This thread covers both basic info about the drama ( Quick notes section) and
MORE in the following posts/sections  (you can click below on the direct links to sections)

Table of Contents

1/ General Information ("Quick notes")  below in this post.

2/ Sheng Shengman,  poem and song (with MV link)

3/ Gufeng/Zhongguofeng/mandopop styles (with MV links)

4/ Love Me Love My Voice playlist, annotated

5/ More LVLMV  BTS  + playlists of short videos, and songs in three languages by JC-T

6/  Notes for an illustrated mini profile of Tan Jianci  (with video links and more)

To view the list of my other drama companion pieces (with links to them), check : HERE.


1/ Quick notes about the drama :

  • Filming period: 2022-Sep-16 to 2022-Dec-27
  • Location : Guilin & Yangshuo (Guangxi province), Nanjing (Jiangsu province)

Adapted from the 2013, 54 chapters novel “Really, Really Miss You” (很想很想你) by Mo Bao Fei Bao (墨宝非宝) also author since 2011 of many famous novels/e-novels successfully adapted to dramas such as 2015 My Sunshine; 2018 The Flame's Daughter; 2019 Go Go Squid; 2021 One and Only, Forever and Ever; 2023 Road Home.  (Upcoming in 2024:  Amidst a Snowstorm of Love  will be starring Leo Wu Lei and Zhao Jinmai).

Screenwriter: Mo Bao Fei Bao (墨宝非宝)

Director :  Sha Weiqi   (who previously directed the 2019 e-game drama Gank Your Heart starring Wang Yibo ; the 2021 coming-of-age drama A River Runs Through It, starring Richards Wang Ruichang ; the 2021 ice-skating sports drama To Fly With You, starring Wang AnYu and Song Zu'er)

Although the crew mentions a dubbing director (Wang Jing'er王婧儿), none of the cast is mentioned as dubbed in the Baidu drama details page.

Link to POSTER of airing schedule (Monday-Tuesday-Wednesday Dec 11--13, 18-20: no episode)

This is a romance. So we'll get  Dr.Mo's "kitchen confession", swiftly expedited before the food burns (he did take the precaution to turn off the burner, before firing his shot at Gu Sheng) :

Characters correlation chart (picture better viewed enlarged)


Tan Jianci Interview - Weibo Summit  Dec.2023

and 2 other interviews, Tan Jianci with Zhou Ye, posted Dec 9, 2023 and Zhou Ye, posted Dec.11

Although in Chinese only, this video about JC-T's visit to dubbing master Bian Jiang's studio is worth watching !  (thanks to Kokuto, who posted the link in the "Love him Love His Voice" Discussion thread) :

There's a  second part for that visit with JC-T performing dubbing and some hilarious tongue twisters.

There were two real singers in the cast : Tan Jianci (MQC) and Xian Zi (Linglong Ti Tou  /Mo QiaoQiao, who was also an obstetrician, and Dr. Mo's cousin) both singing several OST songs.

This was a musical drama (very nice OST), but with FL hopelessly unable to sing ; she is dubbed by professional singers throughout.  This  BTS  shows the level of performers singing : Tan Jianci is perfect, even though it is not his primary choice repertoire, Zhou Ye is so painful that he can't help wince despite her prettiness. The dialogue 6'20-8'31 between them is muted. 

StIll, she managed to sing (almost) the Happy Birthday song to "Mo Qingcheng" in the livestream of December 14 - video in full but Chinese only.  The song is at 14:07.   The Livestream has been translated in bits, including the one when Tan Jianci and Zhou Ye speak in dialects (he in his native Beihai, Guangxi, Cantonese dialect, she in Chongqing, Sichuan, dialect).  Links to more : first, second, third (JC-T singing "Wintersweet" Qingmei Yin《青梅引》), fourth (the birthday of MQC song and wishes from JC-T).

List of other established or new voices actresses who can sing, in this interesting comment from other discussion thread.   

Among latest JC-T / Tan JIanci 檀健次  stage performances :  Walking the road of life  (漫步人生路) sung together with Gigi  炎明熹  in Cantonese :


With the end of the year nearing, Tan Jianci and Zhou Ye treated their fans to a final live stream about LMLMV, recorded here (no English subtitles). Zhou Ye was in costume for her current filming of her next drama (Legend of the Female General) that started in November. They showed some food, such as the easy chaofan (fried rice) and the luobo gao 萝卜糕 carrot or turnip cake (the one he showed looked like a western carrot cupcake without topping, though) , he made a face at the cloying sweetness of soy milk (豆奶 dòunǎi) ; they performed some hand "dance movements" and talked about their drama, wishing everyone Xinnian Kuai Le (Happy New Year) before having a moment of fun with face deformation, and wished everyone good cheer.

Love Me Love My Voice was appreciated by many for its simple and uncomplicated story and garnered a favorable opening rating as a nice Christmas gift to cast, crew and production:


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2/  Sheng Shengman -  poem and song


In addition to the playlists in next post, here is the text and a tune for the poem around "Sheng Shengman" ("rudimentary knowledge" of poetry, as Qian Qingci  expressed it in ep.1, but perhaps not that well known to all c-drama audiences)

The author of the poem was Li Qingzhao (1084-1155), the most well known female poet of the Song dynasty, still towering in Chinese poetic literature. She was born in Jinan, Shandong province, to a family of scholar-officials. At 18, she married Zhao Mingcheng, who also was a poet and official, and they often wrote poems for each other as well as about bronze artifacts which they collected.  But war destroyed their home and bliss, and they fled to Nanjing; but on the way, Zhao died of a fever in 1129, and Li spent the rest of her life distraught, wandering. She wrote an afterword for Zhao's posthumous published work Catalogue of Inscriptions on Metal and Stone.

Listen to the poem, narrated by Dashan  (the famous Canadian and Chinese language lover, who worked many years for Chinese television and Chinese language teaching).   To go further, you can have a look at the interesting analysis of the poem by Edward Chang in 2012).


声声慢·寻寻觅觅  [shēng shēng màn·xún xúnmì mì]  Slow slow tune, searching and seeking

李清照 [Lǐ Qīngzhào]


Translation : Gordon Osing and Julia Min

from : Rhymes and Vibes   (Chinese poetry pages)

"Some collections call  this  ci "Autumn Thoughts." It was apparently composed in August 1129 upon her husband’s sudden death, and her sorrows had become multiple, so far as she could tell, permanent. She was distraught and yet, perhaps, tried very hard to maintain her dignity in the act of composition."

寻寻觅觅,冷冷清清,凄凄惨惨戚戚。  [ xún xúnmì mì, lěng lěngqīngqīng,
qī qīcǎn cǎn qī qī. ]


乍暖还寒时候,最难将息。

[zhà nuǎn huán hán shíhòu, zuì nán jiāng xí. ]

三杯两盏淡酒,怎敌他、晚来风急?    [Sān bēi liǎng zhǎn dàn jiǔ,
zěn dí tā, wǎn lái fēng jí?]


雁过也,正伤心,却是旧时相识。[Yànguò yě, zhèng shāngxīn,
què shì jiùshí xiāngshí.]


满地黄花堆积。[mǎn dì huánghuā duījī.]

憔悴损,如今有谁堪摘?
[Qiáocuì sǔn,rújīn yǒu shéi kān zhāi?]

守著窗儿,独自怎生得黑?
[Shǒuzhe chuāng er, dúzì zěn shēngdé hēi?]

梧桐更兼细雨,到黄昏、点点滴滴。

[Wútóng gèng jiān xì yǔ,  
dào huánghūn, diǎn diǎndī dī.]

这次第,怎一个愁字了得!
[Zhè cìdì, zěn yīgè chóu zì liǎo dé!]

