0:00:00 > 0:00:02Now on BBC News, Our World.
0:00:08 > 0:00:17Lele Tao is a Chinese internet superstar. She sings, chats, floats
0:00:17 > 0:00:27and plays games with her fans online. In China's
0:00:27 > 0:00:30multibillion-dollar live streaming industry, she is all I've got as far
0:00:30 > 0:00:34hundreds of thousands of online men and they showered her with gifts of
0:00:34 > 0:00:38thousands of dollars every day.
0:00:45 > 0:00:49But there is always someone younger and prettier waiting to take her
0:00:49 > 0:00:54place. And the government is tightening the rules on what is
0:00:54 > 0:01:00allowed on screen. And now, she has fallen out with her manager.
0:01:08 > 0:01:15It is Sunday morning in Chengdu, the ancient city in the south of China.
0:01:15 > 0:01:21Now, one of the country's new high-tech hubs. 24-year-old Lele Tao
0:01:21 > 0:01:30is here for the weekend. She is visiting her family. Who have
0:01:30 > 0:01:34recently moved to in your apartment in an upmarket neighbourhood.
0:01:39 > 0:01:42Her dad will spend the whole day cooking her favourite food.
0:01:51 > 0:01:56She is only home for a few days but before she can relax, she has work
0:01:56 > 0:02:04to do. Lele is a live stream who makes her work by entertaining
0:02:04 > 0:02:11people online. She sings, plays games and chats with her fans and
0:02:11 > 0:02:15they can watch her for as long as they want.
0:02:45 > 0:02:49Lele is one of the most popular streamers in the country. Without a
0:02:49 > 0:02:54script she entertained her fans until well past midnight. Her fans
0:02:54 > 0:03:02can interact with her, right her messages, and request songs. Her
0:03:02 > 0:03:04family are also her fans.
0:03:30 > 0:03:34Lele started live streaming one day at her dad's office using just about
0:03:34 > 0:03:41top. It all seems like just a bit of fun until she got paid.
0:04:13 > 0:04:17Back then, that was nine times the average monthly salary in China. For
0:04:17 > 0:04:19just two weeks work!
0:04:35 > 0:04:45Some of her income is from playing computer games with her fans. Lele
0:04:45 > 0:04:51now has over 1 million followers all over China, the majority of them are
0:04:51 > 0:04:57men in their early 20s, many with money to spend.
0:05:01 > 0:05:10One of her most loyal fans is 24 you rolled. Just talking about her makes
0:05:10 > 0:05:42them nervous. And Lele remembers when he started following her.
0:06:06 > 0:06:11To get Lele to play the song, he kept buying her more and more
0:06:11 > 0:06:13expensive virtual gifts.
0:06:19 > 0:06:26This is how streamers like Lele make so much money. Fans buy them virtual
0:06:26 > 0:06:30gifts exchanged entertainment, a conversation, or sometimes simply
0:06:30 > 0:06:35for their attention. Live streamers can then redeem these virtual gifts
0:06:35 > 0:06:36for cash.
0:07:03 > 0:07:08Just to be her online friend, he has spent what the average Chinese
0:07:08 > 0:07:15person living in the city earns in two years. In China, the internet is
0:07:15 > 0:07:20tightly controlled and live streaming is a much more significant
0:07:20 > 0:07:25phenomenon here than in the rest of the world. It is an industry worth
0:07:25 > 0:07:32$3 billion a year. One of the major hubs if Shanghai were Lele lives,
0:07:32 > 0:07:37and where she is managed by one of the country's biggest live streaming
0:07:37 > 0:07:39agencies.
0:08:14 > 0:08:18The pressure to look good on screen is immense.
0:09:03 > 0:09:08Lourey a rented apartment five minutes from the management agency
0:09:08 > 0:09:13MJ entertainment. She is one that more than 3000 streamers on her
0:09:13 > 0:09:18books. The CEO Max and his wife spotted Lele shortly after she
0:09:18 > 0:09:21started streaming.
0:10:20 > 0:10:24MJ entertainment takes a 20% cut from their live streamers, although
0:10:24 > 0:10:28most of them don't earn anywhere near as much as Lele.
0:10:55 > 0:10:58And more fans means more money.
0:11:35 > 0:11:39Looking attractive is crucial for live streamers. But when it first
0:11:39 > 0:11:44took off, some women took the king sexy so far that it was deemed
0:11:44 > 0:11:48pornography. The government quickly tightened the rules on what is
0:11:48 > 0:11:57allowed on screen. And now, Lele and other streamers know how far they
0:11:57 > 0:12:02can go. If they cross the line, they could be sent to prison, and the
0:12:02 > 0:12:05streaming channels closed up.
0:12:09 > 0:12:14But this is just a warmup. After the training, Lourey will be live
0:12:14 > 0:12:19streaming for up to ten hours non-stop until midnight. -- Lele.
0:12:28 > 0:12:35After all is of live streaming, Lele finally gets to eat her first meal,
0:12:35 > 0:12:39at nine p.m.. She calls her mind to tell her about the highlight of the
0:12:39 > 0:12:42day so far. -- her mum.
0:13:05 > 0:13:11It isn't just Lele who feels good, fans who spend a lot buying her
0:13:11 > 0:13:15gifts also enjoy the admiration and respect they get from other fans for
0:13:15 > 0:13:17the amounts they are spending.
0:13:52 > 0:13:57Even for those fans who don't spend much, live streaming can provide a
0:13:57 > 0:14:02sense of community, friendship, and family. And the industry knows this.
0:14:29 > 0:14:33Here's an only child. Like 200 million other people born when China
0:14:33 > 0:14:40one child policy. Decades of sex selective abortions have led to a
0:14:40 > 0:14:44dramatic gender imbalance, a severe shortage of girls.
0:14:58 > 0:15:03He spent his childhood in a small village, just outside Shanghai.
0:15:16 > 0:15:19The internet filled the gap.
0:15:43 > 0:15:48That is when he met the woman that he describes as his online goddess,
0:15:48 > 0:15:58and started showering her with virtual gift. -- gifts. Over the
0:15:58 > 0:16:07years, he has spent a lot of money on Lele. But still, for him, it is a
0:16:07 > 0:16:10real relationship, and for Lele as well.
0:16:38 > 0:16:47It is Lele. Lele has called him to tell him about a problem she is
0:16:47 > 0:16:51having with her manager, Max, who wants her to sign a new eight-year
0:16:51 > 0:16:53contract.
0:17:02 > 0:17:07To try to get her to sign the new contract, he promises to make a big
0:17:07 > 0:17:11investment in her, to help her record albums or get into films. But
0:17:11 > 0:17:17to get out of the contract early would cost Lele over $1 million.
0:17:27 > 0:17:31But Lele isn't happy, and the situation soon escalates.
0:17:35 > 0:17:42Behind closed doors, a huge fight breaks out between Lele and Macs. He
0:17:42 > 0:17:48storms out and orders her channel to be shut down. A few minutes later,
0:17:48 > 0:18:03she rushes home in tears. He blames her mood. -- Max.
0:18:08 > 0:18:16But later, Max admits Lele is upset because of the contract.
0:18:24 > 0:18:28Nothing is resolved, but neither side wants to push things too far
0:18:28 > 0:18:34for the moment. Still, the super fan is worried about Lele.
0:18:50 > 0:18:57So the next day, he orders a taxi to take him to Shanghai to meet her in
0:18:57 > 0:19:02person. But he is adamant his intentions are not romantic.
0:19:09 > 0:19:12Halfway through the journey, he pulls over to a service station, and
0:19:12 > 0:19:15checks in with her.
0:19:22 > 0:19:27He discovers that, despite the unsigned contract, Lele is back on
0:19:27 > 0:19:33air. As usual, he requests a song, and then sings along with her.
0:20:06 > 0:20:15It took him four hours to get to this iconic and romantic waterfront
0:20:15 > 0:20:19area in central Shanghai, where they have arranged to meet. But by the
0:20:19 > 0:20:23time he arrives it is past midnight, and all the lights have been
0:20:23 > 0:20:30switched off. Lele is still at work live streaming, and he doesn't want
0:20:30 > 0:20:33to wait here.
0:20:54 > 0:21:01They head off to a cafe near Lele's apartment, at the conversation is
0:21:01 > 0:21:09really awkward. It is rare for streamers and fans to meet in
0:21:09 > 0:21:12person, and they are both anxious.
0:22:19 > 0:22:31They celebrate their one-hour together with a selfie. Though they
0:22:31 > 0:22:36had arranged to meet up the next day, they don't. He takes a taxi
0:22:36 > 0:22:48back home. And Lele goes back to her on-screen life.