The all-women Moranbong Band, and the North Korean State Meritous Choir, had been rehearsing for their first performance Saturday night when they promptly cancelled all three of their Beijing shows. Seen wearing military uniforms and furry hats, the musicians left for Beijing airport Saturday afternoon and flew back to Pyongyong.

According to reports by North Korea’s state news agency, KCNA, the “friendship performances” were supposed to, “contribute to deepening friendship and boosting the cultural and artistic exchanges between the peoples of the two countries.”

Official Chinese news agency Xinhua said the performances could not go ahead as planned due to “communication issues on a working level”.

The “friendship performances” were described as “a national-level foreign affairs activity”, and yet no one was able to purchase tickets. A ticket agent at the National Centre for the Performing Arts said prior to Saturday’s cancellation that, “We don’t have a single ticket on hand; we don’t even know which room the performances will take place in.”

Chinese Foreign Ministry spokeswoman, Hua Chunying, offered no explanation as to why the shows were cancelled saying only that the performance was not organized by the ministry. When asked where tickets could be purchased, Hua had no idea: “I myself have no ticket to the performance” she said.

Formed in 2012, the Moranbong Band has been described as a “pet project” for North Korean leader Kim Jung-Un, who allegedly handpicked the members. The band’s outfit consists of uncharacteristically low hemlines, while many of the performers sport short haircuts, currently trending in North Korea. The band are known to perform Western hits such as the theme from Rocky, and Frank Sinatra’s My Way.

With no official explanation provided, a number of rumors have surfaced speculating as to why the tour was cancelled.

One such rumor is that in advance of the performance, Chinese media may have offended North Korean officials by singling out Moranbong Band member Hyon Song-wol, a woman rumored to be Kim Jong-Un’s onetime girlfriend (seen above). Hyon’s presence conflicts with previous reports in South Korean newspaper Chosun Ilbo that Hyon was executed by firing squad for “creating and distributing” pornographic material.

Further muddying the waters, Reuters reported that South Korea’s Yonhap news agency claim North Koreans may have canceled the show after China decided to send a lower ranking delegation to the performance in protest over Kim’s recent boast that North Korea possess a hydrogen bomb.

Yonhap cited an unnamed source who quoted an unidentified Chinese official as saying China agreed to send a politburo member in place of President Xi Jinping or Premier Li Keqiang, whom North Korea had originally requested attend the invitation-only shows. The source said China reneged on that compromise, deciding to send low-ranking officials instead.

As for what a performance by the Moranbong Band sounds like, here they are performing My Country is the Best:

Here is their hit song Excellent Horse-Like Lady:

Here’s their rendition of Rocky:

And here they are performing their song Without You (Comrade Kim Jung-Un), We Will Die:

Related:

• “Foreign” Spy Detained in Jinlin
• Media Hides Story of North Korean Military Defector that Killed 4 People in China
• Nanfang News: Art professor murder suspect flees to North Korea

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According to insiders, China’s ministry of culture cancelled shows scheduled for September 14 and 17 because they had discovered images of the exiled Tibetan spirtual leader hidden in the backdrop of a video used during a Bon Jovi Taiwan concert in 2010. And similar to the situation behind the recent cancellation of a Shanghai performance by Maroon 5, a member of Bon Jovi was discovered to have made a supportive tweet about the Dalai Lama.

The Dalai Lama is a vilified figure in China accused of advocating for Tibet separatism and extremist actions. This upcoming fall marks a politically sensitive time as China celebrates the 50th anniversary of the Tibet Autonomous Region.

We all suspected he was going down in blaze of glory, but it appeared frontman Jon Bon Jovi was first going to woo China on a bed of roses. Bon Jovi had been promoting the concerts in an online video featuring him singing the Chinese love ballad The Moon Represents My Heart, as made famous by Taiwanese crooner Teresa Teng.

The band also has two upcoming performances in Macao scheduled for September 25 and 26. We’re not sure of the fate of these two shows, but seeing as it’s my life and knowing that we weren’t born to follow, hopefully the personal freedom of seeing a rock show will still carry through in these cases. But if the worst comes to pass and the likes of Bon Jovi aren’t wanted in China – either dead or alive – well then, who says you can’t go home?

And if you’re tired of the Bon Jovi puns, you’ll want to skip all these comments from Twitter today:

The post Bon Jovi China Concerts Shot Through The Heart Because of a Bad Name appeared first on The Nanfang.

In light of typhoon Matmo, some train travel has been cancelled in east coast cities. Shanghai has had 19 high-speed rail trains cancelled at Hongqiao Station, and another two trains have been cancelled in Beijing, reports CCTV.

The trains were mostly headed south to areas that are to be affected by the hurricane that include Fujian, Shenzhen.

Ticket holders can get them refunded at the train station.

Photo: cuepa

The post Forget Flights, Now Trains Out of Shanghai Are Delayed, Too appeared first on The Nanfang.

It’s as if Santa has cancelled Christmas – but it does offer light relief to the many weeks of smog filled air.

HERE! Dongguan reported this:

In February’s issue, the Editor’s Picks has a list of places to see fireworks for the Chinese New Year celebration. Those have all been cancelled at the last minute.

Following the lead of Guangzhou, who cancelled the shows citing pollution and budget concerns. Dongguan’s Propaganda Department had this to say: “There are better ways to celebrate the new year.”

The move to ban fireworks was first initiated by Guangzhou three months ago, citing concerns over air pollution and wanting to encourage a “low-carbon and environmentally-friendly lifestyle.” The rest of the PRD cities have followed Guangzhou’s lead.

Neighbouring Shenzhen has taken this one step further still. Police are taking a hard line over people who transport, sell or set off fireworks illegally. Those caught will be detained for up to 15 days and fined RMB2,000 for their troubles. Criminal charges will be slapped on anyone causing fires, explosions or injuries.

Want to know what you’ll be missing? This is a snapshot of the 30-minute-long fireworks on the Pearl River in Guangzhou from last year.  It’s all we’ve got to ring in the Year of the Snake.

If you really want to catch a fireworks display, they’ll light up Victoria Harbour in Hong Kong on Monday at 8pm.

YouTube: Sammie Kong

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