Hins Cheung has been in the music industry for 23 years which really surprised me as the man hasn’t really aged over the last two decades. Finally adding Melbourne and Australia as part of his ‘The Next 20’ Live Around The World Tour.
Raised in a Cantonese speaking family, Cantopop has always been a big part of my life. Through the different stages of life, I’ve had my phases falling in and out of Cantopop, and Hins Cheung has always been one of those artists I constantly turned back to. With the lack of Cantopop singers coming to Australia, I was beyond excited when he announced the tour.
Greeted by deafening cheers, Hins took the stage in a gorgeously bedazzled outfit, breaking into song and dance with ‘Do What You Want’ and ‘You’. He then thanked the fans for coming to his first solo concert in Melbourne, regardless of whether you were from Melbourne or flew in for the concert. After testing the waters, he confirmed the entire crowd understood his Cantonese and was relieved he didn’t have to speak English.
The lighting and stage design throughout the night was one of the best I’ve seen, lots of detail such as casting patterns onto the arena ceiling to accompany Hins Cheung’s music enhanced the wonder experience and beauty of the night. There was some audio instability with the microphone fluctuating in volume at some points, but this was easily overlooked with how visually impressive the lighting design and Hins’ overall aura and talent were.
After a beautiful performance of ‘Soul Ballad (騷靈情歌)’ and ‘Powerless (無能為力)’, Hins had his first outfit change returning in a shimmery blazer paired with some blue jeans. A very powerful message was delivered after ‘Stay Young (青春常駐)’ where he spoke about how more and more people are getting distanced from their loved ones with the interference of smartphones. He spoke about his family and advised to appreciate the time you have with your loved ones.
Hins stated that one of the best things he experienced when he started being a singer was having his friends and colleagues sing his own song. He then questioned if the male patrons in the audience were fans or whether they forced to come with their partners. Relieved that so many claimed to be fans of his and he proceeded to dedicate ‘Spring and Autumn (春秋)’ to them.
‘Ardently Love (酷愛)’ is a song I’ve listened to that has become permanent in my playlist over the last 16 years since its release. It’s not an exaggeration to call it one of my favourite Cantopop songs; but hearing it live was even more spectacular than I ever imagined. I did not know there was a possibility for this song to sound even better than what I’ve known from Hins’ recordings. The theatrics and drama of the song escalated, and I felt like I was holding my breath throughout the whole performance. Hins’ high notes were a masterpiece and the lighting to match the performance was phenomenal.
I loved how beautiful Hins Cheung’s performance of ‘Hurt So Bad’ was, accompanied by a sea of phone torches and loud singing from the Melbourne audience. After another quick outfit change, he was back with ‘Sweet Escape’, ‘Lost in Omotesando (迷失表參道)’ and ‘Yes & No’.
Returning on stage with a stunning white suit, he emotionally delivered ‘Soul Recognition (靈魂相認)’ and spoke about his belief that life is about searching for your other half which truly reunites the soul. Encouraging fans to stand on their feet, he began his K-Pop boy band dream with ‘Antique Lover (懷舊情人)’ and ‘Alright (無城有愛)’ throwing many hearts to the Melbourne audience and handsome (chok) poses before jokingly introducing themselves as 2024’s new middle aged boy group, Back Pain.
His outfits throughout the night were exceptional! Five different outfits and all were beautiful. But if I had to choose a favourite, it would definitely be his first outfit which was a fully bedazzled coat, deep vee neck design and ripped jeans. I was in awe when he stepped on stage. Obviously with his sexy outfits, it prompted some remarks from the audience. Throughout the night, chants of “Just take it off!” echoed through the arena gaining laughs. Hins Cheung is a born entertainer yet he’s so humble, down to earth, and genuine, that he did not hesitate to talk back to fans and to have some fun conversations.
You can tell he truly cares for fans, his dancers and band. This is the first time at a concert I’ve seen where each member of his dance crew, his band and his staff were not only individually introduced but their introduction came with history and a fun fact about them. Hins wholeheartedly wanted people to not overlook the hard work of everyone who works for him and never hesitated to give them some love.
Hins took the opportunity to step beyond the stage to get up close and personal with fans to give them love too during his number ‘Under the Sakura Tree (櫻花樹下)’. In almost an instant he was very quickly engulfed by the excited and passionate Melbourne crowd before he returned to the stage for his next song ‘Aftershock (餘震)’.
Very thankful that his music can accompany fans through times of high and lows, Hins spoke about when suffered from depression and how those hardships were written into ‘The Book of Laughter and Forgetting (笑忘書)’. Thanking his fans again for their dedicated love and support, Hins bowed to every corner of the arena before exiting the stage.
This caused an eruption of chants for the encore and Hins came back with ‘Imaginary Fairground (隱形遊樂場)’, an extremely loud singalong of ‘Love You Too Much (只是太愛你)’ and ‘Broken Spot (斷點)’. Mentioning that after he completes this 20-year anniversary tour, Hins shared his plans to lessen his appearances next year so that he can focus on songwriting and singing the songs that he truly wants to sing, promising to keep releasing good music before singing his final song of the night, his debut song, ‘My Way’.
With the Melbourne crowd continuously chanting for another encore, Hins returned with a second encore track ‘Kite-chasing Kid (追風箏的孩子)’ before bidding farewell to his loving Melbourne audience.
I found it hard to believe that this was Hins Cheung’s first time performing in Melbourne after 23 years in the music industry. I really hope that he felt the love with the reception he received throughout the night and that it won’t be too long before he returns to Australia again.
Proudly presented by Live Nation Australia, Hins Cheung performed in Melbourne on November 1st at Margaret Court Arena as part of his ‘The Next 20’ Live Around The World Tour.
For more information, visit:
https://www.instagram.com/hinscheung
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCgQqWQM2Dx7SZG5_i40-7lQ
https://open.spotify.com/artist/2MVfNjocvNrE03cQuxpsWK
https://www.livenation.com.au/artist-hins-cheung-1404225
Photography by Mitch Lowe.
