Cantopop

Cantopop is a colloquial abbreviation for "Cantonese pop music", a form of popular music that is a subgenre of C-pop. It is also known as HK-pop, short for "Hong Kong pop". Cantopop draws influence not only from other forms of Chinese music, but from a variety of international styles, including jazz, rock and roll, rhythm and blues, electronic music, Western pop music and others. By definition, Cantopop songs are almost invariably performed in Cantonese. Although Cantopop boasts a multinational fanbase, Hong Kong is the most significant hub of the genre. In Hong Kong and around the world, the Cantopop music industry is dominated largely by record labels owned by record industry giants such as Sony, EMI, Polydor, Emperor Entertainment Group, and Philips.

Recent developments in Cantopop

Although Cantopop record dropped for a time (sometimes attributed to online music file sharing and a lack of talented new artists), the popular labelling 'New Four Heavenly Kings'(?) revived Cantopop by introducing a sense of the nonsensical and contentious. Formed by veteran singer Alan Tam with the primary aim of resuscitating the ailing industry, consists of Hacken Lee, Andy Hui, Leo Ku and Edmond Leung.

Related Topics:
Online - File sharing - Alan Tam - Hacken Lee - Andy Hui - Leo Ku - Edmond Leung

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By her mid-twenties, Joey Yung established herself as the "pop queen"(?) of Hong Kong, and is much admired. Her success earned her 15 million HKD in 2004 in product endorsements alone; her gross annual income for 2004 has been estimated to be in excess of 50 million HKD.

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A recent sub-current in the Canto-pop scene is a band called "Gayyamyan".They first established themselves as a band in the local alternative band circle but by adaptating and campy interpretation of Cantopop classics, they are now walking on the thin line between art and mass entertainment. Some critics even claim that their multi-media concert is a simulacra of mass entertainment and the strongest parady to the Cantonese love songs as a genre.

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