Life on a controversial South China Sea reef could be lonely, but it became lively on the Fiery Cross Reef over the weekend when a Chinese military folk singer entertained the 5who belong to the PLA Navy. The show was titled “The People’s Navy Advances.”
Song Zuying regaled the troops with her beautiful voice which once blended with Canadian diva Celine Dion at the CCTV’s 2013 Spring Festival Gala. The weekend gig is part of Song’s tour of the disputed territory. The two singers sang then “Jasmine Flower” and “My Heart Will Go On.”
The South China Morning Post reported on Tuesday that the military folk singer and other performers made the soldiers happy on Saturday amid airport runways, lit multistory buildings, a naval landing performance dock and Kunlun Shan, the second-largest warship of China.
BBC reported that besides the song "Ode to the South Sea Defenders," Song Zuying and the troupe of 50 navy entertainers also performed magic tricks.
Song Zuying told the troops that her two-and-a-half show is just the first in her tour of the Spratlys whose ownership is being disputed by several Asian nations in the region. With its military might, China has claimed several of the islands and reefs and built infrastructures on these disputed territories.
Song Zuying has been a member of the PLA Naval Song and Dance Troup since 1991 as a national first-class singer. She is a non-combatant Rear Admiral in the Chinese Navy since 2009, and is the recipient of several awards in China.
Her performances has brought the singer to Europe, the U.S., Canada, Southeast Asia and Australia. Besides Celino Dion, Song Zuying has performed with tenor Placido Domingo at the closing ceremony of the 2008 Summer Olympic Games in Beijing.