Singapore sights and locations have been trending high on social media this month, riding on the massive global fanbase of two members from Korean boyband BTS.
Released on May 16, a three-minute, 25-second music video for Jin’s English song, Don’t Say You Love Me, the main track off his second solo album Echo, which was also released on the same day, shows the popular artist and his love interest, an established South Korean actress Shin Se-kyung, interacting around eight landmarks in Singapore.
Besides well-known tourist locations like National Gallery and Gardens by the Bay, the music video also features locations that are relatively less prominent, but no less unique in their own way – the rooftop carpark of Goldhill Plaza, which is known for its unique circular design; Emerald Hill, which is home to a cluster of preserved Chinese Baroque shophouses; and Keng Eng Kee Seafood, a local restaurant listed in the Michelin Guide.
In less than a week, the Don’t Say You Love Me music video has acquired 9.9 million views on YouTube as of the afternoon of May 21 – and viewership continues to scale.
Fellow BTS member, J-Hope, who did two sell-out solo concerts in Singapore April 26 and 27, also put Singapore sights in the spotlight when he posted an Instagram Reel of himself enjoying the Singapore Botanic Gardens, Sentosa Sensoryscape, Alkaff Bridge, and digging into a popular local breakfast of half-boiled eggs and kaya toasts at Ya Kun Kaya Toast as well as an elaborate dish at one-Michelin-starred Waku Ghin. The Reel on J-Hope’s official Instagram page has 23.5 million views and 94.1 thousand shares as of May 21.
Commenting on Jin’s music video, Serene Tan, executive director – North Asia, Singapore Tourism Board, said the collaboration was a “unique opportunity to showcase Singapore’s culture, nature, and architecture through a charming blend with Jin’s music”.
Destination Singapore is also making headlines now with Lady Gaga’s four Asia-exclusive performances at Singapore’s National Stadium. Her concerts, scheduled for May 18, 19, 21 and 24, mark her return to the Lion City where she last held her Born This Way Ball concerts in 2012.
Amadeus data research pulled on April 3 noted statistically significant upticks in travel searches for Singapore. The American singer, songwriter and actress announced on March 10 that Singapore would be her only Asia stop in her world tour, which led to a 57 per cent spike traffic queries to Singapore the same day.
Search traffic volumes surpassed this peak on March 18, 19 and 20 – the days Lady Gaga’s pre-sale tickets became available, growing by a further 41 per cent. This was the highest spike in flight searches for travel to Singapore in May so far this year.
Hotels in Singapore also showed at least a 10 per cent growth on the four show nights in comparison to last year, according to data pulled on April 1 from Amadeus Demand360.
Amadeus Navigator360 data identified most flight bookings are from Seoul, Denpasar, Tokyo, Mumbai, Taipei, Hong Kong, London, Sydney, Delhi, Melbourne, Jakarta and Manilla for travel over the concert dates.
