Death of a Hong Kong pop star: when city mourned Beyond singer Wong Ka-kui in 1993
Thousands of fans were distraught when Wong Ka-kui, singer for punk band Beyond, fell off a stage in Tokyo, in June 1993, and later died of a cerebral haemorrhage
“Beyond singer in coma after fall in Japan”, ran the headline in the South China Morning Post on June 25, 1993. “Pop star Wong Ka-kui, lead vocalist for Hong Kong band Beyond, was in a coma last night, 19 hours after falling off a production set during the filming of a television variety show.”
Reviewing the band’s progress, on June 27, the newspaper’s entertainment editor wrote that Wong, his brother Ka-keung, Yip Sai-wing and Wong Koon-chung had formed Beyond in 1983 “as an independent, alternative band”. They had “developed a following, playing punk and new wave shows at small venues […] and represented an important counterpoint to the all-pervasive Canto-pop”.
On July 1, under the headline “Fans pay homage to Beyond singer”, the Post reported the death of Wong from a cerebral haemorrhage in Tokyo the day before. Fans had held a vigil outside the band’s studio in Sai Yee Street, Mong Kok.