Lululemon apologises for China event with actor beating Japanese drum on Great Wall

The sportswear brand Lululemon has apologised and withdrawn its latest marketing video in China because of a controversy surrounding a big Japanese drum and the Great Wall.

The video was designed to promote a yoga-themed event the brand held on the world-renowned historic site in suburban Beijing on May 30.

The activity, which was supposed to salute Chinese culture, featured top-tier Chinese actor Zhu Yilong and the mainland’s leading Fanxiang Drum Corp, who played the drums together during the performance, the Qilu Evening News reported.

Actor, Zhu Yilong, above, sits next to the drum in a meditative pose. Photo: Douyin

As the clip went viral on social media, some percussion instrument experts pointed out that the big, double-sided drum played by Zhu is actually the Japanese wadaiko, rather than a traditional Chinese drum.

“The drum beaten by Zhu Yilong should be categorised as Japanese wadaiko based on its appearance, performing format and the core elements in its performance,” said Xu Yang, a Beijing-based drum player who graduated from Central Conservatory of Music, on social media.

“On the Great Wall, such a place with high cultural symbolism, presenting a Japanese drum as a Chinese traditional one, will not only mislead the public, especially the youth, it also touches the sorrowful memories of the public and hurts the feelings of the Chinese people,” he added.

Two men, above, beat the drum as it sits atop the Great Wall. Photo: Douyin

The bad memory Xu refers to is the Japanese invasion of China during World War II.