Discussion keeps the world turning.
This is Roundtable.
You're listening to Roundtable with myself, He Young.
I'm joined by Steve Hatherly and you shouldn't in this studio.
Coming up, the concert scene in China is shifting.
No longer just for the young.
The 40 to 60 plus crowd is making a dramatic entry to the front roles in actually the whole concert hall with veteran singers selling out in seconds.
Are we witnessing the rise of older concert lovers and unforgettable tracks, small joys, big smiles tune into Roundtable's happy place where happiness is always on air.
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And now on Roundtable, let's switch gears to a different topic.
Remember post COVID, going to concerts became one of the first ways people indulged in some well -deserved entertainment.
In the last couple of years in China, young people have taken over live houses, concert stadiums, and music festivals, giving a major boost to the live performance scene.
But in 2024, something interesting happened.
Middle -aged and older crowds from their 40s to 60s started scooping up tickets to see veteran singers who sound tracked their youth.
The latest example, Dao Lang, a veteran artist who became well known for the first snow in 2002.
And yes, that's 22 years ago and Dao Lang sold out his concert tickets in a matter of seconds, leaving Gen Z totally flabbergasted.
Oh, well, somebody on today's Roundtable tried very hard to snatch those tickets for relatives, older relatives, and he failed.
Oh, really? Yeah. It's like trying to win the lottery.
Definitely. I actually tried to buy this Chinese singer Dao Lang's Beijing concert, but failed for several times, to be honest.
And, you know, the scalpers' ticket prices were inflated to an astonishing price.
It could be like 13 ,000 Yuan, that's approximately 1 ,780 US dollars.
Per ticket? Wow. Yeah, go ahead.
It's not even ended yet.
Some can be 80 ,000.
Goodness me. That's how popular this guy is.
And he's filling up stadiums.
So who is this person?
So this is like the major star from the early 2000s?
Hardly, though. I'm not a fan, but he could be the idol of a lot of our parents, demographic.
And, you know, people aged 40 or 45 and above in China, like they are flooding into the performance market, purchasing like numerous concert tickets for these kind of veteran singers.
Sure, because I guess for the people in their perhaps early to mid 40s now, even late 40s, when the first snowfall, is that what it was called?
The first snow of 2002.
Apologies. When that came out, that might have been the soundtrack of their life type thing.
Actually, I beg to defer.
Because for that age group, so basically, you're talking about the older millennials.
This particular singer might not be that big, but for maybe younger Gen Xs.
So the generation before the millennials, which encompasses the age cohort of born in the year 1980 to 1996.
And this singer, I did not expect that we're going to be given the bio of the singer.
But anyway, he's also really, he's a fascinating example in the sense that you can see the longevity of his career.
But it's not only because he's got some old classic nostalgic songs, but some argue that he might even be in the future when we look back in history, the poet that captured the spirit of this era.
Some say that he's a modern day Levi, maybe.
So the poet immortal, if you look back in the future.
But this is just one example.
And also there are so many other singers who are well into their sixties, for example, Joe Watson.
He celebrated his 64th birthday at one of his Beijing concerts just a couple of weeks ago.
So good. Completely sold out tickets in a matter of seconds again.
Were you there? Yes, I was.
Very nice. Maybe I'm not his target audience, but it was such a great feeling.
I saw so many aunts and uncles, brothers and sisters, and just people who you can tell that they rushed from work and they've got Yushin the bunver, they've got the work odor, or you can tell they're hardworking people.
And they don't usually always come to concerts, but this was special a night for them, for all of us, packed in a stadium with less than 20 ,000 people.
And then you're reliving your youth together, regardless of your age.
And when the songs of these Woozap ballads are just blast blasting.
And also Joe Watson still, he's got a voice that's been kissed by the God of music Apollo, even in his sixties.
So yeah, like people went to see, and this is only one of the many examples of 2024.
Yeah, these nostalgic melodies could be one of the reasons that why these concerts are so popular.
And these people who is kind of older are flooding into the like performance market.
