On the afternoon of June 30th at 5 p.m., Hong Kong singer Denise Ho held an online concert on the rooftop of the former location of the Bleak House Bookstore in Sheung Wan, attracting dozens of fans to watch the live stream outside the bookstore. Denise Ho’s father and friend, Anthony Wong, were also present. Unexpectedly, several police officers claimed to have received noise complaints and proceeded to set up a cordon at the scene, recording the identification of Denise Ho and her fans, causing the concert to be interrupted twice within a span of over an hour.
According to Radio Free Asia, Denise Ho’s concert titled “HOCC POP-UP LIVE” took place on June 30th in the former Bleak House Bookstore in Sheung Wan, with a live online broadcast and outdoor screens set up. In addition to Denise Ho, guitarist Mike Orange provided accompaniment, and artist Jack Hui served as the photographer.
About an hour into the concert, multiple police officers suddenly arrived, claiming to have received “noise complaints” and demanding the concert be paused. Hearing the noisy crowd outside, Denise Ho, who appeared calm, said, “Can the noise outside be reduced a bit?” She paused the performance, walked to the window to watch the situation, only to find four police cars and over ten police officers arriving on site, setting up a cordon and recording the identification of people outside the store.
During the police operation, Denise Ho continued the concert inside the bookstore, occasionally peeking out the window. As she sat on the staircase of the rooftop and sang “Dear Black,” she shed tears, then returned to the rooftop after the song. Subsequently, the performance was halted again. It turned out that the police requested to record the identification of the people inside the store. Denise Ho urged them to start with her and the guitarist’s IDs so they could continue the live broadcast. Facing the camera, she said, “Do the police have anything to say? Do they need my ID? To our online friends, we are facing a little situation, but we remain unmoved like a mountain.”
The online broadcast continued afterward, with the audience on-site staying to watch the live stream on their phones until the concert ended. In the early hours of July 1st, Denise Ho wrote on Facebook, “Amidst the chaos, just continue being yourself, that’s enough.”
In fact, before the concert began, police cars had passed by the scene several times, briefly stopping before leaving. Some fans criticized the police’s presence at the scene as an attempt to “suppress” Denise Ho, believing that the actions of the Hong Kong police further showcased the “absurdity” of the Hong Kong government to the world.
Denise Ho, who has been actively involved in the peaceful Occupy Central and anti-extradition bill protests, was arrested by the Hong Kong Police National Security Department on May 11, 2022, on suspicion of violating the National Security Law of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region. Despite being released on bail afterward, her concerts have faced obstacles at every turn, with venues being inexplicably canceled and difficulties arising even in organizing free online concerts.