Layla Yan

Pop Culture Shifts, We Feel It

Recently I came across a piece of music news that really stuck with me:XG’s Cocona Comes Out as Transmasculine Non-Binary On 20th Birthday And unsurprisingly, it sparked a huge wave of attention and discussion. Why? First, a quick intro: XG is a Japan-based global girl group that debuted in 2022. In the East Asia entertainment industries…

When AI STARTS SINGing…

So recently, I found out something interesting, AI-generated music is everywhere. I mean, like, way more than I expected. It all started when I was listening to some daily recommended song on a Chinese music app. One sone came on, and the vibe was… wired? After doing some digging on the singer’s page and the…

We Gather for Sound！

The Feeling of Pop, Live —— Concerts From Pop Singers 2025 is already well into its second half, and autumn has arrived as promised. For me, it’s a quiet season — when the leaves turn yellow, the air grows cooler, and somewhere on a street corner, under flickering lights, there’s always a line of people…

CHIHIRO, Don’t Lose Yourself Again

A Story Between Chihiro and CHIHIRO In 2024, I followed Billie Eilish’s 「HIT ME HARD AND SOFT 」 tour to three different cities — and yes, please don’t laugh at me for being a superfan; it was purely a series of coincidences! At every show I attended, the opening song was always the same: 「CHIHIRO」，the…

Before the Beat Drops: A Prelude to Sonic Waves!

This post is kind of a warm-up — think of it as a little reading list before we dive deeper. I wanted to share a few articles that I find both fascinating and important, and I think they might help you get a better sense of the world that Sonic Waves is going to explore…

LOUD & PROUD: What is Sonic Waves about?

Why Do We Listen to Music? I have always believed that the significance of music on a spiritual level is undeniable. It is a language that carries emotions, values, and diverse stories. Every generation has its own unique voice. As a member of Gen Z and part of the LGBTQ+ community, I deeply feel the…

TikTok alternative? We show you how to have fun on “RedNote”

Seven years of companionship: as an old user of RedNote, I want to recommend it to the world “Share, Connect, Love” After TikTok was banned in the United States, a chaotic but interesting phenomenon emerged – overnight, a large number of American users flocked to another Chinese application called Xiao Hong Shu, also known as…