Kenny G.

Sorry I haven’t written a blog for over a week, I have been gathering too much information at a time for future blogs.

You all know Kenny G., the adult contemporary and smooth jazz saxophonist.  He made it big during the 80s in the United States.  You may have heard his music randomly played in an elevator, or the mall, or at some downtown café.  His music is very distinguishable, where ever you may hear it, you will know “that sounds like Kenny G”.  Anyways whenever I mention Kenny G. in conversations I get a lot of rolling of the eyes and shaking of heads.  At least in the past decade, I can’t really remember hearing any of Kenny’s music in public.  For a while, I had forgotten about Kenny G. 

It wasn’t until I studied abroad in China in the fall of 2009 that I heard his music again.  It was very strange when it happened.  I was walking down town with some friends in the Chongqing heat and we heard one of Kenny G.’s hit singles playing inside of a small socks shop.  Even amongst all of the Chinese pop music blaring out of every street shop I could still make out the smooth jazz saxophone.  I couldn’t believe my ears!  In all places for Kenny G.’s music to exist, it was in downtown Beibei in a tiny street shop.   And of course when I recognized the song, I just shook my head and rolled my eyes.

Once again, as you all know I am back in Beibei and Kenny G.’s works are still being played in downtown shops, in elevators, in the halls at Southwest University in between classes and at big shopping malls.  You can actually buy 8 track tapes of Kenny G. in some of the big shopping malls in downtown Chonqing.  As I see and hear his musical works here in China, I still roll my eyes and shake my head.  But now I can’t help but also give a little chuckle thinking of the idea that the Chinese have become the later fans of his works.  Even Chinese jazz pop ballads that you might here on the radio sound very similar to the smooth jazz style of Kenny G. 

I love finding these random bits and pieces of western culture that don’t seem to fit in here (to me at least) and I love being able to recognize that things get “Chinafied” here.