The abrupt cancellations of several Japanese music events in Shanghai – one of them mid-song – have sparked criticism from fans, with some calling the moves “rude” and “extreme”.
Maki Otsuki was halfway through the theme song for the hit anime One Piece on Friday when the lights and music went out, after which two crew members carried her off stage.
On Saturday, pop star Ayumi Hamasaki performed at an empty 14,000-capacity stadium after organizers canceled her concert in Shanghai, citing “force majeure.”
This series of cancellations comes as diplomatic tensions between Beijing and Tokyo are exacerbated by Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi’s comments about Taiwan.
Takaichi, known to be an outspoken critic of China and its activities in the region, suggested last month that Tokyo could take military action if Beijing attacked Taiwan.
Beijing considers autonomous Taiwan part of its territory and has not ruled out using force to “reunite” with it.
Both sides have since lodged protests against each other, and the rift has also affected daily life in both countries.
Otsuki’s management attributed the interruption of his Friday performance to “unavoidable circumstances.”
“Apart from the cancellation of the performance, there were no particular problems and the local staff were very friendly and helpful,” he wrote in a separate statement on Monday, in which he declined interviews about the matter.
Their performance was part of a three-day music festival in Shanghai, for which subsequent events were also canceled after “exhaustively taking various factors into consideration,” according to Japan’s Kyodo News.
The BBC has contacted Japanese entertainment company Bandai Namco, one of the organizers of the festival.
Some of Otsuki’s fans have created a meme comparing the closing of her performance to the shocking ouster of China’s former leader Hu Jintao during a Communist Party meeting in October 2022. The meme went viral on social media over the weekend, with some saying that Ms. Otsuki received “the Hu Jintao treatment.”
On social media, some accused Chinese authorities of taking away their own people’s freedom to enjoy culture in their attempts to sanction Japan. “What’s the point of turning the tip of the spear towards your own citizens?” read a post X written in Japanese.
“You don’t care about the audience; after all, they’re Chinese, right?” wrote one user on Weibo, the Chinese X-type platform.
George Glass, US ambassador to Japan, joined the online conversation. “It’s really unfortunate that there are people who can’t feel the power of music,” he wrote in a post on X that also included a link to Journey’s Don’t Stop Believin’.
“Maki-san, don’t stop believing, keep holding on to your convictions!” he wrote.
However, the incident also stoked nationalist sentiments on Chinese social media, with some questioning why the event was allowed in the first place, given the diplomatic dispute.
“How could the event have occurred at a time when the entire nation is angry with Japan?” wrote one Weibo user.
Hamasaki, who was in Shanghai as part of his Asia tour, said he was suddenly asked to cancel his concert on Friday.
The pop icon performed to 14,000 empty seats as part of her gratitude to the “people of the company, the Chinese staff and the large Japanese family who fought during this tour,” she wrote on Instagram.
“I still firmly believe that entertainment should be a bridge that connects people, and I want to be on the side of creating that bridge,” he wrote.
Two weeks ago, Chinese state media announced that the releases of at least two popular Japanese anime films would be postponed amid the diplomatic row.
