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Chinese American Bear 华裔美国熊 | |
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| Origin | Seattle, Washington |
| Genres | pop, C-pop, neo-psychedelia |
| Years active | 2020—present |
| Labels | Modern Sky , Moshi Moshi Records |
| Members |
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| Website | chineseamericanbear.com |
Chinese American Bear is an American pop duo based in Seattle, Washington, consisting of married couple Lingbo Anne Tong and Bryce Barsten. They play psychedelic, C-pop music with both Mandarin and English lyrics.
Chinese American Bear consists of married couple Lingbo Anne Tong and Bryce Barsten. [1] Tong was born in China and moved to the US as a child. Barsten was raised by conservative Christian parents on a llama farm. They have been in a relationship since they attended high school together in Spokane, Washington. [2] [3]
Tong, a classically trained pianist, studied economics at Princeton University [4] and completed an MBA at the University of Chicago. [3] Barsten studied art and was part of several indie bands in New York City. Barsten and Tong first started writing music together while Barsten was learning Mandarin. [2] [3] They call each other "bear" in Mandarin as a pet name, which is referenced in their band name and in the title of the first song they composed together, "Xiao Xiong" (little bear). [2] [3] In contrast to Barsten's earlier experiences with other bands, the music he wrote with Tong was more "fun". [2] In an interview, Tong stated: "Bryce dragged me into this. It was never my dream to be in a rock band and tour in a rock band. But now it is my dream". [5]
They released their first song in 2020 but started gaining fans with their 2021 song "好吗 (Hao Ma)". [6] [7] Their self-titled debut was released in 2022 on the Chinese label Modern Sky . [6] [2] KEXP called it "warm, kaleidoscopic, and compulsively addictive". [2]
Chinese American Bear released their second album, Wah!!!, in October 2024 on Moshi Moshi Records. [8] [9] The song "Feelin' Fuzzy (毛绒绒的感觉)" is about Tong's experiences growing up in an immigrant Chinese household and includes the Mandarin lyrics: “Do your homework! Play piano! No playing!" [10] [11] "Yummy Yummy Yummy (好吃好吃)" is about slurping noodles. [12] "Kids Go Down (孩子们的时光)", which references a well-known Chinese nursery rhyme, [13] was praised as "enchanting" by Paste Magazine . [14] The music video was filmed on Barsten's family llama farm. [13] The Seattle Times listed the album as one of the 15 best albums of 2024 from Washington artists. [15] It was ranked #49 on Best albums of 2024 as voted by KEXP listeners. [16] Chinese American Bear toured the US and Europe in November [6] followed by a tour of 14 cities in China with the band City Flanker in December. [8] [5] [1]
In 2025, Chinese American Bear opened several shows for Poppy on her They’re All Around Us tour. [17] [18] Their music appeared in various media that year, including season 2 of the TV show Platonic [19] and the initial release of the video game Skate . [20] “Bear Day” was used in the remake of The Wedding Banquet , a romantic comedy about Asian Americans. [21] [22] Director Andrew Ahn stated that the band’s “vibe was so dreamy and childlike and hopeful and wistful”. [23] In December, they won $10,000 from Sonic Guild, a non-profit that provides grants to musicians in Seattle. [24] [25]
Chinese American Bear's musical style has been described as pop, [2] [6] neo-psychedelia, and C-pop. [8] [15] They write songs in a mix of Mandarin and English [13] [15] and frequently reference food in their lyrics. [26] [3] [4]
Their live shows are playful and interactive. Tong leads the audience in singing Mandarin and dancing. [5] [27] [11] There is a background dancer in a dumpling hat or a bear hat, and the duo throw dumpling or boba plushies into the crowd. [6] [11] [2] [5] KEXP has described their live show as a "spectacle" that "felt like a dance party in an alternate dimension or a borderline overdose of MDMA". [2]
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