RADII

China may not have qualified for this year’s or the last World Cup, but the Chinese internet always finds a way to celebrate football—usually through the lens of viral memes and hyper-specific internet culture. The latest crossover taking over Chinese social media? Reimagining the world’s biggest football stars as romantic leads in otome (dating simulation) games.

At Hubei Engineering University’s recent graduation concert, five dorm supervisors—better known as “dorm aunties” (宿管阿姨)—took to the stage in full rock outfits. Instead of the usual sentimental oldies, they formed a rock band, tearing up the stage with an original track titled “Go Shine” (快去发光). Well, it paid off, as the Chinese internet is giving them a massive standing ovation, and for good reason. “Dorm auntie” is a uniquely Chinese campus figure.

For anyone hunting for low-key “performance art” on a chessboard, Chess Mafia in Hong Kong is not to be missed. A crowd of players in oversized jorts and baseball caps gathers around games and boards, while someone is filming a tense endgame on their phone. Maybe a random circle of onlookers is reacting louder than the bar’s playlist on the other side.

If you’ve ever found yourself pausing mid-step to marvel at an endless canopy of glowing skyscrapers, odds are you were standing somewhere in Asia. A new 2026 ranking by Radical Storage has officially named the world’s best city skylines, and it’s an absolute sweep for the East. Shanghai. Image via Delicious.

Long before TikTok algorithms were actively pushing “Asia-core” or “sinowave” to our feeds, a quietly revolutionary sound was brewing in pre-handover Hong Kong. In 1996, the Hong Kong-based music collective Celestial (天上) debuted their seminal album Spirit House, blending traditional Sichuan love songs with Jamaican dub treatments.

Recently, a growing community of “pet” owners has begun sharing tips and experiences online. Interestingly, their pets all seem to belong to the same “species.” Look a little closer, however, and it becomes clear that these are not real animals at all—they are mango pits. Shaped mango pets. Photos via Xiaohongshu. The idea of keeping a mango as a pet may sound absurd at first. But many skeptics change their minds after seeing these furry “芒狗” (“mango dogs”). Image via Xiaohongshu.

Since its launch in 2021, Chinese photographic film and camera accessories brand Reflx Lab has been on a steadfast mission to democratize the analog renaissance. Best known for re-spooling cinematic motion picture films and making them accessible for standard consumer use, the brand has constantly provided affordable, innovative options to a booming global community of analog enthusiasts.

Shanghai has always had a tradition of inviting in the foreign but making it uniquely its own, and a new genre of restaurants is pushing that even further, building menus where the East-West binary evaporates and something entirely new is born. Touch down in the city, and you can experience an abundance of new flavors—how about a 麻 (má—numbing spice) pasta for starters? Images via Xiaohongshu/Nono’s.

Ai Weiwei has never been one to shy away from making noise, but his latest exhibition, Button Up!, at Manchester’s Aviva Studios is a full-blown siren. Running from July 4 to September 6, 2026, the expansive show presents a staggering critique of colonial history, systemic warfare, and the devastating global migrant crisis. As a “total environment,” it brings the darkest corners of human history straight into the spotlight. Image via Wallpaper Magazine.

The mysterious creator behind Lil Wukong is back at it again, and our favorite fictional AI trap artist is showing zero signs of slowing down. Building on a string of impressive releases that RADII has been closely following, Lil Wukong’s latest full AI-generated music video, “Six Ears,” just dropped—and it is, yet again, an absolute banger. This time around, the beat takes a noticeable shift.