Where? Where should it go, the lonely soul?

Too dreary in miseries, in day dreaming!  

Gone is the world's warmth, its cold now holding my very being.

Would a few cups of wine soothe the wind  that also violates the heart of evening?

You flying geese in the rising air were once our loved go-betweens.

With whom shall I pick the chrysanthemum  shrinking and withering, now all fallen?

Am I to spend forever tonight
at my window here, alone again, watching at dusk, in the parasol trees, the mists turning inexorably to rain?

No word is desolate enough
to imitate this joyless scene!



Here is a nice ballad : 秦霄贤 - 声声慢  Qin Xiaoxian - Sheng Sheng Man,  inspired by this poem, written by Cui Kachao 崔开潮 on a tune by Liu Yang 刘洋, sung by a child and by original singer. Also in alto voice, by singer Chen Min  with English subtitles.   It was also sung at the Mid-Autumn festival gala in 2022, at 57:23 in the full recording of beautiful songs.

The words of that song are (translation adapted from the one suggested by 林汉杰.):


青砖伴瓦漆
白马踏新泥
山花蕉叶暮色丛染红巾


*屋簷洒雨滴
炊烟袅袅起
蹉跎辗转宛然的你在哪里




寻寻觅觅
 冷冷清清
月落乌啼月牙落孤井
零零碎碎点点滴滴
梦里有花梦里青草地


--
长发引涟漪
白布展石矶
河童撑杆摆长舟渡古稀



Qīng zhuān bàn wǎ qī
Bái mǎ tà xīn ní
Shān huā jiāo yè mù sè cóng rǎn hóng jīn
*Wū yán sǎ yǔ dī
Chuī yān niǎo niǎo qǐ
Cuō tuó zhǎn zhuǎn wǎn rán de nǐ zài nǎ lǐ




Xún xún mì mì
Lĕng lĕng qīng qīng
Yuè luò wū tí yuè yá luò gū jǐng
Líng líng suì suì diǎn diǎn dī dī
Mèng lǐ yǒu huā mèng lǐ qīng cǎo dì

--
Zhǎng fā yǐn liányī
Bái bùzhǎn shí jī
Hétóng chēng gān bǎi zhǎng zhōudù gǔxī
 (repeat from * until "cǎo dì", and go back from start to "nǎlǐ")

Beside the blue brick houses with painted tiles, 
A white horse treads on a muddy street.
Amid mountain flowers and banana trees, a red scarf is lit by the sunset.
*Rain is dripping from eaves
While smoke curls up from chimneys. But I don’t know where you are drifting, wandering.

Seeking and searching for you,
Forlorn on this cold morning.
A crow crows as the moon wanes. 
Its faint light cast on a lonely well.
Life’s fragments Are so many pieces. Only in a dream do I see flowers and pasture so green.
--
I remember the ripples left by your long hair  And the white headband you spread on a rock.
There, a river boy with his pole and long boat ferried an old gentleman across.


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I am also a mandopop/gufeng/zhonguofeng EDM lover.   For those who are looking for more musical pauses (and for the OST) and those unfamiliar with the music genres,  I am adding this short playlist in Discussions here with relevant direct links to the songs, on Youtube or other.

3/ Gufeng or zhongguofeng famous songs :


Gufeng/zhonguofeng is the "ancient Chinese music influence" on Chinese pop music, popularized in the early 2000s by Jay Chou. Examples : Jay Chou's "classic" playlist of 11 "best of" :  and  "Fearless" 霍元甲 which is one of my favorite (edit 2023-12-21 : if those compilation MV and translated & pinyin + trad.+simplified Hanzi MVs are not available on YT...; go to the official MV or the 2009 stage version with a translation if you want to listen to "Fearless".)

 JJ Lin songs  such as  "Cao Cao" 曹操 

Leehom Wang's  "Flower Field Mistake" Hua Tian Cuo 花田错  is often considered as a model of zhongguofeng 中国风 music for its use of ancient instruments and allusions to classical Chinese works such as the novel "Dream of the Red Chamber" (红楼梦; hónglóumèng) and mentions "butterfly chalice" which could be a reference to the film, The Butterfly Chalice, or the legend of The Butterfly Lovers.

Closer to now, many songs including, from Zhou Shen, this one penned by poet songwriter Fang Wenshan :  "Rhythm of the Rain" 听见下雨的声音  Tingjian Yu de Shengyin.    Wikipedia explains "Vincent Fang, a lyricist well-known for his collaborations with Jay Chou, is held at the forefront of Zhongguo feng music, with his works often treated as poetry of great artistic merit that garners high critical regard. Fang uses a poetic style which he calls "suyan yunjiaoshi" (素颜韵脚诗) in his lyrics to evoke vivid imageries of traditional Chinese culture" such as in "East Wind Breaks" 东风破 Dong Feng Po, a song he wrote for Jay Chou.

I particularly like the one Zhou Shen sung for the "National Treasures exhibition" in October 2021:   "Wei Feng Yin" 威风吟 (The Phoenix Hums/Song of majesty) aptly analyzed professionally in this video reaction (but unfortunately the song and short talk are not subtitled)  This song features the declamation style inserted in the melodic part, which is a characteristic of full gufeng 古风曲 music.  [if the link to the song clip is still unavailable, try watching the full excerpt with Zhou Sheng speaking  , from 8:10  Wei Feng Yin, "Song of Majesty"]

Poetry but also Chinese opera snippets can be inserted in such style music. Here is Luo Yunxi's take on Song of a Pipa Player  (sometimes translated as Song of Everlasting Sorrow) on the Pipa Xing 琵琶行 poem from Bai Juyi (Tang dynasty poet).  A more modern song, inspired by the Japanese invasion and destruction of cultural relics in the 1930s (but not related to actual event) is the famous  Chi Ling 赤伶 (Red opera singer/ The Sacrifice) by HITA, a singer who had a strong influence over the past couple decades, made famous by Internet; Chi Ling includes quotes from The Peach Blossom Fan opera.

Gufeng and EDM were winningly tied together in the  2019 "Twenty-Four Solar Terms" of Yinque Poetry, a group of young Chinese musicians based in or off Chengdu in Sichuan. The musical sisters of Zhao Fangjing (everybody knows the "Mangzhong"song?)  composed a series of songs linked to the Chinese traditional agriculture calendar (also themed recently in the TMC drama Gen-Z). In fact, only 15 of the 24 solar terms are on the main album, but as samples of that type of music, here are some songs by Yinque Poetry group, appropriately timed for the season :   "Lidong" 立冬/ Beginning of winter Nov8-Nov21 this year and  "Da Xue" 大雪 /Great Snow Dec7-21 term this year, by Xiaodan , that also has a nice bilibili choreography version.

One branch of gufeng/zhongguofeng is called "chinoiserie", which has a festival since 2015 and ties in with Hanfu fashion. Here is a short video presentation of the 2020 festival, which is quite explanatory and illustrative (but the link to the full festival recording is not available any longer).  There are many songs in this style on the Chinese Internet. One that was widely sung in 2021-22 was  "Brave" 骁  Xiong  from the Jing twins.   And here is the latest in the genre, according to Youtube :  "The Reflection of Red Sleeves" 红袖映  Hóngxiù yìng by "Tansy" (Dec.2023).

Rhythms and contents of this genre music have influenced drama music and game music such as that of Genshin impact (The Divine Damsel of Devastation)  and also that of the Luo Tianyi Vocaloid phenomenon, one hit song of which is Sun Quan The Emperor.   They can be sung despite difficulty by gufeng lovers as these covers by Bodokun or XiuXiuman show!

