If you were to choose the hottest variety show in China this summer, "The Big Band," iQIYI's new rock reality TV contest, would definitely be mentioned. The show has captivated Chinese audiences with its focus on indie music and rock culture. It was originally aimed at those who were in this niche, but it has reached the top of the "one-week domestic hit variety show list" on Douban, China's answer to Rotten Tomatoes.

But previously, the 31 bands that participated in the show, including Reflector, Miserable Faith, New Pants and The LifeJourney, were mostly known to a small group of fans.

The LifeJourney, one of the most popular bands in "The Big Band," is composed of the vocalist Kong Yichan, also known as Yann, the guitarist Huang Zijun, also called Mali, the keyboard player Wei Wei, also called oldbanana, and the drummer Xu Biao. Since "The Big Band" aired, the band has come to be remembered for a succession of soft, lilting tracks.

CGTN interviewed the band to talk about their identity of being a Chinese band and what they wanted to do with music. In a way, this is the story of The LifeJourney and Chinese bands.

In March 2005, the band released their first song "The Story of Sun and I," which was their official debut. In 2008, the band released its debut album, "Life Journey," which was well-received.

Most of the work on their first album, "Life Journey," was written and completed in Liuzhou City, the band's hometown. Compared with many rock music and bands in Beijing at that time, The LifeJourney presented a romantic temperament, and the content of the songs seemed far away from reality, like a so-called utopian world.

The album has attracted a lot of fans, but they didn't stop there. They have been exploring various forms of music along the way.

The band's style changed in 2013 when a member left. They then turned 180 degrees toward "realism" with a brand new album. Since then, they have released several albums, but they've never surpassed the performance in their first album.

Of course, the band also faced a creative bottleneck.

In 2016, the members gradually had their own lives, and they are struggling in their own dreams. During that time, the band also had no output. There is no doubt that this is fatal to a band.

The band wrote their first song in 1999 but almost broke up in 2016.

In 2017, Wei Wei, the keyboard player, suggested doing another album. They spent two months in the studio making music, then released their new album "Always Be There." The national tour that year brought them their biggest sales ever, and more commercial shows and musical shows began inviting them.

"The Big Band" is undoubtedly an excellent opportunity for them. More and more people are getting to know the real face of Chinese bands through this program and know that many serious musicians in the Chinese music industry are doing rock and roll, independent music, and so on.

What will the fate be for Chinese bands after the show? How many people will continue to follow these bands? This is a question on The LifeJourney's mind, but as long as the audience is willing to learn about Chinese band culture through a show, it is also a success, they think. "When this show ends, then our journey really begins," said Kong Yichan, the band's vocalist.

"The Big Band" becoming a hit let musicians know that young audiences in China are still willing and know how to appreciate good music, not just following stars, or helping them hit the charts. The show also tells a wider audience that, whether it's pop, folk, rock or indie music, good music will have an audience.

Cameramen: Zhu Danni, Ace Liang, Anosi Wang

Runner: Ding Zhiyang, Zhou Tingyu

Director: Anosi Wang

Video Editor: Anosi Wang