21 replies to this topic

[General_Zhaoyun]

I've finally translated the following documentaries (made by Discovery Channel) about Taiwan's Mandopop Music Empire, including its history into English. It took me a long time to translate. It would provide an insight into Taiwan's thriving Chinese music industry.

Part 1


Part 2


Part 3


Part 4


Part 5


Enjoy!

Part 6

[General_Zhaoyun]

Here is another video about Taiwan's rock scene

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U3AU1i1yNfU

[Gan]

I think Taiwan is going to be the cradle of Mandopop for a while, like another decade. Eventually it will shift to the Mainland, mainly because that's where the largest market and source of talent will be. However, in the meantime, Taiwan's location, smaller population and micro-managing popular entertainment gives it a slight advantage.

There's a lot of great artists (for both skill-based and "pretty-face" based) in the Mainland right now.

[General_Zhaoyun]

I think Taiwan is going to be the cradle of Mandopop for a while, like another decade. Eventually it will shift to the Mainland, mainly because that's where the largest market and source of talent will be. However, in the meantime, Taiwan's location, smaller population and micro-managing popular entertainment gives it a slight advantage.

There's a lot of great artists (for both skill-based and "pretty-face" based) in the Mainland right now.

I think it really depends. Though China has a large market and pool of talents, the sheer size means that its development is not well concentrated and well- distributed. Most of the current development for Mandopop music in mainland China is concentrated in Beijing, as Beijing has become the new hub for Mandopop music in mainland China. There are of course Taiwanese and Hong Kong music talents who went over to China. But many of the artistes in mainland China are local-based and are not known outside China.

Many of the mainland Chinese artists might still want to go through Taiwan, simply to get themselves "tested", “trained", endorsed (or "certified") in order to be successful in the global Chinese music market. Taiwan is like a music quality control center and the gateway into the global Mandopop music market. If the mainland Chinese artistes are able to be successful in the Taiwanese music market, then it also mean that they will be successful in the global Mandopop music market. These will be crucial to their music career. That's why many mainland Chinese artiste still dream of going to Taiwan in order to be famous.

There is always a competition between the circles of Mandopop. Perhaps, it will more likely be like the competition between American Pop music vs British Pop music. Unless PRC comes up with something that is unique and acceptable in the global Mandopop music, then it can clearly compete with Taiwan.

However, as said, China's music market is today still largely controlled by Taiwanese records companies and music producers.

[Gan]

Yeah, I was thinking the same thing too. Given Taiwan's unique status, it is more controlled than the Mainland. There's more local flavor in China and a lot of the major companies are outside (Taiwan, Japan, US, etc.).

The concentration of Mandopop is going to be within Asia, or more precisely East/Southeast Asia. Beyond that, it's kind of restricted to the overseas Chinese communities around the world. However, if and by a long stretch if, China's status is truly rising, and many more people are learning Chinese (even young non-Chinese toddlers are already forced to learn Mandarin), in the very near future, like a couple of decades my guess, Mandopop may get a bigger global audience. We might see more diversity of Chinese singers as well.

However, that's a big if.

[General_Zhaoyun]

Taiwanese Pop culture is currently considered to be the leader in Chinese pop culture amongst all Chinese communities in the world. In Asia, Taiwanese pop culture is competing fiercely with Korean pop culture (K-pop), which has probably been the most successful in East Asia and Asian communities overseas over the past 10 years. Korean pop culture remains to be Taiwan's greatest competitor in terms of Asia's market share in pop culture.

Have you read the recent news? Jay chou, who is probably the most representative super-star of Taiwanese pop culture, had been denouncing Korean pop culture, in an attempt to market Taiwanese pop culture.

Both Taiwan and Korea are putting investment into the development of these creative cultural industry, as they helped to contribute to GDP and economic development. The competition of pop culture (or market share in Asia) is more likely to be between Taiwan, Korea and Japan. But the influence of Japanese pop culture in Asia has diminished over the past 10 years as a result of the rise of Korean pop culture.

Korean drama have entered into every homes of Chinese, Korean, Japanese in East Asia. And they are widely popular in Asia.

Btw, there is another interesting video which is trying to market Taiwanese pop culture. It's in Mandarin. Unfortunately, I have not translated it into English. You might want to take a look at it if you can understand Mandarin.

[peger]

Yeah, I was thinking the same thing too. Given Taiwan's unique status, it is more controlled than the Mainland. There's more local flavor in China and a lot of the major companies are outside (Taiwan, Japan, US, etc.).

The concentration of Mandopop is going to be within Asia, or more precisely East/Southeast Asia. Beyond that, it's kind of restricted to the overseas Chinese communities around the world. However, if and by a long stretch if, China's status is truly rising, and many more people are learning Chinese (even young non-Chinese toddlers are already forced to learn Mandarin), in the very near future, like a couple of decades my guess, Mandopop may get a bigger global audience. We might see more diversity of Chinese singers as well.

