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And here it finally is -- the video that Warren Buffett sent in to CCTV to be played at the spring festival gala -- in all its 45-second glory! To send his new year's greetings to 1.3 billion Chinese, the Berkshire Hathaway chairman strummed on his ukulele and sang "I've Been Working on the Railroad" in front of a room-sized model railroad. more ›

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What the what?! Apparently Warrent Buffet has already sent in a video of himself singing and playing guitar for this year's CCTV Spring Festival Gala, to be aired on a special web broadcast on New Year's Day (January 23.) more ›

Sopranos and tenors are a fixture at every year's spring festival gala show on television, but what happens when show producers, in their overzealousness to connect with younger audiences, make them sing songs that were never meant to be sung by them? The result, ladies and gentlemen, is a CATASTROPHE, as you will see in the following clip from Beijing TV's show: more ›

Shanghaiist would like to wish all our readers a happy new year and a fabulous 2011! Enjoy this amazing song 《忐忑》"Perturbed" performed by up-and-coming Guizhou singer Gong Linna (龚琳娜) at Hunan TV's 2011 countdown show. The song was composed by renowned German ethnomusicologist Robert Zollitsch, who also happens to be her husband. Zollitsch is widely respected as an expert in Chinese classical music and is better known here as 老锣 (Lao Luo, or "Old Gong").
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If you want to contribute your photos to us, it's a super easy process - just tag your favorite Shanghai shots with "Shanghaiist" on Flickr or send it to us by email (photos@shanghaiist.com) and it'll show up in our Flickr pool. more ›

While some of us spent Chinese New Year's Eve enjoying grilled seafood on a beach in the Philippines, Luis Tapia of Shanghai-based Daedalum Films was lugging his camera to a Shanghai rooftop to record the fireworks. The results, as you can see above, are beautiful (be sure to watch in HD). Thankfully, the video does not include actual sound (you probably got enough of that last night). Instead, the soundtrack is "El Pico" by Ratatat. You can buy that song on iTunes. Enjoy. more ›

Beginning Jan 1, Mengniu, one of China's leading dairy firms, has launched a new advertising campaign entitled "Happy Niu Year" which is scheduled to run on television, in print and online, all the way through to Feb 9. The word "Niu" is a play on the Chinese word "牛" which means cow (as well as ox and bull) and this year happens to be the Year of the Bull. This is the first major ad campaign by a Chinese dairy company since the melamine scandal struck late last year. The television commercial for this campaign follows after the jump more ›

CCTV's new year gala this year was presented in French, Spanish, English and Chinese. Top temples around China, including Fuzhou's Gu Shan Yong Quan Si, Mount Emei's Baoguo Si, Sanya's Nanshan Si, Suzhou's Hanshan Si, and Luoyang's Baima Si, rang in the new year by chiming their bells simultaneously.
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Ok folks, it’s official! Now that the State Council has released its 2009 holiday schedule, we can start our planning and make full use of the precious vacation time for the coming year. more ›

Shanghaiist was back at Yu Yin Tang after the extended New Year's break. Gigs have been slow to restart after Spring Festival due to announced renovations of their space over by Tianshan Park. Alter-Ego played on Friday and we went down to Saturday's 0093 Rock Showcase. more ›

Chinese television actually isn't as bad as most of us are inclined to think, we've chanced upon informative talkshows and documentaries on interesting subjects sometimes. But the rest of the time, horrendous TV commercials are on hand to remind us why we're better off watching bootleg DVDs or Project Runway on Tudou.com. more ›

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This weekend venues are still suffering from the New Year hangover and not many events are happening. You might check out blues band, Studio 188, who will be performing at the Blues Room on Saturday. Or maybe join the firecracker loving crowds throughout the city for a bit of noise. more ›

Well no he isn’t, but this recent AFP report has some Beijing kids getting their sugar fix on confectionery inspired by the cave dwelling terrorist rock star to welcome in the new year among the drums and dragons in Long Tan Park: more ›

Here is a piece of good news (for all you live music lovers out there) to help quench your thirst while you wait out the events drought that inevitably hits during every Chinese New Year. End of March there is a promising new live music venue (no cover bands!) opening up. Unfortunately, we have been sworn to secrecy on location (hint: former sports bar somewhere on Huaihai Road) but can tell you it will hold 250 comfortably (Yuyintang holds around 100) and will offer cheap drinks and entrance fees. more ›

As Shanghai welcomes Chinese New Year for the first time in decades with a dash of snow, we trawl Flickr for pictures that best capture the essence of this week-long (or to be precise, 15 days' worth of) festive cheer filled with red firecracker sprinklings and endless fireworks. more ›

Sufei of Sexy Beijing never fails to crack us up! This Chinese New Year, she takes her tireless search for a Chinese husband all the way from Beijing to Hong Kong, and asks people she meets on the street whether the guys from the north or the south would make better husbands. Some of what those interviewees had to say (in both Beijing and Hong Kong) were just hilarious! Watch it! more ›

No injuries or deaths were reported¹, surprisingly, but then again we left before it was all over (got tired of getting hit by shrapnel). The video starts sometime before midnight and ends sometime after. And yes, our ears are still ringing. more ›

If you visit Contrasts Gallery on Jiangxi Lu now, you will find lots of migrant workers have actually made it their temporary home, but that is not some avant garde artist doing his latest exhibition. Here's a note from reader Arjen van der Schoot who loaned one of his paintings to the exhibition that is currently being held hostage by the workers:

Contrasts Gallery on Jiangxi Road opposite Hamilton House over a disputed RMB 1 million renovation at the gallery. About 20 workers have squatted in the gallery for nearly a month now, desperate to go home for Chinese new year with money they claim they are owed. The workers are sleeping on makeshift beds on the floor and the walls are lined with mounds of rubbish, mostly empty lunch boxes. Electricity has been cut off leaving most of the gallery submerged in icy cold darkness. The workers are also keeping about 25 works by well-known artist Qian Gang hostage. The 25 works represent two years worth of work, and Mr. Qian is anxious to have the issue resolved and his paintings, some of which are on loan from private collectors, returned. The gallery’s staff is taking turns to keep an eye on the workers.

Reuters: China steeled for worse weather as holidays loom more ›

Ladies, the final countdown has begun. It's your last chance to squeeze out that golden piglet. This Chinese New Year, the real party is in the maternity ward as hopeful parents-to-be race to drop a squealer before the year of the Golden Pig goes the way of the pork ball in your morning xiolongbao. more ›

Long story short, the place is a zoo, but what'd you expect. Of course, things are made worse by the weather. Here are some pics from the last few days. From what we've been hearing both in the news and in our apartment elevator, the dastardly weather gods have caused big time cancellations and problems. Despite the crowds of cold people and the massive B.O. from the people waiting inside the subway station, things seem more or less ok. Order has been maintained. Lots of places are already sold out, but order has been maintained, in part thanks to the police and PLA. more ›

Xinhua: Danish PM wishes for closer cooperation with China in New Year more ›

Some members of the Shanghaiist team are about to embark on ambitious Chinese New Year's expeditions. We wish everyone planning similar journeys a happy and safe trip. So you know what to look for, we're starting a list of the three biggest threats to your life as the year of the rat begins. more ›

Nasty. Nasty. Nasty. If we didn't have to walk the dogs, we'd just stay inside our (semi) warm living room all day. We know the miserable sleet (or is it freezing rain?) and slippery conditions are forcing some offices to send workers home early today. But winter's icy grip on China is far more serious than some missed work or a slip on the sidewalk. Here's a rundown (and, please, feel free to add to this list in a comment): more ›

China Daily: Shanghai to base growth on service industry more ›