Decoding Mandopop Culture: Exploring Cultural Identity and Music Perception of China's Millennials

Abstract This paper explores how China’s millennials decode the musical and cultural meanings of Mandopop through long-term listening and lived experiences. Based on semi-structured interviews and a phenomenological observation, this study examines how audiences interpret Mandopop songs. The findings reveal three aspects: (1) Cultural transmission—audiences gain deeper awareness of Chinese traditional culture through zhongguofeng music. (2) Style and commercialization—while early Mandopop featured diverse innovations, recent trends show formulaic production driven by market demands. (3) Decoding and empathy—audiences’ interpretations reflect personal backgrounds, with music serving as a medium for identity and emotional connection. Digital platforms further reshape consumption, prioritizing fragmented, high-engagement experiences over traditional album listening. Mandopop is not merely a product of cultural industry, but rather a dynamic process of meaning negotiation between creators and audiences. Its cultural value depends not only on creative intentions, but more crucially on audiences’ active decoding and reinterpretation in their daily life.