Mandopop Discographies
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Mandopop or Mandapop refers to
Mandarin Mandarin or The Mandarin may refer to: Language * Mandarin Chinese, branch of Chinese originally spoken in northern parts of the country ** Standard Chinese or Modern Standard Mandarin, the official language of China ** Taiwanese Mandarin, Stand ...
popular music Popular music is music with wide appeal that is typically distributed to large audiences through the music industry. These forms and styles can be enjoyed and performed by people with little or no musical training.Popular Music. (2015). ''Fun ...
. The genre has its origin in the jazz-influenced popular music of 1930s
Shanghai Shanghai, Shanghainese: , Standard Chinese pronunciation: is a direct-administered municipality and the most populous urban area in China. The city is located on the Chinese shoreline on the southern estuary of the Yangtze River, with the ...
known as
Shidaiqu Shidaiqu () is a type of Chinese popular music that is a fusion of Chinese folk, American jazz and Hollywood film music that originated in Shanghai in the 1920s.Shoesmith, Brian. Rossiter, Ned. 004(2004). Refashioning Pop Music in Asia: Cos ...
; later influences came from Japanese
enka is a Japanese music genre considered to resemble traditional Japanese music stylistically. Modern ''enka'', however, is a relatively recent musical form which adopts a more traditional musical style in its vocalism than ''ryūkōka'' music, pop ...
, Hong Kong's
Cantopop Cantopop (a contraction of "Cantonese pop music") is a genre of pop music sung in Cantonese. Cantopop is also used to refer to the cultural context of its production and consumption. The genre began in the 1970s and became associated with Hon ...
, Taiwan's
Hokkien pop Hokkien pop, also known as Taiwanese Hokkien popular music, Taiwanese pop (), T-pop (), Tai-pop, Minnan Pop and Taiwanese folk (), is a popular music genre sung in Hokkien, especially Taiwanese Hokkien and produced mainly in Taiwan and sometimes ...
, and in particular the campus folk song folk movement of the 1970s. "Mandopop" may be used as a general term to describe popular songs performed in Mandarin. Though Mandopop predates Cantopop, the English term was coined around 1980 after "
Cantopop Cantopop (a contraction of "Cantonese pop music") is a genre of pop music sung in Cantonese. Cantopop is also used to refer to the cultural context of its production and consumption. The genre began in the 1970s and became associated with Hon ...
" became a popular term for describing popular songs in
Cantonese Cantonese is the traditional prestige variety of Yue Chinese, a Sinitic language belonging to the Sino-Tibetan language family. It originated in the city of Guangzhou (formerly known as Canton) and its surrounding Pearl River Delta. While th ...
. "Mandopop" was used to describe Mandarin-language popular songs of that time, some of which were versions of Cantopop songs sung by the same singers with different lyrics to suit the different rhyme and tonal patterns of Mandarin. Mandopop is categorized as a
subgenre Genre () is any style or form of communication in any mode (written, spoken, digital, artistic, etc.) with socially agreed-upon conventions developed over time. In popular usage, it normally describes a category of literature, music, or other for ...
of commercial
Chinese-language Chinese ( or ) is a group of languages spoken natively by the ethnic Han Chinese majority and List of ethnic groups in China, many minority ethnic groups in China, as well as by various communities of the Chinese diaspora. Approximately 1.39& ...
music within
C-pop C-pop is an abbreviation for Chinese popular music (), a loosely defined musical genre by artists originating from mainland China, Hong Kong and Taiwan (the Greater China region). This also includes countries where Sinitic languages, Chinese la ...
. Popular music sung in Mandarin was the first variety of popular music in Chinese to establish itself as a viable
industry Industry may refer to: Economics * Industry (economics), a generally categorized branch of economic activity * Industry (manufacturing), a specific branch of economic activity, typically in factories with machinery * The wider industrial sector ...
. It originated in
Shanghai Shanghai, Shanghainese: , Standard Chinese pronunciation: is a direct-administered municipality and the most populous urban area in China. The city is located on the Chinese shoreline on the southern estuary of the Yangtze River, with the ...
; later,
Hong Kong Hong Kong)., Legally Hong Kong, China in international treaties and organizations. is a special administrative region of China. With 7.5 million residents in a territory, Hong Kong is the fourth most densely populated region in the wor ...
,
Taipei , nickname = The City of Azaleas , image_map = , map_caption = , pushpin_map = Taiwan#Asia#Pacific Ocean#Earth , coordinates = , subdivision_type = Country ...
and
Beijing Beijing, Chinese postal romanization, previously romanized as Peking, is the capital city of China. With more than 22 million residents, it is the world's List of national capitals by population, most populous national capital city as well as ...
also emerged as important centers of the Mandopop music industry. Among the regions and countries where Mandopop is most popular are
mainland China "Mainland China", also referred to as "the Chinese mainland", is a Geopolitics, geopolitical term defined as the territory under direct administration of the People's Republic of China (PRC) in the aftermath of the Chinese Civil War. In addit ...
,
Hong Kong Hong Kong)., Legally Hong Kong, China in international treaties and organizations. is a special administrative region of China. With 7.5 million residents in a territory, Hong Kong is the fourth most densely populated region in the wor ...
,
Macau Macau or Macao is a special administrative regions of China, special administrative region of the People's Republic of China (PRC). With a population of about people and a land area of , it is the most List of countries and dependencies by p ...
,
Taiwan Taiwan, officially the Republic of China (ROC), is a country in East Asia. The main geography of Taiwan, island of Taiwan, also known as ''Formosa'', lies between the East China Sea, East and South China Seas in the northwestern Pacific Ocea ...
,
Malaysia Malaysia is a country in Southeast Asia. Featuring the Tanjung Piai, southernmost point of continental Eurasia, it is a federation, federal constitutional monarchy consisting of States and federal territories of Malaysia, 13 states and thre ...
, and
Singapore Singapore, officially the Republic of Singapore, is an island country and city-state in Southeast Asia. The country's territory comprises one main island, 63 satellite islands and islets, and one outlying islet. It is about one degree ...
.


History


Beginning of recording industry in China

The Chinese-language music industry began with the arrival of
gramophone A phonograph, later called a gramophone, and since the 1940s a record player, or more recently a turntable, is a device for the mechanical and analogue reproduction of sound. The sound vibration waveforms are recorded as corresponding physic ...
. The earliest gramophone recording in China was made in Shanghai in March 1903 by
Fred Gaisberg Frederick William Gaisberg (1 January 1873 – 2 September 1951) was an American musician, recording engineer and one of the earliest classical music producers for the gramophone. He did not use the term 'producer', and was not an impresario like ...
, who was sent by the
Victor Talking Machine Company The Victor Talking Machine Company was an American recording company and phonograph manufacturer, incorporated in 1901. Victor was an independent enterprise until 1929 when it was purchased by the Radio Corporation of America (RCA) and became ...
(VTMC) in the U.S. to record local music in Asia. The recordings were then manufactured outside China and re-imported by the Gramophone Company's sales agent in China, the Moutrie (Moudeli) Foreign Firm. The Moudeli Company dominated the market before the 1910s until the
Pathé Records Pathé Records was an international record company and label and producer of phonographs, based in France, and active from the 1890s through the 1930s. Early years The Pathé record business was founded by brothers Charles and Émile Pathé, ...
() took over the leading role. Pathé was founded in 1908 by a Frenchman named Labansat who had previously started a novelty entertainment business using
phonograph A phonograph, later called a gramophone, and since the 1940s a record player, or more recently a turntable, is a device for the mechanical and analogue reproduction of sound. The sound vibration Waveform, waveforms are recorded as correspond ...
in
Shanghai Shanghai, Shanghainese: , Standard Chinese pronunciation: is a direct-administered municipality and the most populous urban area in China. The city is located on the Chinese shoreline on the southern estuary of the Yangtze River, with the ...
around the beginning of the 20th century. The company established a recording studio, and the first record-pressing plant in the
Shanghai French Concession The Shanghai French Concession was a concessions in China, foreign concession in Shanghai, Republic of China (1912–1949), China from 1849 until 1943. For much of the 20th century, the area covered by the former French Concession remained the ...
in 1914, and became the principal record company to serve as the backbone for the young industry in China. It originally recorded mainly
Peking opera Peking opera, or Beijing opera (), is the most dominant form of Chinese opera, which combines instrumental music, vocal performance, mime, martial arts, dance and acrobatics. It arose in Beijing in the mid-Qing dynasty (1644–1912) and became ...
, but later expanded to Mandarin popular music. Later other foreign as well as Chinese-own recording companies were also established in China. Early in the 20th century, people in China generally spoke in their own regional dialect. Although most people in Shanghai then spoke
Shanghainese The Shanghainese language, also known as the Shanghai dialect, or Hu language, is a variety of Wu Chinese spoken in the central districts of the city of Shanghai and its surrounding areas. It is classified as part of the Sino-Tibetan langua ...
, the recordings of the pop music from Shanghai from the 1920s onwards were done in
Standard Mandarin Standard Chinese ( zh, s=现代标准汉语, t=現代標準漢語, p=Xiàndài biāozhǔn hànyǔ, l=modern standard Han speech) is a modern Standard language, standard form of Mandarin Chinese that was first codified during the Republic of ...
, which is based on the
Beijing dialect The Beijing dialect ( zh, s=北京话, t=北京話, p=Běijīnghuà), also known as Pekingese and Beijingese, is the prestige dialect of Mandarin spoken in the urban area of Beijing, China. It is the phonological basis of Standard Chinese, the ...
. Mandarin was then considered as the language of the modern, educated class in China, and there was a movement to popularize the use of Mandarin as a national language in the pursuit of national unity. Those involved in this movement included songwriters such as
Li Jinhui Li Jinhui (; 5 September 1891 – 15 February 1967 although some sources suggest he died 1968) was a Chinese composer and songwriter born in Xiangtan, Hunan, Qing China.Aigomusic.Aigomusic." ''Shanghai introduction.'' Retrieved on 2007-04-30. ...
working in Shanghai. The drive to impose linguistic uniformity in China started in the early 20th century when the Qing Ministry of Education proclaimed Mandarin as the official speech to be taught in modern schools, a policy the new leaders of the Chinese Republic formed in 1912 were also committed to. Sound films in Shanghai which started in the early 1930s were made in Mandarin because of a ban on the use of dialects in films by the then Nanjing government, consequently popular songs from films were also performed in Mandarin.


