Megaport Festival Celebrates 20 Years with Over 200,000 Attendees, Featured in European Metal Music Forum

This annual conference has been held concurrently with the Inferno Metal Festival in Oslo since 2006. In 2024, it attracted nearly 300 industry representatives from 36 countries, making it the world's largest metal music exchange platform. This year's event was co-hosted by the Norwegian Ministry of Foreign Affairs. The session, titled "Head B*tch in Charge," focused on women in the industry who started from scratch. Sharing the stage with Ye Xiangyi were Emma Cederblad, a Swedish producer who has worked on tours for Beyoncé and Madonna; Silje Wergeland, co-founder of Norway's Beyond the Gates metal festival; and Kim Dylla, an American-Swedish stage costume designer. The moderator, Lina Khatib, is a co-founder of the World Metal Congress. Ye Xiangyi's presentation at the forum centered on the 20-year growth trajectory of the Megaport Festival, starting from its humble beginnings. The first edition had only 800 attendees, and Kaohsiung was then still referred to as a "cultural desert." The Megaport Festival ran at a loss for its first two years; 20 years later, the two-day event attracts over 200,000 attendees. She said that these figures astonished the participants, who hailed it as a world-class scale event. She emphasized that the core of Megaport has never just been about setting up stages and inviting artists to perform. Local businesses thrive during the event, with nearby convenience stores stocking thousands of cases of mineral water and beer. Community elders and children also participate through pre-festival activities. The light rail, Megaport Bridge, and Kaohsiung Music Center were completed alongside Megaport, illustrating how "Kaohsiung Port Area grows, and Megaport grows with it." Ye Xiangyi summarized this model as "holistic cultural development," making the music festival not just a two-day event but a part of local identity. Audiences come for the music, businesses flourish, residents participate because of Megaport, and the city transforms because of Megaport. These four elements mutually nourish each other, forming a self-sustaining, win-win industrial ecosystem. Another highlight of Megaport this year was the visit of a Finnish parliamentary delegation to Kaohsiung. She took the parliamentarians backstage, where they met Finnish singer Käärijä. This exchange also became a prelude to her trip to Oslo to see artists perform. She said that Megaport invited Nordic artists for the first time this year, and the effect exceeded expectations. She plans to continue bringing European artists to Taiwan in the future, stating, "Japanese and Korean music have had a significant impact on Taiwanese bands, but music culture needs more diverse stimulation." It is worth mentioning that the Japan Concert Promoters Association (ACPC) formed a delegation for the first time to visit Megaport for inspection. Members included Live Nation and Fuji Rock Festival, both iconic concert promoters. This was a rare exception for the association to send a delegation abroad for inspection. Ye Xiangyi told a Central News Agency reporter with emotion, "20 years ago, I led a group to Japan for observation; now to be observed feels truly honored." She said that Megaport's success today is not due to one person alone. "It must be the collective wisdom of many people, and the team's investment of various perspectives and efforts." Transitioning between her roles as the leader of the Chthonic band, a curator, the wife of the Finnish representative, and a mother, she said that although it is tiring, she cherishes it. (Edited by: Tian Ruihua) 1150410