7-3-2023 (BEIJING) Tragedy struck once again in the world of livestreaming as a 27-year-old Internet celebrity in China lost his life due to excessive alcohol consumption during a livestreamed drinking battle. This marks the second fatality resulting from such a dangerous game within a month.
The wife of the livestreamer, known as Zhong Yuan Huang Ge or Brother Huang from the Central Plains, confirmed the unfortunate incident to Chinese media outlet Jimu News on Tuesday. She revealed that her husband passed away in the early morning hours of June 2 as a result of consuming an excessive amount of alcohol. The woman, identified only by her surname Li, explained that her husband was desperate to earn money through livestreaming in order to repay the hundreds of thousands of yuan in debt he had accumulated prior to their marriage.
This recent death follows the tragic case of a livestreamer named Wang, who was found deceased on May 16 after consuming four bottles of baijiu, a potent colorless liquor with an alcohol content ranging from 35% to 60%.
Huang was a close friend of Wang and attended his funeral, as reported by Chinese media outlet Southern Metropolis Daily. The tabloid also mentioned that a friend had overheard Huang stating on the day of the funeral that he intended to drink less alcohol. According to the same source, Huang had amassed a following of 176,000 fans on his social media account, where he shared videos of himself drinking baijiu, beer, and other alcoholic beverages, as well as performing stunts like cracking walnuts with his head and opening durians with his bare hands.
Li informed Jimu News that the account used by her husband to post these videos has now been banned. In one particular video, Huang was seen lighting a tissue paper soaked in alcohol before quickly consuming half a bottle of baijiu, eating a few scallions, finishing the rest of the alcohol, and then opening another bottle.
Li stated that she had repeatedly inquired about her husband’s debt, but he would simply express his desire to repay it as soon as possible and live a good life.
A video of Huang’s room, shared by a relative, revealed that the walls were adorned with Chinese phrases such as “money is more important than life” and “life is not all about money, but you will need money to live the life you want.”
This year, Huang had also recently built a new house in the village, and the couple had plans to earn money for its renovation after enrolling their son in kindergarten. Li, her voice filled with emotion, pledged to work hard for the rest of her life to help repay her husband’s debt. She had known Huang for eight years.
Li further mentioned that the family is still grieving their loss and will share the details surrounding his death publicly once they have had time to calm down.
Huang’s tragic demise adds to a series of dangerous stunts performed by livestreamers in their quest to earn monetary “gifts” from their viewers.
