HONG KONG (AP) — Millions of Taylor Swift fans across Asia competed for some 300,000 concert tickets Friday as general sales for her six shows begin next year in Singapore, the singer-songwriter’s only stop in Southeast Asia.
Swift’s “Eras Tour,” which kicked off in March and includes more than 100 shows on five continents, has sparked a ticket frenzy and is on track for a record $1 billion or more on sale. Some fans vying for the limited number of seats at Swift’s concerts have referred to her experience as “The Great War,” a song from her 2022 album “Midnights.”
But the war in Asia seems to be even bigger. Fans of the world’s most populous continent have only two places, Japan and Singapore, where they can see Swift perform.
“I have never had experience buying concert tickets like this before,” Iqhram Khan, a fan in neighboring Malaysia who successfully bought a ticket to one of the shows in Singapore, he told NBC News via a messaging app.
Khan has been a Swiftie for over 15 years and saw her perform in Malaysia in 2014 and Japan in 2018.
Swift had initially announced seven concerts in Asia next year: four at Tokyo Dome in February and three at Singapore’s National Stadium in March. But due to what promoter AEG Presents Asia called “overwhelming” demand, the number of shows in Singapore doubled.
She is also scheduled to perform seven shows in Australia in February.
In Japan, tickets are distributed through a lottery system. In Singapore, a Wednesday pre-sale open only to credit cardholders at United Overseas Bank led to a 45% increase in the bank’s average daily credit card applications in Singapore, Thailand, Malaysia, Indonesia and Vietnam, according to Bloomberg News.
General ticket sales for the Singapore shows are open only to those who pre-registered in June and were selected to receive a code, although the code does not guarantee a ticket. Ticketmaster described the extra step as “an extra line of defense against bots.”
But competition, as well as the prospect of traveling long distances, hasn’t stopped Asiatic swifts from trying to see their star.
Khan said he waited four hours in line to get a UOB card after the international shows were announced last month. On Wednesday, it was prepared hours before the pre-sale began, opening multiple browsers on five different devices.
Still, his chances looked bleak. Almost all of his online numbers were six or seven digits: 600,000, 800,000, 1 million.
“Luckily, one of the numbers in the queue was 59,000,” he said. “The only navigator was my only hope of getting the tickets.”
He had his ticket after an hour and already booked his hotel and transportation.
Like its counterparts in the US, Swift fans in Asia have complained about bots and scalpers. If it weren’t for them, Khan said, “more real fans would be able to buy the concert tickets.”
Fans excluded from the Singapore pre-sale got another chance on Friday, when general ticket sales began.
Marine Wu, a 27-year-old Chinese student, said on Friday that she had been “thinking around since last night” because she was so nervous.
“I don’t want to miss this opportunity to see her,” he said.
When she succeeded, Wu said, she was so excited that she “ran through my house twice.”
“I think the reason why it is so popular all over the world, not only in the United States but also in Asia, is because of its original musical authenticity,” said Lee Yongwoo, assistant professor of cultural studies at the Chinese University of Hong Kong. .
Lee praised Swift’s songwriting and composition skills.
“Her songs are unique and she is a storyteller who tells stories that resonate with people.”
Even Pita Limjaroenrat, Thailand’s leading candidate for prime minister, declared himself a Swiftie and invited the singer to return to the country where her sold-out concert was canceled in 2014 after the military seized power days earlier.
Hi Taylor! Big admirer of yours”, Pita, leader of the progressive Move Forward Party, said on Twitter. “By the way, Thailand is back on its way to being fully democratic after you had to cancel last time because of the coup. The Thai people have spoken through the elections and we all look forward to welcoming them to this beautiful nation of ours!”
Other fans are still holding out hope for a seat at a show.
Blue Shi, 26, a teacher living in China’s Fujian province, joined the Tokyo lottery after failing to get a code to buy tickets in Singapore, and is waiting for the results to be released later this month. month.
To travel to Japan, she would have to fly several hours and obtain a passport and visa, with which she is paying a travel agency to help her. She would also need her colleagues to cover for her while she is out of it.
“It’s not a problem for me at all,” said Shi, who said he started listening to Swift in high school because he was moved by her songs, especially ones about love. “Having the ticket will allow me to overcome all the difficulties.”
