For American Brad Krae, Shenzhen is more than a city where he lives. It is where he met his wife, is raising his two children and has built a career.Krae, who works as a content creator, marketing manager and a company owner, has been documenting everyday life in Shenzhen on social media since last year. About 60 percent of his TikTok audience is from the United States, and many followers are curious about what life in China is really like.“They want to see a raw, unfiltered version of China,” Krae said.
He began filming in Shenzhen and grew his account from zero to about 250,000 followers in just 12 months. His most popular video has received about 13 million views. Rather than focusing only on major attractions, Krae often films simple moments from family life.One video, for example, showed what he and his family do on a typical Sunday morning. Another highlighted the convenience of everyday services in Shenzhen.What resonates most with viewers, he said, is often the convenience of ordinary life. He recalled how, after his children forgot their jackets at home, his wife used an app to arrange for a scooter rider to pick them up and deliver them to the school security guard — all within several minutes.“Chinese people don’t realize it’s so convenient because it’s everyday life for you,” Krae said. “Now it’s starting to become everyday to me.”Such experiences have also changed the way his American followers view China. “Hundreds of people message me saying after watching my videos, they now plan to visit China,” Krae said. “It’s so affordable and practical.”For Krae, Shenzhen’s technology and public services are part of the city’s appeal. He has introduced his followers to the city’s digital payment systems and the Shenzhen Museum of Science and Technology, which he described as “mind-blowing.”“It’s got everything inside, from robotics to flight simulators,” he said. “A lot of people are just mind blown, like, ‘Wow, that’s what a museum should look like.’”At the same time, he enjoys discovering the city’s older and more traditional side. Nanshan Village, he said, offers a chance to “time travel back 50 years.” “It’s cool because it’s different and unique,” he said.Krae and his wife met in the city and later lived together in Tahiti for years before returning to China. They have now been married for six years and are raising their two children in Shenzhen.His children attend a public Chinese kindergarten, where they are learning Mandarin and playing with local children.“I love the fact that I can take my kids down, cross the street right over there, and they’ll go play with the local kids every day,” he said. “Everyone’s very warm and welcoming.”For Krae, these ordinary moments have gradually transformed Shenzhen from a place he chose to live into a place he considers home. “You never know where life’s gonna take you,” he said. “But if all the stars aligned perfectly, I’ll be here forever.”