Asia News: Coldplay In India; Ed Sheeran In Bhutan; Fake Tickets In HK

INDIA

Coldplay Sets Records With Ahmedabad Shows

Coldplay’s first-ever tour of India, which consisted of five concerts, concluded on Jan. 26 at the Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad, which was also livestreamed across India on Disney+ Hotstar. According to the Indian Express, the audience for that show exceeded 110,000 people, making it the most attended show in the history of Asian concerts. In addition, it was the biggest Coldplay concert ever, the previous record being 83,000 in Sydney, Australia. As far as breaking the India record goes, Coldplay’s Ahbedabad show far surpassed Diljit Dosanjh’s recent concert in Chandigargh and Justin Bieber’s 2017 concert in Mumbai, both of which drew 50,000 attendees. At the conclusion of the tour, Coldplay expressed their appreciation to Indian fans on X by saying, “Thank you Ahmedabad, thank you India. We’ll never forget these two weeks. Your love and kindness will stay with us forever.”

Speaking of Dosanjh, India’s most popular Punjabi singer received criticism after the Coldplay shows for having complained extensively during his last tour that India lacked proper infrastructure for major concert tours. The rousing success of the Coldplay tour, during which no problems were reported, seemed to prove that India was well-suited for big shows. Social media was filled with commentators saying that perhaps Dosanjh’s own team was not sufficiently prepared to tour in a big way.

As the Coldplay tour was wrapping up, a prominent right-wing politician, Milind Deora, said that the tour, in fact, proved that “India is becoming a global hub for live music concerts,” according to India Today, attributing the improved conditions to Goods and Services Tax reforms that India has recently carried out, as well as “the absence of terror attacks on Indian cities over the past decade.” More significantly, India’s prime minister Narendra Modi said during a conclave on Jan. 28 that India has shown it has immense potential for live concerts in the wake of the Coldplay tour. The Hindustan Times quotes Modi as saying, “In the past few days you must have seen the amazing pictures of Coldplay concerts in Mumbai and Ahmedabad. This is proof of how much scope India has for live concerts. Big artists from around the world are also being attracted to India. The concert economy boosts tourism and creates large-scale employment. I urge states and the private sector to focus on the necessary infrastructure for the concert economy.”

KOREA

Is Korea Asia’s New Concert Hub?

India, it would seem, is competing with a number of other Asian countries for the title of concert hub, including South Korea. An essay by cultural critic Lim Hee-yoon in Chosun Biz made such a case by claiming that Korea has finally “outpaced” Japan as a magnet for Western pop music. For decades, Japan was the only country in Asia that major international pop stars visited with any regularity, as evidenced by the prominence of live albums recorded at the Nippon Budokan arena since the 1970s.

However, last year alone Korea hosted a number of major acts, including Billie Eilish, Olivia Rodrigo and Dua Lipa, and will bring Coldplay for six shows in April and Oasis next fall. These acts also performed or will perform in Japan, but the scale has narrowed between the two neighbors. During the calendar year 2024, there were 389 popular music concerts in Korea, comprising ticket sales of 64.3 billion won ($44.3 million), more than twice as many concerts as were held in 2023. And Lim is quick to point out that the concentration of shows in Seoul is decreasing, meaning that more of the country is enjoying live music from major artists.

Lim credits this ascension to the rise of K-pop and Korean cinema, which has positioned South Korea as a cultural mecca, but also Seoul’s emerging position as the media and financial capital of Asia, eclipsing Hong Kong and Tokyo for that title. Consequently, more world-class acts are making sure Korea is part of their concert itinerary. Lim also acknowledges that Korea still falls short of meeting such obligations, especially with regard to venues. If Japan still outpaces Korea in terms of concert revenue it’s mainly because it has so many stadiums and arenas. Korea is just starting to fill the gap. In terms of K-pop, Korea is now enjoying concert tourism from other parts of Asia, a trend that will only increase as more large venues are built. 

BHUTAN

Sheeran Makes History

Ed Sheeran made history Jan. 24 when he became the first Western artist to hold a concert in the Himalayan country of Bhutan. The Straits Times reports that Sheeran himself acknowledged the milestone when he took the stage at Changlimithang Stadium in the capital of Thimphu, saying to the crowd of 23,000, “I’m told this is the first international concert ever in Bhutan and, hopefully, this the first of many.”

After the show, Sheeran posted on Instagram, “Had the honor to be the first ever international artist to play Bhutan last night, What a gig, what country, what a beautiful place with incredible people.” Ticket prices ranged from the equivalent of $10 to $100.

The chief marketing officer for Bhutan’s tourism department told the Straits Times, “The concert serves as a platform to showcase Bhutan as a destination that blends culture and modern experiences while maintaining its unique identity.” Despite the international attention the concert attracted, the officer says that Bhutan will continue to maintain its “high value, low volume” tourism strategy.

Reportedly, Bhutan’s King Jigme Khesar Namgyel Wangchuck and Queen Jetsun Pema attended the concert with other members of the royal family.

HONG KONG

Fake Tix Racket Busted Up: Police

The South China Morning Post reports that Hong Kong police arrested 13 individuals who belong to a syndicate that allegedly sold fake concert tickets for various shows last year, including the Clockenflap festival and concerts by Cantopop star and actor Andy Lau. One victim lost the equivalent of $82,000 for trying to buy multiple tickets to Lau’s concerts.

According to police, the syndicate has been in operation since October. Their m.o. is “manipulating online shopping platform accounts and posing as sellers with tickets for coming concerts.” The prices were always higher than those for officially sanctioned tickets. Interested buyers were instructed to transfer money to fraudulent bank accounts. Once the syndicate had the money, all contact with the buyers was terminated. The police estimate that the group carried out 42 scams for a total of HK$800,000 ($104,000).

The people arrested ranged in age from 19 to 56, and included a construction worker and a housewife.