China's rock 'n' roll grandma

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CGTN

Living in on the east coast in Shandong Province's Qingdao, Xu Suqin is now 62 years old. Like many of her peers, Teresa Teng was her idol. Some of her friends said that their voices sound a lot alike. Wedding guests were so touched when Xu sang "Sweet Honey," one of Teng's famous songs. Young lads even came to appreciate her singing with bouquets.

Xu Suqin /CGTN Photo

Now she looks like an entirely different person. Short hair, rivet leather jacket, harem pants and sunglasses, she sings songs of Cui Jian (a Chinese rock star) like a rock granny for real. Fans call her "Brother Xu."

CGTN Photo

Her life changed because of an incident in 1998.

Xu was having a midlife crisis ever since she lost her voice. She was diagnosed with a vocal cords polyp that had to be removed with surgery. According to the doctors, the worst case scenario was a pretty hoarse voice. A week after the operation when she was able to sing again, she was shocked: "I thought it was someone else."

CGTN Photo

"Bye-bye singing for the rest of my life. No more dreaming." Ashamed of her voice, she avoided meeting friends and went to work in other cities. There were also painful family issues: "I had no plan for my music, nor for my life. I just needed a job to support myself and my child."

That being said, people missed her singing and encouraged her to change her style: "You may not sing in a feminine voice anymore. But why not try songs of the male singers?" A friend believed that her hoarse voice is the best for rock music, recommending her the songs by Cui Jian.

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"Few people knew about rock 'n' roll. We thought it was just making noises and shouting the lyrics." Later after hearing Cui's "Nothing to My Name", Xu felt that it was the song exclusively for her: "I saw my own life in the lyrics."

"I have asked you endlessly / when will you go with me/ But you always laugh at me/ for having nothing to my name…"

The "noisy" style was a surprise hit. Xu's husband Wang Changkang was one of her hardcore fans. He supports Xu's hobby whole-heartedly by collecting many singers' albums, encouraging her to try different styles, and hand-copying lyrics for her: "He's been supportive every single time." Says Xu. In recent years, Wang joins her on tours as her "best assistant."

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Cui's "A Piece of Red Cloth" is Xu's favorite now: "You took a piece of red cloth / to cover my eyes and the sky / You asked me what did I see / I said the happiness."

The "Rock granny" has set foot on the stages of provincial and national TV programs. "Those stages are all bigger than my house. I always enjoy showing myself on stage," says Xu. "It's like singing my love and tears out loud. I feel so free."

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No matter what she sings, the fact of a 62-year-old performing on stage proves that she's a real rocker. "When there's a performance, my friends would get all excited as if they turned young again. Seeing them happy for my music, I wish I could live and give for 500 years!"

The story is one in The 1.3 Billion series exploring the diverse lives that make up China.