There have also been funny zhongguofeng songs such as  S.H.E. 's tongue-in-cheek song  Zhong Guo Hua  (Chinese language) the lyrics of which even sparked some controversy, despite they often were used in CFL classes in the early 2000s!  Anyway, I always liked the songs of the Taiwanese girl band formed by  Selina Ren, Hebe Tian and Ella Chen (they still have not officially disbanded, despite a terrible accident that caused a hiatus in their songs together ; Hebe still pursued on the side a solo career, but not centering on gufeng or zhongguofeng) ; one song I like which is totally unrelated to the style is  for instance Only Have Feelings for you, covered by Wu Xuanyi, Wang Ziyi and Lil'Ghost (LG) : this is pure mandopop.

On the other hand, the  Guochao 国潮 [national wave movement in fashion] movement that also has connections with the Hanfu revival, spawned the emergence of another trend of zhongguochao yin 'music of China’ (中国潮音) which has tried to combine Chinese music with selected musical trends from abroad, but is most often submerged by gufeng/zhongguofeng/chinoiserie trends. Example : 《水木道》(Shui Mu Dao) by 宿涵 + 多力崗(Swang多雷) .

I should also add a towering musician, whose style and songs play deceptively on the edge of folk and rock but also ties in with zhongguofeng spirit while staying totally "indie": Dao Lang 刀郎, who hit international headlines with his Luochahai/羅剎海市Raksha Haishi song in the summer of 2023 (explanation).  He's back with a new album, in which the use of ancient instruments and themes blend with the electronic keyboards : 《瓜洲渡 Guazhou Ferry Dock》weaves a tale of ancient culture that may subtly have bearing on preesnt day, as in most Dao Lang songs.  His songs are also reprised by reputed singers such as alto Chen Min who sang a version of his Pian Pian (original 翩翩 from October 2023: link ; pinyin and translation version here).  Dao Lang  even got an appreciation in the  Global Times and an apology of sorts from former detractors of his special style.


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4/ Love Me Love My Voice OST, annotated


Peachey Blossom has already nicely translated 16 songs  from the  Love Me Love My Voice OST  (including the alternative versions, that's 19 videos as of Dec13, 2023   from 28 on the "list") Listen to them from the links below!  

1* "Slowly", theme song sung by Yihuik 苡慧  

  • composer : Gao Ying (高莹)、 ; lyrics : Gao Ying and Peng Keni (高莹、彭可妮)

1* "Slowly", theme song sung by Yihuik 苡慧  

  • composer : Gao Ying (高莹)、 ; lyrics : Gao Ying and Peng Keni (高莹、彭可妮)
Theme song ; also played when Mo Qingcheng/Qiang Qingci meets Sheng Shengman at the Perfect Voice studio in ep.4 , 30:07, and other moments such as the subway ride ep.8, 30:50

Yihuik 苡慧  is a young Malaysian-Chinese singer who has sung several OST songs in the past few years.  Instagram: yihuik_ ; Weibo: yihuik苡慧

Postcard moment with the song, on Qiandao lake, Zhejiang, from ep.30


2* "Golden Wind Jade Dew, Late Night Talk" 《金风玉露 · 夜语迟》 , sung by Le XIaotao  乐小桃 ; and alternatively, by Tan Jianci  檀健次  

This  is the "demo song" in ep.1 ;  and the song played by Qiang Qingci, accompanying himself on the guitar for the friends of Sheng Shengman at their Zhao Zhao Mu Mu studio, in ep. 10, 07:10

  • composer : Chen Zhiyi (陈致逸) ; lyrics : Gu Tingting (顾婷婷)

This ballad is the Magic of Blade game theme song according to the OST description ; there is also an MV version with footage from the drama, no English subtitles. (+With the same title, but on a mambo rhythm, there is a 2023 popular song by Tong Yu 童宇, other words by Wang Chen 王琛,  used by line dance ensembles in 2023)  


3* "Life Is Most Important" 小命最重要, sung by Le Xiaotao 乐小桃, voice cut from the drama version

  • composer : Shao Siming, Xu Yunxiao (少司命, 徐云霄) ; lyrics : Zhu Jintai, Guo Yinghong  (朱金泰、郭映红)  ; there's also an extended version credited to "Sheng Shengman" added by Peachey Blossom on Dec.5, 2023

This is the "Better Stay Alive" song requested by Qiang Qingci in ep 2,  18:12 - before the clam recipe. 


4* "Return with You" 《与君归》 , sung by Tan Jianci 檀健次 with Bu Cai 不才; +  alternatively, by Tan Jianci with Le Xiaotao   

  • composer : HuoHu(火火) ; lyrics : Huang Shifu  (黄诗扶)

Mentioned as "Golden Age" in the drama ep.2, 39:50 when Qiang Qingci's and his friends decide to sing it for a performance by 6 singers and 1 narrator together with Sheng Shengman instead of Ling Long.  Later, they start recording parts, in ep.4, from 28:00 ; Qiang + Sheng singing the song together in ep5 from 02:05  and 4:15. (Next, Mo Qingcheng takes Sheng out to have a Bamboo shoot soup - recipe at 21:10) --- In ep.17, 26:15, Sheng Shengman arrives in costume, to perform on stage in Guilin, while the opening of the 10 years event plays her recorded duo with Qian Qingci.

The first version is also titled "Return with the Lord" in the discography of singer Bu Cai 不才. In addition, there is an MV Clip of the song from the drama with a nice other translation, titled "Stand By Me".    

Bu Cai, born in Chengdu, Sichuan, is a singer who has already sung many successful OST songs, such as 寻常歌 Ordinary Song (from 2023 Till The End of The Moon). She earned a 2018 "National Musician of the Year Award".  Among her other representative works: 2017《化身孤岛的鲸》The Whale Who Incarnates on an Isolated Island, 2015《岁月成碑》Time Becomes a Monument (a Three Body song) ; 2019 《涉川》 She Chuan (from Sword Dynasty drama) ; 2020《过度呼吸》Hyperventilation.

  (Note: The story referred to in the song is 《一生一世江南老》 "Forever Jiangnan" by same author as "Love Me, Love My Voice" ; the characters in that other story are called Shen Ce and Shen ZhaoZhao.  It is the book that Sheng Shengman starts to read while waiting for Mo Qingcheng's fever to go down in ep.10, 43:00)  


5* "Ten Thousand Bones Push Sand" 《万骨催沙》 , Tan Jianci  檀健次  

  • composer : Sheng Yu (胜屿) ; lyrics : Míng huáng /"Underground Phoenix"   (冥凰)

The "Bones To Sand" song suggested and sung by Qiang Qingci in ep3, 5:22, before the Black pepper stir fried ribs recipe  12:88. Just mentioning that in this ep3,  Gu Sheng and her friends inaugurate their Zhaozhaomumu studio 18:50, playing an unnamed tune with pipa, dizi, drum, electric guitars -no title found for that tune yet.  The "Bones to  Sand" song is also end theme song for episodes, and it is the song chosen for Mo Qingcheng to sing in a changed voice at the karaoke in ep.19, before he swiftly exits with Gu Sheng to end the date in style.


Special two versions of Bones To Sand, sung by JC-T /Tan Jianci 檀健次  and Sheng Yu 胜屿 (composer's interpretation):


6* "Moon in a heart《心上月》sung by Le Xiaotao 乐小桃    [no further data for this singer, but looking into the name brought the info that there is an Internet singer of that name and that it is the name of the protagonist of a time travel novel titled "Peach Blossom Smiling on the Spring Breeze" 桃花笑春风 . Le Xiaotao is likely a stage name.]

