(Beijing Winter Olympics) 14 Years of Olympic Songs: From "Beijing Welcomes You" to "Together to the Future"
China News Agency, Beijing, January 20th, title: 14 years of Olympic songs: from "Beijing Welcomes You" to "Together to the Future"
Author Men Rui
From 2008 to 2022, in the Olympic journey spanning 14 years, music has never been absent.
Whether it is "Beijing Welcomes You" or "Together to the Future", the melody of the Olympic songs can be called the background sound of the times, engraved into the memory of a generation.
"Beijing Welcomes You": A Warm Invitation from Ancient China
In 2004, the closing ceremony of the Athens Olympic Games staged "8 Minutes in Beijing".
At the end of the Peking Opera segment, the lights went out in the audience.
When the applause was boiling, a child's acapella came from the darkness.
"What a beautiful jasmine..." In Greece, the birthplace of the Olympic Movement, the stage in the shape of a red lantern rose with tender singing.
At the end of the song, the 6-year-old girl shyly extended an invitation to the world - "Welcome to Beijing".
"Beijing welcomes you" is not only a prelude to the Olympic Games four years ahead of schedule, but also a declaration of China opening its arms to the world.
In 2008, the 100-day countdown to the opening of the Beijing Olympic Games, the Olympic song "Beijing Welcomes You" was released.
"Welcome to another dawn and bring a new air." In the MV, the girl is already 10 years old. She spreads her arms in front of Zhengyangmen in Beijing, smiles and sings the first sentence of the song, turning the invitation four years ago into a pentatonic melody .
Afterwards, nearly 100 people from the entertainment industry completed a chorus of "crossing time and space" in front of new and old Chinese landmarks such as the Forbidden City, the Great Wall, the Bird's Nest, and the Water Cube.
"Beijing Welcomes You" became one of the most widely sung Olympic songs that summer, and it was heard almost everywhere from the streets to the airport station.
In July 2020, some netizens uploaded the high-definition repaired MV video of the original "Beijing Welcomes You", which has accumulated nearly 5 million views in one and a half years.
"Together to the Future": A New Manifesto for the "City of Two Olympics"
On September 17, 2021, with the 140-day countdown to the opening of the Beijing Winter Olympics, the theme slogan of the 2022 Beijing Winter Olympics and Paralympics was officially released.
Released together with the theme slogan, there is also the promotion song "Together to the Future" with the same name.
With the singing of singers Chen Weiting and Yuan Yawei, the constantly changing pictures of ice and snow sports moved from the big screen to the MV to be released later. The magnificent snowy ice rink and the intense video of the competition outlined people's imagination about the Winter Olympics. .
Two months later, a new version of the MV performed by "post-00" singer Yi Yang Qianxi was launched.
From the preparation and training of event volunteers to fans who enjoy ice and snow sports, the new version of the MV focuses on "the Winter Olympics experience of ordinary people", unlike the previous version of the MV which emphasized the sport itself.
Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Zhao Lijian once said at a regular press conference that it tells the stories of the people of the Winter Olympics, and depicts a microcosm of the Chinese people welcoming the Winter Olympics.
Through scenes of fireworks, the development of Beijing as the host and the "city of double Olympics" was comprehensively displayed, showing the eagerness of the Chinese people to look forward to the Winter Olympics.
After the song was released, college students, artists from the National Centre for the Performing Arts, stars in the performing arts, and even the multilingual "Cloud Flash" global relay and other interpretations came one after another. The "Gesture Dance" in the MV can be seen everywhere, adding to the atmosphere of the Winter Olympics.
From 'Welcome' to 'Together': The Powerful Inspiration of Olympic Songs
The two songs "Beijing Welcomes You" and "Together with the Future" use sports events as the theme and opportunity to describe China's attitude of welcoming visitors from all over the world and joining hands with other countries to hope for a better tomorrow, showing the strong appeal and appeal of music.
In the first half of 2008, China experienced the snow disaster in the south and the Wenchuan earthquake successively. The severe disasters brought indelible pain to the Chinese people.
With simple and clear lyrics and catchy melody, "Beijing Welcomes You" brings comfort and hope to the people, and arouses expectations and blessings for the Olympic Games.
"The 2008 Beijing Olympic Games is a grand festival and a bond that condenses everyone." One of the creators of "Beijing Welcomes You", famous musician Xiao Ke, said in an interview with a reporter from China News Agency that the song condenses the times Imprints are tools of communication with the world and expressions of truth.
At the beginning of 2022, it has been two years since the new crown pneumonia epidemic, and when new mutant strains are raging, the tired world is once again overshadowed.
With the same name as the theme slogan of the Winter Olympics and the Winter Paralympics, "Together to the Future" has entered the hearts of the people with the footsteps of the Winter Olympics, expressing the courage to overcome difficulties with unity.
Wang Pingjiu, the lyricist of "Together to the Future" believes that sincere wishes are often straightforward, so he does not pursue complicated songwriting.
He said that in the current world situation, "Towards the Future Together" not only sings everyone's heartfelt expectations, but also goes a step further at the level of sports, which is in line with the deep recognition of the people of the world for a community with a shared future for mankind.
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