aorlaan Posted April 11, 2013 Share Posted April 11, 2013 http://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/article/1211694/hong-kongs-concert-venues-too-small-pop-diva-madonna-tourism-chief Madonna turned down offers to hold a concert in the city as the venues here are too small for her, entertainment mogul Peter Lam Kin-ngok said yesterday. Lam tried several times to get the superstar to Hong Kong, only to be told that the city's concert venues did not meet her expectations, revealed the new Tourism Board chairman yesterday. Japan was the only Asian country Madonna visited during her 2006 Confessions tour. The tour, which covered North America, Europe and Japan, grossed about US$194 million from 60 shows that drew nearly 1.2 million people. Lam's comment echoed entertainment veterans' laments - that the city lacked world-class venues to host concerts and tournaments. The Coliseum was always fully booked, while the Hong Kong Stadium stopped hosting concerts after Happy Valley residents complained about the noise. Lam said on his agenda for discussion with the government when he takes office this month is how to make it easier to organise mega events here to attract high-spending tourists. "The Rugby Sevens is a good example," he said. Not only did the matches bring in a large number of tourists, the event also sparked a growing interest in the sport among locals. But there were also problems to be resolved, such as a shortage of tickets and high hotel room rates during the event, he said. just thought it was interesting asia is interested in her Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
horn Posted April 11, 2013 Share Posted April 11, 2013 As a matter of fact, hardly any place in Asia meets her requirement in terms of venue & censorship. Only Japan meets both requirements. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ashtangi74 Posted April 11, 2013 Share Posted April 11, 2013 and the ziggo dome isnt too small?? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hyper Posted April 11, 2013 Share Posted April 11, 2013 where do other international acts perform then? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest bluejean Posted April 11, 2013 Share Posted April 11, 2013 I don't understand why other artists can tour Asia but Madonna can't. I mean how small are their venues? I just don't really believe it Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
whyme? Posted April 11, 2013 Share Posted April 11, 2013 I'm sure the next tour will do Asia and Australia. There are non-arena venues in Hong Kong, this guy doesn't know shit. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Rachelle of London Posted April 11, 2013 Share Posted April 11, 2013 She performed at Birmingham NIA and thats TINY Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LoveBoxx Posted April 11, 2013 Share Posted April 11, 2013 and the ziggo dome isnt too small?? It's the size of a shoebox but they made a lot of money there so I guess it's all ok! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
acko Posted April 11, 2013 Share Posted April 11, 2013 Small doesn't mean capacity, it's logistics...the backstage area & height included. Guy Oseary initially refused 2 play the Stadium in Brussels cuz the streets surrounding it are 2 narrow 4 the trucks & equipment 2 b tranported smoothly. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Rachelle of London Posted April 11, 2013 Share Posted April 11, 2013 Small doesn't mean capacity, it's logistics...the backstage area & height included. Guy Oseary initially refused 2 play the Stadium in Brussels cuz the streets surrounding it are 2 narrow 4 the trucks & equipment 2 b tranported smoothly. oh ok! I suppose that makes more sense Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest bluejean Posted April 11, 2013 Share Posted April 11, 2013 Right. So every single venue outside of Japan in Asia is logistically too small? She used this same excuse for Australia once and we KNOW that's bullshit. The venues here are no different to what's in the US. Nearly all major acts have brought their full scale shows to them. Apart from Madonna. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Starman Posted April 11, 2013 Share Posted April 11, 2013 I think that just a nice way to say she wants more money Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
whyme? Posted April 11, 2013 Share Posted April 11, 2013 If she goes to Asia in the winter then I can see that they will run into trouble finding her venues. (Let's face it, they won't send her there to do arenas with 15,000 people per night). There arent that many closed stadium-sized venues.... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dollhouse Posted April 12, 2013 Share Posted April 12, 2013 didnt gaga perform to 2 people in KongHong? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Lum Posted May 29, 2013 Share Posted May 29, 2013 I feel bad for them! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Phineaspoe Posted May 29, 2013 Share Posted May 29, 2013 I think that just a nice way to say she wants more money I'm going to second this. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nightshade Posted May 29, 2013 Share Posted May 29, 2013 I think Madonna's shows have a certain amount that the promoter has to come up with to get her there and that was probably the issue. Plus, her tours (so far) really haven't gone anywhere close to Hong Kong (except Japan) so she'd have to do a number of shows to cover the costs of getting there and that is probably part of it too. I can understand tacking on Japan to the Confessions Tour when it sells out 4 shows in stadiums, but could Hong Kong do that? The venue excuse is shit. She played on a horse racing track in Hungary in 2009 (and some fairgrounds in Zaragoza). Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