  • composer: You Jun, Zhu Jintai (又君, 朱金泰) ; lyrics : Nanqi, Miāo cǎoxié (南岐、喵草鞋)

Sheng Shengman's "exam song" with piano, ep.3, 34:55


7* "Day and Night" 《朝夕》 , sung by Tan Jianci 檀健次    

  • composer : Shěn wù liǎn  (沈雾敛) ; lyrics : Ji Zhizhuo (季知拙)

Sheng Shengman told Qiang Qingci in ep.4 that she had just finished composing a song on "Whether it's Dawn or Dusk, in a Young Master's Voice", and Qiang Qingci started narrating, ep.4,  8:50 . The song was later reused in ep.7, 34:00 with Qiang Qingci introducing it as a "Valentine's gift from her and me" ; played again from webradio in Ep. 12, 26:25 and on the Lijiang river cruise Ep. 15, 21:30 as bgm.   Heard once again when Gu Sheng listens to the songs on her phone, as she prepares to spend the night hours in the supermarket, waiting for the storm to abate, ep.22, 31:05.   -- The song was re-used several times, including at the Qiandao Lake dinner party where couples form in ep.30, 25:50 (GS requested to sing it in A key, for the duet with MQC). It featured also in the end episode, repeated as end theme song of the drama.

Btw. There is a short "karaoke challenge" using that song, to sing with master JC-T himself : Studio douyin updated duet version Day & Night snippet

8* "Wintersweet" Qingmei Yin《青梅引》, sung by Shi Shang  时尚

  • composer : Kuang Geng  (匡耿) ; lyrics : Huaiyou (怀柚)


The  slow a capella "Green Plums" ballad sung on the bus by Mo Qingcheng/Qiang Qingci in ep. 5, 27:55, after the recording of Golden Wind  Jade Dew. Sheng Shengman later sings the Green Plums on her channel from 39:15;  also her version as bgm in ep.16, 22:20.

The singer Shi Shang  时尚 took part in song competitions such as 2021 Sing!China and sang the theme song “We Rock” for the iQiyi show Youth With You S3 (青春有你3) in 2021.


T§he Sound and Soulmates competition finale ep.8 :

9* "Four songs of the masters" 《名士曲四首》, sung by:

  • Lie Tian 裂天 ("North City Lone Goose" 《北城孤雁》also titled "Solitary Goost in the Northern City" on the dramawiki list --"Beicheng Xiao Se"/The Northern city, sung by "Beidou Xiaoxing" in the Sound and Soulmates competition finale ep.8, 07:40) ; 
    • composer : Shengyu (胜屿) ; lyrics : Minghuang, Nanqi (冥凰, 南岐)
  • Xian Zi 弦子 ("National Destruction" 《国破》also titled "Defeated Kingdom" on the dramawiki list  --"You You Qian Bai Nian"/A Thousand Years Go By, sung by "Linglong", 08:40) ; 
    • composer :  Haoyun (匡耿) ; lyrics : Minghuang, Nanqi (冥凰, 南岐)
  • Li Changchao 李常超  ("Moonlight on the Bianjiang River" 《边江月明》also titled "Bright Moon in the Borders" on the dramawiki list  --"Zhebian guan bei feng"/The north wind at the border, sung by "Wang Ke", 10:03) ; 
    • composer : Haoyun  (匡耿) ; lyrics : Minghuang, Nanqi (冥凰, 南岐)
  • Tan Jianci  檀健次 ("Emperor's Record" 《帝王录》also titled "Biography of a Ruler" on the dramawiki list -- "Beiwang Hechuan"Gazing north at the river, sung by Qian Qingci, 10:48).
    • composer : Haoyun  (匡耿) ; lyrics : Minghuang, Nanqi (冥凰, 南岐)

= >   OST audio version Provided to YouTube by YOYOROCK Dec.11, 2023

Lie Tian 裂天 is a gufeng singer known since 2013 when he sang the Tomb Raiders fan song "Beauty" [罹咎 lí jiù]  and "The Best Move in the World"  天下第一招  song for the online game 天龙八部  or other animations and games such as 2015 "Come For The Dream" 为梦而来 , or 2018 "Like New Like Old" 如新·如故 for a collection of Chinese ghost story mobile games; 2022  "Eternal" /Yongheng  ; 2023 song  for "The Emperor's Growth Plan 2皇帝成长计划2
Xian Zi 弦子 born 1986-Apr-22 in Guangxi province, of Zhuang minority ethnicity, is both an actress, having appeared in 10 TV series (including as Mo Qiaoqiao/ LingLong Ti Tou in Love Me Love My Voice), and a singer, with 36 OST songs including 4 in Love Me Love My Voice. In 2016, Xian Zi married Chinese singer and actor Caesar Li /Li Mao 李茂. They have a son together.
Li Changchao 李常超  (also known as  Lao乾妈), born 1989-09-22 in Nanjing, Jiangsu, won the NetEase Cloud Music Best Male Singer Award for Guofeng Musician in 2018. He has sung several songs for OST, including 3 for Love Me Love My Voice. and took part in a CNY TV show with the song "Tomb Raiders Notes - Ten Years in the World" 盗墓笔记·十年人间 伴奏.
Tan Jianci  檀健次 was born 1990-10-05 in Beihai Zhuang autonomous region of Guangxi province. As an actor, he has already appeared in 8 movies since 2008 and about 25 dramas since 2014, including the 2023 Lost You Forever costume drama, which was his main drama for the year (playing "Xiang Liu")   He is also a singer and a dancer. Read more about him in the  Section 5 mini Profile.

10* "Together" 《一起》, sung by Xiu Xiuman  咻咻满  
  • composer : Sun Aili  (孙艾藜) ; lyrics : Zhao Subing (赵素冰

it is the song in ep.17, 42:12 after the performance in Guilin, ending the episode, and repeated in the beginning of ep.18.  End theme song of ep.24, 26...

Xiu Xiuman  咻咻满 , real name張飛 (Zhang Fei)  is an elementary  school music teacher born in 1997 China. In May 2023, her Chinese opera song  "Autumn Poetry" 秋詞 was posted online on YT (with the above info) along with  other songs:  "Turn Into Mist" 化作烟岚 included in a playlist of 19 original songs (some have subtitles);  following April 2022 "Misty ForestTavern"  雾林酒馆. There's also a song from 2023 The Wandering Earth 2:  Ren shi- (人是_).    She also covered The Divine Damsel of Devastation in 2022 (see gufeng/zhongguofeng in section 3) ; for more songs, go to her channel on Youtube.

11* "Sound"《声声》, sung by Tan Jianci 檀健次
  • composeTan Chaoyue  (谭朝月) ; lyrics : Yíng shī(萤失)

The song recorded by MQCas a gift for GS in ep.20, 35:18


12* "100 Years of Dreams Go By" 《百年梦去》  - sung by Tan Jianci  檀健次

  • composeTang Di  (唐棣) ; lyrics : Ran Yuyou (冉语优)

13* "Realm of Prosperity"《盛世之疆》  - sung by  弦子 (Xian Zi), 李常超 (Li Changchao), HITA, 小爱的妈 (Xiao'ai de Ma), 萧忆情Alex, 裂天 (Lie Tian) in the MV translated by PeacheyBlossom [-- But Dramawiki mentioned Lou Yi Qian (萧忆情) instead of  萧忆情Alex, and another version with these singers incl. Lou, together with Shua Ya (刷牙)  & Le Xiao Tao (乐小桃)]

  • composeTan Mingyao (谭朝月) ; lyrics :  Xiāoxiāngbì (萧湘碧)


