Lou Nanli (born 1981 in Shanghai, China), better known as B6, is a Chinese DJ, music producer, multimedia artist and graphic designer.[1] He began producing electronic music and sound art in 1999 as B6, and graduated from the China Academy of Art in 2004.[1] He is often cited as being one a pioneer of the Chinese electronic music scene.[2]
In 2000, he founded the independent record label, Isolation Music.[2][3][4] He also released a series of his own compositions while producing the sound and album artwork for a number of alternative underground musicians.[2][3][4] His own music covers a variety of genres ranging from techno and house, to IDM, Ambient, Electro, Experimental and Industrial Noise.[2][3][4] He is also the co-founder of the arts and culture website Neocha.com, and Antidote Shanghai.[2][5][3][4]
In 2006, he released B6 Box, a six-CD compilation of his early work.[2][3] In 2008, his solo album Post Haze dropped in China and was reissued for the European market by Swedish record label Substream in 2009 to critical acclaim.[2][3] Over the years, Lou Nanli has teamed up with other musicians to produce collaborative work as AITAR, Dust Box, Igo and ISMU.[2][3] Touring extensively across the world, Lou Nanli has performed at several legendary music venues and festivals, alongside artists like Richie Hawtin, Juan Atkins and Sven Vath.[2][3]
In 2008, he was featured on a special episode titled "The Culture Show Goes To China" of The Culture Show, a TV program on BBC television in the UK.[6][7]
As a multimedia artist, his work has been displayed at galleries and venues in Europe, North America and the UK.[3][4] One of the most popular of these is an audiovisual installation titled "Sound of the City" that was showcased at the V Arts Centre in Shanghai in 2011 as part of the group exhibition, Alternative Narrative: Chinese Video Art in the New Decade.[8][9]