1920s: Birth of ''Shidaiqu'' in Shanghai

Mandarin popular songs that started in the 1920s were called ''
shidaiqu Shidaiqu () is a type of Chinese popular music that is a fusion of Chinese folk, American jazz and Hollywood film music that originated in Shanghai in the 1920s.Shoesmith, Brian. Rossiter, Ned. 004(2004). Refashioning Pop Music in Asia: Cos ...
'' (時代曲 – meaning music of the time, thus popular music), and Shanghai was the center of its production. The Mandarin popular songs of the Shanghai era are considered by scholars to be the first kind of modern popular music developed in China, and the prototype of later Chinese pop song.Shoesmith, Brian. Rossiter, Ned.
004 004, 0O4, O04, OO4 may refer to: * 004, fictional British 00 Agent * 0O4, Corning Municipal Airport (California) * O04, the Oversea-Chinese Banking Corporation * Abdul Haq Wasiq, Guantanamo detainee 004 * Junkers Jumo 004 turbojet engine * La ...
(2004). Refashioning Pop Music in Asia: Cosmopolitan flows, political tempos and aesthetic Industries. Routeledge Publishing.
Li Jinhui is generally regarded as the "Father of Chinese Popular Music" who established the genre in the 1920s.Kakisensi web.
Kakiseni article
." ''An introduction to shidaiqu.'' Retrieved on 26 April 2007.
Buck Clayton Wilbur Dorsey "Buck" Clayton (November 12, 1911 – December 8, 1991) was an American jazz trumpeter who was a member of Count Basie's orchestra. His principal influence was Louis Armstrong, first hearing the record " Confessin' that I Love You" ...
, the American jazz musician, also worked alongside Li. Li established the
Bright Moon Song and Dance Troupe The Bright Moon Song and Dance Troupe (Chinese: 明月歌舞团; pinyin: Míngyuè Gēwǔtuán) was a group founded by Li Jinhui from the late 1920s through the 1930s. It is also translated as Bright Moonlight Song and Dance Troupe. Background Du ...
, and amongst their singing stars were
Wang Renmei Wang Renmei (; December 1914 – 2 April 1987) was a famous Chinese actress and singer nicknamed the "Wildcat of Shanghai". She was mainly active during the 1930s, and her most notable film was the 1934 ''Song of the Fishermen'' (available onli ...
and
Li Lili Li Lili (; 2 June 1915 – 7 August 2005) was a Chinese film actress and singer. Her films ''Little Toys, Playthings'', ''The Big Road, The Great Road'' and ''Storm on the Border'' were blockbusters of the 1930s and 1940s.Elaine DuanTop 10 lege ...
. There was a close relationship between music and film industries and many of its singers also became actresses. Around 1927, Li composed the hit song "
Drizzle Drizzle is a light precipitation which consists of liquid water drops that are smaller than those of rain – generally smaller than in diameter. Drizzle is normally produced by low stratiform clouds and stratocumulus clouds. Precipitation r ...
" recorded by his daughter
Li Minghui Li Minghui (, 1909 – 9 December 2003) was a Chinese actress, dancer, and singer. The daughter of Li Jinhui, she featured in his musicals from a young age, despite tradition expecting female roles to be played by men. By the age of eighteen s ...
, and this song is often regarded as the first Chinese pop song. The song, with its fusion of jazz and Chinese folk music, exemplifies the early ''shidaiqu'' – the tune is in the style of a traditional
pentatonic A pentatonic scale is a Scale (music), musical scale with five Musical note, notes per octave, in contrast to heptatonic scales, which have seven notes per octave (such as the major scale and minor scale). Pentatonic scales were developed inde ...
folk melody, but the instrumentation is similar to that of an American jazz orchestra. The song however was sung in a high-pitched childlike style, a style described uncharitably as sounding like "strangling cat" by the writer
Lu Xun Lu Xun ( zh, c=魯迅, p=Lǔ Xùn, ; 25 September 188119 October 1936), pen name of Zhou Shuren, born Zhou Zhangshou, was a Chinese writer. A leading figure of modern Chinese literature, he wrote in both vernacular and literary Chinese as a no ...
. This early style would soon be replaced by more sophisticated performances from better-trained singers. In the following decades, various popular Western music genres such as Latin dance music also become incorporated into Chinese popular music, producing a type of music containing both Chinese and Western elements that characterized ''shidaiqu''. Popular songs of the time may range from those that were composed in the traditional Chinese idiom but followed a Western principle of composition to those that were done largely in a Western style, and they may be accompanied by traditional Chinese or Western instrumentation. An example is "The Evening Primrose" by
Li Xianglan Yoshiko Yamaguchi ( ''Yamaguchi Yoshiko''; ''Shānkǒu Shūzǐ''; 12 February, 1920 – 7 September, 2014) was a Japanese singer, actress, journalist, and politician. Born in China, she made an international career in film in China, Hong Kong, ...
, a Chinese composition set to a Latin dance beat.


1930s–1940s: The Seven Great Singing Stars era

In 1931, the first
sound film A sound film is a Film, motion picture with synchronization, synchronized sound, or sound technologically coupled to image, as opposed to a silent film. The first known public exhibition of projected sound films took place in Paris in 1900, bu ...
was made in China in a cooperation between the
Mingxing Film Company The Mingxing Film Company ( zh, c=明星影片公司, p=Míngxīng Yǐngpiàn Gōngsī), also credited as the Star Motion Picture Production Company, was a production company active in the Republic of China (1912–1949), Republic of China bet ...
and Pathé. The
film industry The film industry or motion picture industry comprises the technological and commercial institutions of filmmaking, i.e., film production company, production companies, film studios, cinematography, animation, film production, screenwriting, pre- ...
took advantage of the sound era and engaged singers for acting and soundtrack roles, and Li Jinhui's Bright Moonlight Song and Dance Troup became the first modern musical division to be integrated into the
Chinese film industry The cinema of China is the filmmaking and film industry of mainland China, one of three distinct historical threads of Chinese languages, Chinese-language cinema together with the cinema of Hong Kong and the cinema of Taiwan. China is the hom ...
when it joined
Lianhua Film Company The United Photoplay Service Company () was one of the three dominant production companies based in Shanghai, China during the 1930s, the other two being the Mingxing Film Company and the Tianyi Film Company, the forerunner of the Hong Kong–ba ...
in 1931. Amongst the best-known of the singer-actress to emerge in the 1930s were
Zhou Xuan Zhou Xiaohong (; born Su Pu; August 1, 1920 – September 22, 1957), known professionally as Zhou Xuan (), also romanized as Chow Hsuan (), was a Chinese singer and film actress. By the 1940s, she had become one of China's Seven Great Si ...
,
Gong Qiuxia Gong Qiuxia, also romanized as Kung Chiu-hsia (4 December 1918 – 7 September 2004) was a Chinese actress and singer. By the 1940s, she became one of the seven great singing stars.Baidu.Baidu" ''Gong Qiuxia.'' Retrieved on 28 April 2007. Bio ...
, and
Bai Hong Bai Hong (, 24 February 1920 – 28 May 1992) was a Chinese actress and singer born Bai Lizhu () in Beijing. By the 1940s, she had become one of the Seven Great Singing Stars.Baidu.Baidu." ''Bai Hong.'' Retrieved on 28 April 2007. Biography At ...
. Although later singing stars need not also have an acting career, the close relationship between the recording and film industries continued for many decades. Later
Yao Lee Yao Lee (; 10 September 1922 – 19 July 2019), also credited as Yao Li, Yiu Lei and Hue Lee, was a Chinese singer active from the 1930s to the 1970s. She was the sister of Yao Min, also a famous singer and songwriter. She was considered one o ...
,
Bai Guang Shi Yongfen (; 27 June 1921 – 27 August 1999), known professionally as Bai Guang (; also credited as Pai Kwong, Bai Kwong and Bai Kwang), was a Chinese actress and singer. By the 1940s, she became one of the Seven Great Singing Stars. Early l ...
,
Li Xianglan Yoshiko Yamaguchi ( ''Yamaguchi Yoshiko''; ''Shānkǒu Shūzǐ''; 12 February, 1920 – 7 September, 2014) was a Japanese singer, actress, journalist, and politician. Born in China, she made an international career in film in China, Hong Kong, ...
,
Wu Yingyin Wu Yingyin (born Wu Jianqiu ; 23 June 1922 – 17 December 2009), also romanized as Woo Ing-ing, was a Chinese singer. She came to prominence in the 1940s and became known as one of the seven great singing stars of the era. She continued to re ...
also became popular, and collectively these seven stars became known as the " Seven Great Singing Stars" of the period. Other notable singers of this period include Li Lihua and Chang Loo (張露). In 1940 Yao Lee recorded "
Rose, Rose, I Love You "Rose, Rose, I Love You" () is a 1940 Mandarin popular song composed by Chen Gexin and first recorded by Yao Lee. An English-language version whose lyrics have little in common with the original Mandarin was first recorded by Frankie Laine in ...
" which later became the first Chinese pop song to be covered by Western singers that was a hit. The " Seven Great Singing Stars" in the
Republic of China Taiwan, officially the Republic of China (ROC), is a country in East Asia. The main geography of Taiwan, island of Taiwan, also known as ''Formosa'', lies between the East China Sea, East and South China Seas in the northwestern Pacific Ocea ...
period secured the place of the ''shidaiqu'' genre in East Asian society.
Zhou Xuan Zhou Xiaohong (; born Su Pu; August 1, 1920 – September 22, 1957), known professionally as Zhou Xuan (), also romanized as Chow Hsuan (), was a Chinese singer and film actress. By the 1940s, she had become one of China's Seven Great Si ...
is generally considered the most notable Chinese pop star of the era for her highly successful singing and film career. This generation saw the rise in popularity of female singers from mere " song girls" to "stars", and for the next few decades, female singers would dominate the Mandarin popular music industry. In this period, Pathé Records dominated the recording industry. In the late 1930s to early 1940s, it held about 90% market share of the Mandarin pop songs. The era was a tumultuous period, with the occupation of Shanghai by the Japanese armies during the
Second Sino-Japanese War The Second Sino-Japanese War was fought between the Republic of China (1912–1949), Republic of China and the Empire of Japan between 1937 and 1945, following a period of war localized to Manchuria that started in 1931. It is considered part ...
from 1937 and to 1945, followed by continuation of the
civil war A civil war is a war between organized groups within the same Sovereign state, state (or country). The aim of one side may be to take control of the country or a region, to achieve independence for a region, or to change government policies.J ...
between the
Nationalists Nationalism is an idea or movement that holds that the nation should be congruent with the state. As a movement, it presupposes the existence and tends to promote the interests of a particular nation, Smith, Anthony. ''Nationalism: Theory, Id ...
and
Communists Communism () is a sociopolitical, philosophical, and economic ideology within the socialist movement, whose goal is the creation of a communist society, a socioeconomic order centered on common ownership of the means of production, d ...
. In response to the turmoil, productions began to shift to Hong Kong, and after the Communist takeover in 1949, many stars moved to Hong Kong which then replaced Shanghai as the center of the entertainment industry in the 1950s.