However, that's a big if.

A big if indeed. From my experiences, Asian pop music in general is seen as a cheap, poorly produced rip-off of whatever happens to be the current trend in Western music by most of the world, and Chinese music is generally seen as the worst offender. There's a growing global audience, but it's largely for Kpop & Jpop.

Taiwanese Pop culture is currently considered to be the leader in Chinese pop culture amongst all Chinese communities in the world. In Asia, Taiwanese pop culture is competing fiercely with Korean pop culture (K-pop), which has probably been the most successful in East Asia and Asian communities overseas over the past 10 years. Korean pop culture remains to be Taiwan's greatest competitor in terms of Asia's market share in pop culture.

I was under the impression Taiwanese pop culture was only big amongst Chinese communities, while Kpop is big all around East & Southeast Asia. I know there are a plethora of Kpop bands debuting in Japan this year, which is by far the most profitable music market in the region.

It certainly seems to me that there is a massive push for Korean pop culture to expand across Asia from both record companies and even the government that one doesn't see with Japanese/Taiwanese pop culture. I suppose it makes sense when one considers how poor CD sales are in Korea, while Japan is the second largest music market in the world and Taiwanese pop reaches a massive audience. I'm interested in what Jay Chou said about this, though, can you point me towards an article on his comments?

Edited by peger, 18 August 2010 - 10:51 PM.

[Gan]

A big if indeed. From my experiences, Asian pop music in general is seen as a cheap, poorly produced rip-off of whatever happens to be the current trend in Western music by most of the world, and Chinese music is generally seen as the worst offender. There's a growing global audience, but it's largely for Kpop & Jpop.



I was under the impression Taiwanese pop culture was only big amongst Chinese communities, while Kpop is big all around East & Southeast Asia. I know there are a plethora of Kpop bands debuting in Japan this year, which is by far the most profitable music market in the region.

It certainly seems to me that there is a massive push for Korean pop culture to expand across Asia from both record companies and even the government that one doesn't see with Japanese/Taiwanese pop culture. I suppose it makes sense when one considers how poor CD sales are in Korea, while Japan is the second largest music market in the world and Taiwanese pop reaches a massive audience. I'm interested in what Jay Chou said about this, though, can you point me towards an article on his comments?

Asian pop is ok, it is kind of ripping off the styles of others but there's some originality. If I have to make up a number, and I'm really guessing here, I think 80% would fall under that copy culture category. Mainstream Asian pop music that is.

Mainly because of language differences, the lyrics will have to be creative (or cheezy but still original) and because of the different tones, the music will have to adjust to it so it can't be 100% emulation of others.

I have the same impression of Taiwanese pop being pretty strong among the Chinese communities. The first thing people get attracted to is within their own language. Kpop is very entertaining because of the dances and music is pretty creative. The Korean music industry is also heavily intertwined with many choreographers and music artists with the States. Like they have Korean-Americans, Koreans that travel there and non-Korean Americans working together. The Japanese have a longer history, so things are kind of saturated for the most part, but they could still hold on their own.

Edited by Gan, 18 August 2010 - 11:08 PM.

[Gan]

Maybe it's facing downs in sales or popularity but in the long run, Jay Chou and others probably don't have too much to worry about regarding mandopop

Edited by Gan, 18 August 2010 - 11:06 PM.

[peger]

Asian pop is ok, it is kind of ripping off the styles of others but there's some originality. If I have to make up a number, and I'm really guessing here, I think 80% would fall under that copy culture category. Mainstream Asian pop music that is.

Mainly because of language differences, the lyrics will have to be creative (or cheezy but still original) and because of the different tones, the music will have to adjust to it so it can't be 100% emulation of others.

I personally could care less about the lack of originality; I expect my pop music to be catchy, not necessarily creative, which is why I listen to my fair share of Mando/K/Jpop, lol. That reputation is going to be a big roadblock for Mandopop and Asian music in general to reach a wider audience, though. Another big problem is that Anglophone nations are by far the least receptive to music that isn't in their language, yet are the biggest & most influential music markets.

I have the same impression of Taiwanese pop being pretty strong among the Chinese communities. The first thing people get attracted to is within their own language. Kpop is very entertaining because of the dances and music is pretty creative. The Korean music industry is also heavily intertwined with many choreographers and music artists with the States. Like they have Korean-Americans, Koreans that travel there and non-Korean Americans working together. The Japanese have a longer history, so things are kind of saturated for the most part, but they could still hold on their own.

