SHANGHAI (SCMP): A 20-year-old mask-wearing singer in China who has more than 22 million followers on social media and is to hold a concert with her face concealed has triggered controversy online.
The singer, from Shanxi province in northern China, who uses the alias “wangzaixiaoqiao” on a leading social media platform, has never shown her face in public, Chao News reported.
She has attracted attention after she began releasing videos of herself singing a cappella five years ago.
Fans have said that her voice has been “kissed by an angel.”
In all her videos, she uses a cartoon girl image to cover her face. Her identity has never been disclosed.
In the past year, wangzaixiaoqiao has sung songs with famous mainland stars.
A clip showing her singing with accomplished diva Han Hong has attracted 11.3 million likes, while another piece of her singing with actress Yao Chen has received 5.5 million likes.
Most of the songs she sings are not her own.
She was originally set to hold her first concert in Shanghai on Aug 9, but on July 26 she said it had been postponed and a fresh date had not yet been fixed.
When it goes ahead, it will be the first concert in China to feature a masked singer, the report said.
The event’s organiser, Warner Music China, released a statement on July 21 to address public queries about how to make sure the person performing is indeed wangzaixiaoqiao.
“The performer is the owner and operator of the social media account @wangzaixiaoqiao. She has signed her name and submitted the performance consent letter to the concerning government administrative department and will therefore perform the contents approved by the authority,” the company said.
It also addressed concerns about possible lip-synching.
“Every mask the singer wears is specially made for this concert. The lower part of the mask is made of a bridal net material, enabling the microphone to easily catch her voice,” the statement said.
“Due to the special form of this concert, the authorities will supervise the concert by taking videos and checking the real-time audio track to make sure the singer does not pretend to sing,” it added.
Wangzaixiaoqiao has said she does not show her face in public after suffering psychological damage from being stalked in the past.
She was also anxious about her appearance, fearing her audience would be disappointed if they saw what she looked like.
“I hope the public focuses on my songs. That will be more pure and can also separate my personal life from the online world,” the singer said during a live-streaming session.
Some internet users support wangzaixiaoqiao’s concert, with one netizen saying: “It is a creative idea. We should just care about the music itself.”
However, another person said: “We cannot even see her face. So why not just stay at home and listen through earphones?” - South China Morning Post
