Editor's Note:

As the confident smile and refined dance movements of 19-year-old Chinese breakdancer Liu Qingyi were recorded in history at the 2024 Paris Olympics, the cultural inclusiveness and innovative capability of Chinese youths stunned the world once again.

From street dance, music festivals to stand-up comedy and animation, "Don't follow, create" has become an attitude maintained by Chinese youths as they face diverse forms of modern trendy culture, particularly some introduced from overseas.

After talking with a group of young artists, audience representatives, and industry insiders about the trendiest mediums in Chinese pop culture, the Global Times culture desk gained insight into how Chinese youth are infusing unique characteristics into the global cultural landscape with their increased cultural confidence.

People attend the Strawberry Music Festival in Urumqi, Northwest China's Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region on May 25, 2024. Photo: Courtesy of Strawberry Music Festival

"Amazing!" The US judge's exciting comment on the dance inspired by a Chinese heroic figure from the Three Kingdoms era (220-280) still lingers in the ears of dancer Tu Baihua, a Chinese breaking solo champion, even though the National Street Dance Competition in Shijiazhuang, North China's Hebei Province, came to an end in August. 

Having dedicated himself to street dance for over a decade, the 30-something champion from the Bai ethnic group told the Global Times that he has frequently drawn inspiration from ethnic and traditional culture in creating new street dance performances.

Like Tu and other Chinese participants at the 2024 Paris Olympics, many contemporary Chinese street dancers are increasingly gaining recognition. Their impressive performances on diverse stages have spurred more Chinese youth to bravely express themselves through the artistic form, feeding the growth of street dance in China. 

Breaking dancer Tu Baihua in traditional costume performs with a spear Photo: Courtesy of Tu Baihua

At music festivals, it is common to see large numbers of young Chinese people relishing the melody and immersing themselves in the atmosphere of appreciating music as well as making friends. 

In 2023, a total of 560 music festivals were conducted in China, setting a new record for the domestic market. This data is evidence of the rapid growth of China's musical festival and band culture. The main audience age group is between 15 and 33 years old.

Wang Ze, director of the Strawberry Music ­Festival, which attracted over 600,000 attendees to events across the country in the first half of 2024, said that the enthusiasm of Chinese youth for music and music festivals has left a strong impression on the overseas musicians invited to perform in the festival.

For insiders like Wang, booming demand for higher-quality events are motivating companies to come up with more innovative plans to explore the unique features of their brands. Blending ­festivals with the essence of the regional culture around China is one ­effective path, ­according to Wang. 

Not just street dance and music festivals, Chinese youth have localized imported ­entertainment forms such as stand-up comedy with their own creativity, evolving them into a part of Chinese culture, said Xie Maosong, a senior research fellow at the China Institute for Innovation and Development Strategy.

Stand-up comedians Xiao Lu Photo: Courtesy of iQIYI

Local is global

­Notably, Chinese stand-up comedian Xiao Lu prefers not to see the comedic genre as "imported," having transitioned from her previous career as a lawyer to focus on improving her ­performance skills full time.

"Actually, I don't think it's necessary to stress that stand-up comedy originated from some other countries. Throughout China's thousands of years of history there have been quite a few people who have taken the stage and brought laughter to others," the comedian told the Global Times. "It just wasn't called 'stand-up comedy' and the process of commercialization was slower."

Wearing a white wedding dress, Xiao Lu, who has ­recently ­embarked on a cross-border marriage, lights up the audience's eyes on the stage of the newly released variety show King of Stand-up Comedy.­ ­Produced by Chinese streaming platform iQIYI, it features dozens of Chinese stand-up comedians competing for the championship.

She uses ­intriguing conversations and daily interactions with her Australian husband as the main materials of her performance. These warm-hearted stories of the couple presented through stand-up comedy has resonated with audiences, winning lots of applause and laughter.

