Anime Event in Shanghai Canceled after Singer's Show Interrupted

Shanghai, Nov. 29 (Jiji Press)--A Japanese anime event that kicked off in Shanghai on Friday with a three-day schedule was canceled following an incident where a Japanese singer's performance was forcibly interrupted at the event venue, according to Japanese entertainment firm Bandai Namco Holdings Inc., the event's organizer.

At the venue, experience-oriented attraction booths featuring popular Japanese anime such as "One Piece" and "Mobile Suit Gundam" were set up, drawing many local anime fans on the first day on Friday.

In the evening on the day, a performance by singer Maki Otsuki, who sings the theme song for One Piece, began, but midway through a song, the lights and sound were cut off, forcing the performance to end. On Otsuki's official website, her agency explained that the performance had to be halted abruptly "due to unavoidable circumstances."

Amid growing backlash in China over Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi's remarks regarding a potential Taiwan contingency, Japan-related events in the country such as music performances have been canceled one after another, signaling a full-scale move to exclude Japanese cultural content.

A concert by Japanese singer Ayumi Hamasaki had been scheduled for Saturday in Shanghai, but it was abruptly canceled on Friday. Final preparations for the concert were underway when China suddenly requested the performance be canceled on Friday morning, according to people familiar with the matter.

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