A Cantonese opera excerpt is performed at the "Charming Guangzhou Meets Nepal" city image showcase in Kathmandu, Nepal, April 15, 2025. (Photo by Hari Maharjan/Xinhua)
The first few seconds of Chinese rap hit "Blueprint Supreme," which has amassed over 22 million streams on music platform Spotify, tend to captivate most first-time listeners with its distinctive groove and retro flair.
Musically, the song's backing track fuses a Memphis rap beat -- a contemporary hip-hop sub-genre named after its city of origin in the United States -- with the warbling vocals of Princess Chang Ping, a celebrated 1950s Cantonese opera that reimagines the tragic fate of the last Ming emperor's daughter following the dynasty's collapse in 1644.
As one of the breakout hits of Chinese rapper Lanlao, who was born in south China's Guangdong Province and heavily influenced by the region's Cantonese heritage in songwriting, "Blueprint Supreme" narrates the 27-year-old's aspiration to flourish in the mundane world by following a set of moral codes and street wisdom rooted in "old-school" Chinese culture.
Despite language or cultural barriers, the song has demonstrated its universal appeal to overseas audiences on social media. On TikTok, cheerful dance videos set to "Blueprint Supreme" have gone viral, as netizens, from Western influencers and K-pop stars to uniformed students, newlyweds, salespeople and athletes, take on the song's choreographed steps.
Under the official YouTube music video for "Blueprint Supreme," which has garnered over 6 million views, starstruck netizens from around the world flood the comment section to express their admiration for the song.
"Greetings from Greece! As soon as my 5-year-old son heard it, he started dancing and doing all the Kung Fu moves!" read a comment. "I found this song this morning, I don't understand a word of what they're saying, but I've already listened to it at least 20 times. Greetings from Italy," read another.
However, "Blueprint Supreme" is more than just a danceable hit; its music has drawn many listeners and analysts to explore its lyrics and cultural roots in greater depth.
"Everybody agrees the beat is a work of art, but if you understand the lyrics and the many references and hidden meanings about Chinese/Cantonese sayings and cultural references, it's such poetry and social commentary at the same time," read a YouTube comment.
The song, opening with the catchy lines "singing karaoke in a villa" and "silver arowana swimming in a pond," features a plethora of daily and cultural expressions for a bustling and affluent life.
According to music commentator Wu Fusheng, the success of "Blueprint Supreme" and Lanlao's other hit, "Stacks from All Sides," stems from their reflection of people's collective aspiration for economic growth in the post-pandemic era.
Lao Yibo, a local cultural expert, believes that the culinary symbols featured in the song, such as Cantonese-style Char Siu buns, roasted meat, clay pot dishes and rice dumplings, are not only a microcosm of the region's food culture, but also embody the exquisite and refined lifestyle of the local people.
"For native listeners, these symbols evoke nostalgic memories of home, whereas for international audiences, these serve as fresh cultural ciphers that invite them to feel Guangdong people's life through their imagination of the flavors," Lao said.
In a recent column, Zhang Yiwu, a professor at the Department of Chinese Language and Literature, Peking University, noted that the popularity of "Blueprint Supreme" is no accident, but a vivid testament to the growing global appeal of Chinese culture in recent years.
"From songs and dances such as the 'Subject Three' dance moves and 'Blueprint Supreme,' to films and TV drams such as 'Ne Zha 2' and 'Legend of Zang Hai,' from popular games like 'Black Myth: Wukong' and 'Mecha BREAK' to globally trending toys from Pop Mart, Chinese pop culture is gaining increasing recognition by people around the world," Zhang wrote, adding that the phenomenon is multi-dimensional, extensive and continuous.
During a recent interview with the Global Times, Lanlao, whose real name is Chen Xukai, also weighed in on the cultural aspect of "Blueprint Supreme."
"I don't want to tell people directly what is good or bad, but I'll always use Chinese cultural connotations to convey my thoughts," the young rapper said, adding that his upcoming works will delve deeper into reflections on classic Chinese culture.
