Snow Jiang’s Mission to Make Chinese Music Heard Worldwide with Cheerful Music

Snow Jiang has built a career defined by ambition, reinvention, and an unwavering commitment to creating global pathways for music. Beginning her professional journey as a singer in 2010, she spent years navigating the industry as an artist before expanding into entrepreneurship in fields as varied as coffee and skincare. These experiences sharpened her business instincts but ultimately confirmed that music, and the opportunities surrounding it, were where her skills and passions aligned most naturally. In 2019 she founded Cheerful Music, taking on the role of CEO and shaping the company into a platform designed to elevate Chinese music internationally and open doors for global artists seeking to establish themselves in China.

Cheerful Music operates with a clear belief that the future of the industry relies on bridging markets, cultures and audiences that previously existed in parallel. With domestic listeners gravitating toward platforms such as QQ Music and NetEase, and Western audiences spread across Spotify, Apple Music and others, Snow identified a divide that limited how far artists could reach beyond their home territories. The label’s mission is structured around strengthening that connection, building a shared creative environment where Chinese and Western pop styles influence one another rather than develop in isolation. The rise of K-pop demonstrated the potential for East Asian music to flourish globally, providing Cheerful Music with a model for how Chinese talent might step onto the same international stage.

Operating from both Shenzhen and London, Cheerful Music reflects two complementary creative ecosystems. Shenzhen contributes rapid movement, experimentation and youth-driven aesthetics, while London offers industry heritage, genre diversity and access to major platforms and events like ADE, TGE and SXSW. Together, the collaboration between the two offices has shaped a catalogue that blends styles, languages, and production approaches, strengthening the label’s ability to deliver hits capable of resonating in multiple markets. The company relies on a multicultural A&R process, where teams with different backgrounds evaluate music collectively, ensuring the artists and songs chosen have the potential to travel across borders.

As the business grows, Snow’s leadership approach continues to evolve. Music remains the grounding force that sustains her through demanding periods of work, but she has developed structured ways of balancing intensity and recovery to maintain creative clarity. Her leadership philosophy emphasizes emotional intelligence, awareness of team needs, and an environment where experimentation is supported rather than stifled. Within a male-dominated industry, she has championed the advancement of women at management level, actively building teams in China and the UK where women hold significant roles and contribute to shaping the company’s direction.

Cheerful Music’s business achievements have earned recognition beyond the music industry. Harvard Business School selected the company as a case study in 2024, acknowledging its unique and forward-thinking approach to innovation, strategy and cross-cultural development. In response, Snow has deepened her commitment to fostering global exchange, frequently taking production teams abroad for cultural learning and inviting international artists to China to participate in songwriting camps and collaborations. With emerging opportunities in AI-generated music, voice licensing and the rapidly growing sync market, Cheerful Music sees the future of the industry as one where geographic boundaries matter far less than the emotional and creative impact of the work. The company continues on its path with a clear mission: to help the world hear new voices, connect new audiences and fill the world with music.