TENS of thousands of K-pop fans have descended on the Singapore Sports Hub in recent weeks as the venue played host to groups such as Enhypen, Twice and NCT Dream. The concert fever continues in November, when Blackpink plays for three nights – and this run sold out even after an extra show was added.
As K-pop rises in popularity, demand for concert tickets has outstripped supply, driving fans to spend exorbitant amounts of money to see their idols in action.
For instance, to attend a recent 2NE1 concert last December, Denise* forked out an extra S$202.
A worthy price to pay
Ah, the ticketing timing coincides with my work hours and I really want VIP seats… I’ll consult a help-to-buy service for this.
Help-to-buy (HTB) service: a user who helps people buy concert tickets at higher prices, sometimes using bots
2NE1 concert tix for S$650 only!
S$500 - 2NE1 concert, seats ...
S$725 (non-nego) - 2NE1 ...
S$550, you can paynow to xxxx xxxx to secure your order
payment received, we’ll send you the ticket pdf once we secure it
hi, i’m interested in 1x vip seated for 2ne1 in sg, how much will it be?
done, thanks!
Even though I paid S$202 extra for the HTB service, it was worth it because I love 2NE1 and I had a great view from my seat!
Singapore Sports Hub, a complex of facilities including the National and Indoor stadiums, will also host more K-pop concerts early next year – Tomorrow X Together and Riize will perform in January, while Ateez will make their return in February.
Guo Teyi, director of leisure events at the Singapore Tourism Board (STB), said: “Singapore has witnessed remarkable growth in the K-pop industry, particularly accelerating after the pandemic. We believe this momentum will continue.”
Indeed, K-pop events such as concerts, fan meetings, music festivals and award shows with K-pop idol appearances have been on the rise.
Guo added: “According to Spotify, K-pop streams in South-east Asia jumped 423 per cent from 2018 to 2023, well above the global growth of 362 per cent, underscoring the genre’s exceptional popularity in the region.”
In line with this, ticket prices have also gone up. For instance, ticket prices for Blackpink’s Singapore shows have climbed over 2019 to 2025.
There have also been more strategic partnerships between STB and K-pop idols to promote Singapore as a tourist destination.
“In response to evolving consumer trends, particularly the increased consumption of digital media and entertainment, STB has tapped branded entertainment partnerships and collaborations with global celebrities to spotlight Singapore in more engaging and organic ways,” Guo said.
These tie-ups leverage the “set-jetting” travel trend, where people are inspired to visit specific destinations featured in the content of their favourite idols.
For example, BTS’ Jin and Blackpink’s Jisoo featured Singapore tourist attractions – the National Gallery and Mandai Wildlife Reserve, respectively – in their music videos.
Guo said: “National Gallery Singapore created a self-guided trail inspired by Jin’s music video, which drew 175 per cent more views than (its) next most-visited trail.”
Meanwhile, Jisoo’s collaboration drove greater awareness of the newly opened Rainforest Wild Asia and Mandai’s other offerings.
“These partnerships collectively amassed over 300 million views, and generated significant media exposure for Singapore and our tourism partners,” Guo added.
Beyond concerts and collaborations, the city-state also stages other K-pop events, ranging from music festivals to multimedia exhibitions and virtual reality concerts. For example, at this year’s Formula 1 Singapore Grand Prix, headliners G-Dragon and CL drew a crowd of 65,000 at the Padang Stage.
Concerts aren’t the only avenues for fans to interact with their idols. Fans fork out just as much or even more money just to meet their idols – sometimes virtually.
Fancalls are the go-to for K-pop fans who want to speak one-on-one with their idols – albeit for a short period of time. K-pop fans enter raffles for fancalls by buying albums, with one album representing one chance. The more they buy, the higher their chances of meeting their beloved stars.
Getting up close and personal
Oh, Yizhiyu is doing a video fancall for NCT Dream’s comeback!
Hmm… maybe I should buy more than 70 albums to guarantee my win. For their last comeback, 50 wasn’t enough.
NCT Dream
Album
Shipping and transaction fees:
77
S$30
S$200
S$2,510
The story of a K-pop fan: I spent S$2,500 to win a 1.5-minute fancall with my idol
Hey, nice to meet you!
Is your solo album coming out soon? I’ve been waiting for it!
Hi!
Yes, it’s coming soon! Keep an eye out for it.
Angel* is not the only one who spends a lot of money to interact with their idols. Even without the interactions, Rachel* has a massive collection of Stray Kids merchandise – they adorn her tabletop, shelves and even hang as keychains on her bags.
Yes, it’s coming soon! Keep an eye out for it.
Stray Kids is making a comeback next month!
It’s time to continue building my Lee Know collection.
Help-to-buy (HTB) service: a user who helps people buy concert tickets at higher prices, sometimes using bots
Getting up close and personal
There are at least 20 sites, which means I’ll get more than 20 new photocards of Lee Know. Yay!
Even though the price tags of these K-pop-related experiences can be hefty, fans will continue spending because of their love for their idols. And it goes beyond spending on merchandise and concerts in their home countries – they will even travel across the world to see them.
*Note: The profiles from the three scenarios are single female office workers in their late 20s.
Finding value in merchandise
Stray Kids is making a comeback next month!
2NE1 concert tix for S$650 only!
2NE1 concert tix for S$650 only!
It’s time to continue building my Lee Know collection.
There are at least 20 sites, which means I’ll get more than 20 new photocards of Lee Know. Yay!
My first batch of photocards have arrived! I can add them to my collection.
Each site comes with an exclusive photocard that can be purchased only during the pre-order period.
stray kids fixed
sharing - go
deposit of S$150
msg for more info!
lee know: X ✓✓✓
sent the photocard deposit!
ARTWORK BY KEW KEAT BOON
