With the likes of Taylor Swift, Coldplay, and Jacky Cheung staging multi-date concerts here, it has certainly been a banner year for entertainment in Singapore.
On the other hand, the opposite appears to be the case in Malaysia, as multiple artistes have either skipped, cancelled, or been banned entirely from having shows there.
This has led to great disappointment among Malaysian concertgoers, as well as rife speculation on the reasons behind the phenomenon.
Source: @thetakeawaytable on TikTok
Now, Johor Member of Parliament (MP) Syed Saddiq has come forward to shed light on the disparity between concerts in Singapore and Malaysia.
Syed Saddiq, who is currently the MP of Muar and formerly Malaysia’s youngest minister, recently appeared on a podcast to answer questions about locally held concerts — or rather, the lack of them.
@thetakeawaytable now we know why it’s so hard for our faves to perform here 😮💨😮💨 #syedsaddiq #concerts #malaysia ♬ original sound – The Takeaway Table
Speaking to the hosts of Fan Klub, a podcast centering around K-Pop, Syed Saddiq concurred that it is “depressing” that K-pop groups and Taylor Swift are skipping Malaysia.
He then stated that Malaysia should be opening its doors to the world.
“When (artistes) pick Malaysia as a destination of choice, Malaysia becomes a destination of choice for entertainment tourism,” he remarked.
Source: @thetakeawaytable on TikTok
Additionally, all this worries him as a policymaker, because he sees the value in entertainment tourism and believes that Malaysia cannot afford to lose out in this aspect.
The hosts then asked whether it is true that entertainers have to pay a huge amount to come to Malaysia.
Syed Saddiq confirmed this, saying it is a policy that makes him “very frustrated”.
He then pointed out that during his tenure as Malaysia’s Minister of Youth and Sports, one of his first actions was to table a cabinet paper to waive the entertainment tax for events hosted in popular performance venues.
The reason for this, he said, was because Malaysia imposes a lofty 25% entertainment tax.
Comparing Malaysia to Singapore, Syed Saddiq revealed that the latter’s government actually takes steps to get concerts staged here.
“Their inter-ministries, like two or three ministries (and) agencies come together, pulled a fund, (and they went) abroad during (the height of) Covid-19 time,” he said.
He added that they went as far as to sign all-exclusive deals with Taylor Swift to perform in Singapore for multiple nights.
This would explain why Singapore is the sole stop in Southeast Asia for the Asian leg of the Eras Tour.
As such, Syed Saddiq called Singapore’s government “smart” for having an entrepreneurial mindset. “They think, ‘I spend S$1, I earn S$5’,” he said.
Source: @thetakeawaytable on TikTok
He also called out Malaysia’s government, stressing the need for it to “stop being so afraid and close-minded”.
On top of that, he stated that the high entertainment tax rate also hurts the local entertainment scene as it applies to local artistes and filmmakers as well.
The MP exclaimed, “It’s very hard to stimulate our local arts industry… when they make a little bit of profit, (they are slapped with a) 25% tax. Mati (dead)!”
Syed Saddiq’s revelations rattled plenty of Malaysians, with many shocked at how high the entertainment tax rate is.
One commenter wondered where the funds get channelled to.
Source: TikTok
Another viewer agreed that the entertainment tax affects Malaysians in a lot of ways. They cited the steep rise in ticket prices for international motorcycle racing tournament MotoGP’s event in Malaysia.
Source: TikTok
Meanwhile, a CARAT or fan of K-pop boyband Seventeen lamented that this would hurt the chances of the band coming to Malaysia.
Source: TikTok
On another note, Syed Saddiq’s spirited explanation seemed to garner him new supporters. One viewer even declared that they would vote for him if he runs for Prime Minister one day.
Source: TikTok
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Featured image adapted from @thetakeawaytable on TikTok.
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