China's censors have a new target in a widespread clamp-down on popular culture: the country's nascent hip-hop scene, which resonated with Chinese youth last year on hugely popular television show "Rap of China."
Hip hop artists Wang Hao, known as "PG One" and Zhou Yan, known as "GAI" — the two winners of the show — have been sanctioned in recent weeks for bad behavior or content at odds with Communist Party values. GAI was pulled from hit show "The Singer" last week.
The crackdown on hip-hop, still very much a new genre in China, reflects a broader squeeze on popular culture as the country's stability-focused leadership looks to rein in potential platforms for youthful dissent.
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