[Photo provided to China Daily]

The contest is a part of the upcoming Fourth International Hip-Hop Culture Festival, which will be held from March 24 to 27 in Shenzhen, and includes a series of events including a street-dance contest and a Scratch Master Championship DJ contest.

On March 26, the Fifth Hip-Hop Awards China will be held at Shenzhen Futian Sports Park.

Giving details of the event, Li says: "This is the first year that we have added a rap performance contest to the event and we are surprised to see so many talented, young Chinese hip-hop artists."

In his mid-30s, Li, a Shenzhen native, once worked at a State-owned company and lived a stable life.

But his life was changed after traveling to more than 10 cities－from Shenzhen to Beijing－in 2006, and this journey gave birth to a documentary film Hip-Hop in China.

"Hip-hop, like rock music, was considered unhealthy and was seen as linked to drugs and crime," says Li.

"But during the eight-month journey, I made lots of friends, who are passionate about hip-hop and are determined to achieve their dreams."

After returning to Shenzhen, Li decided to quit his job and devoted himself to promoting hip-hop in China, which was an underground subculture in the country then.

"The situation is much better now and more people enjoy hip-hop music. That's why this year's festival is themed 'Wake Up'," he says.

To make his point, he says: "From the rising number of dance-training studios across the country, it's apparent that once-disapproving parents now support their children when it comes to learning street dance."