Paul Huang of Hotpot Music

Paul Huang, Beijing-based tour manager, talks about China's music scene

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Paul Huang is a tour manager based out of Beijing. He also manages one of Beijing’s hottest young bands, SKO. Paul can be found at Myspace. He recently came to our attention through his management of Luke Leighfield’s tour. We found out about the Leighfield tour through this hilarious (if slightly obnoxious) forum thread on our favorite blog, Drowned in Sound. Luke’s diary of the tour can be found here.

We thought we would ask Paul some questions about the state of the Chinese Music scene from a first hand perspective.

1. As a tour manager, how do you discover bands who are not so well-known? What types of bands inspire you to package and promote them? Take SKO for example; they’re getting hotter. Could you tell us how you drive their success?

I often go to shows in Beijing and focus mostly on new bands. For me, if a band can write good songs and their look is cool, then I think they may have the potential to be a very good band. I’ve known the SKO guys for a long time. I know them well. In the beginning, their show was not very good, especially they could not play very well. But I noticed that the songs they played were all very catchy and the vocalist looks like a foreign guy. Yeah, Billy, the singer, has a very unique face. So I thought they could be a very good band, and wanted to be their manager. That’s the story so far.

2. Do you think China’s venues are getting more professional?

Yes, the venues in China are getting more professional. From equipment to promotion, the staff are very passionate about learning more and more. It’s a very positive phenomenon.

3. You’ve organised a lot of tours; are your tours more well-received and easier to promote than they used to be? Which tours were your favourites to work on?

Yeah, touring is getting better nowadays. Venues have upped their professionalism and fans are willing to pay for good bands. My favourite tours so far have been the 2008 SKO China tour and the 2008 Horse the Band China tour. The latest SKO tour was amazing; the crowds were bigger and the band played better than in 2007. We also make a lots of new friends. Horse the Band’s tour was awesome. All the band members are all very cool, interesting guys. They tried lots of things for the first time, like eating the stinky tofu (they named it “topoop” cos it smells like shit), partying in the hotel, and befriending the waitress on the train. They seemed to really enjoy the tour. I think that’s the most interesting tour that I have done.
4. What’s your plan for the future? Will the tours increase in scale?

HotPot Music will continue to bring more good foreign bands to China. We will bring the king of Australian hardcore, Parkway Drive, to tour in China in February, and we may have a small festival in summer 2009 and featuring some very hot American pop-punk bands. We will keep our focus on punk and the hardcore scene, but will also bring some good indie artists. The tours will definitely increase in scale. We also aim to do some overseas tours for the Chinese bands we manage: SKO, Recycle and TooKoo. We want to go to Korea, Japan, and Southeast Asia.

5. What do you think about China’s performance market? What’s the biggest challenge for Chinese bands?

China’s performance market still has big potential. The crowds at rock shows or concerts are still in the minority. Mainstream people know nothing about the scene. There are lots of potential fans in the mainstream. That’s a big challenge for all show organizers and management labels to think about: how to get their crowds bigger and bigger. For Chinese bands, the biggest challenges may financial. It’s hard to make a living by playing in a band. Nowadays, more and more musicians have to find a part-time job. Some of them even have to take a full-time job. It’s not about what’s good or bad for band. It’s the reality.

Check out Paul’s band SKO in this little clip:

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