Hong Kong superstar Andy Lau’s signature mass birthday bash was back with a bang after five years.
It was attended by more than 3,000 fans and several of his good friends from the entertainment industry.
The star-studded celebration, organised by his official fan club Andy World Club after 2½ months of preparation, was held at the AsiaWorld-Expo in Hong Kong on Sept 9. Lau turns 62 on Sept 27.
The typically annual extravaganza took the form of smaller-scale online affairs in the last few years due to the pandemic, while the 2019 celebrations were cancelled in the light of tensions surrounding anti-government protests in Hong Kong that year.
The singer-actor kicked off the 2023 event by leading a singalong of his classic tunes with the audience.
Celebrities like singer Joey Yung and actors Michael Tao, Chin Ka Lok and Vincent Kok made appearances, and spoke about visiting Lau’s recent art exhibition and seeing his artistic side.
Two veteran artistes, actress Helena Law Lan and singer-actor Bowie Wu, took to the stage to sing praises of Lau.
Law, 88, applauded Lau for respecting his elders, recalling an incident in which Lau flew overseas to pass an award to her in person as she was not in Hong Kong.
Wu, 91, asked everyone to support Lau forever, and said he would do whatever Lau asked him to do.
Lau then suggested performing the Cantonese song Separate Flying Swallows with them and Yung, 43. Yung also chose to do a solo rendition of her favourite Lau song, Happy Monkey.
“I am so happy and feel like a part of the ‘family’,” she said, referring to the term for Lau’s fans. “I hope I can attend Andy’s birthday party every year in the future.”
Celebrity singing couple and special guests George Lam and Sally Yeh performed Lam’s classic Dare To Love Me, while actors Carlos Chan and Dee Ho seated in the front row were invited on stage by Lau to sing Secret Admiration and Having Fun Alone respectively.
Chan, 36, a huge fan of Lau, said he did not expect to be picked.
“If I had known earlier, I would have gone to do my hair,” he joked. “It was my first time attending Brother Andy’s birthday party, and I’m given the opportunity to sing with him. It was like a dream.” – The Straits Times/Asia News Network