Hong Kong Cantopop singer and opposition supporter Anthony Wong says venue booking for August concert cancelled without reason
- Hong Kong Convention and Exhibition Centre ‘not in a position to proceed’ with contractual obligation to host concert, the operator says, according to Wong
- Wong is one of few artists who have openly voiced support for opposition figures during anti-government protests in 2019
The Hong Kong Convention and Exhibition Centre has withdrawn permission for singer and opposition supporter Anthony Wong Yiu-ming to stage a concert in August without giving a reason, according to the performer.
Wong on Friday posted a letter from the venue on his Instagram account that said it was “not in a position to proceed” with its contractual obligation to host the singer’s concert.
The letter also came with a refund of the HK$463,000 (US$59, 097) deposit paid by Wong’s production company.
“I think the management of [the exhibition centre] owes the Hong Kong public an explanation. How could a resident who ardently loves the city be stripped of his right to perform for Hongkongers?” Wong wrote on Instagram.
According to the singer, his application to rent a concert hall at the venue was approved in January. Previously, none of his attempts to book venues were successful following his last show in the city in December 2021 as part of Cantopop duo Tat Ming Pair.
“I would like to apologise to friends who bought flight tickets for the concert. We are still thinking about the next step, please give us some time, [we will] take a deep breath and sing again.”
The show in August is part of the singer’s global solo tour, which kicked off in Taipei in January, followed by performances in Manchester, London, Amsterdam and Berlin this month.
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In response to a Post inquiry, the venue management said it would not comment on individual events.
The Culture, Sports and Tourism Bureau said it was not involved in the decision and declined to comment.
The Post has reached out to the Hong Kong Trade Development Council, which co-owns the venue with the government, for comment.
Wong, the 60-year-old vocalist of Tat Ming Pair which rose to fame in the 1980s, is one of a few artists in the city to openly voice support for opposition figures during the anti-government protests in 2019. He is also an activist for the rights of sexual minority groups.
During the Occupy Central movement, a large-scale show of civil disobedience in 2014, Wong performed at protest sites to show his support for the cause. He was then reportedly banned from mainland China, where his music was also pulled from streaming sites.
But he continued to express his support for opposition figures and also took part in several protests in 2019.
In August 2021, he was arrested by the Independent Commission Against Corruption and charged with inducing others to vote for former lawmaker Au Nok-hin through live performances on the campaign trail during a Legislative Council by-election in 2018.
The charges were subsequently dropped and Wong was given 18 months’ probation and fined HK$2,000.
The Cantopop singer is not the only politically active artist in the city who has been rejected by local concert venues.
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Singer Denise Ho Wan-see, who actively supported protesters during the social movements in 2014 and 2019, was forced to cancel her concert at the Hong Kong Arts Centre in 2021.
Her reservation of the Shouson Theatre of the Wan Chai-based venue was terminated days before her first show on September 6, when the centre said Ho had breached clause 22(c) of its hiring agreement.
According to the clause, management can without notice cancel a confirmed booking and the hiring of a venue if “public order or public safety would be endangered during the course of performance”.
The venue neither explained what the public safety issue was, nor specified what provisions Ho had failed to meet.
Ho’s team had sought further explanation from the centre, but were only told that management was “duty bound to observe closely the recent developments in society and the laws concerned”.
