Prologue: The Coachella Catalyst When Ma Siwei (马思唯) stepped onto Coachella’s Sahara Stage in April 2024, his neon-soaked performance of Chengdu Hot reverberated beyond the California desert—it signaled the global legitimization of Chinese hip-hop. The moment crystallized a decade-long odyssey: from Chengdu’s underground cipher battles to commanding international festivals, Ma engineered a sonic revolution that shattered linguistic barriers and geopolitical preconceptions. […]
