Malaysia’s local acts feel left out of live music boom: ‘missing middle’
Por Ushar Daniele — South China Morning Post – News feed
Advertisement Malaysia This Week in Asia Lifestyle & Culture Malaysia’s local acts feel left out of live music boom: ‘missing middle’
Artists question efforts to develop local talent, highlighting ‘worrying trend’ of global stars with no Malaysian opening act
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Ushar Daniele Published: 12:03pm, 23 Sep 2026 Kuala Lumpur is making it easier and cheaper to bring international music stars to the city, hoping that a bigger concert calendar can help Malaysia capture more of Southeast Asia’s booming live-music economy.
But as more global acts come to Kuala Lumpur, Malaysian musicians are asking whether the concert boom is creating more opportunities for local artists too.
Fuad Alhabshi of Malaysian rock band Kyoto Protocol said local bands once routinely benefited when major international acts came through Kuala Lumpur, including opportunities to play support slots.
His band has opened for Muse, Death Cab for Cutie and The Killers.
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