HITA born in Beijing on 1984-12-26  is an online Baidu idol singer, who first worked with the group 墨明棋妙 Mo Ming Qi Miao. She sang the theme songs in 2008 for  Xunxian game, "When the Moon Shines on the nine kingdoms Again" [再逢明月照九州 zài féng míngyuè zhào jiǔzhōu] ;  and "Like a Dream" 如梦令.  
Among other songs she made famous is her  2014 "Water Dragon's Chant"  [水龙吟 Shui Long Yin] with lyrics from the Song Dynasty poem "Shui Long Yin·Shou Li Chang Ru" (translated here).
 And 2018  Chi Ling 赤伶 (which has been covered by many other singers).  
There is also a playlist of her songs ("Fate", etc ) on Youtube.
Xiao'ai de Ma 小爱的妈  released a gufeng album in 2016 ; representative work: 2022 " Flowers Blooming on the street " 小愛的媽 ; 2013 " Snow in Yancheng " 雁城雪 (a game song);  The Song of Youth " 刹那芳华曲 ; and 2020 "The End of Prosperity" 热闹落尽. She also sang on stage in September 2016, together with HITA and AKI阿杰, the 2013 HITA song "The State of Etiquette" / Lǐyí zhī bāng  礼仪之邦 .
Alex Xiao 萧忆情 /Xiao Yiqing, born 1988-06-14 in Yinzhou, Hunan, is a male Chinese independent singer in mainland China. "Alex is a very capable singer who can control a variety of genres". He won the "Best Male Singer" Award on January 2, 2017. Representative work :  "Not a Hero" [不谓侠 Bù wèi xiá] which was the first song on his solo album "Xiāo Yīn Mímàn” (《萧音弥漫》released in Feb.2017 (taster video of the album linked).

The  OST list included some reprises, such as the :

14* "If the World is a Gift by You" 《若人间是你赠我》, covered here nicely with translation  [by 归黎Greet /Gui Li, 谯酌Dynasty Rui  /Qiao Zuo] . It was originally by HITA sung together with Xiao Ai De Ma / 阿南Sara from 2021-09-01 
  • composeLotus Ya (莲琊) ; lyrics :  Jié fēng  (结风)

This is  the song that Mo Qingcheng has on his earpods in ep. 17, 05:20, starting with 宿命中应有一场燎原火

"Story behind the song (from the original singer HITA): A human (played by HITA, covered by Greet) saved a Begonia Spirit (played by Xiao Ai De Ma, covered by Dynasty) from a rainstorm. These two beings got to know each other and accompanied each other until the human died of illness. Before her death, she locked her soul into her Longevity-lock  (a type of Chinese talisman) and gave it to the Begonia Spirit and hoped that this lock would accompany the Spirit from loneliness. Trying to save the human, the spirit traveled around the world and used every possible way. She ended up sacrificing herself to change the human’s destiny and brought the human back alive. Without the soul and the longevity lock, the human couldn’t remember anything from her previous life, not the spirit either. The Spirit finally found the human in her second life and returned the lock to the human before the spirit dissipated away, giving the human back a complete memory in the mundane world." (Youtube)


15*  "Stealing Coolness Record" 《偷凉记》 [Tōu liáng jì], 2017 song by  萧忆情Alex, 刷牙 (Shua Ya), HITA《很想很想你 Love Me, Love My Voice》also previously recorded as" Diary of Stealing Capital" by other singers [吾恩、Golden、晃儿、Amuro].  

  • composeMingyao (明遥) ; lyrics :  Chí yì   (迟意)
Fei Shao & Wang Ke singing "Stealing Coolness record"

from left: Mo Qingcheng, Gu Sheng, Fei Shao, Wang Ke, Gu Jia (GS's cousin), Dong Yiru (from Supermart), Juemei, Geng Xiaoxing, MuMu, and hidden to left, Mo Bai,  Feng Yasong (pediatrician) and DouDou (manager of Perfect Voice studio)

It is the song chosen by Mo's friends on the river cruise ep.,15, 22:46, and played & sung by Fei Shao and Wang Ke + DouDou and the whole group  at the outing on Qiandao Lake, ep. 30, 28:55, also used as end theme of episode 30.


16 * White Horse Among the Reeds  《白马入芦花》 , sung by Shua Ya (刷牙) & Le Xiao Tao (乐小桃)  in the drama ; the recording linked here is a version sung by He Tu 河图  on Youtube.    

  • composeXiao Meng Lin  (潇梦临) ; lyrics :  Chéng wù yóu xīn  (乘物游心)

It is the song in ep.17, 35:53 sung by Wang Ke the vocalist, with Sheng Shengman, in Tang dynasty costume, on stage in Guilin for the song play of "A Dream of Jiangnan" snippet performed for Perfect Voice's 10th anniversary, while Mo Qingcheng looks on hidden behind the audience.  Chorus reprised at the Qiandao Lake outing in ep.30, 30:45


17*  *  "Qi Water Curve"  /Qi Yù  《淇奥 》or * Book of Poetry  /Book of Songs, "Qi Yu"  sung by Xian Zi 弦子, and alternately by Tan Jianci, Xian Zi and Le Xiaotao in the drama  

  • composeHITA (HITA) ; lyrics :  The Book of Songs · National Style · Wei Style · Qiao (诗经·国风·卫风·淇奥 / Shījīng·guó fēng·wèi fēng·qí-yù)

It is the song in ep.26, 24:53 with lyrics from the poem Qi Yu in the Book of Songs, that Off-Key thought fit perfectly the melody composed by Shengshengman, who had asked him to provide lyrics. She tries to record it at 27:18 but has trouble because the key is too high for mezzo-soprano : the song is for LInglong.

Qi river wetlands i Henan
Qi He 淇河 [not to be confused with Qí Jiang 綦江, which is a Guizhou and Chongqing tributary of the Yangtze river, nor with 祁水 Qishui in Hunan) is a river in Henan province.   Since the beginning of time, many luminaries have visited this location to read poetry. Li Bai, Gao Shi, and Wang Wei were among the poets who flocked to the Qi River near Hèbi 鹤壁 to sing poetry aloud. Many poems in the Book of Songs, China’s first poetry collection, depict the beautiful scenery of the Qi River and record the folk customs along the banks. The local government built a 2.5km-long street park in Qibin District—QihePoetry Garden, along the Qi River. With 1500 poems total, it is organized chronologically into five chapters.

* Water Dragon's Chant / Shui Long Yin  《水龙吟》 originally sung by HITA in 2014 , sung by Lin Ye Zi (林夜子)  in the drama

  • compose:  HITA  (HITA) ; lyrics :  (Song) Wu Yong  ((宋)吴泳)


There is an epic game song by the same title 《水龙吟》translated as Samudrartha sung by Yusuf as theme song for "Danheng" in the game Honkai: Star Rail, which just won the Mobile Game award at the TGA Games awards in Los Angeles.This game was developed by Hoyoverse (Mihoyo of Shanghai) the developer of Genshin Impact, the Chairman of which has stated that the games developed will be including Chinese culture. The song gained immese popularity since June-July, and has been covered by female Internet artist XiuXiuMan (who sings the song "Together" in LMLMV), and by Bodokun, also with English versions, and with a guzheng and dance cover by 碰碰彭碰彭 Jingxuan. [For those who are interested in more info about the type of characters in the game and the links with xianxia, danmei, Buddhism and Daoism, there is a long essay online].

There is also another tune by the same name, by Guan Dazhou 关大洲 , which has been covered impressively with EDM & ancient instruments here, or by the 24 Musicians in colorful Hanfu.


* High Spirited 《意气风发》

  • compose:  Zhou Yan  (周妍)      

 (the Peach Blossom Springs tune performed by GS's two friends Guaiguai  and Shezhang for the music competition at Perfect Voice studio, in ep.26?)

