New rules developed by the Ministry of Culture of the People's Republic of China are intended to prevent the pernicious influence of "subversive" songs on the moral foundations of society. Soon, millions of homegrown pop divas entertaining family and friends in numerous karaoke bars will have to change their repertoire—their favorite songs will be crossed off the price lists. Moreover, oddly enough, the censors targeted not the trendy rap compositions with their obscene language, but songs popular among middle-aged people.
According to the "dirty song ranking" published in the state magazine "Sky and Earth", for example, the hugely popular hit "Go Seek Pleasures Alone" will soon disappear from karaoke bar charts. The censors were unhappy that after a failed romance, the song's hero seeks pleasure. Another candidate for censorship is the very popular song about an office romance, "Office".
Currently, the karaoke censorship system is being tested in three Chinese cities, and if it proves effective, it will be implemented nationwide. In this case, about 100,000 karaoke bars will have to join the new government Audio and Video Products Association of China and purchase all songs for their repertoire only from its central database.
"All songs on the price lists of karaoke bars must undergo censorship. We must ensure that the lyrics meet the standards proclaimed by the state," believes Lian Gang, director of the Cultural Market Development Department, a division of the Chinese Ministry of Culture. The government emphasizes that the new rules will also help fight piracy, but critics of this decision believe that its only purpose is to provide the state with a stable source of income from the national music industry.
The censorship crackdown on the favorite pastime of middle-aged Chinese citizens has baffled most of the population: they believe that the "youth repertoire" deserves such attention much more. "It seems the authorities picked the wrong crowd," says 46-year-old businessman Chan Fengli. We are in Beijing's Party World karaoke complex, and he has just finished singing the song "The Boat Tracker's Love". In it, the censors were attracted by such "explicit lines": "Girl, you sit on the bow of the boat, I walk along the shore, and the tow rope sways from our love."
Party World administrator Ru Lian doubts that the new rules will affect the establishment's revenue: "These songs are too old, hardly anyone sings them." And 20-year-old employee Liu Li agrees with him. "To be honest, I don't care," he says. "I've never sung anything like that."
Peter Simpson.
Translation by Gzt.ru