Cui Jian, the godfather of China's rock'n'roll, was labeled as a threat to social stability for decades, and so denied the possibility of public concerts.
It was such a long and painstaking process that when he was asked what his dreams were, he said: performing publicly in the Chinese capital, watching the Rolling Stones perform, and singing on the same stage with them.
Fortunately, things have changed. Cui managed to realize all of three of his ambitions 20 years after he became a household name in China.

Over the years, the pure underground nature of China's rock'n'roll has changed dramatically.
This is well reflected by the fact that many of the country's rock legends are about to perform. together at one of Beijing's biggest venues, the Workers' Stadium, which was a no-go zone for Chinese rock bands for decades.

Performing at the "Back to Basics" concert Friday are the most popular bands ever, like Tang Dynasty and Black Panther, the bad-boy punk rocker, He Yong, and the sharp and lyrical Zhang Chu. But all of them are over 40 by now.

China has never seen an event like this before.
Music fans, particularly those in their 30s and 40s, are so excited about the coming performance that they describe it as a once-in-a-lifetime, mouth-watering opportunity.
For weeks, the Chinese media has been busy publicizing the event and speculating about what the lineup of songs is going to be.
People are also curious whether these middle-aged rock legends can satisfy today's audiences.
Those are certainly legitimate questions. However, there's a deeper one involved. Is the concert this time going to signify a glorious and nostalgic end to Chinese rock'n'roll, or is it going to work as a new impetus for the music form. to be more open, prosperous in the Middle Kingdom?

No one can really predict what the future can be like. Nevertheless, what has changed? What hasn't? The realities are clear.

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