"FULL OST" recordings  

there are several online, now, such as those of  :

INSTRUMENTAL  BACKGROUND MUSIC 

 Peachey Blossom posted on 2023-12-09 a  full BGM OST with more tunes that are not on the dramawiki OST list in addition to the 13 instrumental/ accompaniment versions of the previous OST songs :

  • *  入花海境 (Entering The Sea of Flowers) 54:26 
  • *  一听命中 (A Hit At First Listen) 56:07 
  • *  小鹿乱撞 (Restless and Excited) 58:20 
  • *  浓浓的八卦气息 (Strong Scent of Gossip) 01:00:16 
  • * 头牌的小金猪 (The First-Placed Golden Pig) 01:02:50 1
  • *  别误会 (Don't Misunderstand) 01:04:56 
  • * 显眼包助攻 (Conspicuous Bag Assistance) 01:06:35 
  • * 心动电波 (Cardiac Wave) 01:07:52 
  • *  青声细语 (Whisper) 01:09:24 
  • *  接受彼此 (Accept One Another) 01:11:42 
  • *  确定 (Sure) 01:14:40 
  • *  很想见你 (Really Want To See You) 01:16:43 
  • *  甜味日记 (Sweet Diary) 01:18:54 
  • *  夕阳和城市 (Sunset and City) 01:21:00 
  • *  共同的地点 (Same Destination) 01:23:28 
  • * 山海迎风 (Mountain and Sea Greet Wind) 01:26:04 
  • *  坚守热爱 (Stand By Love) 01:28:13 
  • *  依靠 (Rely) 01:30:32 
  • *  幕后人 (Behind The Scenes Person) 01:33:44 
  • *  穿越冬季 (Passing Through Winter Season) 01:36:10


Wishing you nice musical pauses in your drama watching !


back to Table of contents

I tried looking for more information about Le Xiao Tao but the only thing that pops up is about the drama, I sincerely thought it was the actress singing. 

 Looking4secondarycouples:

I tried looking for more information about Le Xiao Tao but the only thing that pops up is about the drama, I sincerely thought it was the actress singing. 

I have not totally given up the search, although I did not find any more than Peachey Blossom who also was on the thankless hunt ;-)    If you do find data somewhere, don't hesitate to comment again :  I'll be taking!

On the other hand, you can learn some more about the other singers in the revised annotated OST page, above. It is still a "work in progress" since there are still songs that have not been sung in the drama, and one uncertainty (about singer Alex Xiao who is not credited in the song cast by Baidu; instead there is another singer, so I will ask Peachey later about that, and check some more -- Later. It takes a lot of time to hunt up data and find relevant songs to link...)   I'll probably need to spellcheck too since my old computer has sticky keys.

But I do not think Zhou Ye is Le Xiao Tao. There are very few videos showing Zhou Ye singing. The one with Hunan Satellite TV New Year Eve opening show_Hou Minghao, Xiao Shunyao, Zhou Ye and Jiang Yiqiao with CNY songs for 2022  shows her singing not impressively, she does not seem to be able to reach high notes like those required in the song, nor have a voice that can handle gufeng. She can sing in a limited scale, best with a chorus to overshadow her possible off key moments [edit: a BTS shows her singing so off key that JC-T looks rattled].  

There are some "singers" like that, who are not keen to sing solo on stage -- thinking about my "best romantic actor" Chen Zheyuan, who was so sweet and perfect in Hidden Love  but shied away from the only snippet of karaoke where he was supposed to sing Zhao Lusi's "It seems to fall  into the Sea of Love" song - CZY is sweet and knows his limitations. Still, I love CZY, and Duan Jiaxu was a better down-to-earth and believable (if too perfect) character in Hidden Love than Qiang Qingci the superman who does not sleep and stays hidden from public despite paparazzi threats and gossiping fans, for the somewhat similar romance Love Me Love My Voice, imho - The finger poking on cheek by Duan Jiaxu at the university lecture was so much sweeter than just sitting behind FL like Qiang did, for instance.  Nevertheless, I am extremely pleased to find that contrary to his junior (CZY), Tan JianCi is such a good singer in addition to being also very good at acting!

This is an informative and interesting thread. Thanks for creating and sharing this. I love the Gu Feng emphasis on music, the voice acting profession and how this drama leverage on the beautiful sites.

I agreed with you about the story and characters. It also didn’t appeal to me., MQC is too perfect to be real and GS is too baby for her age. They have chemistry but their characterization just put me off. 

Hidden Love, Duan Jia Xu is definitely more down to earth and real, I just sometimes can’t handle Zhao LuShi’s acting and voice.

I am continuing to watch this drama not for the CP but TJC’s singing and his dialogue reading, I really feel he can do very well as a voice actor.

 Megumi-H:

This is an informative and interesting thread. Thanks for creating and sharing this. I love the Gu Feng emphasis on music, the voice acting profession and how this drama leverage on the beautiful sites.

I agreed with you about the story and characters. It also didn’t appeal to me., MQC is too perfect to be real and GS is too baby for her age. They have chemistry but their characterization just put me off. 

Hidden Love, Duan Jia Xu is definitely more down to earth and real, I just sometimes can’t handle Zhao LuShi’s acting and voice.

I am continuing to watch this drama not for the CP but TJC’s singing and his dialogue reading, I really feel he can do very well as a voice actor.

Same  ;-)   

But  since we have 3 days without episodes I will be watching The Last Immortal in a few hours too.  + Absolutely loving  A Journey to Love, happy that it broke 10000 and has been top for two weeks now in charts. Fully deserved.  I have added the latest news in pictures there in the Discussion I created for that one too. (But I am not watching on speed anywhere, so sometimes I lag behind a little.)

 I have a lot more complaints than you have about the plot of LMLMV, splotchy camera work, excessive makeup, frozen smile of poor JC-T whose gazes towards boring Zhou Ye give me more a feel of exasperation than tenderness. Am not feeling much from sites visited in the drama - perhaps I am jaded since I lived in China for many years and saw most of these places before... But lest I sound like a dreadful Avenue X clone, I will not voice all my disappointment here.

Ahhh.  Well. Save for the music, and JC-T's diction as reader and orator, this drama will be eminently forgettable, despite poor Tan Jianci wishing it could be "relaxing" in bed : yeah, spot on, totally soporific to me. sigh.  I had to pinch myself to keep eyes open, because I hate to skip and hit ff button.

 Oh yes too, the wiping off lipstick from JC-T lips by ZY was a summit of cringe to me.  There's nothing believable in that drama. I feel that the work of dubbers in studios was better handled in dramas such  as Forever and Ever : contrary to some, I liked F&E a lot, but then I don't mind Ren Jialun and his non-kissing contract. That other drama with its views and sounds of Wu language in Zhenjiang, Wuzhen, plus the parts in Shanghai, Xi'an and abroad, and Bai Lu playing, was very satisfying to me.

RJL is a very good singer-rapper btw, just usually not in the gufeng/zhongguofeng style, even though he did a version of Pipa Xing with Fang Jinlong, the famous pipa player, back when (that's perhaps Allen's closest brush with zhongguochao).  In addition tohis nice OST songs, I like his personal music which is very energetic. But RJL's personal songs are C-pop and hiphop, in the line of Z.Tao's. (My musical tastes are wide-ranging and eclectic....(^-^))

Yes agreed that Journey to Love was a pleasant surprise! Captivating plot and the FL is so attractive in her role. I like strong FL. Her relationship with ML is also mature and set a good example for healthy couple relationships. The comedy element in that drama is also very entertaining. Liu Yu Ning done well in that drama, sadly China social media being so shallow, mud slam him for his looks. 

Because of the break, I may check out The Last Immortal too, let’s see how the story and CP can draw me in. 

I am not familiar with RJL’s work, the above piece is very nice, will check out more. My husband play GuQin, so we are very much into Chinese music and its rhythmic beauty.

I see you live in China, and well travelled, hence you are so familiar about their scenic places. I remembered your sharing on Meet Yourself about Yunnan. Maybe at where I am, I am fascinated by the beautiful scenic places in China. Will be visiting BeiJing and Shanghai this Xmas period.

