(Singapore) The Singapore authorities on Monday downplayed the role and amount of the subsidy granted to Taylor Swift for the exclusivity of her concerts in the city-state while some media spoke of several million dollars per concert.
“There has been speculation about the amount of the grant. I can say that (the amount) of the subsidy is not accurate and it is not as high as we thought,” Singapore Culture Minister Edwin Tong told the Parliament.
“For reasons of commercial confidentiality, we cannot reveal the precise amount of the grant or its conditions,” he added.
The minister also said the economic benefits to Singapore “are considered significant and exceed the amount of the subsidy”.
Some 300,000 people are expected to attend the American singer’s six sold-out shows which began on March 2, the only ones in Southeast Asia. Some neighboring countries have also expressed their dissatisfaction at being excluded from the tour.
Singapore reportedly paid several million dollars to Taylor Swift to secure exclusivity for her concerts in the region, media reports cited regional officials including Thai Prime Minister Srettha Thavisin as saying.
Citing a promoter, the latter indicated that Singapore offered $3 million per concert to the singer for the exclusivity of her concerts in the region.
Singapore’s culture minister downplayed the role the grant may have played in convincing Swift to perform only in Singapore.
“The promoters of top artists will do their own math and assess where they want to perform and for how long,” he said, citing Singapore’s location and infrastructure as key factors in choosing the city-state .
Before performing in Singapore, the American singer gave several concerts in Australia, as part of her world tour The Eras Tour.
Before she left the country, an investigation was opened in Australia on Tuesday after a complaint from a photographer claiming to have been assaulted by the singer’s father.