THE FUTURE SOUND OF CHINA The Conflicting Tides of Follow Digital Streaming and Live Music us on WeChat Now Advertising Hotline 400 820 8428 城市漫步北京 英文版 2 月份 国内统一刊号: CN 11-5232/GO China Intercontinental Press ISSN 1672-8025 FEBRUARY 2020 AD 主管单位 : 中华人民共和国国务院新闻办公室 Supervised by the State Council Information Office of the People's Republic of China 主办单位 : 五洲传播出版社 地址 : 北京西城月坛北街 26 号恒华国际商务中心南楼 11 层文化交流中心 邮编 100045 Published by China Intercontinental Press Address: 11th Floor South Building, HengHua linternational Business Center, 26 Yuetan North Street, Xicheng District, Beijing 100045, PRC http://www.cicc.org.cn 社长 President of China Intercontinental Press 陈陆军 Chen Lujun 期刊部负责人 Supervisor of Magazine Department 付平 Fu Ping 编辑 Editor 朱莉莉 Zhu Lili 发行 Circulation 李若琳 Li Ruolin Editor-in-Chief Valerie Osipov Editor Herlina Liu National Arts Editor Bryan Grogan Designers Ivy Zhang 张怡然 , Joan Dai 戴吉莹 , Xinting Huang 黄欣婷 Contributors Alex Gomar, Andrew Braun, Aron Solomons, Claire Tay, Dominique Wong, Matthew Bossons, Mia Li, Mollie Gower, Ned Kelly, Phoebe Kut, Ryan Gandolfo Cover Artist Mayura Jain HK FOCUS MEDIA Shanghai (Head office) 上海和舟广告有限公司 上海市静安区江宁路 631 号 6 号楼 407-408 室 邮政编码 : 200041 Room 407-408, Building 6, No. 631 Jiangning Lu, Jing'an District, Shanghai 200041 电话 : 021-6077 0760 传真 : 021-6077 0761 Guangzhou 上海和舟广告有限公司广州分公司 广州市越秀区麓苑路 42 号大院 2 号楼 610 房 邮政编码 : 510095 Room 610, No. 2 Building, Area 42, Lu Yuan Lu, Yuexiu District, Guangzhou, PRC 510095 电话 : 020-8358 6125, 传真 : 020-8357 3859-800 Shenzhen 广告代理 电话 : 0755-8623 3220, 传真 : 0755-8623 3219 Beijing 广告代理 电话 : 010-8639 4209 Office Manager Vivid Zhu 朱景宜 Account Manager Betty Wang 王斌然 Account Executive Vince Jiao 焦东东 NATIONAL OPERATION CEO Leo Zhou 周立浩 Financial Manager Laura Lu 陆晓岚 Director of National Sales Project Henry Zeng 曾庆庆 Director of National Communications Ned Kelly Digital Content Manager Bridget O'Donnell Director of National Digital BD Doris Dong 董雯 National BD Manager, Hospitality Tina Zhou 周杨 Director of National Digital Products Vickie Guo 郭韵 Digital Elsa Yang 杨融 , Kane Zhu 朱晓俊 , Ruyi Jin 金如意 , Yu Sun 孙宇 , Joana Wang 王琼 , Kim Kang 康玉林 , Susan Xu 徐晓纯 General enquiries (010) 8639 4209 Editorial [email protected] Events [email protected] Distribution/Subscription [email protected] Marketing [email protected] Advertising [email protected] 广告经营许可证 : 京海工商广字第 8069 号 法律顾问 : 大成律师事务所 魏君贤律师 Legal Advisor: Wei Junxian, Dacheng Law Firm 国际标准刊号 ISSN 1672-8025 国内统一刊号 CN 11-5232/GO 定价 : 25.00 元 邮发代号 : 2-930 部分非卖品 , 仅限赠阅 www.thatsmags.com 2 | FEBRUARY 2020 | WWW.THATSMAGS.COM Editor’s Note FEBRUARY 2020 DEALS We're giving away tickets to some of ith a new decade comes the promise of a better future. Well, the very best Beijing last month, the Beijing government announced a pretty big Wpromise: the intent to make the city an “international capital of parties, openings, music.” With a bold revenue goal of a whopping RMB120 billion by 2025, Beijing aims to build up its music industry, with a focus on more digital development, copyright laws and venues (and, of course, AI music tech- shows and talks all nology). Fittingly, this month’s issue explores the current state of the music month, alongside business in China. National Arts Editor Bryan Grogan takes a deep dive into the nation’s rapid consumption of digital music and its huge impact free meals, drinks, on the scene. As more money is pumped into the industry, listeners are getting their kicks out of music-streaming sites, mainstream talent show programs are all the rage and the music landscape is becoming even more discounts and prizes. competitive. So how will the live music industry – labels, promoters, art- ists, venues and all – fare in the long run? Find out on p. 40. All you have to do Elsewhere in the magazine, Aron Solomons introduces us to the clowns bringing laughter to China’s migrant children (p. 10); Bryan brushes us up on the coolest nightclubs from Beijing to Hangzhou (p. 32); is scan the QR code and I visit new modern Italian eatery Frasca (p. 56). below, follow us on WeChat and keep an Until next month, eye out for your chance to win. You'll get some other great stuff on your phone too. Valerie Osipov Editor-in-Chief FOLLOW US ON SOCIAL MEDIA ThatsBeijing twitter.com/ThatsBeijing facebook.com/ThatsBeijing WWW.THATSMAGS.COM | FEBRUARY 2020 | 3 6 CITY 7 COIN TOSS Superstitious traveler gets fined RMB120,000 9 THE BIG PICTURE Beijing has its first snowfall of the new decade 14 URBAN DICTIONARY This slang term is literally none of your business 7 16 LIFE & STYLE 19 SCENE & HEARD A very kawaii puppy cafe in Gulou 20 ABOUT TIME Fashionable watches to show