The Teochew Store Blog / popular music

冬節 ,食圓大一歲 Dang Zoih , Ziah I Dua Zeg Hue

Winter Solstice, “eat the dumpling balls, and you will be one year older.”

By Teochew tradition, we are all older by a year today. 

依潮州传统，今日我们皆添一岁。

How wonderful would it be to have our own Teochew birthday song to sing?

若有一首属于自己的潮州话生日歌同庆，该是何等美妙？

Stay tuned 敬请期待后续……😜

We don't mention this enough. The Teochew Store has our own YouTube channel (with 10,000 fans now!), with a number of curated playlists with videos for Teochew language lessons, trendy music, films, documentary, culture, opera and children too!

Youtube.com/@theteochewstore

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An exciting new project for our very young is coming soon! 一个专为宝宝设计的项目即将启动， 敬请期待！

Today is the 15th and last day of the Chinese New Year. Also called Tsap Ngou Meh 十五暝 or Nguang Siao Zoih 元宵節. 

Teochews mark this day with prayers for the family, more feasting, riddle guessing games and open lantern parades. Because this day provided a rare opportunity for single young men and women to meet publicly in the past, it has also been compared as the "Chinese Valentine's Day".

On this beautiful note, we leave you with this wonderful Teochew language remix of Zhou Xuan's famous 1940 classic "Full Moon Blooming Flower" (月圓花好).

Have you ever watched a Teochew musical movie? Check out this rare classic that showcases a variety of Teochew art forms, including cross talk (相聲), bamboo clapper singing (竹板歌), Teochew classical music (潮州音樂), Teochew opera (潮劇),  Teochew narrative songbooks (潮州歌冊), ballads (歌謠), etc.

How about kicking off the first week of the New Year with 5 Teochew songs to start your day? 

As an overseas Teochew, you probably have at least one, or two, or more favourite Cantonese or Mandarin pop song that grew up with you. And sometimes as the familiar tunes play themselves in your mind, you wonder, why can't we have the same in Teochew? 

The Teochew songs that we had always been exposed to, apart from Teochew opera ones that we may appreciate but cannot understand, were folk ballads that can be cringeworthy, if not downright weird.

Thankfully, things are not all that bad. You see, we Teochews are not only good humoured, our language is rhythmic, we are creative, adaptable and we can sing too.

Click "read more" for a selection of Teochew songs that you'd fall in love with.

The first made-in-Teochew movie to be screened soon nationwide in China in recent times. Video uploaded for entertainment purpose.

潮州電影《爸，我一定行的》將要在中國全國上映。史無前例​​！

A song to go with your beers!

汕头橄榄台  is an app produced by the Shantou Radio and Television Station (STRTV, 汕头市广播电视台). It serves as a platform to access local news on official announcements, current affairs, food and other activities. Both iOS and Android versions of this app can be downloaded for free from its official site

A retro-remix of an "oldie" out from Malaysia, entirely appropriate for welcoming the exciting Year of the Rooster!

祝大家新正如意，家庭和諧，事事順利！

(click Read More for lyrics)

Teochew remake of Danny Chan's (陳百強) evergreen Cantonese favourite Just Loving You (偏偏喜歡你). （click for lyrics)

Some of us would have heard at least a couple of pieces by  popular Teochew rap group AFinger. Now how about Teochew rock music! “Small Town Teochew" 《小城潮汕》 by Teng Hiok Seng 湯旭昇. (Click Read More for full lyrics)

A lively song by popular Teochew female singer Mona Zhang 张梦弘. MV is shot in her hometown Pholeng 普宁.  Click "read more" for full lyrics.

For some of us, childhood came with the blessing of having grandma singing us to sleep with one or two soothing tunes in Teochew. But even if you were not so fortunate, you'd probably still have come across on social media an all-time favourite Teochew lullaby "Ong ah ong, ong kin kong" (唪啊唪 唪金公).

You have not? Don't worry, there are several versions circulating on YouTube to make sure you don't miss out..

Click "read more" for full lyrics.

Not a exactly new New Year Song, but trendy and uplifting for all Gaginang. 祝福大家新年快樂，萬事如意

Falling in love with Teochew music already...