China is once again setting a record by the numbers with its newest all-girl group "56 Flowers." Launched before June ended, the bevy of Chinese girls is believed to be the world's biggest female pop group, even larger than Japan's AKB48 (not counting its 400 members in multiple branches).

Despite traipsing on the all-familiar sweet and endearing image of many girl pop bands, 56 Flowers is keen to take on a more patriotic approach by focusing on "ethnic emotional connection." The group's artistic director also claimed to provide "superior training" for the girls.

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"Look at our members, they possess plenty of youthful vigor unique to the Chinese people, unlike other idol groups that bank on marketized aesthetics to woo audiences," the still unidentified artistic director proudly stated.

Each of the 56 members was selected by the Ministry of Culture from the mainland's 56 officially recognized ethnic groups. Every chosen girl, with ages ranging from 16 to 23, was reportedly "the most talented representative" of her ethnic group. In the same vein, the name "56 Flowers" was derived from the iconic line of the patriotic song "Love My China," which is loosely translated as "56 ethnic groups, 56 flowers, 56 siblings are family."

During their debut at a gala show, the girls wore plain white polo shirts and conservative dark skirts as they sang and danced to "China Dream, Most Beautiful." Behind them was a huge screen displaying an image of a massive arrangement of red and yellow flowers forming the Chinese flag. Simultaneous with the group's debut was the release of their first album entitled "1356," comprised of 13 tracks with a total playing time of 56 minutes. The revered songs include "I Love Beijing Tiananmen" and "10,000 Mile [sic] Great Wall Won't Fall."

Aside from singing and dancing, the troupe takes pride in its members' talent in playing classical Chinese instruments. 56 Flowers also looks into including a full orchestra and a choir of girls with physical disabilities in future performances.

56 Flower's organizers have also expressed their aim to take the girls' performances to Japan, Taiwan, Southeast Asia, and the rest of the world as a way for everyone "to learn more about the Chinese culture." This eager patriotism was seen by many netizens as an "eerie resemblance" to North Korea's Moranbong Band.

"Why is there a sense of North Korean deja vu?" a Weibo user commented.

Tags56 Flowers, China All-Girl Group, AKB48, pop idol group, Moranbong Band, biggest girl group, patriotic songs