up late with 22 WARRIOR WATCH 22 Everything Xi’an has to offer from our Explore China guide 26 ARTS 28 NEW MOVIES A look at what’s hitting Chinese theaters this month 30 RADIO STAR In conversation with HKCR Co-founder Gavin Wong 34 READY PLAYER ONE Plug into these 5 30 video games in 2020 50 EAT & DRINK 53 MIFAN OR MAFAN Hip coffeeshops, a club in Lido and more 54 SUGAR AND SPICE Get your mulled wine fix at these spots around town 57 BORN TO FLY New cocktail joint Paper 54 Planes lands in Sanlitun 4 | FEBRUARY 2020 | WWW.THATSMAGS.COM 40 FACE THE MUSIC A look at China’s transforming digital music scene and what it means for the live music industry 10 A FUNNY STORY The goofy clowns entertaining children across China 32 AFTER HOURS The coolest clubs in 4 major Chinese cities WWW.THATSMAGS.COM | FEBRUARY 2020 | 5 CITY JUST FOR LAUGHS Meet the clowns bringing smiles to China’s kids, p10 Slovenian Slapper The Big Picture Chinese Urban Dictionary p8 p9 p14 TALES OF THE CITY TALES AVIATION ACCOUNTABILITY Plane Engine Coin Tosser Fined RMB120,000 by Matthew Bossons emember that idiot that threw coins at to which Liu answered that he had tossed The airline’s quest for compensation reached a jet engine in Anhui province last year two coins. The flight was then delayed while its climax last month, when a court in Anhui Rfor good luck? Yeah, so do we – him maintenance personnel hunted for the cur- province issued Liu a fine of RMB120,000 for and the hundreds of other bozos (a slight rency. One of the coins was found in the his coin-throwing antics. exaggeration) that decided tossing a piece plane’s left engine. Liu pled guilty in the case, but did take of metal into a highly complex machine that While the flight was originally scheduled the time to blame the airport for not inform- transports people through the air is a good to leave Anqing at 3.05pm, the plane was ing him of the fact that passengers are not al- idea. not able to leave the airport until 7.30am the lowed to throw items into the plane’s engines Anyway, we’ll get to the point: A 28-year- following morning. The whole episode was (er – okay, Liu). The defendant also noted old man identified in legal documents by the presumably super annoying for passengers, that flight 8L9960 was to be his first time alias ‘Liu Qiang’ has been fined a whopping who had to spend the night in Anqing, and traveling by air, and that he was ignorant of RMB120,000 for tossing coins at an airplane’s very expensive for the airline, Lucky Air (or, how aircraft operate. jet engine at Anqing Tianzhushan Airport. as we’ve dubbed it, Unlucky Air). As noted at the start of this piece, Liu is The incident occurred on February 17, 2019, In the immediate aftermath of Liu’s mis- far from the first superstitious traveler to when Liu (whose actual surname is Lu) guided attempt to attain good luck, or bless toss a coin at – or into – an airplane engine; threw two RMB1 coins at the engine of flight the flight, or whatever it was he thought he there were at least 10 instances of people 8L9960 to Kunming for good luck. was doing, he was detained by police for 10 throwing coins at jet engines in the first half Prior to takeoff, the flight crew noticed days. Lucky Air also announced that it would of 2019 alone. a coin on the ground and asked if anyone take legal action against Liu seeking dam- had thrown coins into the plane’s engine, ages, estimated to be around RMB140,000. WWW.THATSMAGS.COM | FEBRUARY 2020 | 7 THE BUZZ DON’T YOU KNOW WHO I AM? Memi Becirovic Jiangsu Dragons head coach, Slovenian Memi Becirovic, was ejected from a CBA game against the Liaoning Flying Leopards last month, after he slapped a spectator in the face during the game. The man was standing courtside when the coach approached him and got into an altercation. The two were eventually separated by players and staff. The fan on the receiving end of the hit is believed to have gotten into SNOW CYCLES a verbal spat with the coach’s wife, who was sitting courtside, according Beijing’s first snow of the new decade to Xinhua. Meanwhile, local media turned the city into a winter wonderland. reports claimed that the fan had made an abusive gesture towards Liaoning’s Photo by Instagram user @noob_of_noobs_ Lance Stephenson. The Dragons went on to lose 111-103 to the Flying Leopards, and Becirovic received an automatic one-match courtside ban, while the fan has been banned from CBA games for life. Get Lucky How was your company’s annual Chinese New Year dinner? Perhaps you too had the lucky chance to win a ‘layoff exemption pass’ for 2020, like the employees of Chinese cybersecurity company, Qihoo 360.