F4 fan upset over $398 S’pore concert tickets resold for up to $750, gets vulgar reply after questioning price
A long-time F4 fan was disappointed after failing to secure her preferred tickets for the group’s Singapore concerts, only to find them being resold online at significantly higher prices.
Stomper Fannie, who has been a fan of the Taiwanese boy band for more than 20 years, shared screenshots of several listings and conversations with resellers ahead of the F*Forever 1st World Tour in Singapore.
The concerts are being held at the Singapore Indoor Stadium from Aug 14 to 16.
$398 ticket resold for as high as $750
Fannie had managed to buy a Category 4 ticket through the official sale for $216, but was hoping to upgrade to Category 1 for a better view.
She said the original price of a Category 1 ticket was $398.
However, screenshots she shared showed one reseller offering Category 1 tickets for $750 each on Carousell.
Another seller was asking for $1,200 for a pair of Category 1 tickets, or $600 each.
Fannie said she was willing to pay slightly above face value for a Category 1 ticket, but drew the line at $500.
“I really wanted a better CAT 1 ticket so I could see them up close, but unfortunately I couldn’t get the better-view or choice tickets during the original sale,” she said.
“Seeing tickets being resold for $600, $750 or more is disappointing, especially for genuine fans who simply want a good chance to see their idols again after so many years.”
Her disappointment was particularly acute as she has been an F4 fan for more than two decades.
Fannie recalled meeting her idols face-to-face at airports in Singapore and Kuala Lumpur about 20 years ago.
“Those memories have stayed with me until today,” she said.
“This time, after 20 years, I’m still doing the same thing — hoping to see and support them again.”
“I’m very happy that they are still so popular after all these years, and I hope they know how much their long-time fans still support them.”
Price dispute turns nasty
Things became more unpleasant when Fannie questioned the prices being charged by one reseller.
Screenshots show the seller initially asking Fannie for her budget and saying they could “work around” it.
Fannie replied that the original Category 1 ticket cost $398 and questioned why tickets were being sold for considerably more.
The seller later offered a Category 1 ticket for $600.
As their exchange became heated, Fannie told the seller: “I mean you don’t have to scold me.”
“Why scolding me c*! Anyway quarrel argument don’t help anything,” she added.
Fannie told Stomp that the seller had used the same vulgarity against her before allegedly deleting the message.
After Fannie called out the high resale prices, the seller hit back, describing her as “very free” and a “time waster”.
Fannie remained unfazed, saying she wanted to highlight the issue to “stop all scalpers in Singapore”.
She believes concert tickets should be sold only through authorised ticketing channels to give genuine fans a better chance of securing them at their original prices.
“Many genuine supporters are really very upset,” she said.
Fannie also worries that the demand for tickets — and fans’ willingness to pay inflated prices — could create opportunities for scammers.
“I find it ridiculous,” she said. “Many consumers are willing to pay for expensive tickets, and this could attract scammers too.”
Still, the difficulty of securing the seats she wanted has not dampened Fannie’s enthusiasm for seeing F4 again after more than two decades.
“I really hope my idols know that many long-time fans are still trying our best to support them, even though getting a good ticket has become so difficult.”
Police warn of concert ticket scams
Fannie’s concerns about the resale market come amid a police warning about scams involving tickets to highly anticipated concerts.
On Aug 13, police issued an advisory over scams involving tickets to the upcoming BigBang XX:Cosmos concert.
At least five cases had been reported since the start of August, with total losses amounting to at least $3,500. Police said similar scams had also been reported in relation to other concerts.
In such cases, victims encountered online advertisements or listings for tickets and made advance payments via bank transfer, PayNow or other methods.
The purported sellers subsequently became uncontactable or failed to deliver the tickets as promised.
The police said they had reached out to Carousell to request the removal of relevant resale listings for the BigBang concert.
Members of the public are advised to exercise caution when purchasing tickets online, particularly for highly anticipated concerts where supply is limited and demand is high.
The police also remind the public to purchase concert tickets only from authorised platforms.
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