Roller Disco Becoming Popular in China

Roller disco is back—in Shanghai at least—where migrant workers are flocking to skating rinks for a fun and affordable night out after work.

At Xinxiang rink, the city's first and biggest roller disco, hundreds of young migrant workers, mostly in their early 20s, fill the place every night.

Some are happy merely to watch from the sidelines, while others are eager to show off their roller boogie skills.

[Tang Jianhui, Migrant Worker]:
"I knew about this place because my friends recommended me to come here. After coming one time, I felt it was quite fun. I now come often because I work near here, and also friends kept asking me to come. There's a good crowd, and prices here are relatively cheap for a city like Shanghai."

Shanghai is home to dozens of other roller discos, with entry and skate usually costing under four U.S. dollars, an affordable night out for migrant workers, who earn between $150 and $300 U.S. dollars a month.

[Mao Huixia, Migrant Worker]:
"I felt it was fun, so I kept coming back here. This place is quite good and everyone takes care of each other. It's fun to play here. After a day of hard work and exhaustion, it's good to come here just to relax. I do come here very often."

Roller disco is finding new wheels with China's migrant workers, but in the nation's self-professed trend capital high-earners still prefer jazz bars or hip hop clubs as more fashionable venues to strut their stuff.