10th January 2007, 12:13 PM
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Wishing Guardian
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Join Date: Aug 2002
Location: USA
Posts: 12,523
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[article] Too costly to stage Ayumi?
Quote:
SHE'S going on tour in Hong Kong, Taiwan and Shanghai. But not Singapore.
We're talking about J-pop queen Ayumi Hamasaki's first-ever Asian concert tour, which she excitedly announced at a recent gig in Tokyo.
No doubt this is a major career move, but the news also came as a surprise - albeit a pleasant one - to many in the industry.
After all, Ayumi, 29, has not shown any interest in regional development since 2002, when she first ventured out of Japan to attend the inaugural MTV Asia Awards in Singapore.
TELL-TALE SIGNS
The first tell-tale sign of her renewed desire to expand in the region was when she agreed to pen the theme song for the Hong Kong film Confession Of Pain. She even flew to the 'fragrant harbour' to attend the gala premiere last month.
By New Year's Eve, she was prepared to reveal her new plans.
'I'm going to start touring Asia in March or April, and after that I'll come back to Japan for another round of concert tours,' she said on stage.
'There'll be plenty of opportunities to see everyone. Let us all have a happy 2007.'
Subsequently, her record label Avex Trax announced three concert dates: 24 Mar in Taipei, 7 Apr in Hong Kong and 22 Apr in Shanghai.
Click to see larger image
Singapore is not listed and unlikely to be.
The New Paper checked with three local concert organisers - Unusual Productions, Hype Records and VizPro - but none said they had plans to bring Ayumi in.
TOO EXPENSIVE
We understand from industry sources that her show was deemed too expensive to import.
A reliable insider, who declined to be named, cited a lack of sponsors, adding that Ayumi's largely teenage fan base would not pay exorbitant sums like, $888 (a benchmark set by K-popster Rain) just to see her perform.
Besides, if you're a real Ayumi fan and must see her live, it would be cheaper to fly to Hong Kong, Taiwan or Shanghai, where you can catch her concert and enjoy a short vacation at the same time.
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J-pop queen skips S'pore on rare Asian tour
Too costly to stage Ayumi?
bummer
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