The first dates for the Gagster's Born This Way Ball Tour have been announced, with the first stop on the 110-date tour to kick off in Seoul on April 27th. As it stands, Ms. Gaggle's only brush with the Chinese market will take place in at Asia World Arena in Hong Kong on May 2nd, the second stop on her world-eating extravaganza. more ›

Midweek Music Preview is our weekly rundown of everything happening on stages across the city. On the docket this week: we have Soul II Soul Soundsystem kicking off their November edition of Mao Livehouse's Club Night, then Rocksgiving, Laura Jansen's China tour, and the Shanghai debuts of Mogwai and Trail of Tears! And if that's still not enough, head over to our calendar for more. more ›

Looks like Scissor Sisters' infectious disco jams aren't quite the Ministry of Culture's cup of tea! The New York queens didn't get their Chinese entry visa approved, meaning their show next month at the Mixing Room & Muse has been canceled. The ghost of Björk haunts us still! more ›

Midweek Music Preview is our weekly rundown of everything happening on stages across the city. On the docket this week: Klaxons and Two Gallants schlep it out east, Illumin8tors get freaky, Rom and Boys Climbing Ropes/X is Y drop their new albums, plus Japanese psychobilly, Moscow post-punk, and Beijing hardcore! Read on for all the details, or check out our calendar for more. more ›

Midweek Music Preview is our weekly rundown of everything happening on stages across the city. On the docket this week: Friend or Foe album release concert, HEALTH plays a free show if you can get tickets, Wooozy sessions are back with rock from Wuhan, and local grunge on Single's Day! Read on for all the details, or check out our calendar for more. more ›

Despite all the fear-mongering typhoon reports, Rizhao Blue MiDi Festival went off without a hitch! Your very own Shanghaiist team braved hell or high water and drove seven hours north to party on the beach in a city that could probably be described as Qingdao's awkward little sister: smaller town, wacky skyline, less to do, more Chinese tourists, and a lot more smiles. more ›

Hey Shanghaiist readers! Do you have a burning desire to go to Ocean Midi Fest but don't know how to pull it off? Can't be bothered to take multiple trains, planes, and buses to get to Rizhao? We've got you covered with our very own bus to the beach! more ›

What's that joyful noise? It's the sound of people shrieking upon hearing the news that immaculately cheek-boned frontman Brett Anderson (last in Shanghai for a solo gig in 2010) and his reunited Suede band chums will be performing at a venue near you! Currently on their first Asian tour since 2003, the band will be performing in Shanghai for only the second time ever, at the Shanghai Grand Stage (recently host to fellow UK pop-chart veterans The Cranberries) next Tuesday, August 9th. more ›

All the things you'd want to do this Monday through Thursday. On the schedule this week: free movies, a mind-bending play, an exhibit by Li Wei, and circus acrobats! Read on, or check out our calendar for more! more ›

Musician Bob Dylan has finally hit back at all the talk that our government censored his song list for his concerts last month in Beijing and Shanghai, saying he played the songs he and his band always intended to play. And this part is interesting: He also states that he never booked dates to play in China the year before. In 2010, there were rumors whirling about of the "Blowing in the Wind" singer would perform on the mainland but that he was denied clearance by the Chinese Ministry. Dylan says it was all bull and chalks it up to some promoter who promised things he couldn't deliver. Dylan posted up this letter on his official website.

To my fans and followers more ›

Shen Yang, winner of the 2007 BBC Cardiff Singer of the World award who is now currently based at the Metropolitan Opera House in New York, walked out of his solo concert last Friday at the Shanghai Grand Theatre because audience members would not stop chatting and taking pictures with their cell phones. more ›

There's the MiDi festival of course and a score of after parties we covered earlier. Friday starts off with a terrace opening and a new bar opening. And Brownstone is trying to do something a little different: if you live or work in their area, you're invited to theirs to have a welcome shot and 50% off of all alcohol in an old fashioned block party. Baobei farmer's market will be bringing lots of fresh produce out for sale or you could go on a strawberry picking trip to a field in Pudong and pick up some organic fruits and veggies straight out of the field yourself. And if that's still not enough, head over to our calendar for more. more ›

Everybody's favorite annoying pop-punk princess is back on tour--fresh off a divorce and with new singles like "What The Hell". We wonder if this means a Brody Jenner (of The Hills fame) sighting? Get your tickets here. more ›

Apparently there are troubles brewing over at the newly-opened MAO Livehouse, now involving canceled shows and disgruntled parties a-plenty! We were a bit skeptical last week when two acts were scheduled for Friday night, and apparently things went about as un-smoothly as imagined when they tried to shuffle Shanren in and out before hosting Paul Kalkbrenner. Then on Saturday Hanggai was canceled, along with the rest of MAO's lineup this week (but sparing, thank god, JUE's closing weekend.) more ›

Second time's the charm! After much speculation and a thwarted attempt last year, Bob Dylan is playing Shanghai on April 8th and tickets are going fast! The cheapest two sections are sold out on Smartticket already so you'll have to fork over at least 480RMB now to see the legendary 69-yr old rocker, but still, we wouldn't sit on this one for too long! more ›

