Dance invite floors Ho

Multi-talented rocker Denise Ho Wan-sze is putting on her dancing shoes for a performance with local dance-floor king Aaron Kwok Fu-shing at the 12,000-capacity AsiaWorld-Expo centre.

Ho, who last year performed flamenco in front of 8,000 people at the Hong Kong Convention and Exhibition Centre, is due to team up with Kwok for a show in July. The performance is part of an event to celebrate the launch of Hong Kong's first legitimate subscription-based online music service, moov.now.com.hk.

The music and dance show will precede the singer's first ticket-selling solo concert, scheduled for October at the Hong Kong Coliseum.

Ho (above) said that she was initially reluctant to be part of the July show because it would encroach on the time she needed to prepare for her solo gig. But when she was told that she would share the stage with Kwok, she jumped at the chance.

Ho said she used to imitate his dance moves at home before she became a professional singer. 'When I took part in the New Talent Singing Contest, I performed one of his upbeat songs. Of course, my dancing was terrible and I danced like a crab.'

The 28-year-old, a winner of TVB's New Talent Singing Contest in 1996 and the only female protege of late singer Anita Mui Yim-fong, said she wasn't intimidated by the thought of performing along- side Kwok.

She said it represented a chance to hone her dancing skills.

Ho, who features in the new online music service's TV commercial, said the site is a good way to tackle copyright infringement and said she doesn't believe the service will affect record sales.

Featuring Chinese, English, Japanese and Korean songs, as well as the latest radio plugs, the service allows users to listen to music legally by paying a monthly fee. Later this month, Ho will release her as-yet untitled album.