VogueMusic Posted May 29, 2013 Share Posted May 29, 2013 I've always wondered if the censorship issue also comes into play. Certain parts of Asia are pretty conservative when it comes to some of the things that Madonna does...and I've seen some groups in some countries outright attack artists before they even show up there. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
acko Posted May 29, 2013 Share Posted May 29, 2013 The venue excuse is shit. She played on a horse racing track in Hungary in 2009 (and some fairgrounds in Zaragoza). Hong Kong isn't exactly spacious like that. Beijing would make more sense. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pasqual Posted May 29, 2013 Share Posted May 29, 2013 i m in december in hong kong...so...it would be nice to have mdna cup of tea Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jonski43 Posted May 29, 2013 Share Posted May 29, 2013 I've always wondered if the censorship issue also comes into play. Certain parts of Asia are pretty conservative when it comes to some of the things that Madonna does...and I've seen some groups in some countries outright attack artists before they even show up there. Didn't Gaga's first shows in Indonesia (?) get cancelled because of civil unrest regarding her show? Because of the adult content, not cos it was crap. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nightshade Posted May 29, 2013 Share Posted May 29, 2013 Hong Kong isn't exactly spacious like that. Beijing would make more sense. What about Victoria Park or heck, Hong Kong Stadium? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
VogueMusic Posted May 30, 2013 Share Posted May 30, 2013 Didn't Gaga's first shows in Indonesia (?) get cancelled because of civil unrest regarding her show? Because of the adult content, not cos it was crap. yeah... mostly religious groups came out for blood with Gags...particularly some Islamic and Christian groups, I believe. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ivy Posted May 30, 2013 Share Posted May 30, 2013 We all know what the answer is: she just can't be bothered with this part of the world! It has nothing to do with venues, censorship, attendance, lola's schooling, rococo's tap and jazz recitals, or money. Madonna will stick with what she knows best ( U.S.A, Europe and South America). It's odd, as while the worlds economy goes to the shitters, it is Australia and Asia's economies that are kicking arse, and where the money is. Let's face it, the only time she will come here is when the world hates her again ( think back to erotica) and she needs a moral boost. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
VogueMusic Posted May 30, 2013 Share Posted May 30, 2013 Japan has always seemed like a good market for her though...and pop music in general. Don't know why she doesn't, at the very least, go back there. At least that's a 'smidge' of Asia. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest bluejean Posted May 30, 2013 Share Posted May 30, 2013 Well have you seen the 3 concerts she filmed in Japan? The audiences are so boring, especially compared to Europe and South America. I'm pretty sure THAT'S why she doesn't go there. Not sure about Australia as well, we're not as bad but probably still not as wild/exciting as SA and Europe. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
VogueMusic Posted May 30, 2013 Share Posted May 30, 2013 Well have you seen the 3 concerts she filmed in Japan? The audiences are so boring, especially compared to Europe and South America. I'm pretty sure THAT'S why she doesn't go there. Not sure about Australia as well, we're not as bad but probably still not as wild/exciting as SA and Europe. It's a cultural thing. It's not that the Japanese audiences don't love her, they just respond to concerts/live shows differently. (You should see how they all sit down in such an orderly fashion to watch a parade at Tokyo Disneyland. LOL!!!). Certain parts of Europe seem kind of dead as audiences too. But I totally get that she is the kind of artist that feeds off her audience...she needs it...and who wouldn't. I just think it'd be cool for more audiences around the world to see her...which add to the tour stats, and gross. That's all. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest bluejean Posted June 4, 2013 Share Posted June 4, 2013 Of course. Well I am in Australia, I want her to come here too. I'm just suggesting maybe that is why she doesn't go there very often. Europe and South America are more exciting places to play. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cjc Posted June 5, 2013 Share Posted June 5, 2013 I have seen Madonna 7 times live since 1990 in London. Last year I moved to China to teach English at a university. Most of my students have not heard of Madonna. They all love Michael Jackson, Adele and Westlife. The few that have heard of Madonna know of 'La Isla Bonita', 'Like A Virgin' and her most famous song with them is 'Don't Cry For Me Armentina'. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nikki Posted June 5, 2013 Share Posted June 5, 2013 wow really? i guess she isn't appealing to chinese audiences then.. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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