Kazakhstani superstar Dimash Qudaibergen recently shared memories of his first meeting with Chinese President Xi Jinping during the show “Idei Menyayut” (Ideas Change the World), filmed at Nazarbayev University. According to Dimashnews.com, the meeting took place in 2017, when Dimash performed at a special event in Astana in honor of Xi’s visit.
«In 2017, while I was in Beijing for filming and events, I received an invitation: ‘President Xi Jinping will visit Astana as our guest of honor.’ At that time, I was asked to prepare one or two songs – one in Kazakh and one in Chinese. After the performance, President Xi Jinping personally came up to me, shook my hand, thanked me, congratulated me on my achievements both in China and globally and offered his kind words: ‘I always wish you success.’ Since then, he has shown great appreciation for my work. He once shared that he and his family admire my art,» Dimash shared these reflections as part of the China–Central Asia Cultural Dialogue video project dedicated to thematic lectures.
He added that after this initial meeting, he accepted an invitation to perform at an evening event in Furong in 2023, marking the opening of a youth art festival.
«I would like to express my gratitude to President Xi Jinping for his respect toward Kazakh culture and Kazakh-language songs. Most importantly, may the friendship between our nations continue to grow strong,» Dimash added.
China’s Xi visited Kazakhstan from June 16 to 17 at the invitation of President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev. Yesterday, Astana was hosting the second China-Central Asia Summit, attended by the heads of state from Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan. As part of the summit’s gala evening, Dimash Qudaibergen addressed the guests as a cultural representative of the host country, performing one of the most lyrical songs from his Chinese-language repertoire.
In addition, ahead of Xi’s 2024 state visit to Astana, Dimash was highlighted as one of three «envoys of friendship,» symbolizing ties between Kazakhstan and China in the new era.
