A group of young accordion players from Pyongyang's Kum Song School perform Take On Me by A-ha as part of a multi-genre project that opens next week at Barents Spektakel, an arts festival in Norway. Seriously, now. What would the Dear Leader think as he looks down on this from wherever he is now in socialist paradise? more ›

English translation with thanks to China Digital Times. Click the "CC" button if you do not see the captions. more ›

As part of its two-year-long effort scouring China's music sites for "poor taste and vulgar content," the Chinese Ministry of Culture has sent out its latest pop music blacklist . In pictures above are the artists our dear leaders are now protecting us against. more ›

In a tweet sent just hours ago, Lady Gaga celebrated the news of China's lifting of the ban on her album "Born This Way". To be honest, we weren't even aware that the album was banned here to begin with, but this should come as no surprise -- many other conservative countries have banned the album for its outright pro-gay content. Lady Gaga has just wrapped up a tour of Asia. Earlier this month, the city of Taichung, Taiwan declared July 3 "Lady Gaga Day".
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Riding on the current revival of "red songs", this crazy laowai has done an autotuned hip hop version of the song "映山红", or Ode to the Azalea, where he sings alongside a Chinese partner in crime. Little is known about the identity of the laowai (we'd appreciate any tips), but the video has attracted quite a fair bit of attention, chalking up over half a million views on Sina alone in just one week. He is of course, not the first laowai to be singing red songs. Back in 2008, Honglaowai, a shirtless New Yorker became an instant online celebrity by singing red songs. more ›

Since her appearance at Hunan TV's 2011 New Year show, Gong Linna's (龚琳娜) star has continued to rise, and her song "Perturbed" 《忐忑》continues to be a hot favourite on the internet. 100 fans have been training together with her as part of her special choir, and recently, they took the stage at Beijing TV's Chinese New Year show to perform the song. See if you can spot the crazy laowai's in there:
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At tomorrow's big holiday party at Cotton's on Xinhua Lu, get your photo taken with Santa Claus — or Father Christmas, if you swing that way — between 8:30 and 11:30 pm (Santa likes to hit the bars on Tongren at about midnight). Shanghai-based photographer Stephen Yang will be taking professional portraits (lights and everything) of party guests chilling with Santa in Santa's VIP room (behind the first-floor bar). All party-goers are welcome ... and it doesn't cost you a thing. We'll post the pics on Shanghaiist early next week. more ›

Shanghaiist recently enjoyed a few nonfat egg nogs with DJ El Nomo, who promises to make the Shanghaiist/Cotton's holiday party "the wildest holiday blowout ever held at Cotton's on Xinhua Lu." A tall task indeed. You may recognize El Nomo from such weblogs as Shanghai Bananas. And, of course, he is ranked No. 1 worldwide in the controversial Gothamist DJ Rankings. The following is a transcript of our unfiltered discussion with Asia's very own wizard of wax. more ›

Early weather reports for the weekend are looking quite nice, so it looks like late-December outdoor seating will be a definite possibility at the Shanghaiist/Cotton's holiday party this Saturday at the new Cotton's on Xinhua Lu (pictured). And if the outdoor heaters (and bar) aren't cozy enough for you, head on inside the villa for the real wood-burning fireplaces (and more bars). And DJ El Nomo! more ›

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Raw footage from NoCommentTV of President Hu's recent trip to Cuba as part of his ongoing whirlwind tour across Latin America. Many Chinese students and future diplomats receive their Spanish language training in Cuba. In return for a performance item put up by Chinese students singing Guantanamera, Raul Castro (brother of Fidel Castro) took centrestage and sang The East is Red《东方红》which he says he learnt in 1953. The song lauds Mao Zedong as saviour of the Chinese people and was once China's de facto national anthem during the Cultural Revolution. Castro sure has lots to sing for. Yesterday's China Daily reported that China has deferred for 10 years an unspecified trade debt Cuba accumulated in 1995, and made an additional $80 million donation toward its hospital modernisation programme. more ›

A couple updates about tomorrow night's gathering at Sasha's. First, we forgot to mention the wines that will be included in the half-price drink special. They are: Santa Rita 120 Sauvignon Blanc and Wolf Blass Eagle Hawk Shiraz/Cab/Merlot. Second, lots of people have asked¹ for more information about the music that will be played at the Happy Hour, so we have included a list of artists featured on the playlist under "Music" below. more ›