CHINA'S URBAN YOUTH are standing up. From sports to arts to media, well-educated, talented and far-sighted young people are carving out a hipper future that previous generations couldn't even have dreamed about.
On October 1, 1949, Mao Zedong ascended a platform overlooking Tiananmen Square and electrified the world with his declaration: 'China has stood up.' He was right. With the Japanese vanquished and foreign imperial powers sent packing, and after years of internecine conflict, the country stood as one. From there, where would it go?
Fast forward 54 years, and the question remains the same. Young people were in the vanguard during that era, and they still are. Embracing neither class struggle nor the gospel of wealth, they are out to define themselves in their respective fields and open a new era of urban cultural renaissance for young Chinese.
Since September 2002, China's first free street-culture magazine, Urban, has been trying to teach the masses about the new style. Its focus is street culture, including hip hop, punk rock, X-Games, fashion and graffiti. With an estimated readership of 30,000 middle-school and college-aged hipsters, the distribution of this Shanghai-based magazine has already begun reaching beyond the coastal cities to the inland provinces.
Himm Wonn, Urban's creator and chief editor, is taking it all in his stride. 'There's a need for increased exposure in China,' he says. 'Chinese youth have fewer entertainment options than their western counterparts. They're usually limited to shopping, karaoke, and traditional sports. We want to give young people more choices - more ways to enjoy life.'
Wonn knows it won't be easy. 'Our funding is low, and one other heavily invested urban youth culture magazine could blow us away,' he says.