On social media

SINGER SORRY ABOUT LINKS TO BETTING PLATFORM: Taiwanese singer Jeff Chang has apologised for his links to a betting platform.     

Chang, 54, known for 1990s ballads such as Love Is Like The Tide, trended on the Chinese Internet on Thursday after he was accused by Chinese netizens of being the spokesman for an overseas gambling website and helping to promote it.     

Chang's agency Tide Music said on the same day that the singer was invited by OB Entertainment in March 2020 to be its brand ambassador in the Philippines, adding that the company's main business is in culture, entertainment and sports.     

Tide Music said the contract did not arrange for Chang to promote the company's activities in regions like China. It added that the contract ran out in March last year and that it has ended cooperation with the company.     

On Thursday, Chang apologised for the incident. In a post on Chinese social media platform Weibo, he confirmed the version of events set out by his agency, noting that the contract with OB was legal in the Philippines.     

"At the same time, I am also doing a deep self-reflection," he wrote in Chinese. "As a well-known singer, it is not enough to just abide by the law, but I also need to lead by example and be cautious in my words and actions ethically.     

"Hence, I deeply apologise for the adverse effects this incident has caused to the public."     

Chang has enjoyed a second wind in his career after he emerged as the runner-up in the fourth season of Chinese reality show I Am A Singer in 2016.     

He was scheduled to perform in Shanghai's Dragon Television's New Year Countdown Concert yesterday, but it is unknown if his participation has been affected by the incident.