Oh Beijing. You truly know how to make the Olympics special. There are many who rightfully question whether or not Beijing has the climate for hosting the 2022 Winter Games, as it is a typically dry climate in which almost all of the snow and ice will have to be created artificially. Beijing may not have actual winter whether but in lieu of it, they have created a whole collection of snow/ice/winter themed songs, including one called "Wake Up Winter" which is apparently sung by Jackie Chan.
The best song on their winter wonderland playlist of "original" compositions is called "The Snow and Ice Dance." In the interest of not beating around the bush, it is a straight up rip-off of the hit song "Let It Go" from Disney's 2013 blockbuster "Frozen." Most places on the internet are saying that it is remarkably similar or sounds eerily familiar or some other noncommittal phrase.
No. Make no mistake about it, this is almost exactly the same exact song. It's highly unlikely that if you are a human alive on earth that has been near a television, radio or computer in the past two years that you have not hear "Let It Go" but just in case, here's a reminder of what it sounds like.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YVVTZgwYwVo
And now, "The Snow and Ice Dance" Olympic anthem from Beijing.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?t=112&v=48EojfCjQhk
SAME SONG. I kind of love everything about this.
China is not exactly new to the notion of playing fast and loose with plagiarism, copyright violations and trademark infringement, and it has caused it's fair share of issues but is nearly impossible to enforce on the United States' end. Still, it's extremely hard to imagine that The Walt Disney Company is in any way happy about this. They are probably one of the most prolific companies on the planet at protecting their property from any kind of infringement.
Of course as an avid Disney movie fan and owner of both the Demi Lovato and Idina Menzel versions of "Let It Go" on my iPod, I can't say that I would hate hearing it played endlessly during the Olympics. I will sing those English lyrics over Beijing's barely modified musical track for a whole month straight, no problem. I'd probably be doing it anyway.
