From 'bedroom heroes' to music stars in China

Deeper dive

In 2023, James played his first China show in Beijing, followed by six other cities.

A year later, his Chinese tour covered eight cities, and last year, he performed in 10 cities. James is getting ready to meet his army of Chinese fan crowds again on a new tour.

He has over 3 million fans on Chinese social media platforms, and is affectionately called "Xiao Kui", meaning "little sunflower".

"They are very into music, with a very strong passion and a lot of attention to lyrics, details and the depth of songs. They are also very interactive and can sing every song together with me. They are loud, in the best way possible," said James with a smile.

At a festival in Shanghai during the May Day holiday, fans sang along loudly with James in his return tour to China after seven months.

During that tour James organized travel outside his performance schedule to dive deeper into the nation.

Besides Shanghai, he went to Zhangjiajie and ancient towns in Hunan province, climbed Huangshan Mountain in Anhui province, visited Chongqing and even performed one of his hit songs at a hotpot restaurant and a teahouse in Chengdu, Sichuan province.

The laid-back vibe of his travels dovetails with James' life philosophy and the messages he tries to convey through his music. He said that just as the unexpected popularity of Not Angry shows, life can be random and filled with "endless possibility", adding it is good to always stay positive, optimistic and "go with the flow".