1950s–1960s: The Hong Kong era

In 1949, the
People's Republic of China China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. With population of China, a population exceeding 1.4 billion, it is the list of countries by population (United Nations), second-most populous country after ...
was established by the Communist party, and in 1952 popular music was denounced by the
PRC government The government of the People's Republic of China is based on a system of people's congress within the parameters of a unitary communist state, in which the ruling Chinese Communist Party (CCP) enacts its policies through people's congresses. T ...
as Yellow Music, a form of
pornography Pornography (colloquially called porn or porno) is Sexual suggestiveness, sexually suggestive material, such as a picture, video, text, or audio, intended for sexual arousal. Made for consumption by adults, pornographic depictions have evolv ...
. In the mainland, the communist regime began to suppress popular music and promote revolutionary marches.
China Record Corporation China Record Corporation (CRC; ) is the Chinese government's oldest and largest record company. CRC's catalog of traditional Chinese ethnic, classical and folk music features over 60,000 releases spanning over 1,000 years of Chinese musical histo ...
became the only music recording industry body in China, and for many years
Minyue Minyue (; Pinyin: ''Mǐnyuè, Mínyuè'') was an ancient kingdom in what is now the Fujian province in southern China. It was a contemporary of the Han dynasty, and was later annexed by the Han empire as the Southward expansion of the Han dynas ...
(National Music) and
revolutionary music Revolutionary songs are political songs that advocate or praise revolutions. They are used to boost morale, as well as for political propaganda or agitation. Amongst the most well-known revolutionary songs are "La Marseillaise" and "The Internatio ...
were about the only kinds of music to be recorded there. In 1952, Pathé Records moved its operation from Shanghai to Hong Kong. Stars from Shanghai continued to record songs in Hong Kong, and Shanghai-style music remained popular in Hong Kong until the mid-1960s. Although the music is a continuation of the shidaiqu style of Shanghai, many of its songwriters did not move to Hong Kong, and many of the musicians employed in the Hong Kong music industry were
Filipinos Filipinos () are citizens or people identified with the country of the Philippines. Filipinos come from various Austronesian peoples, all typically speaking Filipino language, Filipino, Philippine English, English, or other Philippine language ...
, Mandarin pop music in Hong Kong began to move away from its Shanghai roots. Also partly as a consequence of having fewer good songwriters, some songs of this period were adaptation of English-language songs, as well as songs from other regions such as the Indonesian song " Bengawan Solo" (as "梭羅河之戀") and the Latin-American song "
Historia de un Amor Historia de un Amor may refer to: * Historia de un Amor (song), a song written by Carlos Eleta Almarán * Historia de un amor (TV series), a Mexican telenovela * Historia de un Amor (film), a 1955 film {{dab ...
" (as "He is not in my heart", "我的心裡沒有他"). As the style evolved, the sound of popular songs from the Hong Kong era therefore became distinct from Shanghai's. Among the recording artists of note to emerge in this period were
Tsui Ping Tsui Ping (, born 1938) was a Mandopop singer active from 1950 to 1971. She was called the "queen of expressive feelings" () and the "Goldfish Beauty" (). Career Tsui Ping's family originates from Jiangsu, China, but she was born in Harbin in ...
,
Tsin Ting Jing Ting (; 1934 – 20 October 2022) was a Chinese singer and dubbing artist, sometimes known as the Marni Nixon of Hong Kong cinema. Biography Tsin Ting was born in Sichuan, China. She arrived in Hong Kong in 1949 with her brother after Chi ...
,
Grace Chang Grace Chang (born 13 June 1933), known in Chinese as Ko Lan (葛蘭), is a Hong Kong actress and singer. She was a popular idol in the 1950s, especially among students and the middle class. She was a renowned Cathay Organization actress with man ...
(葛蘭), Fong Tsin Ying (方靜音) and , some of whom were also actresses. While some actresses continued to sing in their films, some of the best known songs were dubbed by other singers, for example "
Unforgettable Love ''Unforgettable Love'' () is a 2021 Chinese romance television series, starring Wei Zheming, Hu Yixuan, co-starring Sheng Huizi, Yu Yijie, Shi Qingyan, Wu Chongxuan and Sun Sicheng. The series is based on the novel ''Mr He's Love is Not Forgotte ...
" ("不了情") in the film of the same name starring
Lin Dai Linda Lin Dai (; 26 December 1934 – 17 July 1964), born Ching Yuetyue (程月如), was a Chinese actress of Cinema of Hong Kong, Hong Kong films made in Standard Mandarin, Mandarin during the 1950s–60s. She was a star actress of the Shaw Br ...
was sung by . The song was also recorded with piano and strings orchestration popular at that time. Shanghai-style Mandarin pop songs however began to decline in popularity around the mid-1960s as Western pop music became popular among the young, and many Hong Kong performers copied Western songs and sang
Hong Kong English pop Hong Kong English pop () is a genre of music consisting of English-language songs that are made, performed and popularised in Hong Kong. It is known as simply English pop by Hong Kongers. The height of the English pop era in Hong Kong was from ...
songs. This in turn gave way to pop songs recorded in Cantonese as
Cantopop Cantopop (a contraction of "Cantonese pop music") is a genre of pop music sung in Cantonese. Cantopop is also used to refer to the cultural context of its production and consumption. The genre began in the 1970s and became associated with Hon ...
became the dominant genre of music from Hong Kong in the 1970s. After the Communist victory in China, the
Kuomintang The Kuomintang (KMT) is a major political party in the Republic of China (Taiwan). It was the one party state, sole ruling party of the country Republic of China (1912-1949), during its rule from 1927 to 1949 in Mainland China until Retreat ...
retreated to
Taiwan Taiwan, officially the Republic of China (ROC), is a country in East Asia. The main geography of Taiwan, island of Taiwan, also known as ''Formosa'', lies between the East China Sea, East and South China Seas in the northwestern Pacific Ocea ...
. There were local stars in Taiwan and Pathé Records did business there as well, but the island's recording industry was not initially strong. Taiwanese youth were drawn to popular styles from abroad; as Taiwan was ruled by Japan from 1895 to 1945,
Taiwanese pop The music of Taiwan reflects the diverse culture of Taiwanese people. Taiwan has undergone several economic, social, and political changes through its cultural history, and Taiwanese music reflects those issues in its way. The music of the c ...
songs in the
Hokkien Hokkien ( , ) is a Varieties of Chinese, variety of the Southern Min group of Chinese language, Chinese languages. Native to and originating from the Minnan region in the southeastern part of Fujian in southeastern China, it is also referred ...
language, the actual mother tongue of most of the island's residents, were particularly strongly influenced by the Japanese
enka is a Japanese music genre considered to resemble traditional Japanese music stylistically. Modern ''enka'', however, is a relatively recent musical form which adopts a more traditional musical style in its vocalism than ''ryūkōka'' music, pop ...
music. Popular Mandarin songs from Taiwan were similarly influenced, and many popular Mandarin songs of the 1960s were adaptations of Japanese songs, for example "Hard to Forget the Thought" ("意難忘", originally ) and "Hate you to the Bone" ("恨你入骨", from ). Popular songs were necessarily sung in Mandarin as Taiwan's new rulers, which imposed
martial law in Taiwan Martial law in Taiwan () refers to the periods in the history of Taiwan after World War II, during control by the Republic of China Armed Forces of the Kuomintang-led regime. The term is specifically used to refer to the over 38-year-long c ...
in 1949, mandated its use as well as restricting the use of
Taiwanese Hokkien Taiwanese Hokkien ( , ), or simply Taiwanese, also known as Taigi ( zh, c=臺語, tl=Tâi-gí), Taiwanese Southern Min ( zh, c=臺灣閩南語, tl=Tâi-uân Bân-lâm-gí), Hoklo and Holo, is a variety of the Hokkien language spoken natively ...
and forbidding the use of
Japanese Japanese may refer to: * Something from or related to Japan, an island country in East Asia * Japanese language, spoken mainly in Japan * Japanese people, the ethnic group that identifies with Japan through ancestry or culture ** Japanese diaspor ...
.Taiwanese Pop Songs History.
Taiwanese Pop Songs History
." ''Article.'' Retrieved on 2 May 2007.
The Mandarin pop music developed in Taiwan that would become modern Mandopop is a blend of traditional Chinese, Japanese, Taiwanese, as well as Western musical styles. was the earliest of the Taiwan-based stars who achieved success outside of Taiwan in the late 1950s with the song "
Green Island Serenade "Green Island Serenade" (; also known as "Serenade of Green Island") is a Standard Mandarin, Mandarin Chinese classic song composed in 1954 by Chow Lan-ping (). It was composed for the soundtrack for a film. It was later performed by Zi Wei (紫薇) ...
", followed by other singers such as and
Yao Su-jung Yao Su-jung (Chinese name: 姚蘇蓉'', P'inyin: ''Yáo Sūróng''; born December 5, 1945) is a Taiwanese singer who rose to prominence in the 1960s. She is known as the Queen of Tears, the Queen of Forbidden Songs and the Queen of Southeast Asi ...
in the 1960s. The 1960s however was a highly politically tense era, many songs such as "Not Going Home Today" ("今天不回家") by Yao Su-jung were banned in Taiwan. In the 1960s, regional centres of Chinese pop music also started to emerge in overseas Chinese communities in Malaysia and Singapore, and singers from the region such as also achieved wider success.


