Music Up (Chinese: 我为歌狂), also known as ''Crazy for the Song'', is the first

Chinese animation Chinese animation refers to animation made in China. In China and in Chinese, donghua ( zh, s=动画, t=動畫, p=dònghuà) describes all animated works, regardless of style or origin. However, outside of China and in English, ''donghua'' is co ...

(alternatively known as a Donghua) idol TV series in

China China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. It is the world's most populous country, with a population exceeding 1.4 billion, slightly ahead of India. China spans the equivalent of five time zones and ...

. It was distributed by

Shanghai Animation Film Studio Shanghai Animation Film Studio () also known as SAFS () is a Chinese animation studio based in Shanghai, China, as part of the Shanghai Film Group Corporation. Shanghai Animation Film Studio was officially established in April, 1957, led by pione ...

and produced by Welkin-Animation. A sequel, ''Music Up: Reborn'' (我为歌狂第二季) is released in early October 2020.

Background

This is the first animation production from China with an emphasis on the life of singers, bands and

pop stars ''Popstars'' is an international reality television franchise aimed to find new singing talent. Serving as a precursor to the ''Idol'' franchise, ''Popstars'' first began in New Zealand in 1999 when producer Jonathan Dowling formed the girl gro ...

. It is the first high budget domestic Chinese animation. Production investment is estimated to be 18 million

RMB The renminbi (; symbol: ¥; ISO code: CNY; abbreviation: RMB) is the official currency of the People's Republic of China and one of the world's most traded currencies, ranking as the fifth most traded currency in the world as of April 2022. ...

(about US $2.3 million). In 2001 66% of its profits came from selling merchandise related to the series.

Story

Four young teenage boys share a common vision and passion for music. They come together overlapping their own personalities and ideas. In the process, they encounter a lot of difficulties as any youth might have. The story is unfolded as the band grows up. Academic, personal conflicts, family, friendship and emotional problems are all intertwined. With the help of teachers, students, and friends they try to achieve their dreams.

Merchandise

The TV series was not as successful as expected, but the associated merchandise of books, cards, CDs were extremely popular among teenagers in China. The book series sold 350,000 copies in

Shanghai Shanghai (; , , Standard Mandarin pronunciation: ) is one of the four direct-administered municipalities of the People's Republic of China (PRC). The city is located on the southern estuary of the Yangtze River, with the Huangpu River flow ...

alone. A video game was released in 2002 by UbiSoft China titled "Music Up - Summer Rainbow".

References

{{Reflist

External links

* https://web.archive.org/web/20080314113003/http://welkin-animation.com/
"Music Up" Info at Newmovie CNBB
2001 Chinese television series debuts 2002 Chinese television series endings Chinese animated television series Mandarin-language television shows Animated musical television series Television shows set in Shanghai

Background

Story

Merchandise

See also

References

External links