Guilty Pleasures

One of the most unexpected things that has happened to me whilst I've been out in China is the unashamed unleashing of my inner pop princess. For those of you wondering what kind of English music the kids listen to here, all you need to do is cast your minds back a few decades when cassette tapes were a thing. For some strange reason, China's English music scene seems stuck in a bit of a time warp. But luckily for me, its allowed me to give into some of my guiltiest pleasures in terms of music.

It's not all dated though. The majority of my students like music by Taylor Swift, Adele, Justin Bieber and some even like Whiz Khalifa (likely because he features on a Fast and Furious soundtrack). I was already a fan of good ol' Tay Tay/ T. Swizzle and when my students ask me what music I like, Taylor is pretty much my go to answer (mostly because my students would be puzzled if I named any bands or artists I actually like). My answer of Taylor Swift was a big hit with the girls in my class anyway, so much so that one student treated me to some awesome Taylor Swift postcards for my birthday way back in September (pictured above).

Since that fateful day I confessed that Taylor Swift was my favourite singer, I felt obliged to keep to my word and go along with this idea that I was really into pop music. But little did I know, this was just the first step into admitting that I really enjoy all the pop music the kids seem to enjoy from a decade ago. Get ready for a flashback! - below are some strong favourites I've come across with my students.

Westlife - My Love

It still kind of confuses me that a band hailing from Ireland, a band that began their music career when I was about 6 years old, a band that kind of went downhill after Bryan MacFadden left - could still be so popular in China. Often when I ask my students what their favourite English song is, they answer with 'My Love'. It's the ultimate throwback. I didn't even know I knew all the words when I listened to it back, but thanks to my sister who was a big Westlife fan when I was growing up, its probably just been ingrained into my unconscious memory (Cheers Jen!), and with it, I've been flooded with musical memories of Westlife songs.

Fool's Garden - Lemon Tree

I'd never actually encountered this song before coming to China, but it didn't take long for me to know every single word. The school bell to indicate that lessons should begin in my school is an instrumental version of this song, so I pretty much find myself humming the tune on a daily basis. It still doesn't stop me from being perplexed by why on earth a song released almost 20 years ago by a German band has made it so big in China. Any explanations are welcome! 

Avril Lavigne - Complicated

Watching this video back brings back so many memories for me. In my final year of primary school, we were asked to bring in a CD album with music from your favourite singer or band (that's right - CD). I remember thinking I was the bees knees for being a little different from my classmates and bringing in my Avril Lavigne Let Go album. Back then, my family had just got Freeview for the first time and Complicated used to get played repeatedly on the music channels. I actually really loved the album beyond the main songs she released from it (I'm With U and Sk8r Boi), and it is a little embarrassing to admit that I still belt out song from this album from time to time. But it is nice to be able to relate to my students on this one though because even to this day, I still quite like Avril circa 2002.

Adele - Rolling in the deep

Maybe it's the fact that she's British and the fact that I am too, but another favourite singer my young students often admit to liking is Adele. Back at training camp, there is one night I remember fondly. It was one of the student's birthday, so his classmates surrounded him and got him to sing along with the help of some of the other ELAs. His song of choice? Rolling in the deep, of course. I'm quite glad that Adele is appreciated on this side of the world because she has an incredible voice that you can't fault. My flatmate, Beth, and I have become quite obsessed with 'Hello' in recently weeks. We play the song all the time in our rooms and any greeting of 'hello' must be followed up with the response, 'it's me...'

Taylor Swift - Blank Space

Oh Taylor. I don't think I even really need words. She's not really even a guilty pleasure in my eyes. Disagree? Well haters gonna hate hate hate hate hate...


Knowing that my students have a weakness for old/ pop music, I'm always tempted to get them to listen to the pop music that was around when I was growing up. Backstreet Boys, S Club 7, Blue. I'd definitely count that as life enriching because lets face it, cheesy pop, although no-one would like to admit, is one of all our favourite genres of music. China really has let me accept that and give into my guilty pleasures.