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Jay Chou’s Much-Anticipated Album Is Here, but ‘Greatest Works’ is Getting Not-So Great Online Reviews

“It’s just a classic Jay Chou album.”

Manya Koetse

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The July 15 release of Jay Chou’s much-anticipated album The Greatest Works of Art (最伟大的作品) is a trending topic on Chinese social media. The album dropped at 0:00 exactly.

Last week, the album’s first single, also titled The Greatest Works of Art , already became a major hit – not only because of the song but also because of the music video. Filmed at iconic Parisian locations, the music video was almost like a short movie in itself (read more here).

On Thursday, the album cover was published online before the album release, showing Jay Chou in front of Mont Saint-Michel in France.

For many people, music by the Taiwanese producer, actor, composer, singer-songwriter, and ‘King of Mandopop’ Jay Chou (周杰伦) brings back memories of the early 2000s when Jay Chou rose to prominence and became super popular and influential for his catchy music and lyrics that resonated with many young people.

Chou brought a refreshing new sound and look to the Chinese-language pop scene, combining rap with classical piano, mixing up Western pop, R&B, and electronic music influences with traditional Chinese music elements, and often coming up with creative and spectacular music videos.

Jay Chou blends the classical and contemporary and is not afraid to show he draws inspiration from international music and sources in popular and commercial culture from China to Europe and from the US to South America.

From Dragon Fist (龙拳, 2002 – link to MV) to Chrysanthemum Terrace (菊花台, 2006 – link to MV) and from Mr Magician (魔術先生, 2009 – link to MV) to Mojito (2020 – link to MV), Chou’s songs and music videos are so diverse that it seems as if the singer is constantly reinvesting himself.

Although early fans of Jay Chou might be all grown up now and have lost sight of their idol, or perhaps even grew tired of him, he often still brings on pure nostalgia for many people, which also contributes to his present-day success.

The Greatest Works of Art is Jay Chou’s 15th album, but it is also the first album he is releasing in six years. On Friday, the second single, including music video, was launched together with the album. The album features a total of eleven songs.

The first reactions to Jay Chou’s latest ‘Greatest’ work have not been so great. Popular Weibo music blogging account Live Music Scene (@LiveMusic现场) reviewed the album and although they also had some positive things to say, they wrote that Jay Chou’s voice does not sound as fresh anymore:

After listening to Jay Chou’s new album Greatest Works of Art, our main impression is that his singing voice has deteriorated badly. The high notes in ‘Still Wandering’ (还在流浪), ‘You Are the Fireworks I Missed’ (错过的烟火) and ‘Reflection’ (倒影) are very tense and dry – his voice sounds so hoarse that he could use a hundred bottles of Pangdahai herbal tea.” [Pangdahai tea is a malva nut drink, which is known to help treat coughing and sore throats.]

Many fans, however, defended Chou, saying it is normal for a voice to change and that the reviewer was too harsh. “It’s just a classic Jay Chou album,” multiple commenters write.

But underneath some threads discussing the new album, “I don’t like it” was a recurring comment, with many people agreeing with each other that the album is just not so great.

Despite the online criticism, Jay Chou’s true fans still praise his work and express the love they have for him and his music: “For me, Jay – who can make movies and also sings – is one of my favorite idols.” Blogger Wang Qiao (@王乔, over 140,000 fans) wrote:

Frankly speaking, his vocal level indeed is not what it used to be. And we’ve heard too many of the rhythmic styles in his past classic works. But he is now married, with with children, in an epidemic – his life is no longer all about music. And what’s actually wrong with that? Despite the changes in time and space, he is still continuing to create music (..) He is just Jay Chou, a genius who doesn’t need to prove his talent. You like it? You’re disappointed? Does it matter? It doesn’t. (..) As his old fan, I feel any kind of comment is too normal. I believe that the people who like him really do not care, they welcome criticism, it never changes. Thank you for the new album Jay Chou, I can listen to your new songs tonight and fall asleep. I hope there will be a next album, and even if you wait a few years, it does not matter.”

Another popular comment says: “What would we do without Jay Chou?”

To check out the album on Spotify, check here. It is for sale on QQ music for 30 yuan here, and is also available via Amazon.

The newest single is embedded below.

By Manya Koetse

 

Get the story behind the hashtag. Subscribe to What’s on Weibo here to receive our weekly newsletter and get access to our latest articles:

Spotted a mistake or want to add something? Please let us know in comments below or email us. First-time commenters, please be patient – we will have to manually approve your comment before it appears.

©2022 Whatsonweibo. All rights reserved. Do not reproduce our content without permission – you can contact us at info@whatsonweibo.com.

Manya Koetse is the founder and editor-in-chief of whatsonweibo.com. She is a writer, public speaker, and researcher (Sinologist, MPhil) on social trends, digital developments, and new media in an ever-changing China, with a focus on Chinese society, pop culture, and gender issues. She shares her love for hotpot on hotpotambassador.com. Contact at manya@whatsonweibo.com, or follow on Twitter.

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China Celebs

Hong Kong Police Find Head of Murdered Model Abby Choi in Soup Pot

“Reality is more gruesome than fiction,” some commenters wrote on Weibo, where the Abby Choi murder case has drawn wide attention.

Manya Koetse

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The gruesome murder of the 28-year-old Hong Kong socialite and model Cai Tianfeng (蔡天鳳), better known as Abby Choi, has been all the talk on Chinese social media this week.

The Hong Kong influencer went missing on Tuesday. Just a week ago, Choi was featured on the cover of the magazine L’Officiel Monaco.

