Apple Music censors songs in China that reference Tiananmen massacre, democracy

“Apple Music has removed a song by Hong Kong singer Jacky Cheung from its Chinese streaming service, with some questioning if the move was related to politically sensitive lyrics,” Holmes Chan reports for Hong Kong Free Press. “The song, the title of which translates to ‘The Path of Man,’ was the theme music of the 1990 film A Chinese Ghost Story II. According to the late James Wong, who penned the lyrics, parts of the song were directly referring to the 1989 Tiananmen Square crackdown.”
“The move has fueled speculation that the Chinese government was ramping up efforts to censor mentions of the June 4th incident, as this year would mark the 30th anniversary of the massacre,” Chan reports. “The crackdown ended months of student-led demonstrations in China. It is estimated that hundreds, perhaps thousands, of people died when the People’s Liberation Army was deployed against protesters in Beijing.”
“Last week, netizens also discovered that the songs of Hong Kong singer Anthony Wong were taken down from Apple Music’s China service. All songs from his band Tat Ming Pair were removed, except for one titled ‘Do you still love me?’ The songs of Hong Kong pro-democracy singer Denise Ho were similarly delisted, with the singer’s name not showing up in searches at all,” Chan reports. “Both Wong and Ho had been supportive of pro-democracy protesters during the 2014 Umbrella Movement.”
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The Tiananmen Square/June Fourth Incident, 1989