Hip-hop continued to extend its global reach by also exerting its influence throughout China. Similar to how hip-hop in Japan developed, the adoption of hip-hop in China was also driven by socioeconomic and cultural factors that drove the emergence of hip hop in the African-American community. Coming from a history of political and educational systems that restricted free expression, Chinese society has since begun shifting into a market-based economy where choice and difference is encouraged. Among many other effects, this change has led to a society where wealth and status are achievable but where an inequality gap also exists between the rich and the poor, putting people, especially youth, under large social and economic pressure (Liu, 2010). However, these changes also opened up China to global media during a time when Internet technology was rapidly expanding and with it, the migration of hip-hop. Movies like Breakdance entered the Chinese film scene and popularized breakdancing as a high-energy, unrestrained dance that signified freedom, and movies like Rock ‘n Roll Kids encouraged youth to assert themselves through hip-hop dance and other ways, even in the face of elderly conservatism (Clark, 2012). In similar fashion to how hip-hop was used in the African-American and Japanese communities, hip-hop began to rise as a tool for asserting self-expression and identity for young people in China, especially those who were in lower social standing.

Sources:

Clark, P. (2012). Youth culture in china: From red guards to netizens. Cambridge University Press.

Liu, X. (2010). Across the border: hip hop's influence on chinese youth culture. Southeast Review of Asian Studies, 32, 145-153.