Letters | How did Hong Kong go from Andy Lau to Carriage Lau?

Readers discuss the rise of antisocial influencers, the DSE exam, and the HK$2 transport fare scheme

Reading Time:3 minutes

People walk past a poster featuring pop singer Andy Lau outside the Hong Kong Coliseum in Hung Hom on December 17, 2024. Photo: Edmond So

Published: 11:30am, 18 Feb 2025

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If “brain rot”, the Oxford word of the year in 2024, were to take physical form, the emergence of antisocial online influencers would perhaps be its most fitting embodiment in Hong Kong.

From Lam Hak-lam, also known as Dragon Heart, to Lau Chun-hin, who goes by Carriage Lau, the lunacy displayed by these infamous individuals has become a peculiar source of entertainment. Lam was sentenced to six months in jail last year for electoral expenses fraud while Lau was jailed for five and a half months for molesting seven teenage girls and a woman.

From assaulting pedestrians to seemingly resorting to acts of self-destruction, these influencers’ antics create Schadenfreude that requires no intellect to process, producing grotesque yet irresistible stimulation of the audience’s senses. Perhaps based on the theory of supply and demand, the rise of these content creators can be attributed to the viewer’s guilty pleasure.

But there’s a bigger problem here. The brain-rotting influence of these figures is not merely a niche spectacle but signals a troubling shift in Hong Kong’s pop culture.

Of course, we can agree that they are not pop stars, though Carriage Lau occasionally surprises us with his refined vocals, but their reckless behaviour highlights a deeper issue.