Politicians who try to engage with the youth have always subjected themselves to ridicule through their cringe worthy methods of trying too hard by completely misunderstanding youth culture. China’s latest rapping propaganda piece tries to break the mould whilst delivering a powerful message about their country.
Chuckie, whose real name is Wang Zixin raps about how magnificent his motherland over scrolling visuals of cuddly pandas, luscious scenery and an abundance of Chinese flags.
Entitled ‘This is China’, the aim of the rap is to “restore the impression you have of my country, China, which have been [sic] exactly fabricated by media for such a long time,” according to Time. The accompanying music video was produced by a studio run by the Communist Youth League of China.
The propaganda piece comes as China’s ruling party seeks to soften its image amid overseas criticism of Beijing’s muscular foreign policy. Recently, government associated studios have released videos featuring a cartoon of Chinese President Xi Jinping playing whack-a-mole with corrupt officials to reflect China’s 13th five year plan for its economy.
The video touches upon a wide array of Chinese issues including population, pollution, economy and technology. In the first verse, Chuckie raps about China’s vast population, “it has a large population and it is really hard to manage”.
Chuckie also reminds his listeners how much of China was destroyed after WWII, before mentioning that China’s pollution was similar to that of London’s or LA’s in the 50’s. He then raps about the importance of making money and getting married, calling young men in China “aspiring and friendly”.
Chorus: “this is China, we love the country, we are the Chi-phenomena. The red dragon ain’t no evil, but a beautiful place, the beautiful land with rich culture remain”.
The rap then lists the wonders of modern day China, such as mobile phone payments, strict gun control and scientific achievements, such as KBBF crystals used in laser technology, as well as the discovery of malaria treatment aremisinin by Nobel Prize–winning scientist Tu Youyou. “Obviously China is rising, but we have 5,000 years of Confucian education so we are a peace-loving country.. We will not initiate attacks on others.” The rap also shames corrupted individuals and criminals who are “all a disgrace to the country and its people”.
The rap doesn’t refrain from withholding China’s geopolitical stance either. Regarding Taiwan, Wang raps “you are prolly also confused about the situation of Taiwan, actually for normal citizens, we just want to be united as one”.
Wang himself is not a member of the CCP and claims that his generation has been exposed to many Western ideas and concepts. Nevertheless, he stands by Chinese textbooks that have come under criticism by outsiders for their patriotic education, “we can compare China’s one-party system and the Western multiparty system, and we know each system has its pros and cons,” he says. “The Chinese Communist Party is not necessarily better than its foreign counterpart, and vice versa.”
What do you think of China’s latest propaganda music video?
