Somewhere between a backyard hangout and a bona fide, community-driven event, music festival 你和我 / You and Me returns to Beijing for its third edition, with nine days of experimental sound, pay-as-you-wish shows, and performances that don’t always feel like performances.
What started in 2023 as a spontaneous gathering put together by then-14-year-old Zhao Ziyi is now an annual DIY music festival with a loyal following and growing international interest. Still, nothing about it feels formal—and that’s the point.
You and Me’s lineup ethos is to feature both returning local artists and newcomers, despite “recognition.” Last year, for example, showcased a debut from a high school noise duo: twin brothers from Tianjin performing under the name 徐子匡穷. Their act ended up attracting a lot of attention—even with their maths model exam paper as their profile photo. Zhao describes the selection process plainly in an interview: “It’s based on my aesthetic preferences. Mostly friends. Or people I want to meet.”
He adds that the festival is a way to explore de-elitization—not in opposition to excellence, but as a refusal to gatekeep. “They’re not legends. They’re not museum pieces. They just make me feel alive.”
The format is simple: free or pay-what-you-want. The festival’s space makes use of a ping pong club in a Beijing urban village that’s going to be demolished soon. The crowd? Friends, locals, curious kids, experimental heads, maybe someone’s grandma. When you’re there, there’s a sense that anyone could walk on to a stage and start playing.
The festival has also gained international momentum. For its second edition, Washington, D.C.-based artist and experimental musician Arrington de Dionyso led a noise choir and offered a shamanism-based workshop. This year brought even more overseas names, though Zhao has noted how differently Chinese and foreign artists present themselves: “Chinese bios read like journals. The international ones sound more like résumés.”
You and Me also hosts workshops, loosely structured and often body-based. One past session connected acupuncture to synths—a conversation about circuits, meridians, and voltage. This year features a massage workshop that requires a reservation via WeChat.
You and Me festival officially starts today and runs until August 9, so if you’re in Beijing and like what you’ve just read, we urge you to stop by. It’s all about no sponsors, no brand partnerships, and no rules. Just a teenager with a mixer, a few friends, and a scene that perpetually evolves and inspires.
Cover photo via Xiaozhii.