1970s–1980s


Rise of Taiwanese Mandopop

In the 1970s, Taipei began to take center stage for Mandopop while Cantopop took hold in Hong Kong. In 1966, the Taiwan music industry was generating US$4.7 million annually, and this had grown exponentially through the 1970s and 1980s, and by 1996, it peaked at just under US$500 million before declining. The success of the Taiwanese film industry also helped with the popularity of its singers. Taiwanese stars such as Tsai Chin, Fei Yu-ching, and
Fong Fei Fei Fong Fei-Fei (), born Lim Chiu-Luan (; 20 August 1953 – 3 January 2012), was a Taiwanese people, Taiwanese singer, host and actress. As one of the biggest pop singers in Taiwan, she was known for her melodic love songs, unique personal stage ...
became increasingly popular, with
Teresa Teng Teng Li-Chun ( zh, t=鄧麗君, s=, p=Dèng Lìjūn; 29 January 1953 – 8 May 1995), commonly known as Teresa Teng, was a Taiwanese singer, television personality, musician, and philanthropist. Referred to by some as the "Honorific nicknames i ...
the best known.
Teresa Teng Teng Li-Chun ( zh, t=鄧麗君, s=, p=Dèng Lìjūn; 29 January 1953 – 8 May 1995), commonly known as Teresa Teng, was a Taiwanese singer, television personality, musician, and philanthropist. Referred to by some as the "Honorific nicknames i ...
made Mandopop a true mainstay by crossing over to mainland China after
Deng Xiaoping Deng Xiaoping also Romanization of Chinese, romanised as Teng Hsiao-p'ing; born Xiansheng (). (22 August 190419 February 1997) was a Chinese statesman, revolutionary, and political theorist who served as the paramount leader of the People's R ...
came to power and instituted the open door policy in 1978 that allowed cultural products from Hong Kong and Taiwan to enter China. Teng's song became popular there despite an early ban on her songs by the PRC government for being "
Bourgeois The bourgeoisie ( , ) are a class of business owners, merchants and wealthy people, in general, which emerged in the Late Middle Ages, originally as a "middle class" between the peasantry and Aristocracy (class), aristocracy. They are tradition ...
Music". Her "soft, sweet, often whispery and restrained" singing style in romantic songs such as "
The Moon Represents My Heart "The Moon Represents My Heart" () is a song originally recorded by Taiwanese singer Chen Fen-lan for her album ''Dreamland'', which was released through Li Ge Records in May 1973. It was then re-recorded by fellow Taiwanese recording artist Liu G ...
" (月亮代表我的心) made a strong impact in mainland China where revolutionary songs were previously prevalent. A common expression then was "By day,
Deng Xiaoping Deng Xiaoping also Romanization of Chinese, romanised as Teng Hsiao-p'ing; born Xiansheng (). (22 August 190419 February 1997) was a Chinese statesman, revolutionary, and political theorist who served as the paramount leader of the People's R ...
rules China. But by night, Deng Lijun (Teresa Teng) rules". The ban on Teng was lifted in 1986 and songs from Hong Kong and Taiwan, called ''
gangtai Gangtai () are the C-pop artists and musical style from Hong Kong or Taiwan. The term is synonymous with post-1960 Cantopop or post-1970 Mandopop, a sweet, love type melody found distinctly in C-pop and not any other genre of Chinese folk, rock or ...
'' music, became more popular within mainland China. During the 1970s and early 1980s, a different generation of Taiwanese singers and/or songwriters such as
Chyi Yu Chyi Yu or Qi Yu (; born 17 October 1957) is a Taiwanese singer best known for her 1979 hit "The Olive Tree" (). She won the 9th Golden Melody Award for Best Female Vocalist Mandarin. She is the elder sister of singer-songwriter Chyi Chin. S ...
,
Hou Dejian Hou Dejian (, Cantonese: Hau Dak-gin, born October 1, 1956), is a songwriter, composer, and singer from Taiwan. Since the 1980s, his songs have been popular in mainland China, Taiwan and Hong Kong. His songs are written mostly in Chinese, wit ...
, and
Lo Ta-yu Lo Ta-yu (; born 20 July 1954), also known as Luo Dayou and Law Tai-yau, is a Taiwanese singer and songwriter. During the 1980s, Lo became one of the most influential Mandopop singer-songwriters with his melodic lyrics and love songs, and his ...
emerged, some of whom were influenced by folk rock and whose music may be termed "campus folk music". One of the most successful songs of the era was Lo Ta-yu's 1985 song "
Tomorrow Will Be Better "Tomorrow Will Be Better" ( zh, t=明天會更好, p=Míngtiān huì Gènghǎo) is a Music of Taiwan, Taiwanese Mandopop charity record written by Lo Ta-yu and sung by over 60 artists. It was recorded on 15 September 1985 and released on 25 Octobe ...
", which was inspired by the American song "
We Are the World "We Are the World" is a charity single recorded by the supergroup USA for Africa in 1985. It was written by Michael Jackson and Lionel Richie and produced by Quincy Jones for the album '' We Are the World''. With sales in excess of 20 milli ...
" and originally performed by 60 singers.Lotayu.org. "." ''歷史報道 : 《明天會更好》幕後.'' Retrieved on 6 January 2009. It quickly became a hit throughout Chinese in Asia. Another song soon followed in 1986 in mainland China called "Let the World be filled with Love" (讓世界充滿愛).China.org.cn.
China.org.cn
" ''Chinese pop music since the 1980s p3.'' Retrieved on 5 January 2009.
Hou Dejian's song " Descendants of the Dragon" (龍的傳人) also became an anthem for the period. Unlike previous eras dominated by female singers, male singers became popular. Other popular male singers included
Liu Wen-cheng Liu Wen-cheng (; 12 November 1952) is a Taiwanese singer and actor. He is the nephew of Burton Levin, an American diplomat serving as the United States Ambassador to Burma in the late 1980s and early 90s. Early life Liu was the youngest son o ...
,
Johnny Yin Johnny Yin ( zh, 殷正洋, t=殷正洋, p=Yīn Zhèngyáng, w=Yin Cheng-yang; born ) is a Taiwanese singer and host. Born in Taipei, Taiwan, Yin has won three Golden Melody Awards for Best Male Mandarin Singer. He has also won the Golden Tripod ...
and
Dave Wong Dave Wang (; born 20 October 1962) is a Hong Kong-Taiwanese singer, songwriter and actor. Life and career Wang was born in British Hong Kong,Dave Wang interview on '' Be My Guest'' from TVB-1 on Channel 34 as the son of a former Shaw Br ...
. Wong released his debut album A Game A Dream (一場遊戲一場夢), which sold over 700,000-copies in three months in December 1987. By around 1980, the term Mandopop began to be used for the Chinese popular music that had emerged in this period, and by the mid-1980s, Taiwan's booming music industry was the source of around 90% of Mandopop sold in Southeast Asia. In South East Asia, popular local stars from the late 60s to the 80s included Sakura Teng (樱花), Chang Siao Ying (張小英) and Lena Lim (林竹君) from Singapore, and Wong Shiau Chuen (黃曉君) and Lee Yee (李逸) from Malaysia. Some such as Lena Lim achieved some success outside the region, and the local labels also signed singers from outside the region such as Long Piao-Piao (龍飄飄) from Taiwan. The recording industry in Singapore in particular thrived. In 1979,
Singapore Singapore, officially the Republic of Singapore, is an island country and city-state in Southeast Asia. The country's territory comprises one main island, 63 satellite islands and islets, and one outlying islet. It is about one degree ...
launched the
Speak Mandarin Campaign The Speak Mandarin Campaign (SMC; ) is an initiative by the Government of Singapore to encourage the Chinese Singaporean population to speak Standard Mandarin Chinese, one of the four official languages of Singapore. Launched on 7 September 19 ...
to promote the use of Mandarin over the range of Chinese dialects spoken by various segments of the ethnic-Chinese population. Mandarin songs, already a strong presence on radio stations and on television, further eroded the popularity of Hokkien and Cantonese songs in the media. In the 1980s, a genre of Mandarin ballads called ''
xinyao ''Xinyao'' ( zh, s=wikt:新謠, 新謠, p=Xīnyáo) is a genre of songs originating from Singapore. It is a contemporary Mandarin vocal genre that emerged between the late 1970s to 1980s. ''Xinyao'' songs are typically composed and sung by Singapo ...
'' developed in Singapore by singers/songwriters such as
Liang Wern Fook Dr Liang Wern Fook (; born 1964 in Singapore) is a Cantonese Singaporean writer, musician, singer and researcher in Chinese literature and pedagogy. He was one of the pioneer figures in '' xinyao'' (Singaporean Chinese folk songs) movement in t ...
. In mainland China, the music industry was freed from state restriction in 1978, and regional recording companies were established in
Guangzhou Guangzhou, Chinese postal romanization, previously romanized as Canton or Kwangchow, is the Capital city, capital and largest city of Guangdong Provinces of China, province in South China, southern China. Located on the Pearl River about nor ...
, Shanghai and Beijing in the 1980s with local singers. Pop music in China in this period was dominated by Mandopop songs from Taiwan and Cantopop from Hong Kong, however the 1980s saw the beginning of
rock music in China Chinese rock ( zh, s=中国摇滚 , p=Zhōngguó yáogǔn; also zh, s=wikt:中国, 中国wikt:摇滚音乐, 摇滚音乐 , t=中國搖滾音樂 , p=Zhōngguó yáogǔn yīnyuè, lit. "Chinese rock and roll music") is a wide variety of rock a ...
, with the emergence of singer-songwriters such as
Cui Jian Cui Jian or Choi Geon ( zh, c=崔健; ; born 2 August 1961) is a Chinese singer-songwriter and musician. Dubbed the "Honorific nicknames in popular music, Godfather of Chinese Rock", Cui is often deemed the most influential rock musician in China. ...
, followed by others such as He Yong and bands such as
Tang Dynasty The Tang dynasty (, ; zh, c=唐朝), or the Tang Empire, was an Dynasties of China, imperial dynasty of China that ruled from 618 to 907, with an Wu Zhou, interregnum between 690 and 705. It was preceded by the Sui dynasty and followed ...
which became popular in the 1990s.


Mandopop after the Cultural Revolution

''Homeland Love (乡恋)'' performed by Li Guyi in 1980 is considered to be the first pop song created within
mainland China "Mainland China", also referred to as "the Chinese mainland", is a Geopolitics, geopolitical term defined as the territory under direct administration of the People's Republic of China (PRC) in the aftermath of the Chinese Civil War. In addit ...
after the
Chinese Cultural Revolution The Cultural Revolution, formally known as the Great Proletarian Cultural Revolution, was a Social movement, sociopolitical movement in the China, People's Republic of China (PRC). It was launched by Mao Zedong in 1966 and lasted until his de ...
(1966–1976), which echoed
humanism Humanism is a philosophy, philosophical stance that emphasizes the individual and social potential, and Agency (philosophy), agency of human beings, whom it considers the starting point for serious moral and philosophical inquiry. The me ...
and the New Enlightenment movement in the 1980s. The song was written by Ma Jinghua and Zhang Peiji, but was briefly banned by the Chinese authorities due to criticisms from some critics and audiences who labelled the song as "decadent music". In 1983, Li Guyi performed the song at the
China Central Television China Central Television (CCTV) is the State media, national television broadcaster of China, established in 1958. CCTV is operated by the National Radio and Television Administration which reports directly to the Publicity Department of th ...
's first
Spring Festival Gala The ''CMG New Year's Gala'', formerly known as the ''CCTV New Year's Gala'', also known as the ''Spring Festival Gala'', and commonly abbreviated in Chinese as ''Chunwan'' (), is a Chinese New Year special produced by China Media Group (CMG). It ...
, when the ban was lifted and the song became widely popular in the Chinese society. In 1986,
Cui Jian Cui Jian or Choi Geon ( zh, c=崔健; ; born 2 August 1961) is a Chinese singer-songwriter and musician. Dubbed the "Honorific nicknames in popular music, Godfather of Chinese Rock", Cui is often deemed the most influential rock musician in China. ...
, known as the "Father of
Chinese rock Chinese rock ( zh, s=中国摇滚 , p=Zhōngguó yáogǔn; also zh, s=wikt:中国, 中国wikt:摇滚音乐, 摇滚音乐 , t=中國搖滾音樂 , p=Zhōngguó yáogǔn yīnyuè, lit. "Chinese rock and roll music") is a wide variety of rock a ...
", debuted his rock song ''
Nothing to My Name "Nothing to My Name" ( zh, s=一无所有, p=Yī wú suǒ yǒu) is a song by Chinese rock musician Cui Jian. It is widely considered Cui's most famous and most important work, and one of the most influential songs in the history of the People's ...
'' which is considered the birth of Chinese rock music. ''Nothing to My Name'' later became the unofficial anthem of students who protested on Tiananmen Square in 1989, and is considered a symbol of the 1980s of China. According to aesthetician
Gao Ertai Gao Ertai, (born 1935) is a Chinese writer, calligrapher and artist who was born near Nanjing. He is well known in China for his contributions to aesthetic theory and teaching. Gao was detained and sentenced to forced labour by the Chinese Govern ...
, Cui Jian and rock music may be the only form of art that could have an "enlightening" effect at the time, and China needed
Enlightenment Enlightenment or enlighten may refer to: Age of Enlightenment * Age of Enlightenment, period in Western intellectual history from the late 17th to late 18th century, centered in France but also encompassing (alphabetically by country or culture): ...
.


