simplified Chinese: 时光音乐会; pinyin: shíguāng yīnyuè huì

Time Concert

In the crowded field of singing shows in China, there are few that stand out above the rest for their unique concept or execution, but the show 时光音乐会 (shíguāng yīnyuè huì), or Time Concert, accomplishes this feat. This show first aired in 2021 on 芒果TV (mángguǒ TV or MangoTV) with some household names like Alan Tam, Terry Lin, and Jason Zhang to name a few. The high-profile cast certainly garnered interest in the new show, but it was the show’s relaxed and enjoyable theme that kept viewers’ interest and allowed the show to air a second season the following year in 2022. In this show a regular cast of seven experienced singers of different backgrounds gather together and perform a song individually or in pairs in accordance to the theme of that episode. The themes of these episodes are usually based around the one or two guest singers that appear for an episode or two, with the general format of all of the singers in that particular episode performing a song originally performed by the chosen singer for that episode. The chosen singer is either pulled from the regular cast, or from the guest singers. (Some of the guests for the first season include Hacken Lee, He Jiong, and Han Hong.) And in a rather unique set up for a celebrity singing show, these singers are not competing at all with each other, they are simply performing for each other. This is the main draw for the show since many viewers feel anxious when their favorite singer(s) is competing and instead want to simply bask in the skills of the singer(s) without worry. Time Concert gives viewers this opportunity.

Furthermore, another key feature of this show is that the singers and original performer of the songs get to share stories and express the meaning behind the songs. By doing this they allow everyone to feel more connected to them on a personal level and this brings new insight and respect for all the artists. On a marketing level, it is a brilliant strategy since no one goes home with the burden of having lost over their head; both the singers and the viewers are allowed to simply enjoy themselves and enjoy their profession without the worry of a ranking system. And on a personal level, everyone gets to feel that they won in their own way and was able to make meaningful connections with the other singers they may not have previously had a chance to interact with as well as with the viewers.