Well wishes to you and your family for the holiday season!

@Megumi H : I have pared down here on the previous illustrated "tourist information" in previous answer,  Just leaving the important link about how to navigate the advance reservation system requirement since you plan to visit Tian an men  and the Palace Museum in BJ.  Leaving also the links to explore  Shanghai Tower in SH, and find the hairy crab xiaolongbao restaurant LaiLai Xiaolong on Tianjin Lu 506.  The large Shanghai museum on People's Square/Renmin avenue ought to be on your list too:  the exhibits there are really good and cover all China's history in pleasing ways.


5/  SOME BTS from LLMV

Elise on the Love Him Love His Voice thread, justly mentioned the entertaining BTS collection with a choice three (click on pictures to open links - sorry for the ones that just were removed this end Dec.2023 from Youtube...) :

TJC playing the piano and singing BTS of the kiss scene and TJC's character riding a bike

Booting ceremony of Filter - JC-T with his two dogs Tan Xiaodai 檀小呆 and Tan Liqiu 檀力球  (see them more clearly on this TikTok snippet)

+ this is older, from May 2023, a snippet of Tan Jianci beautifying  his dogs :

Adding one of Tan Jianci working on recording music :

The first kiss scene BTS

Fun and games to relax off set :

vlog from LMLMV (it was subtitled in English, but got "privatized"  since posted... so sorry for broken link) :

Although in Chinese only, this video about JC-T's visit to subbing master Bian Jiang's studio is worth watching !  (thanks to Kokuto, who posted the link in the "Love him Love His Voice" Discussion thread) :

Watch too the  second part for that visit with JC-T performing dubbing and some hilarious tongue twisters.  I have added it before in the LMLMV first page (above in thread)

There's also a collection of 105 (now 215!) snippets of BTS and Clips covering many moments from LVLMV, and the goodbye of actors to their characters when the shooting wrapped.


back to Table of contents                                                        links in this section last checked on 2024.04.17

Thanks for the detailed sharing and recommendation about Beijing and Shanghai.
Yes, I know about the Soong sisters’ story. I love Maggie Cheung’s portrayal as Song QingLing, she definitely did a great job and deserved the award.
Will definitely be visiting the Great Wall if weather allows and also Tian AnMen Square, as well as the Forbidden City Museum. Actually I am a great fan of China history, so going to the famous museum is my top first priority.
Have yet to plan my Shanghai’s itinerary, your recommendation looks fantastic, will check it out.

I saw the two YouTube clips on TJC’s visit to Master Bian Jiang, he took up the challenge set up to do some impromptu voice acting, impressive! He is definitely a versatile artist in this industry, gone through some hardship but always appear humble.

Thank you so much for putting this together! It even helped me get to know all the OSTs that are in the drama, because there are so many that I get confused to forget which OSTs I've uploaded or not uploaded yet.? I'm so glad to see that you use my videos in the links; it makes me really happy! Also, here's a new OST from the drama!
偷凉记 (Stealing Coolness Record) - 萧忆情Alex, 刷牙 (Shua Ya), HITA《很想很想你 Love Me, Love My Voice》Subs: https://youtu.be/TRZZrCr20T4

??

@ Peachey Blossom : Ah you know I'm a fan of your work ?  !  Thanks for the new link !

6/ Mini Profile notes about Tan Jianci 檀健次 

Tan Jianci  檀健次 was born 1990-10-05 in Beihai Zhuang autonomous region of Guangxi province. As an actor, he has already appeared in 8 movies since 2008 and about 25 dramas since 2014, including the 2022 Under the Skin (as the painter Shen Yi) , 2023 Lost You Forever costume drama, which was his main drama for the year (playing "Xiang Liu" sent him up to firmament) , as he stated in this year retrospective talk (in Chinese). The drama  was honored among the best of the year in the Tencent Drama Video Night of December 2023.

As a singer he has sung about 16 OST songs, including 10 in Love You Love My Voice, and Waiting in Futility from "Lost You Forever".  He also sings mandopop, C-pop, rock...and in several languages : putonghua and Cantonese, such as "Midnight Serenade" 月半小夜 , and in English, such as in his Jan.2022 version of "You Raise Me Up".

Also known as JC-T, he was a member of the M.I.C. (Made in China) group of C-pop which gained attention from their debut in 2010, and won many awards, including Most Popular Group at the 2014 Music Radio China Top Music Awards. Among their songs : 2010 "Rock Star";  2015 LadyBro 闺蜜” and "Fly Away".  Tan Jianci held bass voice, dancing, and lyric writing position in MIC -- There is also a 2017 medley retrospective of their songs"年华 Years of our Youth" (where Tan Jianci introduces himself at 01:37 in the video).    

As a dancer, Tan Jianci was sent north when he was barely a teenager, to attend the affiliated secondary school of Beijing Dance Academy where he learned professional ballroom dance, at the age of 13. He became a ballroom Latin dance champion at 15 and broadened his dance to many other styles, including hip hop. He was admitted to Beijing Sport University's Art department.  His performances on stage are always a feast for eyes and ears, whether they be dancing with a group (such as here, in Sept.2022  平行 / Pingxing, Paralllel) ; in collaboration (such as in 2023 那么爱你为什么 /Why do I Love You So Much, cover performance of the Karen Mok 1999 standard, together with Yu WenWen and Wei Li'An), or alone (such as in 2020 Dance Monkey for one of the musical shows he is used to participate in - [追光吧!哥哥 Shine! Super Brothers: full episode linked as a sample]).

His nickname is "CiCi". His star signs are Libra and Chinese zodiac Horse, Metal element : "popular and hard workers. They have financially sound minds and are adept at handling money matters. Whether male or female, Horse personalities feel more comfortable in the company of their own kind. They are independent and self-willed individuals who never take advice."

He enjoys cooking, likes spicy food and rice noodles.

He is said to "Like to play basketball, ping pong, soccer, and bowling". 

About dramas, he belongs to the growing number of actors cursed with a long awaited shelved drama ; in his case, it was one long and difficult star project, filmed back in 2020: Winner Is King (a cyberpunk drama that got shelved almost last minute because of the BL ban: more about it in the link).

He is not very tall (174cm /5'8") and therefore often wears insoles and "elevator shoes". 

Social media links :  Movie Douban ; Maoyan ; Weibo ; Weibo (Tan Jian Ci Studio) ; Facebook ;  Instagram + Weibo: MIC檀健次JC-T

Contrary to data that had it that the fandom was called "Barley" (麰 Móu or 大麦 Dàmài) , in fact the fandom name was recently coined by Tan Jianci after consultation with his fan base, and the name agreed on March 20, 2021 is "Little charcoal fire"  (小炭火 Xiǎo tànhuǒ) in this Tweet).  There are many fan pages of social media, including an 檀健次官方后援会 Jianci Tan Official Fan Club channeon Youtube, but the 92 videos there stop after 2021. Favorite Colors of JC-T: Black, White, Yellow, Blue, but apparently no fixed fandom color or even lightstick design.  Some 鑫 (Tan) designs in red or blue did appear in the audience of past concerts, and there is a new design sold by a Thailand company, that draws on the Xiang Liu demon idea, in appropriate yellow fire colors with the letters JC-T and the Hanzi 檀健次, and the number 1005 (which refers to his birthday of Oct.5). There are also plush toys for the cuddly fans ! 

Of course, he has been the recipient of many awards, the latest, one Starlight award for "All-round artist of the year" on Dec.17, 2023 at the Tencent Video All Star Night (called up to collect his,right after Wu Lei took his own, at 01:22:01 on the full recording of event, paywalled).


special thanks to nathsketch ❤️  for the above info to complete and correct the incomplete and bizarre data that was bothering me !