Xiao Lu said that she is trying to find a balance between expressing herself and amusing the audience in her performances. Working on stand-up comedy for almost 10 years, the comedian has found a way to delve into her inner world to accumulate materials that touch the audience, while the performing art has also turned out to be a good way to help her vent her emotions.

Stand-up comedian Men Qiang Photos: Courtesy of iQIYI

Another Shanghai-based comedian, Men Qiang, has also appeared on the show, bringing laughter to the audience through his mature performing skills. His subjects come from his personal experience working in a human resources department, while he adds a touch of magic by drawing on the Shanghai dialect, to give his performances an interesting feel.

Men Qiang found his own performing style with the help of dialect culture, which also adds luster to other comedic forms such as Stephen Chow's Cantonese comedy films. "Chinese dialects in different regions are actually quite charming and can be really great additions to comedy. That's what I have determined and will continue to do," the comedian told the Global Times. 

Street dancer Tu is also active on the stage as he is eager to see street dancers tell Chinese stories through Chinese elements. Tu highlights­ that ancient Bai music has over 2,000 years of history, with its musical language encompassing more than a dozen varieties.

"By combining Bai clothing, musical rhythms, and dance movements with street dance, not only is the expressive form of street dance enriched, but it also promotes the transmission and development of the intangible cultural heritage of minority cultures, giving the youth a new definition and understanding of Chinese dance culture," Tu said.

This is also one of the significant goals of Xia Rui, secretary-general of the street dance committee of the China Dancers Association. Xia said that over the past 10 years in China, street dance has become a remarkable bond connecting the art form with Chinese culture, making it a good platform to tell stories regarding Chinese youth.

Breaking dancer Tu Baihua Photo: Courtesy of Tu Baihua

Broader engagement

According to relevant data published by financial media 36Kr, from 2020 to 2022, the offline box office of the entire stand-up comedy industry in China increased 20-fold, rising from 20 million yuan ($2.8 million) to 480 million yuan. In 2023, the stand-up comedy market was beginning to exhibit a trend of expanding into smaller Chinese cities, where it has also gained significant popularity, which caused the number of people practicing the art form to double.

Young followers of the comedic medium said that they find the Chinese-style jokes in performances amusing and they appreciate the comedians' efforts to blend humor with local cultural elements, as this resonates with their longing for a comedic style that reflects their own cultural identity.

Chinese fans' passion is also stimulating the development and further improvement of the music festival industry. 

A regular participant of the Strawberry Music Festival and the Taihu Bay Music Festival, the 26-year-old fan Yao Anting said that attending a music festival is an experience "where you either don't participate at all, or you cannot stop once you have been part of it."

As a loyal fan of numerous Chinese festivals over the years, Yao has also discovered that the Chinese music festivals have "developed more niche themes that cater to fans of different tastes." Other than the popular "rock" festivals, emerging festivals like the OCT-Loft Jazz Festival and the FEEL festival, are focused on jazz and rap music.

Yao's observations were echoed by industry insider Wang, who noted that in response to increasing demand, the Strawberry Music Festival is exploring ways to offer more niche yet refined festival experiences. This approach aligns with the developmental strategies of other Chinese music festivals as well.

Cultural sociologist Xu ­Shuming told the Global Times that these sub-divided themes not only reflect young Chinese fans' acceptance of global music genres, but also reveal how the burgeoning Chinese music market is giving opportunities to artists from different backgrounds. 

China's traditional culture and its proposed modern projects like the Belt and Road Initiative have inspired international artists to take part in the Chinese music scene. 

Musicians from countries like Uzbekistan, Russia and Kazakhstan have been invited to debut at the Shenzhen Belt and Road International Music Festival that is set to run from September to October. 

Xiao Bei, owner of a street dance studio in Beijing, has inputted the names of around 1,000 young people from 18 to 25 years old into the registration system at her studio, which opened amid the street dance craze. She has noticed how the popular choreography of street dance has been changed by her students, who are reinventing on the beauty of traditional Chinese culture.