• World

China Is Now Using Rap Music to Recruit Young Men to Its Army

1 minute read
People's Liberation Army officers stand guard as a burial ceremony for the remains of 36 Chinese soldiers who died in the Korean War is held early morning at Korean War Martyrs' Cemetery on April 1, 2016 in Shenyang, Liaoning Province of China.
People's Liberation Army officers stand guard as a burial ceremony for the remains of 36 Chinese soldiers who died in the Korean War is held early morning at Korean War Martyrs' Cemetery on April 1, 2016 in Shenyang, Liaoning Province of China.VCG/Getty Images
By Eric Baculinao / NBC News

China is hoping that rap and rhymes will help recruit more young men to the world’s largest standing army.

A hip-hop beat backs lyrics like “Kill! Kill! Kill” in an action-packed video released by China’s People’s Liberation Army (PLA). The slick production has racked up nearly 100,000 comments on China’s Twitter-like service, Weibo, since being posted on the army newspaper’s website Thursday.

The lyrics “hide neither combativeness nor a desire to fight,” China Daily newspaper noted dryly in a story on the piece on Tuesday.

The video does not shy away from the gruesome, and starts with references to being shot…

Read the rest of the story from our partners at NBC News

More Must-Reads from TIME

Contact us at letters@time.com