All the things you'd want to do this Monday through Thursday. On the schedule this week: Staatskapelle Dresden, the world's oldest orchestra from Germany, is performing at the Oriental Art Center. Pecha Kucha's holding volume 16 of their quickie design talks while Haiku is set on turning you into a sake master. Read on (or check out our calendar) for more! more ›

After nearly a month of promotions, contests, and other miscellaneous hullabaloo, Usher performed for the first time in Shanghai at the Mercedes Benz Arena at Expo. Apparently it was worth the wait - the R&B hit maker played all his most recent singles and invited a fan up to be serenaded to. Shanghaiist reader Niels Fontein was near the front row, snapping pictures of the event - it turned out to be a tough task. "Security was shining lasers into our eyes and trying to snatch our cameras away every time we tried so snap a shot," he said. more ›

Restaurant week starts today! There's every sort of cuisine on offer and some really good deals to be had: 78/118RMB for lunch; 168/248RMB dinner. Bon appetit! more ›

Would you love to see Usher perform live at the Mercedez-Benz Arena but are a bit low on cash this month? Then you're in luck because here's one, or fourteen rather, ways you could get to his concert for free! Starting tonight at M1NT, AEG is hosting a series of Usher pre-concert parties at multiple venues across town. Whether your party style is Club 88 or the Apartment, you'll have chances to win. Our source says you can expect to see models in Usher-ibilia, live dance performances, Usher impersonators, and ticket raffles given out for bottles bought. Racks is also doing beer pong tournaments and the prize for that includes tickets worth 680RMB. You can check out the full list of ticket giveaway parties right here. more ›

TGIF, you know what that means: no more explosives now we waved goodbye to the Spring Festival last night. This (hopefully firework-free) weekend, we've got world-famous conductor Vladimir Ashkenazy putting his interpretation on an unfinished Romantic piece by Mahler, comedy nights in Shanghainese and in English, a sock hop for a cause, and the Pervert party 3rd birthday. If that's not enough, you can head over to our calendar for more. more ›

According to ISIS magazine, Bob Dylan's doing a run through Asia and Shanghai is on his list of touring cities. Is this great news? You betcha and we'd be really psyched up about it except for one little thing. Last year at this time, Dylan was also scheduled to play on the mainland and his tour dates got scrapped by the government. However, if the information we've got coming through the grapevine is correct, the musician will be performing on April 8th at the Shanghai Grand Stage. more ›

We here at Shanghaiist have been fans of Caribou (official site) since our very first year of existence (and even before Shanghaiist existed and Caribou was known as Manitoba). So we hope to see a bunch of you tonight at the Dream Factory for what should be a great show. more ›

Sounds B-A-N-A-N-A-S for sure, but according to the Shanghai Cultural Information website, her Gwenness is headed for a concert at Shanghai Grand Stage on May 5. Calls to the booking number have only led to an automated voice and her personal website isn't helping to solve the mystery either - the latest thing it shows is concert dates for last year's No Doubt tour. Will Shanghai be seeing some o' dat LAMB, or is this some sophisticated scam? more ›

Ah, the beleaguered state of show promoters here in Shanghai. According to China Music Radar, Ticketmaster's China operations were "officially shelved" last week. The company had only just bought high-profile upstart Emma Entertainment in 2007. That merger, Emma Ticketmaster, managed to screw up safety at an Avril Lavigne show, failed to bring Oasis, did an okay job getting John Legend here and then spluttered to a halt in May 2008. CMR has a history lesson on the soap opera antics of its foray here in China which is well worth reading... and a lament about the state of ticketing/promoting now that this option, as messed up as it was, is gone. more ›

Ugh. Summertime in Shanghai and livin' ain't all that easy. It's too darn hot one minute, sun showers the next. Luckily, Yuyintang have just installed a new air-con unit in the main room making it just that little bit less hot 'n' sticky. Live Bar? Well, they've got dirt cheap beers. And Soma Live? They seem to have melted away altogether for now. So here's where to get sweaty this weekend: more ›

Emma Ticketmaster - the group that brought us Avril Lavigne, failed to bring us Oasis, and then made up for it with one night with John Legend - is now dead. According to China Music Radar, President & CEO of Emma Entertainment John Krane resigned yesterday with Debbie Shon of Ticketmaster taking his place. From the Ticketmaster press release, it seems like all the big Emma events are still on (Harlem Globetrotters, One Festival), but the demise of yet another promotion company underscores the difficulties of bringing top line acts to China and deserves a moment of silence... Okay. You can go about your day now. more ›

Concertgoers of all shapes and sizes descended upon Yun Feng theater last night to see Grammy award winning artist John Legend perform a tight, crisp set that displayed his famed musical chops as well as an unexpected showmanship that more than made up for Yun Feng's less than stellar setting. more ›

Go here to follow the conversation or to join in! More details on the show here. more ›

Looks like Pepsi Co.'s bringing that old tradition of “Battle of the Bands” to China in a big way - the soft drink maker is hosting a mega reality show and its inviting all Chinese “underground” rock bands to participate. more ›