--- title: "Thousands of Chinese Fans Paid to See a Virtual Hologram Singer" description: "Thousands of fans convened at Shanghai's Mercedes-Benz arena on Saturday to watch a virtual hologram singer perform." date: "2019-03-04" modified: "2019-03-04" authors: - name: "Victor Tangermann" job_title: "Senior Editor" link: "https://futurism.com/authors/victor" url: "https://futurism.com/virtual-idol-hologram-luo-tianyi-lang-lang-live" categories: - "Future Society" - "Virtual Reality" tags: - "3d digital hologram" - "china" - "hologram" - "music" --- # Thousands of Chinese Fans Paid to See a Virtual Hologram Singer ![]() *\Image: VSinger/Weibo\* ## Hologram Performance Thousands of fans convened at Shanghai's Mercedes-Benz arena on Saturday to see an unusual show: a virtual hologram singer named Luo Tianyi, accompanied by world famous Chinese pianist Lang Lang. But rather than basing the holographic performance on a particular human performer's movement and voice — the way holograms of Michael Jackson and Tupac have ["performed"]() on stage over the last decade — Tianyi's performance is the result of six months of hard work by roughly 200 production staff, as the [*South China Morning Post* (SCMP) reports](). ## Virtual Celebrity Because she doesn't exist as a real person, Tianyi is an intriguing vision of the future of entertainment. Her voice and personality are created through sophisticated tech, including motion capture and 3D modelling. A backstage voice dubber and motion-capture actress even allowed Tianyi to interact with Lang Lang in real-time. ## DIY Superstar Luo isn't the only virtual idol out there. In Japan — where the trend caught on first — Yamaha Vocaloid-based idols such as [Hatsune Miku]() have turned the trend into a [billion dollar market](). "Luo Tianyi is perfect," Kit Cheung Jie, a 17-year-old senior high school student in Hong Kong told the *South China Morning Post*. "She is not a real person so she can be whatever you want her to be. It’s like a customized idol that only belongs to you." **READ MORE:** [China’s virtual idols meet their fans at the intersection of entertainment and technology]() \[*SCMP*\] **More on holograms:** *Spinning Rods Create Stunning Holograms* ## Author I've been at Futurism since 2017, where my role has evolved to encompass design, writing, and increasingly editing. I've always been fascinated by space exploration and advanced transportation, which I've leaned into by interviewing luminaries in those fields while closely following the dimensions of policy and regulation that allow next-generation projects to succeed -- or, sometimes, to fail. I'm also keenly interested in the effects of generative AI on society, policies, and democratic institutions, as well as clean energy, physics and biology, and the vagaries of tech leadership. My work for Futurism has been cited by publications including Ars Technica, Gizmodo, PC Magazine, Jalopnik, Fox News, and the New York Post. I spent my childhood living in locations including Manila, the Philippines, and Geneva, Switzerland, attended McGill University, and now live in Toronto, Canada. Before Futurism I worked at AskMen and a small photography studio. In my free time, I'm an avid gardener, foodie, and craft beer lover, as well as a maker of artisanal hot pepper sauces. I have a magnificent dog named Freida. ### Author social links [Bluesky]()