Mayday cleared of lip-syncing allegations

Compiled by ZULKIFLI ABD RAHMAN, C. ARUNO and R.ARAVINTHAN

TAIWANESE rock band Mayday has been cleared of all allegations of lip-syncing – a punishable offence – by Chinese authorities following a six-month investigation.

The Shanghai Municipal Administration of Culture and Tourism announced on May 11 that it found no evidence that the band had deceived its audience by lip-syncing during live concerts, China Press reported.

“During our investigation, we could not find evidence of actions that have broken the law as claimed in the reports we received,” the municipal administration said.

It was earlier reported that concertgoers were furious that the band had allegedly resorted to lip-syncing during its concerts in China last year.

Mayday was vilified on Chinese social media for “deceiving fans” despite Ashin, the band’s frontman, pleading their innocence online.

“I have relied on my vocal chords for every concert and (for singing) every note for the past 24 years.

“Apart from singing live, there is no other way to move your hearts,” Ashin said.

The allegations led to authorities launching an investigation into the band last December.

Commercial regulations in China prohibit lip-syncing before paying audiences because it is “deceptive”.

The offence is punishable by a fine of 100,000 yuan (RM65,560).

Artistes can also be banned from performing and their show organisers can have their licences revoked.

Mayday will be returning to the Beijing National Stadium, also known as the Bird’s Nest, for a series of concerts this month.

Scheduled to perform 10 dates, Mayday is set to become the band which has performed the most number of times there.

The above articles are compiled from the vernacular newspapers (Bahasa Malaysia, Chinese and Tamil dailies). As such, stories are grouped according to the respective language/medium. Where a paragraph begins with a >, it denotes a separate news item.