But one another interesting phenomena is that many young people have found it very difficult like me to purchase concert tickets for these singers, for their parents.
And as these concerts are extremely popular.
So then can we, I guess, take away from this that now it's not just maybe Gen Z 'ers who are attending concerts in China, now concerts are for everyone.
Yeah. So maybe when we're talking about like a scene, go to a concert and go to a stadium to see the concert.
It could be some just pop bands or just popular singers.
But actually on the online ticketing service platform Dah My, the names of singers like Daolong, Phoenix Legend or Feng Huan Quan Ji and David Tao appeared on the top 10 most searched topics list from December 16th to 20th, 2024.
And with Daolong taking the top spot.
And we can see that in the audience demographic shows that those born in the 1960s and 1970s took up 50 % of audience of Daolong's magic concert.
Wow. But also just offering another caveat.
Older millennials. Okay.
How should I put this?
After a certain age, you might not love being reminded of it.
So just bear with me.
You should. You mentioned, I think those who are maybe in their 60s or 50s but also, you know, those in their 40s.
So these are, I'm sorry to say, older millennials.
If you're born in 1980, well, 1980, then one would be hitting the big 45 this year.
So anyhow, those in their 40s, they're really, they have huge spending power here and they're going to concerts.
And Steve, I have a question for you.
You're international.
You've been to places originally from Canada.
In your country, do you see people going like so excited over like, Oh, this is kind of a new phenomenon that older folks go to concerts?
Yeah, but no, no, no, no, not at all.
And the fact that we're sitting here saying, wow, 45 year olds go out.
They're like what? They go to concerts, they sway their hips, they sing along.
That's not shocking.
45 year olds aren't bedridden individuals that, you know, are in need of hospice care.
They can feed themselves.
So I guess why we're talking about this is, and correct me if I'm wrong, but, and actually I don't know, but in the past, maybe this wouldn't have been so commonplace here in China for people of that age group or a little older in their 50s or 60s to go out and see shows like this.
Particularly if it happens to be on a Tuesday or a Wednesday night or something like that during the work week.
In the past, you wouldn't see this typically in China.
I would agree. Yeah.
Would you? You look confused.
What do old people do?
Like imagining what's the answer.
But yeah, I think so.
People who age like 40 or 45 or above, they may have more, like other than going to a concert to do.
Different responsibilities.
Yeah. Right. Yeah. And it is really interesting.
It does show that the face of the typical middle age person or the older person in China might have changed quite a bit.
And this is a lot to do.
I'll go refer to the economy again and our society changes as well in the sense that 20 years ago, when you picture a 60 year old person, that person would not go to a concert.
There weren't even that many concerts to start with.
And for that person, gosh, one would be born in the 1940s or 50s, maybe they've got far more important things to do in life.
I suppose there weren't that many choices of entertainment to start with.
And then fast forward to today, if a 60 year old person, I mean, hitting the KTV or the concert hall or concert stadium, classical music or modern pop or jazz, I don't think anybody would bat an eye anymore.
Maybe you think, oh, that person's got money and got time.
And that's something that I really envy.
I remember, you know, and I don't know if my mom is a fair example, because my mom has always been a youthful spirit and she loves to party.
And when I was living early on in my years in Korea, they held the World Cup in Korea in 2002.
And my mom came over to visit.
And one of the things my mom wanted to do, she was in her 60s at the time was go to a club.
Oh, so I took my mom to a nightclub in Korea and I was 23 or 24.
My mom was maybe 65.
At the time, she had a great time.
I think the concept of, you know, being unable to go out and do certain things like that, just because you're a certain age is kind of fading away.
And it seems to be fading away here in China too.
And I think we're post -COVID now and people were kind of unable, not kind of unable, fully unable to go out and enjoy things like concerts for a couple of years.
So maybe we're seeing a percentage of people who maybe they wouldn't have gone to a concert before, but they are now thinking, Oh, you know what?
I'm going to go out and enjoy whatever I can, whenever I want.
