietnam - a message of hospitality, welcome, readiness for deep integration and development of the cultural industry.

Vietnamese audience spending power is stronger

For a stadium concert to take place, the ability to fill the stadium is an important factor for many artists. No one wants to see the stands empty. Many artists are willing to cancel their shows when the number of spectators is too low compared to expectations. Simply put, the audience must be able to pay for international concerts with tickets costing tens of millions of dong, then artists will have the motivation to put on a concert.

This is a barrier for many organizers when they want to invite big singers to perform in Vietnam. The results of the two “Born Pink” concerts have given event organizers more confidence: Vietnamese audiences are willing to spend a lot of money on quality music events.

However, it must be said that timing is a very important factor in determining whether a concert will sell out or not. COVID-19 has caused music events to stagnate around the world. After nearly 3 years, audiences are comfortable spending a lot of money to make up for the previous period. In addition, when they are too "hungry" for quality music events in the country, Vietnamese audiences are willing to spend money to see concerts whether they are fans or not. In the near future, when life returns to normal, music and entertainment activities take place more frequently, perhaps audiences will consider more carefully when choosing events to participate in.

Hope for the tourism and entertainment industry

The Hallyu wave is no longer strange to the world. Since the 1990s, the strategy of bringing Korean culture, from movies, music to cuisine, to the world has been systematically implemented by Korea. After just over 30 years, Korea has become a cultural export powerhouse: the appearance of big music groups that are famous worldwide, cinema has entered a new page, whether in terms of commercial or academic cinema.

It is estimated that in 2019, Hallyu cultural exports brought in about 12.3 billion USD to the Korean economy, of which music revenue accounted for the highest proportion.

It will be a long way for Vietnamese contemporary culture to be known to the world public and bring in huge revenues like Korea. Vietnam does not have Blackpink or BTS bringing in billions of dollars for Korea, but clearly, the benefits from concerts for the tourism industry in particular and the economy in general are not small. We have seen lessons from international events such as the annual fireworks festival that attracts tourists to Da Nang and Nha Trang.

Blackpink’s concert is a clearer example of the benefits of world-class sports and entertainment events. According to the statistics site Touring Data, Blackpink’s two concerts brought in nearly VND150 billion in revenue. The two concerts with nearly 70,000 spectators also brought a large number of tourists to Hanoi, helping many businesses in the accommodation and aviation sectors to prosper.

We must truly see world-class music events as an economic lever, at least for the localities, rather than simply large-scale “art shows”. In the near future, when Singapore welcomes singer Taylor Swift on her World Tour in Asia, it is estimated that nearly 300,000 people will come to the stadium for 3-4 nights. This is a huge number for the aviation, tourism, accommodation or any related services in Singapore, making many countries in the region such as Malaysia and Thailand admire.

Music tourism has been developing in many countries in Asia in particular and the world in general. Culture, including music, cinema or other entertainment fields, and tourism cannot be separated from each other. The trend of tourism combined with going to see concerts will bring many benefits to both the entertainment and tourism industries and needs to be seriously evaluated if Vietnam does not want to be left behind.

Laodong.vn