1990s

A number of singers originally from mainland China such as
Faye Wong Faye Wong ( zh, 王菲; pinyin: ''Wáng Fēi''; born 8 August 1969) is a Chinese singer-songwriter and actress. Early in her career, she briefly used the stage name Shirley Wong (). Born in Beijing, she moved to British Hong Kong at the age o ...
and
Na Ying Na Ying (born 27 November 1967) is a Chinese singer. Rising to fame in the late 1980s, Na signed with Linfair Records in 1993, becoming one of the first singers from mainland China to join a Taiwanese label and subsequently gaining popularity ac ...
began to record in Hong Kong and Taiwan. Faye Wong, referred to in the media as the Diva, first recorded in Cantonese in Hong Kong, later recorded in Mandarin. She was one of the few Chinese singers to perform in
Budokan The , often shortened to simply Budokan, is an indoor arena in Chiyoda, Tokyo, Japan. It was originally built for the inaugural Olympic judo competition in the 1964 Summer Olympics. The Budokan was a popular venue for Japanese professional wres ...
, Japan. During this period, many Cantopop singers from
Hong Kong Hong Kong)., Legally Hong Kong, China in international treaties and organizations. is a special administrative region of China. With 7.5 million residents in a territory, Hong Kong is the fourth most densely populated region in the wor ...
such as the "
Four Heavenly Kings The Four Heavenly Kings are four Buddhism, Buddhist gods or Deva (Buddhism), ''devas'', each of whom is believed to watch over one cardinal direction of the world. The Hall of Four Heavenly Kings is a standard component of Chinese Buddhism, Ch ...
" -
Aaron Kwok Aaron Kwok Fu-shing (born 26 October 1965) is a Hong Kong singer, dancer, and actor, known as one of Hong Kong's "Four Heavenly Kings". Active since the 1980s, he has released over 30 studio albums in Cantonese and Mandarin, mostly in the danc ...
,
Leon Lai Leon Lai Ming Silver Bauhinia Star, SBS Bronze Bauhinia Star, BBS Medal of Honour (Hong Kong), MH ( zh, 黎明; born 11 December 1966), is a Hong Kong actor, singer, film director, and businessman. He is one of the "Cantopop#1990s: Four Heav ...
,
Andy Lau Andy Lau Tak-wah ( zh, order=t,j, t=劉德華, j=Lau4 Dak1 Waa4; born Lau Fook-wing; 27 September 1961), is a Hong Kong actor, singer-songwriter and film producer. He was named the "Fourth Tiger" among the Five Tiger Generals of TVB in the 1 ...
and
Jacky Cheung Jacky Cheung Hok-yau (born 10 July 1961) is a Hong Kong singer and actor. One of the most influential artists in the Greater China region, Cheung is widely regarded as a Heavenly King of Cantopop music and an icon of Hong Kong popular culture. He ...
- also began to dominate Mandopop. Many Cantopop songs of the period were also sung in Mandarin by the same singers, say Faye Wong. One of the best-selling Mandarin albums was the 1993 album '' The Goodbye Kiss'' by Jacky Cheung which sold over 1 million in Taiwan and 4 million in total Asia-wide. Nonetheless, Taiwan has their own popular singers such as
Stella Chang Stella Chang (; born 31 August 1966) is a Taiwanese singer who won the Golden Melody Award for Best Female Vocalist Mandarin twice. Chang debuted in 1985, and released over thirty albums. She married Sung Hsueh-jen in 2005. The couple moved to ...
,
Sky Wu Sky Wu (born 23 July 1966) is a Taiwanese Mandopop singer. He began singing in 1986, and has won himself two Golden Melody Awards, Best New Artist in 1990, and Best Mandarin Male Vocalist in 2004. His signature song, "Give My Special Love to a ...
,
Wakin Chau Wakin Chau (; born 22 December 1960), better known by his stage name Emil Chau during the 1980s and 1990s, is a Hong Kong-born Taiwanese people, Taiwanese singer and actor, popular throughout Taiwan, Hong Kong, Mainland China, and parts of Sou ...
(formerly Emil Chau) and Jeff Chang. Independent labels such as
Rock Records The Rock Records Co., Ltd. () commonly known as Rock Records (), is a record label based in Taipei, Taiwan. Founded in the 1980s as the Rock Music Publishing (滾石有聲出版社; ) by Tuan Chung-tan and Tuan Chung-i, It is the largest record ...
began to establish themselves in this period as some of the most influential labels. Towards the end of the 90s, other singers such as
Leehom Wang Wang Leehom ( zh, c=王力宏, poj=Ông Le̍k-hông; born May 17, 1976), sometimes credited as Leehom Wang, is an American singer-songwriter, actor, producer, and film director. His music is known for fusing hip-hop and R&B, with Guoyue, tradi ...
and
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became popular, and some also began to perform in the R&B and/or
hip-hop Hip-hop or hip hop (originally disco rap) is a popular music genre that emerged in the early 1970s from the African-American community of New York City. The style is characterized by its synthesis of a wide range of musical techniques. Hi ...
genres. In the period from the mid-1990s to early 2000s, Shanghai and Beijing became centers of the music industry in mainland China, with Shanghai focusing on music record publishing and distribution, while Beijing focused on music recording.


