Banding together to impress

Stars are born

Since the premiere of the new season, the program has stirred lots of discussion online and become one of the most popular reality shows of the summer.

Many of the contestants, since the show began airing, have achieved early recognition and racked up many followers on social media. One of the contestants is Yang Runze, who celebrated his 20th birthday last month. Yang says his wish is to tour and perform together with his bandmates one day.

"I joined the program, hoping to find like-minded friends and to play music together," says Yang, who was born and grew up in Shenzhen, Guangdong province.

"So far, I have had lots of fun, and it's rewarding for me to gain stage experience through the show."

Yang, now a vocal music major at Beijing Contemporary Music Academy, learned to play piano and classical guitar during his high school years.

Yang especially loved the atmosphere of the program, in which he doesn't need to have "perfect skills". "I really enjoy jamming with others, and the chemistry with my fellow band members is important to me," he says.