Em Casalena
Last updated:
10 Mandarin Chinese Music Videos for Learning the Language and Culture
Music can help us learn languages and learn about different cultures.
Chinese is no exception: Watching Chinese music videos and listening to Chinese music can help us practice Mandarin and learn new words, and give us a peek into modern Chinese culture.
It seems too good to be true but it is: Sitting down and binge-watching Chinese music videos can actually improve your Mandarin fluency!
Contents
- 1. 張惠妹【連名帶姓】(Zhāng Huì Mèi “Lián Míng Dài Xìng”) — aMEI “Full Name”
- 2. 薛之謙【演員】(Xuē Zhī Qiān “Yǎn Yuán”) — Joker Xue “Actress”
- 3. 周杰倫【七里香】(Zhōu Jié Lún “Qī Lǐ Xiāng”) — Jay Chou “Common Jasmine Orange”
- 4. 宇宙人【那你呢?】(Yǔ Zhòu Rén “Nà Nǐ Ne?”) — Cosmos People “And You?”
- 5. 周杰倫【告白氣球】(Zhōu Jié Lún “Gào Bái Qì Qiú”) — Jay Chou “Love Confession”
- 6. 方大同【愛不來】(Fāng Dà Tóng “Ài Bù Lái”) — Khalil Fong “No Love”
- 7. 林俊傑【偉大的渺小】(Lín Jùn Jié “Wěi Dà De Miǎo Xiǎo”) — JJ Lin “Little Big Us”
- 8. 周杰倫【霍元甲】(Zhōu Jié Lún “Huò Yuán Jiǎ”) — Jay Chou “Fearless”
- 9. 大壯【我們不一樣】(Dà Zhuàng “Wǒmen Bù Yīyàng”) — Da Zhuang “We Are Different”
- 10. 王力宏【心中的日月】(Wáng Lì Hóng “Xīn Zhōng De Rì Yuè”) — Leehom Wang “Sun and the Moon”
- How Can These Music Videos Help Me Learn Mandarin?
- How to Use Chinese Music Videos to Learn Mandarin
- And One More Thing...
Download: This blog post is available as a convenient and portable PDF that you can take anywhere. Click here to get a copy. (Download)
1. 張惠妹【連名帶姓】(Zhāng Huì Mèi “Lián Míng Dài Xìng”) — aMEI “Full Name”
This beautiful pop track from aMEI is romantic and dark. If you could compare aMEI to anyone, especially in terms of her music videos, Adele comes to mind.
Recommended level: The hanzi subtitles that accompany this video are helpful, but aMEI sings very clearly and slowly for this ballad. Beginners, check this one out!
2. 薛之謙【演員】(Xuē Zhī Qiān “Yǎn Yuán”) — Joker Xue “Actress”
Along with hanzi subtitles, there’s an additional English subtitle track to help newbies with word association. This is especially helpful as Joker Xue bounces back and forth between singing slowly and almost rapping.
Recommended level: Thanks to the subtitles, this hip-hop track is perfect for beginners and intermediate learners.
3. 周杰倫【七里香】(Zhōu Jié Lún “Qī Lǐ Xiāng”) — Jay Chou “Common Jasmine Orange”
This Jay Chou track is an oldie but goodie. There’s some classic storytelling going on in this video and viewers get to see some seriously beautiful Taiwanese scenery.
Recommended level: The hanzi subtitles are pretty helpful, but Chou sings in his typical slow, soulful style that beginners may be able to keep up with.
4. 宇宙人【那你呢?】(Yǔ Zhòu Rén “Nà Nǐ Ne?”) — Cosmos People “And You?”
This music video was made as a promotion for the clothing company Cotton USA, but it’s certainly still very entertaining without being too pushy with the advertisements.
Recommended level: This groovy pop hit uses hanzi in a handwritten style, which can help intermediate learners practice reading non-type characters.
5. 周杰倫【告白氣球】(Zhōu Jié Lún “Gào Bái Qì Qiú”) — Jay Chou “Love Confession”
There are quite a few Jay Chou music videos on this post and for good reason. He’s a massively popular performer who makes some pretty entertaining music videos. “Love Confession” is one of his more relaxed, R&B-style songs.
Recommended level: This video features hanzi subtitles, but the pace at which Chou sings this song is fairly slow. Beginners should be able to understand and memorize the lyrics accordingly.
6. 方大同【愛不來】(Fāng Dà Tóng “Ài Bù Lái”) — Khalil Fong “No Love”
Hip-hop acts and rappers have been springing up in China and Taiwan lately, putting a different twist on a music style typically found in the United States and the United Kingdom.
Recommended level: This hip-hop hit featuring Miss Ko doesn’t have any subtitles. Intermediate and advanced learners can benefit from listening to spoken Mandarin, while beginners will appreciate the look into Chinese culture provided by the music video.
7. 林俊傑【偉大的渺小】(Lín Jùn Jié “Wěi Dà De Miǎo Xiǎo”) — JJ Lin “Little Big Us”
“Little Big Us” is a lovely pop song with a heart-wrenching music video and some beautiful cinematography.
