Security guards detained for beating fans at UK singer's concert

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Watching your favorite singer perform live is supposed to be a delightful and exciting experience. However, UK singer Dua Lipa's recent concert in Shanghai was an experience most fans, and the singer, would rather forget.

Two security guards, identified as Zhu, 22, and Nai, 20, who were accused of kicking and arguing with fans during the September 12 concert, were given a 10-day detention by local police, according to a statement released on Sunday by the Qingpu Police on Weibo, China's Twitter-equivalent.

Local police detained two security guards who were accused of kicking and arguing with fans during the concert. /Screenshot from Weibo

The concert's organizer, a US-based events promoter and venue operator – Live Nation, also apologized to the fans and the singer in a statement on Sunday.

Live Nation, organizer of the concert, apologized to the fans and the singer on Weibo. /Screenshot from Weibo

The organizer said the conflict began when a female audience member fell and twisted her ankle during the concert. After the injured fan was sent to the hospital, security guards attempted to prevent another accident, but some of them overreacted and physically clashed with fans.

The incident first came to light after video clips of the security guards dragging, attacking and shouting at fans during the concert for standing up and dancing were widely circulated on social media and ignited outrage among netizens.

Security guards clash with a group of fans during the Dua Lipa concert in Shanghai. /Screenshot of video on Weibo

It was the final date of the first China tour for the 23-year-old singer and the concert in Shanghai took place in the National Exhibition and Convention Center.

Several fans who attended the concert also shared their experiences on Weibo, with some claiming that a few fans were removed from the concert for waving a rainbow flag, which is a symbol of LGBT rights.

In their posts, they criticized the brutal behavior of the security guards at the concert, drawing even more attention on social media and further fueling online backlash.

Weibo user @yueguangxiadealalei-Elsa strongly criticized the brutal behavior of the security guards at the concert. /Screenshot from Weibo

"This is the moment when Dua Lipa sang 'One Kiss' on stage and I saw security guards brutally drag fans out of the concert. She was totally stunned. And the fans were furious. I can't believe it is the year of 2018 right now," posted Weibo user @yueguangxiadealalei-Elsa, along with a video clip.

Dua Lipa cries while speaking to her fans during the concert in Shanghai. /Screenshot from Twitter

In a video shared by @Liability on Twitter, the singer was captured upset and even crying in the middle of the concert as she talked to her fans: "I want to create a really safe environment for us all to have fun … I want us all to dance. I want us all to sing. I want us all to just have a really good time," which was hurrahed by her fans at the concert.

The singer showed her support to her fans the next day by posting on Twitter and Instagram, praising them for their bravery after she saw some of them were ejected from the concert.

Dua Lipa posted on Twitter, showing her support to her fans at the Shanghai concert. /Screenshot from Twitter

"I was horrified by what happened and I send love to all my fans involved. I would love to come back for my fans when the time is right and hopefully see a room of rainbows,” the singer wrote on Twitter.

Dua Lipa released her first single in 2015, and became popular internationally for her recognizable vocal and powerful songs. She won two Brit Awards for British Female Solo Artist and British Breakthrough Act in 2018 and her single "One Kiss" produced by famous DJ Calvin Harris reached No.1 in the UK Singles Chart in the same year.