Big brands desert Chinese actor and singer Li Yifeng over shock prostitution charges

One of China’s biggest names has been hit with shock prostitution charges as the government continues to target the entertainment sector.

Global brands have severed ties with popular Chinese actor Li Yifeng after he was detained for soliciting sex workers amid a government crackdown. Picture: AFP

A major Chinese celebrity has been slapped with damaging prostitution charges, with a string of huge brands now turning their backs on him.

This week, news broke that actor and singer Li Yifeng had been detained in Beijing on charges of “soliciting prostitution on multiple occasions”.

The 35-year-old has also reportedly confessed to the charges.

Before the details were made public, his name was quietly taken off a list of stars who were meant to appear on the televised Mid-Autumn Festival Gala on Saturday.

His representatives also issued a statement stating Li had “always abided by professional ethics, adhered to the moral bottom line and actively shown social responsibility”.

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Global brands including Prada and Remy Martin have severed ties with popular Chinese actor Li Yifeng after he was detained for soliciting sex workers. Picture: AFP

However, details of the scandal soon began circulating, and within hours at least 11 major brands, including fashion giant Prada, dropped him from lucrative ambassadorship positions.

Over the years, Li has grown to be both incredibly influential and wealthy, amassing 60 million followers on the Weibo social media platform and ranking ninth on Forbes’ China Celebrity list in 2015, 11th in 2017 and 26th in 2019.

But the China Daily has since reported that Li has been “cancelled” in the wake of the solicitation charges, while the Global Times wrote that “business insiders predict that his prospects of a comeback are hopeless”.

China has a history of targeting high-profile citizens – especially the ultra-wealthy, and those within the tech and entertainment industries – as part of Chinese President Xi Jinping’s “Common Prosperity” strategy, which is designed to rewind the influence of Western capitalism.

“Common prosperity is the essential requirement of socialism and an important feature of Chinese-style modernisation,” the leader reportedly said last year.

“It is necessary to follow the principles of marketisation and rule of law, and co-ordinate the prevention and resolution of major financial risks.”

Since then, it has become increasingly clear that Xi views independent billionaires and influential heroes as such a risk.

Actress Fan Bingbing vanished for months on end. Picture: Gareth Cattermole/Getty Images

As did Alibaba chairman Jack Ma. Picture: Lintao Zhang/Getty Images

Since it was introduced, huge names have been caught in the crossfire, including tech billionaire Jack Ma and actresses Fan Bingbing, Zheng Shuang and Zhao Wei, who disappeared from public life for months on end after being “erased”.

Another victim of the crackdown was Charles Xue, a Chinese-American entrepreneur and angel investor who vanished back in 2013 and only re-emerged after a video of him confessing to hiring sex workers aired on national television.

President Xi Jinping announced the ‘Common Prosperity’ strategy, which is designed to rewind the influence of Western capitalism. Picture: Justin Chin/Bloomberg via Getty Images

Solicitation seems to be a particular focus of the Chinese government, with high-profile pianist Li Yundi arrested on similar charges in 2021.

In a worrying sign, he too subsequently disappeared for seven long months.

And in 2018, China’s National Radio and Television Administration ordered the banishment of actors whose “morality is not noble”, who were “tasteless, vulgar and obscene”, or whose “ideological level is low and have no class”.

The organisation committed to banning “actors with stains, scandals and problematic moral integrity”.

Meanwhile, Li Yifeng’s public fall from grace is especially shocking after he portrayed Mao Zedong in the patriotic flick The Pioneer released last year.

In the wake of the scandal, China’s Huading Awards announced it had removed Li’s titles of “Best Actor in China’s Top 100 TV Dramas” and “The National Audience’s Favourite Movie Star”. His associations with major brands as well as personal statements regarding the scandal have also been wiped from the internet.