Or just because of the musical resonance that we're having right now, you know, many people born in the 1960s and 70s grew up under the influence of music like Dowlan's music, or even, you know, I grew up with the influence of my dad's music taste like Dowlan and like Zhou Huaijian and Andy Lau.
And there has been traces like that.
As you said, in the pandemic era, we cannot go out for concerts.
And then there were like, WeChat's video account tested the live streaming of commercial concerts.
So the live concerts of Tui Jian and Luo Da You, who are quite popular among people in their like 30s and 40s, or just millennials, attracted over 46 million, 41 million viewers respectively.
I was looking up stuff to see if I could, you know, fight this, fight, if you will, saying no in North America, even 80 year olds are going to music festivals, but as a matter of fact, this still the largest demographic, particularly when we're looking at music festivals, it's still the 21 to 35 age
group that kind of dominates the statistic in terms of who's there.
Well, music festivals is a whole other beast, because usually when you go to music festivals, it's not comfortable.
No place for my wheelchair.
No, I'm not. No place to sit down.
Right. It's more like, yeah, like, you know, the portable toilets are going to be dirty, they're going to be lining up and people are like sort of pushing into each other, standing up.
And that's just, that's not even super great by the sound of it for like, but people who like nice things and nice living.
No, no, I know you're not old, but you're sounding old right now.
I think I do because where's my wheelchair?
Yeah, no, exactly. 21 year olds don't care about that.
I did find this in my digging around on foreign websites.
This, this is what they say, signs that you're getting too old for a concert.
Number one. Okay, you complain about the crowd.
Yeah, so many people like star demons.
You were out on New Year's Eve in Beijing and you were complaining about the crowd.
Yes, I just, it makes me sick to see that, you know, huge laws of people.
People see. Number two.
This music is too loud.
Oh, my eardrums. I already have work injuries from being a radio host.
Number three. These tickets are too expensive.
You shouldn't, you just complained five minutes ago about expensive tickets.
Number four. You won't go out if it's a weeknight.
And you've all seen that person at the concert, right?
They sit there kind of with a grumpy look on their face while everybody's up and screaming.
And by the way, there was a comment from a young concert goer.
Mariah Carey was in Beijing not so long ago, right?
Was there? Yeah, you were at that one too.
You said it was amazing, right?
Well, see at the time I thought it was amazing, but then a couple of months later I went to see Jessie J and other singers.
Well, Jessie J, I will share in the next segment of the show with comparison.
You probably are like intriguing a lot of arrivals.
Oh, yes. I do not want to start wars like that.
So now I have a more reserved comment for her.
The comment from the young concert goer from Beijing.
She said that something along the lines that she was surprised because usually at a concert, people her age are up and dancing, but everybody at the Mariah Carey concert was seated almost the entire time.
I wasn't there. Is that true?
Well, in some concerts in China, it's advised that you sit down anyway.
And Mariah certainly was not dancing that much herself.
Okay. So I guess for people who went to see her, it was more like, it's Mariah Carey.
And also for nostalgia.
Yeah. So I mean, as long as she's put in some effort, sure.
You all will take it.
And also, I think the promotion through short videos is kind of an important reason.
I don't have specific data, but from the examples around me, my parents are truly addicted to short video platforms, which is a huge advertisement of these kinds of.
Yeah. So they know that the concerts are happening.
So in the future, possibly we're going to see more older people, middle -aged people to go to concerts and imagine us, in 20 years time, would we still be going to concerts?
Hell yeah. And then, I think then nobody would be saying anything, discussing.
Oh, these people went to concerts.
Yeah. That's kind of what you do.
Coming up next, Round Table's Happy Place.
Delivery. Delivery.
Delivery. What is it?
Happiness from Round Table.
You shouldn't. What's your Happy Place?
Oh yeah. I recently went skiing, and that was an exhilarating experience that allowed me to feel the thrill of speed, of course, and also the sense of being away from the hustle and bustle of city life.
But skiing also reminded me of its inherent challenges and risks.
In the past, I often found myself impatient, eager to master that certain skill as quickly as possible, or whatever I do, I would like to see the results right away.
