Post-pop stars

Indie songwriters and performers are grabbing their share of attention and sales as the internet opens up the music scene. Chen Nan reports.

This time last year, Zhao Lei was a relatively unknown indie folk singer-songwriter. His trademark contemporary style, minyao in Chinese, literally meaning folk music or ballads, captivated a small but stable fan base in China with its guitar-driven gentle melodies and poetic lyrics.

Then something unexpected happened.