Taiwanese rock band Mayday deny lip-syncing at Shanghai concert
Taiwanese rock band Mayday have denied allegations that they were lip-syncing during their recent concert in Shanghai.
B’in Music, their record company, issued a statement on Weibo on Dec 4, dismissing the claims as malicious attacks. The agency said that the allegations have “seriously damaged the band’s reputation”.
“Mayday are cooperating with law enforcement authorities to investigate the matter thoroughly,” it added.
The controversy started when a blogger analysed the vocals of 12 songs performed by Mayday during their Shanghai concert on Nov 16. In the viral video posted on Bilibili, a popular Chinese video-sharing platform, the blogger claimed that lead singer Ashin lip-synced to at least five songs.
China Central Television reported that the original video and audio recordings of Mayday’s Shanghai concerts have been submitted to the city’s cultural market inspection department for evaluation and analysis. The investigation results will be published later.
According to a set of regulations imposed on performers by the Chinese government, lip-syncing is illegal in China as it “deceives the audience”. If the band is found guilty of lip-syncing, they could face a fine of 50,000 yuan ($9,500) to 100,000 yuan.
Mayday held eight concerts in Shanghai in November and drew more than 360,000 fans, reported China Daily. Ticket prices ranged from 355 yuan to 1,855 yuan for the top-tier seats.
Formed in 1997, the band comprise Ashin, bassist Masa, drummer Guan You and guitarists Stone and Monster. They have won several Best Musical Group honours at the prestigious Golden Melody Awards, and are known for albums such as Viva Love (2000), Poetry Of The Day After (2009) and History Of Tomorrow (2017).
Meanwhile, B’in Music shared on its social media platforms that Mayday’s Dec 7 Paris concert (3am on Dec 8, Singapore time) will be broadcast live on Mayday’s Instagram and Weibo accounts.
The rock band will be in Singapore on Jan 13 for a one-night Mayday Nowhere Re: Live 2024 concert at the National Stadium.
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