In an effort to sway the upcoming elections in Taiwan, China reportedly exerted pressure on the well-known Taiwan-based band, Mayday, compelling them to state that China and Taiwan are part of the same nation before Taiwan's elections in January 2024, as per CNN's Thursday report.

Mayday, one of the most prominent rock groups in the Chinese-speaking world, has been under an official probe in China since early December over alleged lip-synching during their recent Shanghai shows. The band's label has repeatedly denied the accusations.

During a recent security affairs briefing, two Taiwanese intelligence officials asserted that Chinese authorities had been exerting pressure on Mayday for several months, urging the band to declare that both China and Taiwan are part of the same country.

Security officials in Taiwan have asserted that China's inquiry into the alleged lip-synching by the band may be connected to efforts to influence the election.

The Taiwanese officials claimed that when Mayday refused to comply, the Chinese Communist Party's powerful propaganda department coordinated with state media to generate widespread public discussions about alleged lip-synching at their concerts to pressurize them.

"We have decided to publicize the incident because it is the first time they have gone after Taiwanese artists on such an unprecedented scale," the officials said.

The Kuomintang (KMT), Taiwan's main opposition party, expressed condemnation if the accusations were proven true. Additionally, the KMT called on the Chinese government to respond to the allegations.

Over 24 hours after Reuters sought comment from China's Taiwan Affairs Office, the office issued a statement carried by Taiwanese media. The statement dismissed the accusations of government pressure on Mayday as "fake news" and claimed that the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) was spreading rumours.

"This is sinister and malicious political manipulation," the office said, according to Taiwan's Central News Agency, United Daily News, and other outlets.

The lip-synching accusations centered on Mayday's recent shows in Shanghai, where it performed eight times over 10 days in mid-November to a combined audience of more than 360,000, CNN reported.

The controversy began in late November when a music vlogger on Bilibili, one of China's biggest video-sharing platforms, posted a video in which he used computer software to analyze the vocals of 12 songs recorded live by a fan at Mayday's concert in Shanghai on November 16.

The vlogger asserted that his analysis revealed the lead singer of the band, Ashin, lip-synced at least five songs during the three-hour performance. According to the vlogger, the vocalist's singing was consistently on point for those particular numbers, while noticeably fluctuating in pitch for the other songs.

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The vlogger's allegations quickly gained traction on the social media platform Weibo, becoming the top trending topic and garnering hundreds of millions of views.

On December 3, the Shanghai Culture and Tourism Bureau, a municipal government department responsible for overseeing commercial performances, declared an investigation. This move was widely covered by major Chinese state media outlets.

The lip-sync investigation's findings and any penalties for Mayday have not yet been made public.

Mayday's management company, B'in Music, has previously denied allegations of lip-syncing during the band's November tour in China.

The two Taiwan security officials, citing intelligence gathered by Taiwan, said the campaign was led by China's Publicity Department in a move to sway voters ahead of Taiwan's Jan. 13 presidential and legislative elections.

By doing so the Chinese authorities believe they could "sway the youth vote in Taiwan," one of the officials said.

They described the scope of the cross-department campaign against Mayday as "unprecedented," involving coverage of the lip-syncing allegations by various entities, including the Chinese Communist Party's official newspaper, the People's Daily, the state broadcaster CCTV, and the official Xinhua News Agency.

In recent months, Taiwanese officials have issued repeated warnings that Beijing is employing new methods to interfere in the elections, attempting to influence voters to support pro-China candidates. These tactics have reportedly involved trade sanctions, exchange activities with Taiwanese politicians, and military maneuvers, as noted by Taiwan officials.

China, in recent years, has intensified its efforts to compel Taiwanese celebrities, international organizations, and companies to acknowledge Taiwan as part of China. This has sparked discontent and frustration from Taiwan's government and a significant portion of its population.

Beijing, which claims Taiwan as its own and has increased military and political pressure to force the island to accept its sovereignty, frames the elections as a choice between "peace and war", calling the DPP dangerous separatists and urging the Taiwanese to make the "right choice".

Image source: Reuters