Hi everyone, it’s Xian here in New York. After many lunar new year celebrations here in the city, what is the latest buzz in the Chinese community?
Well, last week, I went to a Chinese singing contest called Voice of Flushing. The idea and even its name come from a very popular Chinese T.V. show, Voice of China. A lot of my Chinese friends actually watch it on the Internet and we often talk about it, like who’s the best singer, their singing styles and whether the judges made the right decisions to keep them or let them go.
So last Friday, I decided to check it out!
Here’s the scenario — 20 people were competing for three awards. They had already passed two previous screenings out of hundreds of contestants. Tickets to the final competition sell for $60 each, including a Chinese dinner. But I got a free ticket from a friend. Surrounded by all these Chinese people, I felt almost like at a Chinese wedding.
There were more than three hundred audience members here at this singing competition. Most of the songs are in Chinese, a lot of familiar melodies for me. So as I was eating and watching the show, I often found myself singing along.
Some of these songs are old, I remember listening to them while growing up in China, like this one. And some come from recent popular Chinese dramas, like this one.
However, I was most blown away by these kids — still in elementary school — singing their hearts out.
No, they are not contestants, they are guest performers.
At the end of the day, the judges gave scores to all contestants, and the top three were awarded. Good for them! And for me, the best part was that I made new friends and felt connected with NY’s Chinese community.
I remember reading Alice Li’s blog last week. She thinks the food you eat defines who you are, and she loves Chinese food. I think it’s the same with music.
I grew up listening to Chinese songs. Now I live in NYC. Every single day, I am exposed to and very much influenced by American pop culture. But I still like Chinese pop songs. I still go online to check on some new albums out there and also listen to Chinese songs on my iPhone.
I’m always interested and love learning about different cultures, and at the same time, deep in my heart, I know who I am. I know my identity, and I’m proud of it. How about you? Bye everyone. Watch CP, stay connected.
大家好，我是步宪，现在在纽约。城市里众多春节庆祝活动结束以后，这边的华人社区里最近有什么新动态呢？
上周，我去观看了一个叫法拉盛好声音的歌唱比赛。这个创意以及它的名字来自一个很热门的中国电视节目，中国好声音。我周围很多中国朋友在网上观看，我们经常在一起谈论这档节目，比如谁唱得最好，各位歌手有什么样的演唱风格，还有裁判们对选手去留的判决是否合理。
所以上周五，我决定去凑个热闹！
场景是这样的：20位选手争夺3个奖项。他们是从之前两场比赛中被选拔出来的，从几百名选手中脱颖而出。决赛的门票卖到60美金一张，包括中式晚餐。
幸好不过我朋友给了我一张免费门票。一下子被这么多中国人围绕着，我觉得自己好像在参加一个中国婚礼。
一共有300多名观众前来观看今天的唱歌比赛。多数的曲目都是中文歌，有很多旋律对我来说都是再熟悉不过了，所以，我边吃边看的同时，也不时跟着哼唱。
有些歌曲比较旧，是我在中国听着长大的，就像这首。有些歌曲是热门华语电视剧的主题曲，就像这首。
然而，最让我惊讶的是这些小孩子，还在上小学的孩子们，用心在唱歌。
不，他们并不是比赛选手，他们是被请来的嘉宾演员。
比赛结束后，裁判们给所有选手打了分数，并给总分前三名的选手颁了奖。对他们来说，这未尝不是一件喜事。但对我来说，最大的收获是认识了一些新朋友，在纽约华人社区里建立了联络。
我记得上周读了Alice Li 的博文。她觉得一个人吃的食物能代表这个人的本性，而她一直热爱中国食物。我认为音乐也是这样。
我是听着中国歌曲长大的。现在，我住在纽约，美国流行文化占据了我的生活，每天都影响着我。但是我还是喜欢华语流行歌曲。我经常在网上听新专辑，并在我的苹果手机上听中文歌。
我一直都对不同文化感兴趣，很喜欢去学习和了解。同时，在我内心深处，我知道我是谁，我知道我的本质，并为此骄傲。你呢？再见了。看华人格化，保持联络。