Less magic show, more singing: Unhappy Jay Chou fans blast singer on social media after his concert

Fans who attended Jay Chou’s Carnival World Tour at the Singapore National Stadium on Dec 17 and 18 had a lot to say about the shows that cost between S$218 and S$388 per ticket.

Even though the Mandopop star posted on Instagram that the atmosphere was “high” at the end of each concert, not every fan shared his sentiment. In fact, some concertgoers have taken to social media to air their disappointment with the Taiwanese crooner’s performance.

For one, fans weren’t too pleased to see more of Chou’s friends, whom he invited on stage as his guests, than him. These were the same friends who appeared with him on J-Style Trip, a globe-trotting variety show on Netflix.

Fans felt “cheated” as lengthy magic performances and Chou’s guests, who sang more than he did, made up most of the concerts.

One concertgoer responded to Chou’s Instagram post: “Your friends needn’t have appeared on stage with you, it’s embarrassing. It’s enough that they were on J-Style Trip, but there’s really no need to bring them to the concerts. We paid good money to hear you sing, not your guests.”

The Jay And Posse show didn't go down well with other attendees as well; one TikToker called the concert a “$400 K-session”.

There were harsher comments seen on the singer’s Instagram post: “If your heart is not in it, don’t do it. For the sake of money, you’re willing to hold concerts with such standards. Can your conscience take it?”

On the same Instagram post, a fan highlighted that there were more complaints on Chinese social media platform Little Red Book, including that Chou barely sang and when he did, he couldn’t hit the high notes and his voice was overpowered by the music.

Other concertgoers compared Chou's professionalism with that of other singers. "Previously, I attended Jacky Cheung's concert and he said, 'I don't invite guests because I know the fans are here for me'," commented one fan. "Looking at tonight's show, can you say with a clear conscience that you sang for at least an hour?"

MORE UNHAPPINESS

Attendees also weren’t happy with their complimentary light sticks that were supposed to change colours in sync with the music. According to some fans, they were of inferior quality and failed to light up.

In a TikTok video, a user highlighted that the words printed on the light stick’s heart-shaped top “might peel off” if you touch them too much while switching the batteries.

Some keen-eyed netizens noted that the video showed “20” printed on one side of the top, prompting one of them to comment, “Isn't this light stick the same as the one 2 years ago...reduce, reuse and recycle”.

Concert organiser GHY Culture & Media has apologised to fans on the light stick matter in a Facebook post on Dec 20. “We hear your feedback regarding the complimentary light sticks that were given out at the concert and we are sorry that these light sticks did not come up to your expectations."

The company added that the light sticks have “not been recycled from the last concert in 2020”. Rather, the “20” is part of the Carnival Tour emblem and a nod to Chou’s more than 20 years of making music.

"HE REALLY TRIED HIS BEST"

Some netizens speculated that the unhappy reviewers were haters or "heifen" ("black fans" in Chinese) posing as fans to mar Chou's reputation.

Certainly, there were concertgoers who were more sympathetic to the 43-year-old performer. "Everyone, don't compare those in their 20s with those in their 40s," said one supporter on Chou's Instagram.

"For his concert this time, I think he really tried his best. I believe that if he was able to sing high notes, he would definitely have done so... Magic is also something Jay wants to share with fans."

Another pointed out: "He played (instruments), he sang, he danced to show you 18 martial arts forms. Is that still not sincere enough? If you say no, next time don't fight for tickets. It's difficult to get a ticket".

Local celebrities such as Zoe Tay, Felicia Chin, Jeanette Aw and Shane Pow showed their love to the singer-songwriter as well with Pow gushing on Instagram: "Finally watched my childhood idol @jaychou live for the first time!".

Chou's previous concerts in Singapore were held in January 2020.