Shenanigans!

So this has been posted on both Disgrasian and 8Asians, but you know, since this a reach out program here on Pentemporary... Recently it was noted that the girl singing during the Beijing Opening Ceremonies, Lin Miaoke was merely a lip-synching facade for less-than physically perfect Yang Peiyi - who despite less than perfect teeth (what 7 year old do you know that has PERFECT TEETH?) and round peach blossom cheeks has a lovely voice. This is one of the hardest things about being Asian, constantly being compared to other people's kids and in this case, replaced because of something you can do nothing about. It's probably why I didn't start performing til I was well into my 20s. It's hard enough trying to put your heart out on the table for public consumption without some 'auntie' or 'uncle' pointing out what you did wrong or how you're not as good as so-and-so's daughter that they saw last year.

"Pigtailed Lin Miaoke was selected to appear because of her cute appearance and did not sing a note, Chen Qigang, the general music designer of the ceremony, said in an interview with a state broadcaster aired Tuesday.But Chen said the girl whose voice was actually heard by the 91,000 capacity crowd at the Olympic stadium during the spectacular ceremony was in fact seven-year-old Yang Peiyi, who has a chubby face and uneven teeth."The reason why little Yang was not chosen to appear was because we wanted to project the right image, we were thinking about what was best for the nation," Chen said in an interview that appeared briefly on the news website Sina.com before it was apparently wiped from the Internet in China. The reason was for the national interest. The child on camera should be flawless in image, internal feelings, and expression," said Chen, a renowned contemporary composer and French citizen.
Xiao Qiang, the director of the China Internet project at the University of California at Berkeley and former dissident, said the two incidents illustrated the political nature of the Games for China. "I do not think the Chinese state realises how unethical this is, they don't understand what kind of values they are reflecting," he said. Earlier this year Olympic organisers preoccupied with the right image for the country were criticised for insisting that only tall, slim, young and attractive women could serve as medal award ceremony hostesses.

YouTube Video (crappy quality)
It's like C+C Music Factory or Milli Vanilli - I mean, are they putting out records? No, so let the world see that you have adorable talented children that look CHINESE. Do we really have to start this crap at age 7 people? I'm calling shenanigans on Chen Quigang. This striving for "perfection" will only leave you with a nation full of the depressed and uninspired. If you are wondering what sort of international image this projects...uh...

Peiyi had this to say: On Monday, Peiyi appeared on China Central Television, or CCTV, the state network. “I’m O.K. with it,” she told her interviewer, even performing a song. “My voice was used in the performance. I think that’s enough.”

Peiyi! I give you your destiny, beautiful girl. Grow up, be exactly who you want to be and are. Become powerful, rich, drop-dead gorgeous, famous and inspirational. Score a multi-platinum winning record contract, modelling gig and win an Oscar. Cure cancer and hunger worldwide. And wipe the floor with Chen Qigang, when you and Miaoke become the first women CEOs in China to head a multi million dollar free access, free speech ISP. Cause nothing says karma like the sweet smell of success.