Drinking hot water, brewing wellness teas, wearing slippers at home... Posting short videos showcasing Chinese-style living has recently gone viral on overseas social platforms like TikTok. Young people in different countries are following suit, joking that they are “becoming Chinese.” Chinese state media Xinhua News Agency and People’s Daily have enthusiastically responded to this trend, calling it a sign of China’s growing soft power. The phenomenon has also attracted international media attention: The New York Times wrote that for some Americans, this has become a tongue-in-cheek way to express their disappointment with domestic politics.
“Starting tomorrow, you're going to become ‘Chinese’,” “If you also love hotpot, Cantonese dim sum, Sichuan cuisine... that’s right, you’re Chinese!” On TikTok, Chinese-American influencer Shirley has listed the “Rules of Being Chinese” in a humorous yet authoritative tone in several short videos. She introduces habits such as always wearing slippers at home, not drinking cold water, eating congee in the morning, as well as unique Chinese medicine concepts, winter wellness methods, Spring Festival customs, and dietary habits. Nearly every related video has garnered over a million views, sparking a global Chinese lifestyle imitation craze.
Many young foreigners have begun to treat “Chinese-style living” as a brand new life guide. People are posting on social media about drinking hot water, making soup and congee, practicing Baduanjin (a traditional exercise); some are even showing off their new cotton slippers or soaking goji berries... In October last year, a foreign netizen’s video of eating xiaolongbao (soup dumplings) received more than 1.4 million views; that same month, another foreign girl’s 10-second video eating noodles and edamame surpassed 600,000 views.
Millions of foreign netizens openly admit they have entered a “very Chinese phase of their lives.” In TikTok comment sections, they write: “A bit nervous, it’s my first time becoming Chinese,” “Since starting Chinese wellness routines, my life has never been so regular,” “As a new Chinese person, I have three pairs of slippers at home and haven’t had a cold drink in weeks.”
State Media: China’s Soft Power Grows
With the trend going viral, Chinese officials have started to respond enthusiastically. Xinhua News Agency and People’s Daily have published a series of articles, calling this a sign of China’s enhanced soft power. On the 6th of this month, Foreign Ministry spokesperson Lin Jian stated, “We warmly welcome foreign friends to come to China for Spring Festival, experience our warmth and friendliness, and feel the festive joy.” China’s ambassador to the U.S., Xie Feng, said he encourages Americans to discover for themselves a China that is “both cool and warm-hearted.”
The New York Times quoted experts as saying that with Labubu dolls and other Chinese cultural products trending globally, the “becoming Chinese” meme may herald a rise in China's overseas soft power. For some American video creators, at a time of deep political polarization and uncertainty in the U.S., it has also become a tongue-in-cheek expression of their disillusionment with domestic politics. Chinese-Canadian influencer Claire told the BBC, “I think this playful trend does a good job dissolving American narrative hegemony.”