Jayanty Nada Shofa, Jakarta – President Prabowo Subianto wants to Indonesia to host more K-pop concerts, according to chief diplomat Sugiono, but fans remain worried about the sky-high ticket prices.

Many Indonesians are fond of K-pop: starting from the seniors BigBang and BTS to the newer ones like Cortis. But it turns out Prabowo's recent talks with South Korean President Lee Jae Myung brought some good news for Indonesian fans of Korean music.

Speaking to reporters in Jakarta, Sugiono said Wednesday that there were "plans of increasing the number of concerts for K-pop lovers".

"And I have actually just learnt that there are Indonesian members [in K-pop groups]. Forgive my ignorance," Sugiono said.

The foreign minister was alluding to Hearts2Hearts' Carmen. The idol caught attention for taking a photo with the two leaders during Prabowo's visit to South Korea earlier this month.

Sugiono did not go into more details on the plan.

A survey by K-pop Radar had placed Indonesia as the world's third-largest market for the genre in 2025.

The idea of having more K-pop appearances in Jakarta, however, fails to hit the right note with Indonesian fans, as they worry about how much they have to spend to see their idols perform. For major names like EXO, tickets start from Rp 1.5 million ($87) to nearly Rp 4 million ($233). This is already more than half of the Rp 5.7 million ($332) monthly minimum wage in the capital Jakarta.

"More concerts with such prices? If the price makes sense, go on. If not, I'd better spend my money on other things in this economy. Ideally, the price for the best concert package should only be 20% of the minimum wage," Echa, a 31-year-old fan of the girl group Aespa, told the Jakarta Globe.

Ayas, an office worker who identifies as a supporter of the boy bands Seventeen and Day6, echoed similar concerns. She added: "But the question is: will there be government incentives? Ticket prices in South Korea are way below their local minimum wage."

The concertgoer warned of the rampant scalper bots in the ticket wars. These people often resell the tickets at a much elevated price. While enthusiasm for K-pop soars at home, so does the emergence of new promoters "with questionable credibility". Ayas went on to explain that K-pop idols should also consider making stops in other Indonesian cities beyond Jakarta.

Source: https://jakartaglobe.id/lifestyle/prabowo-wants-more-kpop-concerts-in-indonesi