Outspoken folk rock singer Li Zhi disappears as China tightens grip ahead of Tiananmen anniversary
- Artist’s tour was cancelled, his social media accounts taken down and music removed from streaming sites before he vanished from public view
- Ruling Communist Party is bracing for June 4, which marks 30 years since military crackdown on pro-democracy protests
It has been three months since Chinese rock musician Li Zhi disappeared from public view.
First, an upcoming tour was cancelled and his social media accounts were taken down. Then his music was removed from all of China’s major streaming sites – as if his career had never existed at all.
“Now this square is my grave,” Li sang. “Everything is just a dream.”
China’s ruling Communist Party has pushed people like Li into the shadows as it braces for Tuesday’s 30th anniversary of the military crackdown. Hundreds, if not thousands, are estimated to have died on the night of June 3 and in the early hours of June 4.
The party’s effort to scrub any mention of the movement has been consistent through the decades since then and ramps up before major anniversaries every five years. This year, the trade war with the US has added to government skittishness about instability.
