Beijing Calling

Li Yuan presents the latest cool sounds from China's independent music scene. This week's show features JCC, presenting you her newly-established bass music label RAN RAD, and their debut release. Take a listen!

Li Yuan presents the latest cool sounds from China's independent music scene. This week's show features Cui Jian, who is often referred to as the godfather of Chinese rock music. He recently participated in a jazz project. Take a listen!

How attractive could a university selective course be? Climbing trees, dating skills, and even Harry Potter studies? Recently, some students have been happy completing a weight loss class to gain up to two university credits.

How long can you stay at home without going out? A day? A week? A month? It seems to be quite common for many younger Chinese people to "go for the record" as they can do almost anything at home without stepping outside the house. Whether you like it or not, this is what's happening today in China and beyond. What's the reason behind this phenomenon? Check it out in this new episode of Beijing Calling.

What do you say when someone wins a big prize? You probably say he or she hit the jackpot, or struck gold. We may interpret this as he or she wins a koi fish. Yes, a kind of fish! Shirley will explain it by starting with Fengshui, and digs into the phenomenon of Chinese netizens busily reposting koi fish-related tweets.

Martial arts enthusiasts from abroad are likely familiar with stars such as Jackie Chan and the late-Bruce Lee, who are renowned for their Kung Fu skills. But ask someone in China who the REAL master in the Kung Fu world is, many are likely to point to novelist Jin Yong. Just like the recently-passed Stan Lee, who created the Marvel Universe, Jin Yong created his own fantasy world of heroes. His particular genre combines martial arts, fantasy and romance, which is known in China as Wuxia.

Li Yuan presents the latest cool sounds from China's independent music scene. This week's show features Eli Levi, the bass player of the band Spice, who will talk about the making of their album Möbius Omega. Take a listen!

Wheelys, Sweden

Amazon Go, the USA

Bingobox, Moby, Tao Cafe, China

What are these?

These are staff-less stores in which you are followed by store cameras but not helped by any clerks because there are none.

They are new. They are cool. But are they the right fit for cities in China, where strangers gather to dance together on public squares; where people grew up huddled by parents, grandparents, relatives and neighbors, and where people are suspicious of stores and restaurants with few or non headcounts?

What if fancy new technology and the chase for efficiency turned out to be nothing than creepy in a culture of "the more the merrier"?

Will you invest in this?

Li Yuan presents to you the latest cool sounds from Chinese musicians. This week's show features Chenchenchen, a multi-talented producer, introducing his new album One Man Poker and his ideas on music creation. Take a listen!

A stereotypical view of Chinese parents is that they usually put more value on academic accomplishments, and are more demanding than Western parents. But nowadays things have changed. What kinds of education are popular among young parents? Listen to the discussion between Mohan and her guest Xinyu.