That mindset made skiing less enjoyable because I felt stuck and I spent a whole day doing nothing.
Not getting better.
Yeah. And actually, I think that's common, as I wasn't making any real progress.
But this time, something shifted.
I realized that something simply takes time, time to practice or maybe to fall, to learn, and to grow.
And it's not about how quickly we improve, but about embracing the process with its ups and downs.
You know, by letting go of the need of rush, I discovered a deeper appreciation for the journey itself, and each small improvement felt rewarding.
So this time, skiing taught me a kind of a valuable life lesson.
You know, patience isn't just a virtue.
It's a path to finding joy and meaning in the things that we pursue.
Yeah, you can't go skiing once and be ready for the Olympics.
Yeah. Yeah, skiing takes time.
Love takes time. That's a Mariah Carey song, is it not?
I had no idea. So are you good now?
One to 10. One being terrible and 10 being Olympic ready.
4 .5 now. Oh, good. You can go down, can you go left to right and right to left?
Yeah, I do. What else do you need?
At least I spend - What do you want from your skiing experience?
Like fluently going down to the slope.
My happy place this week is a conversation I had around New Year's.
My wife and I went out for one of - she treated me to one of my favorite dishes here in China, the baby lobsters.
The literal translation.
Crayfish? Yeah, crayfish.
Butter, garlic, crayfish.
Oh, lovely. Amazing.
And as we were enjoying our meal, we talked about - And it could be more amazing summer.
Oh, yes, we were there in the summertime, too.
But as we were enjoying our meal, we talked about this year, the months that have gone by and our big move to China and how we were feeling at that moment and how we're feeling now.
And then what we expected or what we were hoping for in 2025 and what we want for each other, what we want for the other person or expect from the other person in 2025.
It was a fun slash romantic slash mature slash responsible conversation.
And it was really, really enjoyable.
We had a great time.
I think it's important to have those kind of catch ups every once in a while with your partner.
It was really, really good.
That's such a valuable lesson and reminder for everyone out there who's got a partner or looking for one as well, maybe.
Yeah. And after speaking about the concert and the previous - You hated Mariah Carey's show.
I'm teasing, I'm teasing.
Her performance was dwarfed by Jessie J.
And I have to admit, upfront, I'm not a diehard fan of Jessie J either, but when international performers come to town, I love to see what they're bringing to the table.
Just call it fieldwork.
While Jessie J's recent Beijing concert and, I'm sorry, just meant to share earlier, but didn't have the chance.
And today I'm talking about this, although it was a couple of weeks ago, and it just completely blew me away.
And I walked in curious and walked out converted.
Her voice was so phenomenal.
The kind of powerhouse vocal that's become a rare treasure in today's music world, in my opinion.
No auto tune, no lip syncing, just pure raw talent.
And what really struck me was how deeply she connected with us Chinese audience.
She didn't just perform, she poured herself into every song, giving it all.
And you could feel her sincerity as if she's saying, this is for you, He Yang.
And I mean, every word.
And that's something that not all performers managed to do, but she did it so well.
And she even bravely shared her personal stories and struggles, turning the concert into kind of a therapy session.
She talked about major health issues, loss, grief, so many personal struggles, and through her music provided healing.
And there wasn't a dry eye in the house, I feel at a certain point.
But anyhow, speaking of unforgettable tracks that makes you happy, Domino's was the last song that day.
And it is the perfect way to end on a high note on today's show.
And this global hit climbed the charts when it first came out in 2011, and still packs a punch today.
I hope you're feeling sexy and free today, whether you are with someone or vibing solo.
It's all about living your best life as Jessie J.
sings in Domino's rock my world until the sunlight, dirty dancing till the moonlight, and take me down like I'm a domino.
And that's it. Quick question before we finish.
Were the bathrooms clean at the venue?
Well, it was really nice.
Win -win. Yeah, not a music festival.
And thank you so much, Steve Hatherly.
And you should for joining the discussion.
I'm Hyung. Enjoy happy plays.
We'll see you next time.
