UP TO 20,000 JOIN LIVE STREAM FOR MIRROR RETURN
Fans tune in for music video launch after break by boy band, but others accuse its management of downplaying accident that left dancer injured
Up to 20,000 Mirror fans have tuned in to watch the live launch of the Canto-pop boy band’s first music video after a two-month hiatus, as some called on the group’s management to take responsibility for a horrific accident that left a dancer seriously injured.
Supporters of the band yesterday watched the launch of the music video for Mirror’s latest single, “We All Are”. The song marked an end to a break spanning August and September, which was announced by the group’s management, MakerVille, following the collapse at a concert of a monitor that put dancer Mo Li Kai-yin in hospital.
“Love you all so much. My tears were flowing as I watched [the music video], I could feel your struggle and pain. Everything will be OK, [we] will have your back,” an internet user called Abby Kan wrote in the video’s comment section.
But some fans urged the management company to accept its culpability regarding the screen collapse and the resulting injuries sustained by Li, who is at risk of paralysis from the neck down. One YouTube user said MakerVille needed to accept its part in the accidents, for “Mirror’s sake”.
Another social media user, Louis Lee, took to Facebook to accuse the company of downplaying the accident with the release of the song, saying the tragic scene had affected and even hurt many people. He instead urged MakerVille to provide assurances that it would take the safety of its performers seriously.
But others argued it was time for people to move on. “There will be a judgment on who’s right and wrong, but I hope people will stop immersing themselves in unhappy memories,” one person wrote in the video’s comment section.
Li has been undergoing treatment at Queen Elizabeth Hospital since the accident, but was discharged from intensive care last month. His father, Reverend Derek Li Shing-lam, on Sunday said the dancer no longer required a neck brace and could turn his head for the first time since regaining consciousness.
MakerVille and Music Nation, the joint organisers of the concert in July, last week released a statement addressing backlash over both companies’ limited response to the incident. “The main reason is that we hope to wait for the final results of the investigation by the government’s expert team and various departments, and focus on taking care of the needs of the injured first,” the firms said.
The statement referred to a government investigation involving several departments, which had previously attributed the collapse of the screen to the use of substandard wire cords for suspension and under-reporting of the monitor’s weight.
Separately, friends of Mo Li announced they planned to host an eight-day “cheering event” from today as a show of public support for the recovering performer. Some of Li’s fellow dancers from the Mirror concert were among those who shared invitations via Instagram promoting a gathering in Causeway Bay.
Five members of Mirror also shared the invite on their accounts, with Edan Lui Cheuk-on, Frankie Chan Sui-fai, Stanley Yau Sze-chun, Ian Chan Cheuk-yin and Anson Kong Yipsang all posting to express their support for Li’s recovery.
According to the social media post, attendees will receive a feather-shaped sticker as a sign of support for Li. “Let us continue to pray for Kai-yin and let good energies help to spread his wings and fly again,” it wrote.
I could feel your struggle and pain. Everything will be OK, [we] will have your back
INTERNET USER CALLED ABBY KAN