Smart, Universal Music bringing Jessie J to capital

UK pop idol Jessie J is to perform at a concert in Phnom Penh on December 12 hosted by telecommunications company Smart and Universal Music.

Smart chief executive Thomas Hundt at a press conference yesterday announced that the concert would be held on Koh Pich following the finale of Smart’s “Mega Concert 2015” tour and I Am the Fastest Competition which will feature a series of performances by Cambodian artists all around the Kingdom between October 31 and December 11.

Real name Jessica Ellen Cornish, the pop and R&B singer’s first album in 2011, Who Are You, landed in the top 15 on the Billboard Top 200 and had six top 10 singles.

The single "Domino" went onto double-platinum status. Her second album Alive in 2013 reached the top five in the UK Albums Chart while last year’s Sweet Talker reached number 10 on the US Billboard Top 200. According to her website, she’s sold more than 20 million singles and 3 million albums worldwide.

Jessie J will be the second big-name artist Smart has brought Cambodia in less than a year. In May, the company staged an open-air concert on Koh Pich with US pop star Demi Lovato, which was reported as being one of the biggest by a foreign artist ever in the Kingdom.

Yesterday’s concert announcement came after the signing of a memorandum of understanding between Smart and six music production houses to have their artists’ music made available through Smart’s music streaming services.

Hundt said Smart was becoming an entertainment provider rather than just a telecommunications company.

He said the company’s goal was to increase respect for music copyright to ensure that songwriters were compensated for their work and that the collaboration was about making music “affordable and available everywhere”.

The concert is free, however two levels of premium areas are set aside for Smart mobile phone subscribers who activate top ups worth $2 or $20. For more details check smart.com.kh.

 sourced:phnompenhpost.com