2000s-2010s: Growth in Mainland China

In Hong Kong, the Four Heavenly Kings faded in the 2000s, but many other new artists such as
Nicholas Tse Nicholas Tse Ting-fung (born 29 August 1980) is a Hong Kong actor, singer, songwriter, martial artist, entrepreneur and TV chef.EEGmusic.EEGmusic." ''Nicolas Tse profile.'' Retrieved on 22 April 2008. Tse debuted as a singer in 1996 before shif ...
and
Eason Chan Eason Chan Yick-shun ( zh, s=陈奕迅, t=陳奕迅, first=t, p=Chén Yìxùn; born 27 July 1974) is a Hong Kong singer and actor. He is one of the most popular and influential singers in both Cantopop and Mandopop. Besides holding the record ...
came to the fore. Among this new wave of talent,
Khalil Fong Khalil Fong Tai-Tung (; 14 July 1983 – 21 February 2025) was a Hong Kong singer-songwriter, musician and producer. Fong was notable for introducing a more sophisticated R&B and soul sound to the Chinese music market, drawing inspiration f ...
(方大同) stood out for his integration of R&B and soul into Mandopop.
Khalil Fong Khalil Fong Tai-Tung (; 14 July 1983 – 21 February 2025) was a Hong Kong singer-songwriter, musician and producer. Fong was notable for introducing a more sophisticated R&B and soul sound to the Chinese music market, drawing inspiration f ...
(方大同), an American-born Hong Kong singer-songwriter and producer, played a pivotal role in integrating R&B and soul elements into Mandopop. Debuting in 2005 with his album
Soulboy Soulboys (sometimes spelled soul boys) were a working-class English youth subculture of the late 1970s and early 1980s, and fans of American soul and funk music. The subculture emerged in North West England as northern soul event attendees bega ...
, Fong introduced a sophisticated blend of Western musical styles to the Chinese music scene. His subsequent works, including This Love (2006) and his 2011 album 15, further cemented his reputation as a genre innovator. Fong's contributions were recognized with multiple Golden Melody Awards, including Best Male Artist in 2017 for his 2016 album ''
Journey to the West ''Journey to the West'' () is a Chinese novel published in the 16th century during the Ming dynasty and attributed to Wu Cheng'en. It is regarded as one of the Classic Chinese Novels, great Chinese novels, and has been described as arguably the ...
''. His unique musical approach has been influential in shaping the contemporary Mandopop landscape. The 2000s also began with an explosion of pop idols, many of whom were from
Taiwan Taiwan, officially the Republic of China (ROC), is a country in East Asia. The main geography of Taiwan, island of Taiwan, also known as ''Formosa'', lies between the East China Sea, East and South China Seas in the northwestern Pacific Ocea ...
. Mainland China also saw a rapid increase in the number of Mandopop singers, bands, and idol groups as pop music becomes increasingly mainstream by mid-2000s. The growing Mainland film industry and
Chinese television drama Chinese television dramas (), sometimes colloquially known as C-dramas, are Chinese-language television drama series originating from mainland China, sometimes including co-productions with the Greater China region. Popular drama series genres in ...
also increased demand for Mandopop. Since the 2000s, the emergence of
indie rock Indie rock is a Music subgenre, subgenre of rock music that originated in the United Kingdom, United States and New Zealand in the early to mid-1980s. Although the term was originally used to describe rock music released through independent reco ...
in mainland China and Taiwan had exploded into a flourishing indie music scene in mainland China and Taiwan, adding various new diversities into Mandopop. Entry of popular Taiwan-based bands such as
Mayday Mayday is an emergency procedure word used internationally as a distress signal in voice-procedure radio communications. It is used to signal a life-threatening emergency primarily by aviators and mariners, but in some countries local organiz ...
and
Sodagreen Sodagreen (; stylized as sodagreen) is a Taiwanese indie band formed in 2001. Its members have been unchanged since 2003. Sodagreen emerged in the Taiwanese indie music scene after receiving the Grand Jury Award in the Hohaiyan Gongliau Rock Fes ...
while in mainland Chinese-based bands such as SuperVC and
Milk Coffee Milk coffee is a category of coffee-based drinks made with milk. Johan Nieuhof, the Dutch ambassador to China, is credited as the first person to drink coffee with milk when he experimented with it around 1660. Varieties Breve A breve is an ...
had brought a new phase of rock fusion into Mandopop. The music industry in Taiwan, however, began to suffer from music piracy in the digital age, and its revenue plummeted to $US95 million in 2005. The primary revenue sources in Taiwan music industry shifted to advertising, concerts, KTV (karaoke) and movie. The dramatic decline of CD sales shifted the market in favour of mainland China. While piracy was also severe in mainland China, the percentage of its digital sales is higher compared to most countries. 2005 was known as 'The First Year of Digital Music' in China as its digital music sales of $US57 million overtook CDs in 2005, and it also overtook Taiwan in term of the retail value of its music sales. However, while mainland China became increasingly important in generating revenue, the pop music industry itself in mainland China was still relatively small in the decade of 2000s compared to Taiwan and Hong Kong as popstars from Taiwan and other overseas Chinese communities were still popular in mainland China. Mandopop singers such as
Jay Chou Jay Chou Chieh-lun ( zh, s=周杰伦, t=周杰倫, first=t, p=Zhōu Jiélún; born 18 January 1979) is a Taiwanese singer-songwriter, actor, director, and businessman. Regarded as one of the most influential artists in the Chinese-speaking worl ...
were popular performing in the
rhythm and blues Rhythm and blues, frequently abbreviated as R&B or R'n'B, is a genre of popular music that originated within African American communities in the 1940s. The term was originally used by record companies to describe recordings marketed predomina ...
and
rap music Rapping (also rhyming, flowing, spitting, emceeing, or MCing) is an artistic form of vocal delivery and emotive expression that incorporates "rhyme, rhythmic speech, and ommonlystreet vernacular". It is usually performed over a backing ...
genre, popularising a new fusion style of music known as
zhongguofeng Zhongguo feng or Chinese style () music is a popular Chinese music genre considered to adopt a more traditional musical style in its instrumental than normal popular music, similar to Chinese traditional music but with a "Modern Twist" style wa ...
. Other successful singers included
JJ Lin Wayne Lim Junjie (; born 27 March 1981), professionally known as JJ Lin, is a Singaporean singer, songwriter, record producer, and businessman. One of the most successful artists in the Sinophone, Chinese-speaking world, Lin achieved recogniti ...
,
Eason Chan Eason Chan Yick-shun ( zh, s=陈奕迅, t=陳奕迅, first=t, p=Chén Yìxùn; born 27 July 1974) is a Hong Kong singer and actor. He is one of the most popular and influential singers in both Cantopop and Mandopop. Besides holding the record ...
,
Mayday Mayday is an emergency procedure word used internationally as a distress signal in voice-procedure radio communications. It is used to signal a life-threatening emergency primarily by aviators and mariners, but in some countries local organiz ...
,
Stefanie Sun Stefanie Sun Yanzi (; born Sng Ee Tze; 23 July 1978) is a Singaporean singer and songwriter. Known for her Ballad, ballads and girl next door image, Sun made her debut with the album ''Yan Zi (album), Yan Zi'' in 2000. Featuring the single "Cl ...
, G.E.M. and
Jolin Tsai Jolin Tsai I-lin ( zh, c=蔡依林, p=Cài Yīlín; born September 15, 1980), also romanized as Jolin Cai, is a Taiwanese people, Taiwanese singer, songwriter, and actress. Recognized as the "Honorific nicknames in popular music, Queen of C-Pop ...
. The burgeoning number of contests brought a new wave of idol genre to the Mandopop industry. Nationwide singing competitions in mainland China, such as the Super Girl, Super Boy,
The Voice of China ''The Voice of China'' () is a Chinese reality television singing competition broadcast on Zhejiang Television. Based on the original ''The Voice of Holland'', the concept of the series is to find new singing talent (solo or duets) contested by as ...
,
Chinese Idol The C-pop, Chinese pop music industry has a growing trend of idols and idol groups, who are entertainers manufactured and marketed for their image and attractiveness. Idols are primarily singers (either as members of a group or as solo acts), ...
, and The X Factor: Zhongguo Zui Qiang Yin, greatly boosted Mandopop's influence. Many contestants emerged as successful singers in Mainland China, such as
Joker Xue Joker Xue (, born July 17, 1983) is a Chinese singer-songwriter and record producer, formerly known as Jacky Xue. One of the most-streamed and most popular Mandopop artists, he is known for his emotional vocal delivery with works that span vario ...
, Jane Zhang,
Li Yuchun Li Yuchun ( zh, c=李宇春, p=Lǐ Yǔchūn; born March 10, 1984), also known by her stage name Chris Lee, is a Chinese singer, songwriter, DJ and actress. Her musical style is mainly based on electronic dance music and Chinese pop songs. She laun ...
,
Jason Zhang Zhang Jie (; born 20 December 1982), also known as Jason Zhang, is a Chinese singer. He made his television series debut in the reality singing competition ''My Show'' in 2004, which he won and signed with Universal Music China. In 2007, he joine ...
, Laure Shang Wenjie, etc. The same phenomenon also occurred in Taiwan. From the show
One Million Star ''One Million Star'' () is a television singing competition in Taiwan broadcast on China Television (CTV). It debuted on 5 January 2007, filling the 10pm to midnight time slot on Friday evenings. The show is hosted by Tao Ching-Ying (陶晶瑩) ...
and Super Idol, new talented singers entered the Mandopop market, including
Aska Yang Aska Yang (, born April 4, 1978, in Taoyuan City (now Taoyuan District), Taiwan) is a Taiwanese Mandopop singer. Education He graduated from the National Changhua University of Education (NCUE), with a major in Guidance and Counselling. Durin ...
,
Yoga Lin Yoga Lin Youjia (; born July 1, 1987) is a Taiwanese people, Taiwanese singer. He was the winner of One Million Star, Season 1, a reality TV singing competition in Taiwan during his study at National Dong Hwa University. During the competition, h ...
, Lala Hsu and so on. In Taiwan, the new term "quality idol" (優質偶像) referred to artists who were good-looking, talented and highly educated, among them
Wang Leehom Wang Leehom ( zh, c=王力宏, poj=Ông Le̍k-hông; born May 17, 1976), sometimes credited as Leehom Wang, is an American singer-songwriter, actor, producer, and film director. His music is known for fusing hip-hop and R&B, with traditional ...
and
William Wei Wei Li-an (; born 5 March 1987), known professionally as WeiBird, is a Taiwanese singer-songwriter. He has released six studio albums, one live album and two extended plays. Wei won the Golden Melody Award for Best New Singer in 2011 and Best ...
. There was increasing crossover appeal of Taiwanese
bubblegum pop Bubblegum (also called bubblegum pop) is pop music in a catchy and upbeat style that is marketed for children and adolescents. The term also refers to a more specific rock and pop subgenre, originating in the United States in the late 1960s, th ...
boybands and girl bands in the mainland Chinese scene, such as the very commercially successful acts like
S.H.E S.H.E is a Taiwanese girl group whose members are Selina Jen, Hebe Tien, and Ella Chen. They formed in 2001 and are managed by HIM International Music but decided not to renew their contract in 2019 due to having their own management company. Si ...
and
Fahrenheit The Fahrenheit scale () is a scale of temperature, temperature scale based on one proposed in 1724 by the German-Polish physicist Daniel Gabriel Fahrenheit (1686–1736). It uses the degree Fahrenheit (symbol: °F) as the unit. Several accou ...
. Several new boybands and girl bands also have emerged in mainland China such as
Top Combine Top Combine is a Mandopop boy band. The group formed in 2007 with the members Bird Zhang, Mars Ma, Kenny Liu, Caesar Li, and Tanas Kim. All were professionally trained in singing, dancing, modeling, and language. With the exception of Tanas, the o ...
, TFBOYS,
NEXT NeXT, Inc. (later NeXT Computer, Inc. and NeXT Software, Inc.) was an American technology company headquartered in Redwood City, California that specialized in computer workstations for higher education and business markets, and later develope ...
and ''
Idol Producer ''Idol Producer'' (), is a 2018 Chinese reality boy group survival show, which premiered on January 19, 2018, on iQIYI. It is presented by Lay Zhang with Li Ronghao, Jackson Wang, MC Jin, Cheng Xiao and Zhou Jieqiong serving as mentors. On April ...
'' and '' Produce Camp'' boy and girl groups including
Nine Percent Nine Percent (; commonly stylized in all-caps) was a nine-member Chinese boy group formed by the survival show '' Idol Producer'' by iQIYI on April 6, 2018. The group promoted for 18 months since formation. Nine Percent was one of the most po ...
, UNINE,
R1SE R1SE was a Chinese idol boy band, formed by Tencent through the 2019 reality show ''Produce Camp 2019'' on Tencent Video. The group consisted of 11 members: Zhou Zhennan, He Luoluo, Yan Xujia, Xia Zhiguang, Yao Chen, Zhai Xiaowen, Zhang Yanqi, Li ...
,
INTO1 Into1 (''pronounced as Into One'', stylized in all caps) was a multi-national Chinese boy group, formed through the 2021 reality show ''Produce Camp 2021'' (Chuang 2021) on Tencent Video. The group consists of eleven members: Liu Yu, Santa, R ...
,
THE9 The9 (stylized as THE9 or THE NINE) was a Chinese girl group formed through the IQIYI survival show Youth With You (season 2), ''Youth With You 2''. The group consisted of Liu Yuxin (singer), Liu Yuxin, Yu Shuxin, Xu Jiaqi, Yu Yan (singer), Yu ...
and
Rocket Girls Rocket Girl or Rocket Girls in plural may refer to: * Rocket Girl, London-based independent record label * ''Rocket Girl'', 2011 song by South Korean band Stellar * '' Rocket Girl (comics)'', 2013 comic book series. * ''Rocket Girl'' a play and a ...
.


