Woman seeks to showcase Dong culture

Deciding to quit her high-paid job in Guangzhou, Zhang took over recording the choral songs. Her mother was not happy with her decision, saying that filming videos was not as good as a steady job in a big city and would not be widely accepted by other villagers.

"Even my father didn't ask me to take over from him while he was alive. My parents wanted me to live a better and wealthier life outside our previously impoverished village."

Zhang made a deal with her mother; if she could not make a difference in three months, she would go back to the office.

Both women underestimated the appeal of traditional Dong songs and culture. The videos of choral singing that Zhang posted on social media platforms soon became popular, earning her up to 600 yuan a day.

While she hadn't meant to profit from the recordings, the income came as a relief to her mother and family, and allowed her to continue.

Filming was not easy, because many elderly singers found it challenging to perform in front of a camera. Even those she finally persuaded to perform sometimes suddenly went blank when the camera was turned on. And many refused outright.

"The time to make recordings was also limited. As many young people leave the village to work, the older folk left behind have to take care of their grandchildren and chores."

Zhang can record up to 20 songs a day if work goes well, but sometimes she only manages to record a few.

So far, she has increased her father's collection from 1,000 to 2,800 songs, and she is still working to record more.

"I haven't figured out what to do with the videos, but I know that I have to record all our songs," she said.

Apart from Dong choral singing, Zhang also posts videos of daily life on social media and video platforms such as YouTube. One showing two young Dong women dressed in traditional costumes preparing peppers to make sauce got 80,000 views on Douyin.

In 2019, after a netizen asked how they could buy some of the sauce, Zhang decided to start an e-commerce venture livestreaming on social media. She began selling pepper sauce, rice and other local agricultural products and crafts.

"Some city people said they really liked the taste of mountain products and urged us to produce more," she said, adding that local incomes have improved as a result.

Currently, she is developing a project to allow tourists to experience Dong culture and customs through activities including fishing and fruit-picking.

"Nearly 100 households have participated in the project. I hope it will attract attention and raise the confidence of Dong women," Zhang said.

Yang Jun in Guiyang contributed to this story.