Sunny Lam

Sunny Lam (born 1 June 1986; ) is a Hong Kong singer-songwriter and YouTuber. Lam is known for rewriting lyrics to the tune of existing well-known songs as satirical political commentary during the 2014 Hong Kong protests and the 2019–20 Hong Kong protests.

Lam first received attention when he wrote and sang satirical songs during the 2014 Hong Kong protests. He used to work in a marketing position but quit his job in March 2019 to start an independent recording studio. During the 2019–20 Hong Kong protests, Lam satirised the Hong Kong Police Force and supporters of the government by writing and performing additional rewritten songs. In addition to rewriting 50 existing songs by May 2020, he has written original songs about heartbreak, love, wage earners' state of mind, and brown sugar bubble tea. Lam publishes his music videos to YouTube, Facebook, Instagram, and LIHKG.

Early life and career Lam was born on 1 June 1986. He is introverted and describes himself as having a bit of a Buddha-like mindset. When he was a youth, he learned how to play the piano, make music arrangements, and sing. After graduation, Lam sent a sample of his music to record companies and received some replies though ultimately his music was not used. When he was nearly 30 years old, he resigned from his marketing job in March 2019 to set up an independent recording studio. By May 2020, he had almost 100,000 followers on Facebook and YouTube. Fong noted that Lam's output is higher than many professional singers, compared Lam to well-known singers who have sung rewritten songs, and argued that Lam should be considered a real singer. Lam began busking two or three times a month after the 2019 Hong Kong protests began. He chose to perform near housing estates as considered them to be close to the people. He insisted on not going to hotspots like the Tsim Sha Tsui waterfront where there would be tourists. During one of his performances, an elderly man knocked over his piano, leading to the audience's scolding the man, who left.

Owing to the national security law, Lam said he changed his behaviour. He did not sing songs on some topics that some people wanted him to sing because he deemed those topics to be too sensitive. Lam said, "I am scared, but I won't stop doing it" and said that writing songs was a good way to get the public interested in political issues since "Music can repackage news by adding different styles to it such as a sense of humour". Next TV commented that "the entire song uses a realistic style to accuse the Hong Kong police of improper law enforcement", received a lot of attention, and resonated with netizens. Lam's video discussed the 9 June 2019 protest, the 12 June berating of a Commercial Radio Hong Kong by the Hong Kong police, the 30 June addresses at a pro-police gathering from singers Alan Tam and Kenny Bee, and the storming of the Legislative Council Complex on 1 July.

Lam wrote a song called "Total Prohibition" that he uploaded to YouTube on 26 March 2020. It modified the lyrics of Lowell Lo's song "Walk With You" and satirised the Chief Executive of Hong Kong's plan to ban alcohol sales in restaurants at the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic.