ARTS / CULTURE & LEISURE
What’s trending on China's Twitter-like Sina Weibo on Monday
Published: Dec 02, 2019 06:16 PM
Chinese up-and-coming actor Wang Yibo pokes fun at self, Chinese netizens worry about health of members of South Korean idol group Cosmic Girls, crosstalk performer Zhang Yunlei angers opera fans 

#Wang Yibo calls himself duck neck#

320 million views    205,000 posts

Wang Yibo in Changsha, Central China's Hunan Province on November 10 Photo: VCG

Rising star Wang Yibo, a singer and actor, has become a hot topic on Chinese social media since his drama The Untamed became a huge success. 

He is also one of the hosts of a TV program broadcast on Hunan Satellite Television. On Sunday night's program, Wang performed crosstalk, a traditional Chinese comedy performance usually involving dialogue between two people. 

"Good evening everyone. I am a new crosstalk performer, Wang Yabo," he said. In Chinese yabo means duck neck. The humorous self-introduction amused Chinese netizens. 

"He is good at performing crosstalk. Calling himself 'duck neck' is so cute," one netizen commented on Sina Weibo.

#Cosmic Girls exhausted on stage#

150 million views    13,000 posts

Cosmic Girls perform on South Korean music program The Show on November 26 in Seoul Photo: VCG

South Korean girl band Cosmic Girls returned to the stage recently to promote their new EP As You Wish, which was released on November 19. But Chinese netizens became worried that their dance routines may be too intense and that their many performances may take a toll on their health after a screenshot of supposed quotes from members in Korean began circulating on social media.  

"Every time after finishing a performance, I am pale and out of breath." "I can taste blood in my mouth," said a translation of the quotes. 

"Please pay attention to your health, that is the most important," posted numerous fans of the group.

#Chinese Ballad Singers Association condemns comedian Zhang Yunlei over off-color jokes#

 13.56 million views    1,470 posts

Zhang Yunlei performs in Xi'an, Northwest China's Shaanxi Province Photo: VCG

Zhang Yunlei, one of China's most popular crosstalk comedians, found himself at the center of a huge controversy after he mocked 48-year-old Peking Opera performer Zhang Huoding during one of his performances. 

During his routine, the comedian joked that he had once showered together with Zhang - a joke that was seen by many as degrading the female opera singer. 

"Some crosstalk performers have repeatedly lost their moral integrity and their basic respect for the art of crosstalk," the Chinese Ballad Singers Association said in a statement that netizens have seen as taking a swing at the comedian.

Zhang has previously been criticized for jokes about the 2008 Wenchuan earthquake in Sichuan Province and WWII "comfort women."