Recommended level: This song provides hanzi subtitles in a more traditional vertical style that may be hard for beginners to get used to. However, like “Love Confession” this track is sung pretty slowly and is easy to keep up with.
8. 周杰倫【霍元甲】(Zhōu Jié Lún “Huò Yuán Jiǎ”) — Jay Chou “Fearless”
This awesomely dramatic song was part of the soundtrack for Jet Li’s 2006 action movie “Fearless.” Much of the music video features various scenes from the film intertwined with Chou singing and performing choreography.
Recommended level: Chou raps for most of the song, so it may be hard for beginners to keep up. Luckily, the hanzi subtitles help a little and are timed well.
9. 大壯【我們不一樣】(Dà Zhuàng “Wǒmen Bù Yīyàng”) — Da Zhuang “We Are Different”
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ekDzlSB1p28
Alright, we admit it. A lot of the music videos on this list are pretty fluffy and romantic. This harder R&B rock track from Da Zhuang breaks up the fluff a little bit.
Recommended level: Following a clear trend, the hanzi subtitles of this music video are in a handwritten style. A perfect video choice for advanced learners.
10. 王力宏【心中的日月】(Wáng Lì Hóng “Xīn Zhōng De Rì Yuè”) — Leehom Wang “Sun and the Moon”
This classic from 2009 is definitely dated, but the music video and song are entertaining nonetheless. If anything, it shows how closely Chinese and Taiwanese music followed trends similar to that in the West. There’s a definite Backstreet Boys vibe to this R&B track.
Recommended level: Unfortunately, there are no subtitles available for this music video. Advanced learners would benefit the most from listening and watching.
How Can These Music Videos Help Me Learn Mandarin?
You might be surprised at how useful Chinese media can be for the non-native speaker. There are many great reasons to study Mandarin Chinese with music videos:
- They improve your listening skills. Mandarin is all about tones and pace. To the non-native, spoken (or sung) Chinese may be difficult to grasp due to its speed. Listening to modern Chinese music is a helpful way to understand how sentences and phrases are paced.
- They offer valuable insight into modern Chinese culture. You really can’t learn a language without learning about the culture it comes from. Where’s the fun in that?
- They’re entertaining to watch. There’s nothing better than being entertained while learning! Watching Chinese music videos (and even Chinese dramas) is fun and educational.
- Many use English or Chinese character subtitles, aka 汉字 (hàn zì). Beginners and advanced learners can both benefit from watching Chinese videos with subtitles, as this helps reinforce learning.
How to Use Chinese Music Videos to Learn Mandarin
Using Chinese music videos to learn Mandarin is a simple process:
- Watch each video several times. Not all of these songs will be your cup of 茶 (chá)—tea. That’s totally okay. Pick your favorites and watch them as often as possible. When you run into a word you don’t understand, make a note of it and look it up. This is how you build up your vocabulary.
- Memorize lyrics. Memorizing lyrics and how they’re sung can help you build muscle memory for speed, mouth shape and tone. Just be sure to memorize the lyrics as close to how they actually sound as possible. Sing along with the videos and try to keep up. No mumbling!
- Research Chinese culture. If you notice a particular imagery or slang word in the videos that you don’t really get, look it up. This will help you learn things about Chinese culture and slang that you won’t find in textbooks.
How awesome and helpful are these music videos? Learning Chinese really has never been more entertaining.
And the best part is that the internet allows you to easily find other Chinese songs to learn the language with and further connect to Chinese culture.
For example, the FluentU program put together a library of Chinese media.
FluentU takes authentic videos—like music videos, movie trailers, news and inspiring talks—and turns them into personalized language learning lessons.
You can try FluentU for free for 2 weeks. Check out the website or download the iOS app or Android app.
P.S. Click here to take advantage of our current sale! (Expires at the end of this month.)
Don’t forget to rewatch your favorites and memorize their lyrics. Entertainment is great, but you’re on a language-learning journey. 保持！(bǎo chí!)—Keep it up!
Download: This blog post is available as a convenient and portable PDF that you can take anywhere. Click here to get a copy. (Download)
And One More Thing...
If you want to continue learning Chinese with interactive and authentic Chinese content, then you'll love FluentU.
FluentU naturally eases you into learning Chinese language. Native Chinese content comes within reach, and you'll learn Chinese as it's spoken in real life.
FluentU has a wide range of contemporary videos—like dramas, TV shows, commercials and music videos.
FluentU brings these native Chinese videos within reach via interactive captions. You can tap on any word to instantly look it up. All words have carefully written definitions and examples that will help you understand how a word is used. Tap to add words you'd like to review to a vocab list.
FluentU's Learn Mode turns every video into a language learning lesson. You can always swipe left or right to see more examples for the word you're learning.
The best part is that FluentU always keeps track of your vocabulary. It customizes quizzes to focus on areas that need attention and reminds you when it’s time to review what you’ve learned. You have a 100% personalized experience.
Start using the FluentU website on your computer or tablet or, better yet, download the FluentU app from the iTunes or Google Play store. Click here to take advantage of our current sale! (Expires at the end of this month.)
