Do brands in Singapore understand concert sponsorships?

Forever 21 and Death Cab for Cutie? Foo Fighters and Courts? Singapore has a plethora of concerts coming up include the aforementioned plus the legendary Duran Duran and emo rockers Evanescence, all of which I am looking forward to. It’s the sponsorships that are puzzling me.

Death Cab For Cutie are a cool indie, under the radar, drinking wine as you listen to them kind of band that have been around for a couple of decades. Melodic and quite adult combined with being dark in nature and in writing.

They are being sponsored in Singapore by Forever 21 which as the name suggests is aimed at teenage girls and those in their early 20’s not your average indie rock from the 00’s and 90’s fans.

I blame the inclusion of one of their songs on the Twilight soundtrack for this. I will be intrigued as to who turns up at the concert as if 15 year old girls turn up they may get a shock!

I also don’t see what Forever 21 are getting out of it. There is none of their branding on the marketing material and they haven’t run any promotions in store and there is no social media activity going. They just appear to be displaying posters in all stores such as the one on the left.

So it’s a sponsorship that is misaligned and they’re not exploiting anyway! What’s the point of doing it?

Although the connection would appear to be that they sell sound systems the fit is all wrong as the brand values don’t match and it just looks like the Courts directors are Foo Fighters fans and wanted to be able to tell their kids they helped bring the mighty Foo’s to Singapore….the only concert in south east asia.

They are at least using it to incentivise sales as everyone who spends $100 gets entered into a draw to win one of 50 top tier tickets.

Forever 21 aren’t doing the same and don’t even sell men’s clothes and yet have Death Cab For Cutie posters of the all male band displayed all over their stores.

Evanescence remain unsponsored, i guess because you’re either into that emo rock or you’re not and they’re not as commercially acceptable as Death Cab or the Foo’s…..! More mysteriously Duran Duran also remain unsponsored despite the much higher ticket price, legendary status and mass appeal to expats…