Hong Kong singer Sam Hui's online concert attracts 2.5 million viewers - The Straits Times

Fans of Sam Hui were treated to a feast of music on Sunday (April 12) as the Hong Kong singer sang 20 songs in a livestreamed concert to bring cheer amid the coronavirus pandemic.

Hui, 71, performed for about one hour on the open rooftop of the Harbour City mall in Tsim Sha Tsui, with Hong Kong's Victoria Harbour as the backdrop.

The show attracted more than 2.55 million viewers, including singer-actress Gigi Leung, singer-actor Kenny Bee and Hong Kong chief executive Carrie Lam.

Before the concert started at 5pm, the host, actor Lawrence Cheng, said no one would have thought a hug would be a luxury and humans have been to be socially separated by 1.5m before the outbreak.

Hui kicked off the show with Below The Lion Rock, the unofficial anthem of Hong Kong first performed by late singer Roman Tam.

He also performed The Private Eyes and Just A Little with his elder son Ryan Hui. The Private Eyes is a theme song from a 1976 movie of the same name which starred Hui and his two brothers - actor Michael Hui and late actor Ricky Hui, while Just A Little is a song by American rock band The Beau Brummels.

Hui ended the concert with From The Heart Of A Loafer, Through Thick And Thin and A Sound Of Laugh In The Vast Sea, which was written by late songwriter James Wong and the theme song of the 1990 movie Swordsman .

Hui was originally scheduled to hold his concerts in July, but had to cancel them due to the pandemic. He said he was not contented with performing only for one hour, as he promised his fans he would return to perform at the Hong Kong Coliseum.

Hui's concert was livestreamed on Facebook and YouTube, and was also broadcast by more than 40 media outlets like TVB and ViuTV.

While the concert's production director Patrick Siu stressed before the show that it was not a fundraiser, fans still sent in money ranging from HK$10 (S$1.80) to HK$500.

Hui had earlier donated HK$250,000 to help the workers of a music event company affected by the cancellation of his concerts.

The total amount donated by viewers has not been tallied yet. Siu said the donations would be audited before auditors pass the money to the affected workers.