Darcie Draudt and Jimin Lee provide analysis of the Moranbong Band, plowing into the debate over gender, reform, and the future of North Korea.
Art and Performance 
Moranbong Band: Joseon Style Electronic Music on a New Level
SinoNK’s Performing Arts Analyst Jimin Lee examines the Moranbong Band’s debut “Demonstration Concert” through the lens of its own name—that is, as a demonstration of its potential to act as bridge to the world with its “New Joseon Style” of pop musical performance.
All the World’s a Stage. Looking Again at North Korea: Beyond Charismatic Politics
In a contrarian take on one of SinoNK’s favorite texts on North Korean ideology, Peter Ward, a young scholar in Seoul, delves into “Charismatic Politics” in the DPRK.
Counterpoint to Basketball Diplomacy: Beuys in Beijing, Beethoven in Pyongyang
Dennis Rodman may have made a bigger international splash, but Michiyoshi Inoue’s visit to Pyongyang was the more exciting event. Adam Cathcart contemplates why.
Hauling in the U.S.-DPRK Rebound: Two Opposing Chinese Perspectives
Was the Rodman visit with Kim Jong-un just one big farce? Scholars in Chinese think-tanks have taken it very seriously. Here, via SinoNK’s translations and analysis, China contemplates the prospects of a quick and stunning US-North Korean embrace.
Up Close and Personal: Dennis Rodman Hits Pyongyang
The capricious act of a dictator addicted to hoops, piercing the ethos of foggy secrecy in Pyongyang, or just a calculated push forward for North Korean sports propaganda? Christopher Green investigates.
Exit the Dragon: SinoNK’s Roundtable on 2012 Reads
The editorial team discusses the most stimulating reads and debates of lunar year 2012, the Year of the Dragon.