On Saturday, South China Morning Post and Hong Kong Free Press reported that Choi’s partial remains, including her dismembered legs, were found cooked and stored inside the freezer at a village house and that four people had been arrested for murder.

The village house at Lung Mei Tsuen in Tai Po was allegedly set up as a “butchery site” equipped with a choppers, hammer, an electric saw and a meat grinder that had been used to mince human flesh.

Choi was entangled in a financial dispute with her ex-husband’s family over luxury property in Hong Kong’s Kadoori Hill. The persons arrested in relation to her murder are her ex-husband named Alex Kwong, his elder brother, his mother and his father, who reportedly is a retired police officer.

Abby Choi and Alex Kwong had two children together, a daughter and a son.

Cho was last seen in Fo Chun Road in Tai Po on Tuesday afternoon. CCTV footage captured her before she went missing. Choi was supposed to pick her daughter up on Tuesday together with Kwong’s elder brother, who drove her. She was reported missing after she did not show up to collect her daughter.

While earlier media articles reported that some of Choi’s remains had still not been found, news came out on Sunday that the decapitated head had been found in a soup pot. Seeing over 300 million views, the topic went trending on Weibo (#蔡天凤头颅在一大汤煲中找到#), where many people have closely been following the latest developments in the case. Later on Sunday night, the topic hashtag was taken offline.

Local police disclosed that the head remained “intact” although it is believed that someone tried to “smash” it. Some of Choi’s ribs were also found.

“Reality is more gruelsome than fiction,” some top comments said. “What a terrifying family,” others wrote, calling them “inhuman” and “devilish.”

Another topic related to the case also went trending on Sunday, namely that Choi’s ex-husband and his family allegedly had been planning the murder for a month (#蔡天凤前夫家1个月前开始布局#, 180 million views).

Some Weibo bloggers said the case reminded them of another well-known and gruesome Hong Kong murder case, namely the 2013 murder of Glory Chau and Moon Siu. At age 63, the couple was murdered by their own 28-year-old son Henry Chau Hoi-leung and his friend. After killing them, the two chopped up Chau’s and Siu’s bodies and cooked their remains and stored them inside the refrigerator. The 2022 crime film The Sparring Partner (正義迴廊) was based on this story.

About the Kwong family, some Weibo users write: “Too bad that Hong Kong law does not have the death penalty.” Capital punishment in Hong Kong was formally abolished in 1993.

By Manya Koetse 

 

Get the story behind the hashtag. Subscribe to What’s on Weibo here to receive our newsletter and get access to our latest articles:

Spotted a mistake or want to add something? Please let us know in comments below or email us. First-time commenters, please be patient – we will have to manually approve your comment before it appears.

©2023 Whatsonweibo. All rights reserved. Do not reproduce our content without permission – you can contact us at info@whatsonweibo.com.

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China Arts & Entertainment

South Korean Actor Yoo Ah-in Dropped as Brand Ambassador in China after Propofol Scandal

The current drug scandal involving Yoo Ah-in also has consequences for the South Korean actor’s activities in China.

Manya Koetse

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The South Korean actor Yoo Ah-in (刘亚仁) has become a trending topic on Chinese social media for getting caught up in a drugs scandal in his home country.

Yoo Ah-in (1986) is an award-winning actor who is known for starring in various well-known dramas and renowned movies, such as Voice of Silence, Burning, and Hellbound.

Yoo is currently being investigated for alleged illegal, habitual use of the anesthetic drug propofol and has been banned from overseas travel.

On Thursday, the hashtag “Yoo Ah-in Admits to Using Drugs” (#刘亚仁确认吸毒#) received over 310 million views on Weibo, where several accounts reported that Yoo allegedly started using propofol in 2021.

Yoo issued a statement via his management, saying he is cooperating with the police in the investigation. He also apologized for causing concern among his fans and followers.

The drug scandal also has consequences for the actor’s activities in China. Liu was the brand ambassador for the Chinese men’s clothing brand Croquis (速写), but Croquis immediately removed him as their representative after the scandal.

Croquis issued a statement saying the company has been closely following the latest developments regarding the investigation into the actor’s alleged drugs use, and stated that they have “zero tolerance” when it comes to drug use and therefore would temporarily take all content offline in which Yoo represents their brand.

South Korean media reported on Feb. 9 that Yoo is among a group of 51 people that is part of an illegal drug use investigation initiated by the Food and Drug Administration, which found that Yoo went doctor hopping and “hospital shopping” to obtain multiple prescriptions.

Propofol is a sedative that is widely used by anesthetists for the induction and maintenance of general anesthesia and for long-term sedation. Over recent years, the abuse of propofol in South Korea has been getting more media attention.

Although propofol is classified as a controlled substance in South Korea since 2011, the recreational use of the drugs has been a problem and various celebrities have previously been charged for illegally using the drugs.

On Weibo, some people say that there indeed should be “zero tolerance” for drug abuse among celebrities and artists, but there are also those who think Yoo Ah-in’s drug abuse is a result of his alleged (mental) health problems, and that he needs help instead of punishment.

By Manya Koetse 

 

Get the story behind the hashtag. Subscribe to What’s on Weibo here to receive our newsletter and get access to our latest articles:

Spotted a mistake or want to add something? Please let us know in comments below or email us. First-time commenters, please be patient – we will have to manually approve your comment before it appears.

©2023 Whatsonweibo. All rights reserved. Do not reproduce our content without permission – you can contact us at info@whatsonweibo.com.

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