A US-based Spotify result for ‘Glory to Hong Kong’ (Photo: Digital Music News)
The 2019 anthem of the Hong Kong protests, “Glory to Hong Kong” is being reportedly being removed from Spotify and Apple Music across the globe.
“Distribution companies in the U.K., United States, and Canada are kneeling down [to China],” DGX Music, the creative team behind “Glory to Hong Kong” writes on Instagram. “It has completely disappeared from all streaming platforms. We couldn’t find the original version of ‘Glory to Hong Kong’ released by DGX Music on Apple Music or Spotify in Hong Kong, Taiwan, the United Kingdom, or Canada,” the post continues.
The protest anthem sparked outrage after organizers played the song in error at overseas sporting events instead of China’s “March of the Volunteers.” It was embraced and sung by unarmed protestors during the mass demonstrations for full democracy in Hong Kong in 2019. In May 2024, a Hong Kong court granted the government’s request to ban the protest song—overturning an earlier ruling. It also marks the first time a song has been banned in Hong Kong since Britain returned the territory to China in 1997.
The judge in the case said an injunction on the song was necessary to persuade internet platform operators to remove “problematic videos in connection with the song” from their platforms. Failure to comply with the court order may be considered a contempt of court and could see people liable for a fine or imprisonment in Hong Kong.
Now a report from Radio Free Asia suggests that the anthem is being removed from Spotify and Apple Music in countries like Taiwan, the United Kingdom, and Canada.
Photo Credit: Spotify
Some remixes and cover versions of the song still appear, but the original anthem has been removed. YouTube also blocked access to dozens of videos featuring the song in May, citing the court’s ruling. DGX Music also complained in June that an a capella version of the song was removed by U.S. distributor Distrokid, with no response to DGX Music’s questions about its removal. Scotland’s Emubands clarified that it removed the song from distribution precisely because of the Hong Kong court injunction.
Songwriters maintain that the injunction only applies to Hong Kong, and “Glory to Hong Kong” should not be removed from digital service providers (DSPs) like Spotify and Apple Music in countries like the United States. “Some Western media organizations have complied with the Hong Kong government’s political injunction unnecessarily, resulting in the violation of basic human writes,” DGX Music says.
