Mandopop: Top 20 of 2015

Another year has passed and when I sum up my top 20 favorite videos from the Chinese speaking world, these are the ones I choose:

20. 831 - Yoleh Yoleh. The young rockers from Taiwan delivers a modern rock song.

19. Yang Fan - Grandma Yang. Two years old but the comedian makes a video with an almost shockingly bizarre change of style in the refrain that it is to be cherished again and again. ;-)

18. Yen-j - Contemporary Art. Sharp singing in a song about art, I loved this new sound from him.

17. Chopstick Brothers ft Fruit Master - Little Fruit. The lightning never strikes the same spot twice, and just as with korean PSY, it is really hard to find a way forward when having the biggest hit of the year (in this case in China). This is also a creative copy, but still a copy, of the original hit.

16. Han Lei & Da Bing - Scratch Scratch (Nao Nao). Humorous video from this comedy duo.

15. Zheng Bing Bing - Don't Be Afraid. Surprisingly violent (in a cute way!) for a 9 year old girl, and so fun!

14. Mao Ze Shao - Do it, Lady. Funky singing from Ze Shao in a positive and uptempo dance song.

13. Zhang Wenqi - Three bowl of pig feet. One of the most fun title's I've encountered in a song sung in the southern Chinese dialect hakka.

12. Xiao Quan - Social Shake. One of the more interesting goes at creating a viral hit this year.

11. Jolin Tsai - I Love, I Embrace. The video is heaven for a Jolin Tsai fan. Nuff said.

10. Jike Junyi - Lotion Song. A unexpectedly contemplative yet fresh song from her.

9. Tianyo - Three Second Countdown. Cool guy in cool videos that focuses on delivering a great performance, so the sometimes not super english really doesn't matter at all.

8. Popu Lady - Gossip Girls. Even though this is actually a revamped cover, they deliver such a show and strong impression in this video that I feel this is their most (first) unique song, defining themselves properly for the first time.

7. Miss Ko - Ready, Set, Drunk. A New York native from birth, she has gone to taiwan and she really does manage to deliver the goods with some mandarin rap that is really fun and rhythmic and so engaging.

6. Cosmos People - I Hate You. This is really an old hit from 2012, but it is so good I had to bring it onto the top list.

5. Li Yuchun - Only You & Real Love. These delicious songs confirms the fascinating Li Yuchun's current bias for more electronic sounds.

4. Ren Lijia - Xiao Fang, Oh, Xiao Fang. Not many will know of this guy, which is too bad as his song is a very effective pop song.

3. Xiao Zhiming & Chen Wei - Most Beautiful. Not cool but folksy KTV pop, this duo sung their way into my heart with their refrain, it is so addictive.

2. Momo Wu - I wanna be your lover. *Finally* she found her sweet spot with her voice, restraining her wierdness in just the right amount and channeling it into rhythm instead, in this sharp and funky track that is an explosion of color.

1. Da Mouth - Funky Girl, Loser & What The... Their intelligent and sound-perfect disco retro just blew me away and each of these three songs individually places in my top 5 mandarin songs this year.

Mandopop: Top 10 of the fourth quarter of 2015

My selection of Chinese language songs may still be smaller than the corresponding korean or japanese ones, but what there is, is still very interesting and it is obvious that the Chinese market is still very much evolving and trying to find its own general style. Being bigger as a country than  its neighbors, it will probably not become as uniform as kpop as an example, but it also still obviously is examining influences from America and other countries for inspiration. This reminds me of Sweden's process in many ways.

10. Wang Rong - Shark Shark. I should have chosen a better song for number 10, but this is just so crazy-fun so it had to be this in the end. Wang Rong does it again.

9. K Na - Sensitive Principle. For the chemistry between the dancers.

8. Han Geng - Heart Shot. Dramatic video with a sound track to match this.

7. Celeste Syn - Control Freak. She matches her song theme and video very well, and shows of a quirky (european? french) style that's not to usual in mandopop, but still feels very natural for her.

6. Xiao Ai & The Flowers band - Return of the King. A mixture of goth and cosplay, this video has its place just for lifting up the growing gamer/fantasy sub-culture in China.

5. Tianyo - Three Second Countdown. Very stylish dancing and production from a man that himself is the owner of a HK branding company.

4. Popu Lady - Gossip Girls. This video would feel at home as a music video for a Hollywood drama production. Soo stylish.

3. Jike Junyi - Lotion Song. Her best song so far takes a step off the/her beaten path and enter a dreamy universe beyond the usual R&B.

2. Li Yuchun - Only You. Is she the synth queen of mandopop now? These two songs does well to place her firmly as a eastern pop/electronica icon in my eyes anyways.

1. Momo Wu - I wanna be your lover. I have always felt that she has brought a bit too much of her theatrical diva into the singing, but here it finally is turned down to just the right level, instead changing it into a great asset as an emotional bottom for a great pop song.

Mandopop: Popu Lady - Gossip Girls (花邊女孩)

The chinese idol group Popu Lady have done some fun pop songs with enjoyable videos before, but the new "Gossip Girls" is more like performance art. You quickly notice its two main themes; the sampling of Tchaikovsky's Swan Lake (Four little swans) and the very artistic video. The song is a cover of german duo Symphobia's "I Do", but I must say it is the video that is the focal point this time around. The drama and obvious intentional contrast between Swan Lake dance sequence demanding synchronization and on the other hand the discord inherent in gossip, makes this a great watch.

• Popu Lady - Gossip Girls (花邊女孩)

Chinese pop: Top 10 of the third quarter of 2014

Summing up the best Chinese pop (Mandarin & Cantonese) of July, August and September, I first want to mention the five just outside the top:

15. Alex To - Shake
14. Popu Lady - More
13. Jeannie Hsieh - To Be Mature
12. Elva Hsaio - Romance Strikes
11. Amber An - Welcome to the party!

The final 10 are then:

10. Chopstick Brothers - Xiao Pingo. In some sense this one should be at the top as it is THE viral hit of this year in the Chinese-speaking communities. One couldn't watch a TV-show this summer without seeing the dance of "Little Apple" being done at some point...

9. Han Geng - Wild Cursive. Basically a cool ex-Super Junior dude doing cool war cosplay video.

8. A Mei - Faces of Paranoia and March. Beautiful singing and interesting video (with "Faces...").

7. Show Luo - Fantasy. I have been lazy about Mr Luo but with his double co-op with Ga-In from Korea, I had to write about him in this fascinating video about working in the office. Which is lika a jungle. A sexy jungle.

6. Keeva Mak - Terminally Ill. Somber video which matches the song's theme well.

5. Huangqi Wen - Rain & Happiness. Two quite different sounds but both videos complements each other quite well and makes Ms Wen someone to look out for in the future.

4. Kerin - Good As You. Cheap video from an unnoticable artist, but that doesn't matter as the music is a perfectly good dance track.

3. Jane Zhang - Bazaar. If Show Luo's video is like a sexy fashion shoot, Jane Zhang's Bazaar is a less explicit image of fasionability, but more interesting as her singing tops Luo's.

2. Alan - Mo Lan. Eerily beutiful "ethnic" singing combined with quite the unexpectedly bizarre video that I wouldn't let my younger children watch makes this a must see (and listen).

1. Li Yuchun (Chris Lee) - In 1987, I didn't know I would meet you. Ah, the electronica of this video is just so delicious, and this new direction of Li Yuchun is just perfect.