I feel that in some ways Kpop is the most guilty of ripping off Western trends. For example, when BoA first came out she was extremely similar to Britney Spears; Bi & Se7en were rather reminiscent of Justin Timberlake/Usher, and a lot of the more avant-garde imagery popular there now is clearly a result of Lady Gaga bringing that particular shtick back to the fore of pop music. What's great & ultimately so appealing about Korea's music industry is that it's basically pop music on steroids; when an artist releases something new there's massive hype, quick consumption, and then on the the next project within a matter of weeks. There's definitely a big emphasis on slick choreography as you said which does help them stand out.

I've always been curious as to how profitable mainland China is for big Taiwanese artists like Jay Chou, Jolin Tsai, et all. I know piracy is rampant, but given the sheer size of country there must be quite a bit of money to be made.

[Gan]

I personally could care less about the lack of originality; I expect my pop music to be catchy, not necessarily creative, which is why I listen to my fair share of Mando/K/Jpop, lol. That reputation is going to be a big roadblock for Mandopop and Asian music in general to reach a wider audience, though. Another big problem is that Anglophone nations are by far the least receptive to music that isn't in their language, yet are the biggest & most influential music markets.

Well, you kind of have to be creative to be catchy. I was thinking over about what you're talking about, the ripping off of current trends and reputation. However, I understood with the example you provided about the Korean pop stars.

I guess, it depends on the person's taste, like beauty in the eye of the beholder. I listen to a fair share of East Asian pop (Mandarin, Cantonese, Korean and Japanese) as well as Hindi and Arabic popular music. Among the English speakers, it's true they're less receptive and some of it is due to how Mainstream Asian stars basically use the same styles. Just to be fair, non-English speakers and non-Asian artists also use the same styles in their own degrees. Another reason is that the music industry among English speakers has a very strong foundation. The system of getting talent, the other necessary players like the mixers, lyricists, choreographer, etc. has been around for a long time and gradually matured. The media outlets are very organized so they can promote their goods better.

Other than Japan, a lot of the industries in Asia were either very new or been through destructive moments in history. Not to mention that due to history, the English speaking world has influences from almost everywhere on the globe. Influenced by others and influence on others. The Asian artists are kind of limited because of that.

[General_Zhaoyun]

I've always been curious as to how profitable mainland China is for big Taiwanese artists like Jay Chou, Jolin Tsai, et all. I know piracy is rampant, but given the sheer size of country there must be quite a bit of money to be made.

As already mentioned in the Discovery Channel videos above, the Taiwanese music producers fight piracy by holding more concerts. The videos say that they would not return to the prosperity of the 1980s and 1990s, but certainly it can ensure Mandopop music continue to surivive and flourish. With the sheer size of population in mainland China, a concert can usually make millions of dollars based on sheer number of Chinese participants.

It's certainly a trend that all music will exist in the form of mp3 or other digital files, and that in the future, albums in CDs will no longer exist in the market.

I forsee CD album will disappear in 10 years time. All young people now listen pop music through i-pod or i-phone.

[Gan]

I've always been curious as to how profitable mainland China is for big Taiwanese artists like Jay Chou, Jolin Tsai, et all. I know piracy is rampant, but given the sheer size of country there must be quite a bit of money to be made.

The Taiwanese artists are pretty popular but I don't know how profitable they are. It's not just because of piracy but that common cliche of China is so big rings very true...some Mainland Chinese people, young and old, don't really listen or even know about these stars outside of China.

I think one interesting aspect about Mandopop stars is they're pretty multi-task. Jay Chou, and others, there isn't really one particular star you can compare with. You kind of need 2 or 3 people to describe what the Mandarin pop stars are like. I know the Eagles and their individual members are the closest I can think of from the top of my head when describing Taiwanese/Mandarin pop stars. Some of them, not all of the Chinese pop stars. Some are just for the pretty looks as it is with all entertainment industries.

[General_Zhaoyun]

I find it funny in Jay Chou's new album 2010 the ERA, which feature Asian vampires..



haha..



If you read the lyrics, you will realize that it says that he doesn't want others to treat him like an idol, but treasure his music.

[WuXiaHer0]

I find it funny in Jay Chou's new album 2010 the ERA, which feature Asian vampires..

Thanks to Stephanie Meyer's Twilight saga, everybody is crazy over romantic bloodsuckers and werewolves.

If you read the lyrics, you will realize that it says that he doesn't want others to treat him like an idol, but treasure his music.

Have you listened to his song 四面楚歌? In that song, he shows a dislike for nosy reporters and papparazis.

I don't know why but I prefer K-pop over Mandopop. Mandopop music lacks the "energetic" feel in it. S.H.E, Leehom and Jay Chou are the only notable Mandopop heroes I like, but I don't get why so many people are crazy over Fahrenheit 飞轮海. Their music is horrible! I have this feeling that K-pop is going to top the favourite list anytime soon.