Do we like Bobby Chen?
Our score: 5 out of 10. Decent music and no harmful record found, but an unresolved 2023 allegation and a thin record of good deeds leave him in the middle.
Bobby Chen (陳昇) grew up in Changhua County and moved to Taipei after vocational college, working odd jobs before landing a junior role in the music industry. He became a songwriter and producer for big Mandopop names, then a solo artist known for melancholy ballads and socially minded pop. He has put out about an album a year and has held a year-end concert since 1993.
The mess came in 2023. A record designer alleged on Facebook that he sexually harassed her at a 2019 business meeting, claiming he pushed drinks on her and made unwanted remarks. She said his team's apology letter was watered down and skipped the verbal side. Taipei's mayor said the city had zero tolerance for harassment, and his Tianmu Beer Festival slot was cancelled. His agent only said the matter was under discussion, and the allegations were unproven.
On 2 November 2023, at an album launch, Chen finally spoke up and said “I'm really sorry about this.” The report I read mentions no lawsuit, police report or investigation, so there is no court outcome either way. An apology is a start, but I couldn't find anything that shows what changed afterwards, and the designer's complaint about the first apology letter stands.
On the harm test, there's nothing nasty here. His best-known political stance was in 2014, when he opposed the cross-strait services trade agreement and said “I shut out China.” Beijing's trade office called his remarks extreme. Where you land on that depends on whether you read it as pride in Taiwan's local market or as a sharp line on Chinese visitors. He has also said he thinks music should be honest and free of labels.
The good-deeds column is thin. I found no charity work, no stands for LGBTQ+ rights and no climate work from him, just a long, steady music career and a loyal crowd at his New Year's Eve shows, which hit their 31st year in 2025. I also found no new reporting from this year that I could confirm.