When it comes to bad band breakups, there are few messier than Taiwanese pop rock group F.I. R’s.

In 2018, the band’s lead singer Faye, 40, said she had been kicked out of the group by producer/keyboardist Ian Chen, who discovered her, and guitarist/vocalist Real Huang, 42, without any warning, claiming that they removed her as an admin from the band’s Facebook page suddenly.

Ian, 50, and Real, went on to deny this. Instead, they claimed Faye had wanted out so she could go solo.

A flurry of lawsuits involving forged documents and defamation of character followed and Faye remains estranged from Ian and Real, who have gone on to continue F.I.R with a new lead singer named Lydia. FYI: The original F.I.R made it big 2004 because of their hit song ‘Lydia’ so one can say it’s kismet?

More than four years later, it appears that Real still harbours pretty strong feelings about Faye.

Real's reply to a netizen's comment

A netizen had commented on social media that “there would be no Faye” if there was no Real.

What we didn’t expect was for Real to give the most passive aggressive reply, filled with backhanded compliments and sly digs at his former bandmate.

“Let me call a spade a spade, even though it’s been five years since she ditched the band to go solo five years ago, I still hate [her],” he wrote. “I suffered from depression for two years. But if there wasn’t Faye, F.I.R wouldn’t have been successful. Everyone would not have been able to hear what I wrote, like ‘Crescent Bay’, ‘Your Smile’, ‘Our Love’. So she really did contribute to my work getting heard by people. And that offsets my hate for her.”

He continued, “It’s been six years since we stopped working together, and I’ve already let it go. Faye and I are already 42 years old this year. To be honest, I’m not as passionate about stars trying to be singers on variety shows as her. I will continue to work behind the scenes and be a mentor. I also wish that her concerts sell well and that her showbiz career flourishes.”
 

The OG F.I.R

Some netizens have called Real’s reply petty and unbecoming, criticizing the guitarist and Ian for constantly badmouthing Faye even though she has remained relatively silent.

In response, Real said that everyone should wait for the results of the impending court case about contract disputes between Faye and Ian, and that whatever he says now is useless.
 

The new F.I.R featuring Lydia

Photos: Real Huang’s Instagram & Douyin