In the wake of the recent dramas (especially 2022 Under The Skin and 2023 Lost You Forever), that catapulted him to the forefront of attention as actor in 2023,  some interesting videos delve in-depth or impressionistic on the evolution of his personality from feeling imprisoned by the mold of strict schools hundreds of miles away from his mother (with only a short experience of wild freedom, in his elder brother's small siheyuan courtyard house in the hutong alleys of Beijing), to becoming a more balanced, aware, and thought driven entertainer and first of all, artist.   He acknowledged that he is an introvert, doing his best to stay lively and positive, give people around him energy, and avoid conveying melancholy.

"CiCi" (his nickname) mentioned  Xinjiekou  and Yuyuantan, but Xinjiekou is closer to Houhai quarter and lake, so I suppose he roamed and wandered in the hutong maze down south, along Xidan and Yuetan too, to get  to the lovely Yuyuantan park and lake, from which boats in summer sail along a canal up to the Summer Palace, perhaps also haunting the vibrant "underground mecca" live houses (defunct Yugong Yishan etc, where one could sip beer or stronger stuff, and appreciate anything in the new styles of Chinese pop rock music, except Kpop, but including Mongol growl). Perhaps he also sampled the open air music festivals (Strawberry festival ; Midi spring festival and Modern Sky autumn festival, both in Haidian park, etc) although he perhaps missed the Chaoyang park Beijing Pop one in 2007 (that one featured a crazy show of NIN from the US, aside from granddad of Chinese rock Cui Jian) where 30,000 young pop & rock music lovers flocked (me included lol).

Perhaps Tan Jianci likes to stay discreet, blurring lines and data despite his apparent openness and sincere statements ; he has a sister (does he?), and he spent a year in Japan in his childhood, getting his other nickname, Kenji, from anime. 

Although he looks aloof, he had to build a thick skin against those who taunted him in his early career, as a "little fresh meat" who "could not act". Eventually, he gained approval from influential critics and star entertainers (Zhang Ziyi and Xu Zheng), moving him to tears.

MBTI - One page listed his personality as ESFP (Extroverted, Sensing, Feeling, and Perceiving). According to John Hackston, head of thought leadership at The Myers-Briggs Company, ESFPs make up 6% of the population. Very rare.  Introverted is more common and some "introverts" are known to be "wounded extroverts", with reasons that pushed them to change, for better protection of their inner core. Anyway, he showed in a half sarcastic video how he came about another:  introvert verdict, and seems to agree with it, so let's agree that he belongs to the INFJ  type ( Introverted, Intuitive, Feeling, and Judging) that's even rarer (1.5% of population), described as "emotional alchemists who possess a remarkable talent for transforming their own emotional experiences into creative expression", "attractive because they understand people so well, better than themselves", physically with "almond shaped going towards cat eye shape (Ni) . While talking at the same time thinking, eyes have a detached look (Ti) while looking down darting back and forth from one point to another (Ni). Eye brows: Lower set than average with a natural defined arch." Doesn't it fit him to a T  ;-) ?



This other video shows glimpses from his evolution as actor since his debut as sullen teenager in a 2008 movie, and closer to his interests then : as singer and dancer since debuting in 2010, in the challenging C -pop culture, overshadowed at the time by EXO.  He was thwarted in his entrepreneural foray when the factory he'd invested in to produce luosifen (river snail noodles) was expropriated (there are still some pictures  of his promoting the foul smelling dish) : the video shows his frailties and resilience.  

Recalling also his self-derision to ease awkward moments such as when a fellow lady performer lost a shoe on stage ; he directly kicked off his own, to the audience's squeals of delight, and danced on with her.  

Or that other moment, early in his singing career, when he smacked his partner Steelo (Zhao Yongxin) from M.I.C. a kiss on the lips on stage in a 2016 mini-concert, that went on in JC-T fandom lore as the "Kiss of a century" (at 2:41 in this Ladybro video). Not that Tan Jianci is gay in any way.  

He also likes to interact with fans on livestreams or in chats, although he could get annoyed at times at the excessive calls of "laogong" (husband) by the over eager female fans in the comments areas of live broadcasts, and "shout" back. His mock disgust actually made him even more popular for his humor. It is illustrated in this hilarious  "Daily morning routine" ("Laoban qi chuang a!/ Boss, get up!) short video !  and in this light-hearted and heart-warming short birthday vlog of October 5, 2023.


It was not before 2023 that Tan Jianci released his first solo album, with emotional ballads, R&B, Soul, Hip Hop music, titled "Dreams" llustrated in this Medley appetizer. Check out the following videos and MV too:

  • teaser that conveys an oppressive feeling of being submerged, with urgent calls to"wake up"
  • 《一念无明》[yīniàn wú míng /"One Thought of Ignorance" also titled Darkness] an emotional ballad accompanied by a movie-quality MV (+ a studio version; and a lyrics MV with Hanzi & pinyin in comments) ; 
  • 枷鎖》[Jiāsuǒ/"shackles"] lament, sad lost  love song ;  
  • 梦境》[mèngjìng /"Scene In A Dream"] retro-style ballad with almost traditional Russian nostalgia song influence slowly building into new rhythms ; 
  • 着迷》[zháomí / "Be Fascinated"] weaving in soft funk/soul dance (in a style evoking  JC-T's mentions that he was listening to Michael Jackson in his early youth), emphasized in this stage version of August 2023, which is more in line with Chinese mainstream pop,
  • IMMA GET IT》 breaking into a C-pop/hiphop "statement song".

Adding this wonderful Dec.24 video of Tan Jianci unboxing of the album package that comes with a lot of funny, interesting and exciting goodies such as a shrinking butterfly and lumo cards!   (The video is not subtitled, but easy to understand, and the presentation added this information : "It was also revealed that the new album is being produced hard. The first single of that new album will be available to everyone at the 2024 Hunan Satellite TV New Year’s Eve Party. Let’s look forward to it together!")

He has supportive friends, such as fellow actor Chén Zhéyuǎn who went all the way, despite a busy schedule that day, to support Tan Jianci 檀健次 and Zhāng Jìngyí  张婧仪 in their movie "I Miss You" aired March  8, 2024 :  


" Chén Zhéyuǎn's Studio showing some major love by booking the entire movie theater to support the film 'I Miss You' starring #Tán Jiàncì and #Zhāng Jìngyí. What a supportive brother! ? " ( March  8, 2024 )

To watch that movie  (which does not feature CZY), online in wait for theater release, click here. (but make sure to have a good ad blocker turned on, as some reported annoying redirections there! )


We do not know anything about JC-T having a firm romantic relationship with anyone, except that he dotes on his two pet toy dogs, Tan Xiaodai 檀小呆 (a Shih Tzu breed dog with the brown mask, and hanging ears) and Tan Liqiu 檀力球  (a Yorkshire terrier breed) ; see them more clearly on this TikTok snippet. Tan Jianci often brings his pets along to sets. This humorous short of JC-T picking up his dogs to rest with them features Tan Jianci voice acting  their wishes !!

Finally, what does Tan Jianci deem necessary to carry in a bag ? Not too much... (Dec 12, 2023) [Me, I'd add a K-way raincoat,  a light waterproof carrying bag folded into a small pack, a pen with laser pointer, a pack of Kleenex hankies, a mini travel toiletry bag with nail file, nail clippers, and some cosmetics, an ID documents kit, and attached to a ring in the bag but easy to drag out, a keyring with the necessary car keys, home keys, shrill whistle.]


back to Table of contents                                                                                             Last reviewed 2024.04.17

OMG Frost!! I need this on my profile page lol

Thanks for compiling those notes ♥️♥️♥️