K-pop fans in Auckland are in for a treat with AleXa announcing that she will be performing in Auckland next month. This comes a week after the heartbreaking news that girl group BlackPink were pulling their Born Pink World Tour to New Zealand.
Where The Asians At founder Yee Yang Square Lee, whose organisation promotes Pan-Asian Kiwi musicians, says New Zealand was missing out on having top Asian artists here because of its failure to position itself as a “concert-worthy destination”.
“New Zealand misses out on artists primarily because it is a smaller market, albeit a highly engaged and promising market,” Lee said.
“Take K-pop for example, it may seem like the Korean population in Auckland is too small to be worth the effort and investment, but that ignores the interest and ticket buyers not just from other Pan-Asian-Kiwi fans, but the very strong interest in Hallyu from Pasifika, Māori as well as Pākehā audiences.
“Aotearoa is missing out on valuable opportunities – both export and import – by ignoring the Asia-Pacific region in terms of its music and creative arts exchanges.”
