Forget K-pop: why Hong Kong Canto-pop singers like Keung To, Serrini offer hope in a city weary of Covid-19 pandemic and politics
- Singers such as Keung To are being supported by youngsters beset with deep angst over their future and fears that their identity is under threat
- As Hong Kong gradually opens up to live shows with the pandemic under control, residents grab the opportunity to soak up positivity
Evelyn Char Ying-lam was walking through the heart of Hong Kong’s shopping district in Causeway Bay late last month when an advert on the side of a tram caught her eye and made her stop in her tracks.
It was a promotion marking the 22nd birthday of her favourite Canto-pop singer, Keung To. Similar ones were plastered at spots around the city, many of them designed and paid for by the fans themselves.
Char, 35, chased after the tram, her long white dress snapping in the wind, until it came to a stop and she could finally take pictures.
That night, she joined hundreds of other fans on a nearby street to celebrate the occasion, exchanging cards and stickers featuring Keung. But the gathering was also a chance to revel in an emotion that for Char, an art critic, had been in short supply lately in the city – a sense of belonging.
I believe Hong Kong singers can definitely become Asia’s top again