Chinese hip-hop going back underground after Government crack down

After their initial shock, members of China’s fast growing hip-hop scene are coming to terms with the future of their scene after the Government’s recent crack down.

In late January, state media regulator, the State Administration of Press, Publication, Radio, Film and Television of the People’s Republic of China (SAPPRFT), sent out a note to television executives.

They were not to invite on as guests celebs “whose heart and morality are not aligned with the party and whose morality is not noble” and “are tasteless, vulgar and obscene.”

These included celebs of any kind who "exaggerate society’s dark side", sport tattoos and are involved in scandals.

The Government didn’t specifically spell out hip-hop acts but they certainly seem to have a target on their forehead.

Hip-hop has been around in clubs for 15 years, sporting bling, and singing in their local dialects about the joys of white powder, guns, partying all night and sleeping all day, being sex machines, loving money over everything, standing up to authorities and demanding free speech.

As long as it’s remained an underground phenomenon, the authorities generally turned a blind eye to it.

But as hip-hop shot into the mainstream, too fast some say, an alarmed Government had to act

In 2014, President Xi Jinping, grumbled that writers and artists should "serve the people.

"Art and culture will emit the greatest positive energy when the Marxist view of art and culture is firmly established.”

A year later, the screws were tightened. 120 songs, mostly hip-hop, were blacklisted by the Ministry of Culture.

Unlike in America, citizens carrying guns can expect severe jail sentences, and harsher ones for drugs. Glorifying them can have severe consequences.

But to indicate how petty the blacklists are, titles of banned songs included ‘Fart’ and ‘Don’t Want to Go to School’.

Last year came a reality TV show called The Rap of China – a hip-hop version of The Voice—which went on to generate 2.7 billion online views.

It made stars of half a dozen acts including Ty, Bridge, JonyJ, AfterJourney and HipHopMan.

The most high profile is heavily tattooed 27 year old enfant terrible Gai (real name Zhou Yan) who wears Shaolin monk robes onstage and elicits hysterical cheers when he reminds the audience that monks resisted authority in ancient days.

Using hip-hop to fight his way out of poverty and spending jail time during his teen years certainly made him a hero who can draw up to 20,000 to his concerts.

Getting the brunt of official anger, though, was PG One, a co winner of The Rap of China.

He was accused of having an affair with married TV star Li Xiaolu and forced to apologise for using the word “bitch” in a song that had been out for three years.

PG One seems to have caved under pressure, posting on his official Weibo account "I will add more positive energy in my music works and serve as a better model for my fans.”

Gai who entered the reality TV competition I Am A Singer found himself dropped without explanation.

Three members of the Beijing-based hip-hop group In3, who had 17 of their songs banned, were detained briefly.

Female gangsta VAVA, said to be China’s most popular female rapper, was dropped from the TV show Happy Camp.

Shanghai-based Al Rocco had a concert cancelled. "They’ve always asked to check my lyrics, but I feel like it’s much tighter now," he told the BBC.

Many of the underground rappers shrug that the crossover acts aren’t the real deal anyway, and pandering to the mainstream.

Executives say that the crackdown will merely mean that the scene will go down to its underground roots and recharge itself.

Stephen Dowler, Shanghai based director of the independent dance music streaming service DianYinTai, told Billboard, “Hip-hop has more die hard fans than ever before -- influential tastemakers as well – and is going to continue to grow in China.

"This is a temporary setback but by no means will hip-hop be eradicated from China.

“It’s still stronger than ever and the community will adapt how it needs to in China to press forward.

“Iron Mic isn’t going anywhere. DMC isn’t going anywhere. Breakdancing isn’t going anywhere. Graffiti isn’t going anywhere.

“Any direct impact on TV and radio will be very likely short-lived.”