Dressed in a suit and tie, 70-year-old Tang Shigang begins singing and dancing for his fans on an online streaming platform every day at 10 a.m. and 3:30 p.m. If not for his personal introduction at the beginning of the stream, no one would guess that Tang is a cancer patient.
He comes from China’s southwestern municipality of Chongqing and was diagnosed with colorectal cancer in 2016.
While the tumor was successfully removed, his recovery process has been painful. To help him get better faster, he laid out a detailed exercise plan for himself during the second half of 2017.
Three and half a months ago, Tang’s friends introduced him to online streaming. He found it a perfect way to record his life and practice the singing skills he learned after retiring in 2014.
Tang Shigang singing at the online streaming platform "Huajiao" / Beijing News photo
Tang Shigang singing at the online streaming platform "Huajiao" / Beijing News photo
Tang’s wife and sons supported his decision but did not take him seriously.
“I thought he was just interested in new things and his passion would soon fade,” said his eldest son, Tang Bin.
But contrary to what his son expected, Tang kept up with his streaming activities and soon gained a small but loyal fan base.
Tang uses the name “Changqingsong”, which means forever green pine, to stream on popular online platform “Huajiao”.
Tang sings and dances for about an hour every morning and afternoon. His performance list consists of 101 songs, mostly pop from the 1980s and 90s. Each day, he picks 10 to perform.
Tang Shigang's performing list consisting of 101 songs / Beijing News photo
Tang Shigang's performing list consisting of 101 songs / Beijing News photo
Before starting his stream, Tang combs his hair and puts on a tie and his best suit, sating his fans deserve a smart appearance.
“I set a pretty high standard for myself,” he said.
“A tie is a must. I have dozens of ties in different colors.”
Tang said online streaming is a way for him to battle the cancer as he has still not fully recovered. He records his singing and dancing and shares the clips with other cancer patients to encourage them.
By January 6, Tang has been streaming for 144 days and received over 300,000 likes. But he says he does not stream for the likes or the followers-it's all just for fun.
“To record my happy life in this way and not to be defeated by the cancer, is already a victory for me,” he said.