Resurge of interest in Chinese variety shows lights up online world

Variety shows in China, many Internet-based, are flourishing with original content and new technology. 

The shows — ranging from fashion and music to family and sports — feature both stars and ordinary people displaying their talents and charm. They are no longer merely a show as much as a series of spin-offs ready to be developed for the huge Chinese youth market.

Internet heavyweight iQiyi recently released its new strategy of youth-focused variety shows. As many as 20 new variety projects will debut in the near future covering pop idols, fashion trends, sports and lifestyles of the younger generations.

In the coming months, iQiyi will release “The Rap of China 2020,” “Youth With You 3,” “FOURTRY 2” and “The Big Band 2” in response to young people’s increasing enthusiasm of virtual-reality competitions, theater performances, ancient Chinese culture and arts and outdoor sports like surfing and skiing. 

Meanwhile, state-of-the-art technologies upgrade the viewing experience and cater to people’s social needs on the Internet. 

 New business models will be developed for most of the shows. For instance, “FOURTRY 2,” set in Chengdu, Sichuan Province, will open its brick and mortar store to offer more than 15 youth-fashion brands from China and abroad. 

“The Rap of China 2020” will launch the country’s first rap-themed pub in Shanghai, where young icons from different variety shows will host livestreaming sales.

Boy and girl bands are among the most popular variety shows right now. 

In 2019, the first season of “Youth With You” became a hit due to the dreams contestants shared with the audience. 

The show accelerated the growth of the boy band, UNINE, who finally received critical acclaim from audiences in South Korea, Japan and Thailand. 

Earlier this year, “Youth With You 2” focused on flourishing girl bands. “The Nine,” a nine-member girl group, was formed after rounds of competition. 

New technologies such as augmented reality and artificial intelligence were incorporated into the show to create a mixed reality where real and computer-generated views coexist.

Shows regarding concerns about ordinary people’s problems are emerging as well. 

“Listen, My Friend” is a heartwarming Mango TV show that invites stars and hosts to give people advice on love, careers and interpersonal relationships.

“Forget Me Not Cafe,” a Tencent production, is the country’s first reality show that covers cognitive impairment among the elderly. 

The show’s first season scored 9.2 out of 10 on China’s film and TV review website, Douban. 

The second season begins this month and will continue to document the real-life stories of actor Huang Bo and actress Song Zu’er, who run a cafe with the help of elderly people suffering from Alzheimer’s disease.

Additionally, outdoor sports have inspired many variety shows.

“Let’s Sacalaca!” takes people closer to the thrill of surfing, a sport with increasing popularity among young people. 

Dragon TV’s new season of “Go Fighting!,” to be released on August 2, combines outdoor sports with charity. Entertainment stars including Deng Lun and Lei Jiayin embark on a 20-day journey through southwest China. Via photographs and short videos, they record local lifestyles, resources and problems to help alleviate poverty.

This year, variety shows are particularly popular on streaming websites. Experts partly attribute this phenomenon to the coronavirus outbreak as more people stayed home in the first half of the year. 

At the same time, more resources have been invested in variety shows than movies, because many cinemas across the country are still closed.

Chinese variety shows date back to the 1980s when huge numbers of people were enthusiastic about the “Casio Family Singing Contest,” which debuted in 1985. Its highest rating was an incredible 94.5 percent.

Locally broadcast shows in Shanghai included “Happy Big Turntable,” “Let’s Shake It” and “China’s Got Talent.” 

Nationally televised shows over the years include “The Sound,” “The Making of An Actor,” “Super Girls” and “Dad, Where Are We Going?” Spin-off profits from variety shows primarily come from advertising, product marketing, e-commerce and copyright sales.

More and more of today’s stars are willing to share their real lives with viewers. 

About 120 Chinese film and TV stars took part in variety shows in the first half of this year, a good way for them to increase exposure and popularity on social media.  

Additionally, new standards related to innovation, originality and added value were introduced by the government to regulate variety shows. 

Chinese producers are no longer satisfied with simply borrowing or copying foreign formats. Many hit shows are developed in novel Chinese formats to resonate with local audiences.

Professor Gu Xiaoming, a film and TV expert from Fudan University, is pleased to see the rise of variety shows covering the lives and emotions of ordinary people — both young and old.

“Producers can explore more touching and down-to-earth human stories from different occupations rather than simply focus on the private lives of stars,” Gu said. 

“Social hot topics and trends may also inspire good variety shows.”