'I was bleeding as I sang': Steven Ma reveals he 'almost died' after suffering serious drug allergy during series of concerts

The show must, and will, go on.

Steven Ma has revealed that he suffered a near-fatal drug allergy midway through his series of concerts. But it did not keep him from putting up a good performance for the sake of his fans.

The 52-year-old Hong Kong actor-singer recently held a series of six concerts in the city from Nov 10 to 12 and Nov 17 to 19, reported local media.

Unbeknownst to the audience, however, Steven had been grappling with a severe drug allergy which not only resulted in a trip to the hospital emergency room but also left him bleeding from his tongue during subsequent shows.

Hong Kong publication MingpaoOL reported that Steven kept his condition under wraps and only revealed it at a celebration party following the final night of his concert.

Admitting that he has a weak bodily system, Steven said that he "almost died", and wanted to share his experience to highlight the danger of drug allergies, ChinaPress reported.

"After the third performance (on Nov 12), my vocal chords were slightly inflamed and I took some anti-inflammatory drugs. But it turned out that I had an allergic reaction to the medication," Steven said.

He described how that night, his entire body swelled up and he had to go to the hospital.

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He added: "My mouth, trachea and throat were so swollen that even injections administered to reduce the swelling were useless. It reached a point where all the mucous membranes in my body had burst. Because my body is so sensitive, I was in danger of dying."

Despite the gravity of the situation, Steven insisted on continuing with the subsequent shows from Nov 17 even though his body had not fully recovered.

During the fourth and fifth shows, Steven shared that his tongue was bleeding throughout both concerts. But he appeared to take pride in the fact that his audience remained oblivious to his discomfort.

"I was bleeding as I sang, but the audience couldn't tell at all. Is that amazing or not?" Steven stated.

He revealed that there were backstage staff close by, however, to help him wipe the blood from his mouth when necessary.

On why he did not want to share with the audience that he was unwell, the consummate professional said: "What we do is a performance, an art; that is our problem to bear and I will not tell the audience these things. What's most important is that the show is good, that's all."

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candicecai@asiaone.com