Leo Ku bags Hong Kongmusic awards

Tsai Chin urged fellow singers at the Top Ten Chinese Gold Songs awards to value quality over quantity. PHOTO: TAIPEI TIMES

Crooner Leo Ku (古巨基) clinched the biggest prize of the Hong Kong music awards season, helped by the popularity of Loved Too Late, a song that encourages people to express their appreciation for loved ones.

Ku awarded the Four Electronic Media Syndicated Award on Saturday at Hong Kong's fourth and final music awards ceremony of the season, the Top Ten Chinese Gold Songs Award organized by government-owned radio RTHK. The prize goes to the most decorated singer of the awards season.

Ku more harmony among pop stars in an industry whose record sales have been hurt by the spread of digital music.

"Come the awards season there's always talk of singer A and singer B being bitter enemies or singer C and singer D battling it out. I'd like to say there shouldn't be any bitter enemies in the Hong Kong music industry. We're all comrades,'' he said.

Joey Yung (容祖兒) was another big winner at Saturday's Chinese Gold Songs awards ceremony, named best female singer and best-selling female singer in Hong Kong and most popular in mainland China.

Veteran Andy Lau (劉德華) was China's most popular male singer. In Hong Kong, Hacken Lee (李克勤) was the best-selling male pop star and Eason Chan was named the best male singer.

Ku's Too Late won the Global Chinese Gold Song Award, which was decided by Internet voting and reviews from Chinese radio stations around the world.

The most popular song in China was Thousand Miles Away, a duet by Jay Chou (周杰倫) and fellow Taiwanese singer Fei Yu-ching (費玉清).

The Golden Needle lifetime achievement award went to Adam Cheng (鄭少秋), who wore a cowboy hat and a leather trench coat while performing sexy choreography with female dancers dressed in gold bikinis and shorts with a leopard skin pattern.

Cheng guest performer veteran Taiwanese singer Tsai Chin (蔡琴) urged fellow singers to value quality over quantity. The Chinese pop music industry is known for its prolific output.

"Don't release albums when there aren't any good songs available," Tsai said.

"The music industry is very diverse. There are all types of singers. But I think the most important thing is to strive for quality," said Cheng, who has released 46 albums, made 46 movies and 72 TV series.