2020s

In early 2020s,
Jay Chou Jay Chou Chieh-lun ( zh, s=周杰伦, t=周杰倫, first=t, p=Zhōu Jiélún; born 18 January 1979) is a Taiwanese singer-songwriter, actor, director, and businessman. Regarded as one of the most influential artists in the Chinese-speaking worl ...
,
JJ Lin Wayne Lim Junjie (; born 27 March 1981), professionally known as JJ Lin, is a Singaporean singer, songwriter, record producer, and businessman. One of the most successful artists in the Sinophone, Chinese-speaking world, Lin achieved recogniti ...
and
Eason Chan Eason Chan Yick-shun ( zh, s=陈奕迅, t=陳奕迅, first=t, p=Chén Yìxùn; born 27 July 1974) is a Hong Kong singer and actor. He is one of the most popular and influential singers in both Cantopop and Mandopop. Besides holding the record ...
, who had debuted for more than 20 years, continued to lead the Mandopop scene. They were ranked among the top three most-streamed Chinese artists on Spotify in 2023. Chou's
Greatest Works of Art ''Greatest Works of Art'' () is the fifteenth studio album by Taiwanese singer-songwriter Jay Chou, released on 15 July 2022 by JVR Music. It is Chou's first album since '' Jay Chou's Bedtime Stories'' in 2016. The album draws inspiration from Eu ...
was
IFPI The International Federation of the Phonographic Industry (IFPI) is the organisation that represents the interests of the recording industry worldwide. It is a non-profit members' organisation registered in Switzerland and founded in Italy in 1 ...
Global Album Sales Chart No. 1 album in 2022. Short video platforms like
DouYin TikTok, known in mainland China and Hong Kong as Douyin (), is a social media and Short-form content, short-form online video platform owned by Chinese Internet company ByteDance. It hosts user-submitted videos, which may range in duration f ...
gained popularity and had increasing impact on the music market. In November 2021,
Eason Chan Eason Chan Yick-shun ( zh, s=陈奕迅, t=陳奕迅, first=t, p=Chén Yìxùn; born 27 July 1974) is a Hong Kong singer and actor. He is one of the most popular and influential singers in both Cantopop and Mandopop. Besides holding the record ...
released “Lonely Warrior” (孤勇者), the opening theme for Arcane: League of Legends, which became super hit not only among the usual Mandopop fans, but also mega hit among the children, becoming an annual phenomenon in the Mandopop scene. Although Chan did not make any appearance for promotion (except one online performance ten months after the release), this song still gained huge popularity in mainland China, Taiwan and Malaysia. There were numerous short videos using the song as background music, playing the song with various adaptations, and hand gestures dance etc. Children, in particular, were attached to these. The popularity spread from children to their parents, gaining widespread attention. Short video platform had emerged as a contemporary media for music promotion. In August of 2021, it was announced by the
Cyberspace Administration of China The Cyberspace Administration of China (CAC; ) is the national internet regulator and censor of the People's Republic of China. The agency was initially established in 2011 by the State Council as the State Internet Information Office (SIIO) ...
that online forums for popularity rankings for celebrities would be banned across all digital platforms. This was the start of a 2 month process for the new campaign called "Clear and Bright" that would be used to crackdown on fan culture sites. It was issued for the controversy of cyberbullying, starting rumors, inducing minors to raise funds, fraud, vote rigging, and causing agitated behavior to flaunt lifestyles. This was backed up by the incident in May with the fans from idol survival show '' Youth With You 3,'' where a promotion for buying milk with special QR codes attached could be used to support their favorite on the show. This led to mass buying for the codes and viral videos showing fans dumping out the milk into drains. It was estimated that over 270,000 bottles were dumped out in this "Milk Waste" scandal. The backlash fell so far back that
iQiyi iQIYI (, pronounced in English as ), formerly Qiyi (), is a Chinese subscription video on-demand over-the-top streaming service owned by Baidu. Headquartered in Beijing, iQIYI primarily produces and distributes films and television series. i ...
suspended the show and eventually the government banned all talent and idol reality shows for a while. Artists such as G.E.M. and
Joker Xue Joker Xue (, born July 17, 1983) is a Chinese singer-songwriter and record producer, formerly known as Jacky Xue. One of the most-streamed and most popular Mandopop artists, he is known for his emotional vocal delivery with works that span vario ...
also continue to make an impact on the Mandopop scene. G.E.M.'s " Light Years Away", the Chinese theme song for the sci-fi film
Passengers A passenger is a person who travels in a vehicle, but does not bear any responsibility for the tasks required for that vehicle to arrive at its destination or otherwise operate the vehicle, and is not a steward. The vehicles may be bicycles, ...
, is the most-viewed Chinese music video on YouTube at 291 million as of February 2025. While Xue's
Extraterrestrial World Tour The Extraterrestrial World Tour is the third concert tour and second world tour by Chinese singer-songwriter Joker Xue. The Extraterrestrial World Tour spans a record-breaking 145 shows across four continents with 133 in Asia, 2 in Europe, 5 in ...
is one of the most attended concert tours of all-time and ranks first among C-pop artists with more than 4.9 million tickets sold as of July 2024.


Characteristics


Instruments and setups

Shidaiqu Shidaiqu () is a type of Chinese popular music that is a fusion of Chinese folk, American jazz and Hollywood film music that originated in Shanghai in the 1920s.Shoesmith, Brian. Rossiter, Ned. 004(2004). Refashioning Pop Music in Asia: Cos ...
originated as a fusion of Chinese traditional music and European popular music, and therefore instruments from both genres were used from the very beginning of Mandopop. Songs performed in the traditional style employed traditional Chinese instruments like the
erhu The (; ) is a Chinese two-stringed bowed musical instrument, more specifically a spike fiddle, that is sometimes known in the Western world as the ''Chinese violin'' or a ''Chinese two-stringed fiddle''. It is used as a solo instrument as ...
,
pipa The pipa, pípá, or p'i-p'a () is a traditional Chinese musical instrument belonging to the plucked category of instruments. Sometimes called the "Chinese lute", the instrument has a pear-shaped wooden body with a varying number of frets rangi ...
, and
sanxian The (, literally "three strings") is a three-stringed List of traditional Chinese musical instruments, traditional Chinese lute. It has a long fretless fingerboard, and the body is traditionally made from snake skin stretched over a rounded rec ...
, such as in the recording of "
The Wandering Songstress "Tianya genü" (), or "The Wandering Songstress", is one of two theme songs from the 1937 Chinese film '' Street Angel''; the other being the "Four Seasons Song" (). It was composed by He Luting based on an older Suzhou ballad, with lyrics by T ...
" (天涯歌女) by
Zhou Xuan Zhou Xiaohong (; born Su Pu; August 1, 1920 – September 22, 1957), known professionally as Zhou Xuan (), also romanized as Chow Hsuan (), was a Chinese singer and film actress. By the 1940s, she had become one of China's Seven Great Si ...
, whereas more Western orchestral instruments such as trumpets, violins, and piano were used in songs like "Shanghai Nights" (夜上海), also by Zhou Xuan.
Big band A big band or jazz orchestra is a type of musical ensemble of jazz music that usually consists of ten or more musicians with four sections: saxophones, trumpets, trombones, and a rhythm section. Big bands originated during the early 1910s and ...
and
jazz Jazz is a music genre that originated in the African-American communities of New Orleans, Louisiana, in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Its roots are in blues, ragtime, European harmony, African rhythmic rituals, spirituals, h ...
instruments and orchestrations from the swing era were common in the early years. Chinese and Western instruments were also combined in some recordings. In the 1960s, the
electric guitar An electric guitar is a guitar that requires external electric Guitar amplifier, sound amplification in order to be heard at typical performance volumes, unlike a standard acoustic guitar. It uses one or more pickup (music technology), pickups ...
began to be used. Starting around the 1970s,
electronic organ An electric organ, also known as electronic organ, is an electronic keyboard instrument which was derived from the pump organ, harmonium, pipe organ and theatre organ. Originally designed to imitate their sound, or orchestral sounds, it has si ...
s/
synthesizer A synthesizer (also synthesiser or synth) is an electronic musical instrument that generates audio signals. Synthesizers typically create sounds by generating waveforms through methods including subtractive synthesis, additive synthesis a ...
s began to be heavily featured, which characterized the Mandopop music of the era. Today's Mandopop arrangements are generally westernized, covering many musical styles, including R&B,
hip hop Hip-hop or hip hop (originally disco rap) is a popular music genre that emerged in the early 1970s from the African-American community of New York City. The style is characterized by its synthesis of a wide range of musical techniques. Hip- ...
, ballads, and
Pop Pop or POP may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media * Pop music, a musical genre Artists * POP, a Japanese idol group now known as Gang Parade * Pop! (British group), a UK pop group * Pop! featuring Angie Hart, an Australian band Album ...
. Mandopop switched from simple imitation to adjusting the melodies and lyrics creatively in short time. Some pop stars became famous because they were presented to meet the Chinese aesthetics standard and culture features. A few Chinese pop musicians—most notably
Jay Chou Jay Chou Chieh-lun ( zh, s=周杰伦, t=周杰倫, first=t, p=Zhōu Jiélún; born 18 January 1979) is a Taiwanese singer-songwriter, actor, director, and businessman. Regarded as one of the most influential artists in the Chinese-speaking worl ...
,
Lin Jun Jie Wayne Lim Junjie (; born 27 March 1981), professionally known as JJ Lin, is a Singaporean singer, songwriter, record producer, and businessman. One of the most successful artists in the Chinese-speaking world, Lin achieved recognition with his ...
,
David Tao use both this parameter and , birth_date to display the person's date of birth, date of death, and age at death) --> , death_place = , death_cause = , body_discovered = , resting_place = , resting_place_coordinates ...
,
Leehom Wang Wang Leehom ( zh, c=王力宏, poj=Ông Le̍k-hông; born May 17, 1976), sometimes credited as Leehom Wang, is an American singer-songwriter, actor, producer, and film director. His music is known for fusing hip-hop and R&B, with Guoyue, tradi ...
—have experimented with fusing traditional
Chinese instrument Chinese musical instruments are traditionally grouped into eight categories (classified by the material from which the instruments were made) known as (). The eight categories are silk, bamboo, wood, stone, metal, clay, gourd and skin; other instr ...
s with Western styles (such as hip hop beats and progressive rock) all over again in a new style known as
China Wind music Zhongguo feng or Chinese style () music is a popular Chinese music genre considered to adopt a more traditional musical style in its instrumental than normal popular music, similar to Chinese traditional music but with a "Modern Twist" style wa ...
(''zhongguofeng''), influencing many Chinese singers worldwide.


Industry


Labels

Popular music
record label "Big Three" music labels A record label or record company is a brand or trademark of Sound recording and reproduction, music recordings and music videos, or the company that owns it. Sometimes, a record label is also a Music publisher, ...
s includes independent labels such as JVR Music, Linfair Records, B'In Music and subsidiaries of major labels such as Sony Music Taiwan, Universal Music Taiwan, Warner Music Taiwan. In the past few years, mainland labels such as EE-Media, Huayi Brothers, Taihe Rye Music, Show City Times, Idol Entertainment, and Tian Hao Entertainment have also emerged. *Historical ** Shanghai:
Pathé Pathé SAS (; styled as PATHÉ!) is a French major film production and distribution company, owning a number of cinema chains through its subsidiary Pathé Cinémas and television networks across Europe. It is the name of a network of Fren ...
, Great Wall, New Moon, Greater China ** Hong Kong: Pathé Records/
EMI Records EMI Records (formerly EMI Records Ltd.) is a British multinational record label owned by Universal Music Group. It was originally founded as a British flagship label by the music company EMI in 1972, and launched in January 1973 as the succes ...
,
Philips Koninklijke Philips N.V. (), simply branded Philips, is a Dutch multinational health technology company that was founded in Eindhoven in 1891. Since 1997, its world headquarters have been situated in Amsterdam, though the Benelux headquarter ...
, Diamond Records *Modern ** Mainland China:
EE-Media EE-Media is a C-pop (Mandopop) record label, founded in Shanghai, China in 2004 by Long Danni under the parent company Hunan Broadcasting System. History The company was created after the success of '' Super Girl'' and '' Super Boy'', national ...
,
Huayi Brothers Huayi Brothers Media Corp. () is a Chinese multinational entertainment company that owns a film studio, a television production company, a talent agency, a record label, entertainment theme parks, and a movie theater chain founded in Beijing ...
,
Taihe Rye Music Taihe Rye Music is a C-pop (Mandopop) record label, founded in China in 2004 by Song Ke and Zhang Yadong. History The company was founded in 1996, originally as a subsidiary of Warner Music Group. In 2004, Taihe Rye Music broke away from Warner ...
,
Show City Times Beijing Show City Times Entertainment Ltd. (北京少城時代文化傳播有限公司), abbreviated as Show City Times (少城時代), is a Chinese music company established by Chinese singer Jane Zhang and her ex-boyfriend Michael Feng. The co ...
, Idol Entertainment,
TH Entertainment TH Entertainment is a Chinese record label found in 2006 by Zhou Hao. History The company was after successful music labels in Japan, South Korea, and Taiwan. Tianhao flourishing cultural transmission (Beijing) Co., Ltd. was established in 2005 ...
,
Yuehua Entertainment Yuehua Entertainment (; ) is a privately held Chinese multinational entertainment group and talent agency based in Beijing. The company was founded in June 2009 by former Huayi Brothers employee Du Hua. Yuehua is involved in television production ...
, Wajijiwa Entertainment ** Taiwan:
Rock Records The Rock Records Co., Ltd. () commonly known as Rock Records (), is a record label based in Taipei, Taiwan. Founded in the 1980s as the Rock Music Publishing (滾石有聲出版社; ) by Tuan Chung-tan and Tuan Chung-i, It is the largest record ...
,
HIM International Music HIM International Music () is a Taiwanese independent record label and artist management company established in 1999. It was previously known as Grand Music International Inc. (宇宙國際音樂股份有限公司). It is an International Federat ...
, Linfair Records,
Avex Taiwan Avex Taiwan Inc (, formerly 艾迴唱片公司 or 艾迴股份有限公司) is an entertainment and record label based in Taiwan. It was founded in July 1998 and is a foreign consolidated subsidiary of parent company Avex Group, based in Japan. A ...
,
B'in Music B'in Music, otherwise known as Believe in Music International Limited () in full or B'in Music (), is a Taiwan-based recording company, formally established on July 1, 2006, and founded by Ason Chen in Taipei. Current artist roster B’in Musi ...
** Hong Kong:
Gold Typhoon Gold Typhoon Group is a Chinese entertainment company founded in Hong Kong as Gold Label in 2004 with the support of EMI. It acquired EMI Music Taiwan / EMI Music China (Typhoon Records) in 2008 to adopt its current name. On 1 January 2011, it ...
,
Emperor Group Emperor Group is a Hong Kong Conglomerate (company), conglomerate founded by Albert Yeung. Albert Yeung's father, Mr Yeung Shing, opened a watch shop named "Shing On Kee Watch Shop" in 1942, setting the business foundation.< ...
** Singapore:
Ocean Butterflies International Ocean Butterflies Music () is an independent Asian music and entertainment company specializing in Chinese-Pop (C-pop). Founded in 1986, it operates in six regions: Mainland China, Taiwan, Hong Kong, Singapore and Malaysia. History In 1986, O ...
, Hype Records


