It’s rare that on my morning newsfeed I find the phrases “Chinese love song” and “African-American” within a single sentence. This morning I did. This man to your left is Eddie Rogers II, an African-American in Chicago who sings Chinese love songs with a perfect Mandarin accent. The Chicago Sun-Times suggests he […]

Wednesday night in Manhattan, rap star Busta Rhymes was arrested for getting a bit too “fired up” outside an N.Y.C. building December 26th. Rhymes was booked on misdemeanor assault charges. According to an AP article early Thursday morning, Rhymes’ lawyer, Scott Leemon declined to comment. And they actually printed the words “Rhymes’ lawyer” […]

The guys over at China’s Ministry of Culture issued new guidelines Tuesday tightening control of music downloads. As the Ministry called it, “network music” was a USD$350 million industry last year and until now, has been an unregulated business in China. Network music includes any music downloaded from or played on the music […]

Eric Clapton has announced he will play a concert at the Grand Stage in Shanghai on January 20th, his first ever performance in mainland China. The China show will be part of a massive Far East tour that will include 18 shows in Japan and a show in Singapore, Bangkok, Hong Kong and Seoul. The […]

In the U.S. Monday night, MTV made both rock and roll and Chinese history by airing the first American music video ever to be filmed in its entirety in mainland China. Rock band 30 Seconds to Mars filmed its video for “From Yesterday” over the summer in the Forbidden City in Beijing and the […]

Last night at Shanghai’s Club JZ, the most American music came alive in perhaps the least American locale. Abigail Washburn’s Sparrow Quartet performed her unique brand of bluegrass for a nearly all expat audience. The Sparrow Quartet, a band that formed in 2004 for a 10-day tour through China is made up of Abigail Washburn […]

As you can see from the photo, China’s senior citizen community is really down in the dumps about the Jay-Z concert cancellation. On Tuesday, the Chinese government announced that Jay-Z’s lyrics, mostly the ones about drugs and bitches, were not suitable for a Shanghainese audience. I, who naturally had reserved tickets for the […]

According to the management of Hongkou stadium in Shanghai, rapper Jay-Z has scheduled an Oct. 23 concert there, making him the largest rap act ever to grace mainland China. As the Shanghai Daily reported on Aug. 25, Jay-Z will be joined on stage by his “boo”, Beyonce Knowles. This concert should be one […]