Music distribution outside Asia

Mandopop titles are also available outside of Asia. Chinese communities established in North America have made Mandopop music accessible through local businesses. In the United States, Canada and Australia they are easily found in many major urban areas, such as
San Francisco Bay Area The San Francisco Bay Area, commonly known as the Bay Area, is a List of regions of California, region of California surrounding and including San Francisco Bay, and anchored by the cities of Oakland, San Francisco, and San Jose, California, S ...
,
Los Angeles Los Angeles, often referred to by its initials L.A., is the List of municipalities in California, most populous city in the U.S. state of California, and the commercial, Financial District, Los Angeles, financial, and Culture of Los Angeles, ...
,
San Diego San Diego ( , ) is a city on the Pacific coast of Southern California, adjacent to the Mexico–United States border. With a population of over 1.4 million, it is the List of United States cities by population, eighth-most populous city in t ...
, New York City,
Vancouver Vancouver is a major city in Western Canada, located in the Lower Mainland region of British Columbia. As the List of cities in British Columbia, most populous city in the province, the 2021 Canadian census recorded 662,248 people in the cit ...
,
Toronto Toronto ( , locally pronounced or ) is the List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, most populous city in Canada. It is the capital city of the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian province of Ontario. With a p ...
,
Sydney Sydney is the capital city of the States and territories of Australia, state of New South Wales and the List of cities in Australia by population, most populous city in Australia. Located on Australia's east coast, the metropolis surrounds Syd ...
, and
Melbourne Melbourne ( , ; Boonwurrung language, Boonwurrung/ or ) is the List of Australian capital cities, capital and List of cities in Australia by population, most populous city of the States and territories of Australia, Australian state of Victori ...
.


Charts

The
Global Chinese Pop Chart The Global Chinese Pop Chart (全球华语歌曲排行榜, ''quánqiú huáyŭ gēqŭ páihángbàng'') is a Chinese language record chart, pop music chart compiled by 7 Chinese language radio stations across Asia. It was founded in 2001 by Beijing ...
is a
record chart A record chart, in the music industry, also called a music chart, is a ranking of Sound recording and reproduction, recorded music according to certain criteria during a given period. Many different criteria are used in worldwide charts, ofte ...
organised since 2001 by 7 radio stations from Beijing, Shanghai, Guangdong, Hong Kong, Singapore, Taipei and Kuala Lumpur. In
Taiwan Taiwan, officially the Republic of China (ROC), is a country in East Asia. The main geography of Taiwan, island of Taiwan, also known as ''Formosa'', lies between the East China Sea, East and South China Seas in the northwestern Pacific Ocea ...
,
G-Music Chart G-Music Limited is a company built in 2002 by Rose Records and Tachung Records, both are the largest local music retails and wholesale chains in Taiwan. The physical retail arms have been kept separate, for different customer bases and brand iden ...
(Chinese: 風雲榜 fēngyúnbǎng) is the most popular music ranking. It was first officially published on 7 July 2005, and compiled the top physically sold CD releases in Taiwan (including both albums and physically released singles). Only the top 20 positions are published, and instead of sales, a percentage ranking is listed next to each release.


Awards

* Beijing Popular Music Awards (Mainland China) * CCTV-MTV Music Awards (Mainland China) *
Chinese Music Awards The Chinese Music Awards () is a music awards founded in 2008 to recognize outstanding achievement in the Chinese music industry. Categories * Top 10 Mandarin Albums * Top 10 Cantonese Albums * Top 10 Mandarin Songs * Top 10 Cantonese Songs * Bes ...
(Mainland China) * Four Stations Joint Music Awards (Hong Kong) *
Golden Melody Awards The Golden Melody Awards (), commonly abbreviated as GMA, is an honor awarded by Taiwan's Ministry of Culture to recognize outstanding achievement in the Mandarin, Taiwanese Hokkien, Hakka, and Formosan-languages popular and traditional music ...
(Taiwan) * HITO Radio Music Awards (Taiwan) *
Jade Solid Gold Best Ten Music Awards Jade is an umbrella term for two different types of decorative rocks used for jewelry or ornaments. Jade is often referred to by either of two different silicate mineral names: nephrite (a silicate of calcium and magnesium in the amphibole gro ...
(Hong Kong) * M Music Awards (Mainland China) * Metro Radio Mandarin Music Awards (Hong Kong) *
RTHK Top 10 Gold Songs Awards Top Ten Chinese Gold Songs Awards () is one of the main C-pop music award in Hong Kong. The award is sponsored by RTHK. Beginning in 1978, it is the oldest major award in Hong Kong, even earlier than the Jade Solid Gold Awards. The ceremony is ...
(Hong Kong) * Singapore Hit Awards (Singapore) * Freshmusic Awards (Singapore) *
Top Chinese Music Awards The Top Chinese Music Awards () is an annual music awards to recognize Chinese popular music artists and works. The Top Chinese Music Awards was established in 2001 and is held in China. The awards have been described by the media as China's equi ...
(Mainland China) * Ultimate Song Chart Awards (Hong Kong) *
V Chart Awards V Chart Awards is a music award ceremony organised by the largest independent music website in China, YinYueTai YinYueTai (), is a music video sharing website in China. Launched in 2009, the site became China's most visited music video website b ...
(Mainland China)


Mandopop radio stations


See also

*
Music of China The music of China consists of many distinct traditions, often specifically originating with one of the country's various Ethnic groups in China, ethnic groups. It is produced within and without the country, involving either people of Chinese or ...
*
Music of Taiwan The music of Taiwan reflects the diverse culture of Taiwanese people. Taiwan has undergone several economic, social, and political changes through its cultural history, and Taiwanese music reflects those issues in its way. The music of the c ...
*
Taiwanese Wave Taiwanese wave () is a neologism originally coined in Japan to refer to the increase in the popularity of Taiwanese popular culture in the country (including: actors, dramas, music, fashion, films), and to distinguish it from the Korean wave () ...
*
C-pop C-pop is an abbreviation for Chinese popular music (), a loosely defined musical genre by artists originating from mainland China, Hong Kong and Taiwan (the Greater China region). This also includes countries where Sinitic languages, Chinese la ...
* Chinese R&B *
French Mandopop French Mandopop () is a category of mandopop that appeared at the beginning of the 21st century. As the name implies, French Mandopop features songs performed mainly in Mandarin Chinese with a French style or a French touch. Consumers of the music ...
*
J-pop J-pop (often stylized in all caps; an abbreviated form of "Japanese popular music"), natively known simply as , is the name for a form of popular music that entered the musical mainstream of Japan in the 1990s. Modern J-pop has its roots in trad ...
*
K-pop K-pop (; an abbreviation of "Korean popular music") is a form of popular music originating in South Korea. It emerged in the 1990s as a form of youth subculture, with Korean musicians taking influence from Western Electronic dance music, danc ...
*
Pinoy pop Pinoy pop (also known as Philippine pop; an abbreviated form of "Pinoy popular music" or "Philippine popular music"; or P-Pop) refers to popular music in the Philippines originating from the Original Pilipino music, OPM genre. With its beginni ...
*
Taiwanese pop The music of Taiwan reflects the diverse culture of Taiwanese people. Taiwan has undergone several economic, social, and political changes through its cultural history, and Taiwanese music reflects those issues in its way. The music of the c ...
*
V-pop V-pop (), an abbreviation for Vietnamese popular music or Blue Music, is a music genre covering Vietnamese pop music from the 1990s to the present day. Etymology During the 1970s, V-pop was limited to ''Nhạc trẻ Sài Gòn'' (Youth music o ...
*
List of best-selling albums in Taiwan This is the list of best-selling albums in Taiwan since the 1990s. Seven domestic albums and one international album have shipped over a million copies in Taiwan. Hong Kong singer Jacky Cheung is the best-selling artist in Taiwan, with three albu ...
*
Chinese television drama Chinese television dramas (), sometimes colloquially known as C-dramas, are Chinese-language television drama series originating from mainland China, sometimes including co-productions with the Greater China region. Popular drama series genres in ...
*
Taiwanese drama Taiwanese drama (, also known as T.W. drama) refer to dramatic programming of television programming extended stories usually dramatizing relationships through the general range of ten to forty one-hour episodes. They are produced in Taiwan and ha ...
*
Taiwanese Indigenous pop music Taiwanese Indigenous pop music comprises contemporary songs performed in Austronesian languages native to Taiwan, blending modern pop music with Indigenous linguistic and cultural elements. It has steadily gained mainstream recognition over the pa ...


References


External links


Videos about Taiwan's Mandopop Music Empire

Introduction to Mandopop (Cpop) (Tumblr Blog)

Official Pandeh Music (Cpop Music Channel)
{{Pop music C-pop Pop music genres Fusion music genres Taiwanese pop Music of Taiwan Music of China