Dong Zhou (no pronouns) is a composer-performer based in Hamburg. Zhou gained a B.A. in music engineering at the Shanghai Conservatory and an M.A. in multimedia composition at the Hamburg University of Music and Drama. Zhou won several prizes, including the first prize in the 2018 ICMC Hacker-N-Makerthon, the finalist of the 2019 Deutscher Musikwettbewerb, the Nota-n-ear Award by Stuttgart Filmwinter 2022, and the shortlist of the 2025 Giga-Herz Pop Experimental Production Award. Zhou was commissioned by festivals and institutions such as the Shanghai International Art Festival, ZKM Karlsruhe, Stimme X Festival. In 2026, Zhou’s projects are supported by Musikfonds and Initiative Musik. Zhou is currently a doctoral candidate in the ICAM of Leuphana University. Congee Rats is Dong Zhou’s solo project, which uses electronic music as a starting point for radical boundary-crossing. Between dark wave, alternative rock, hyperpop, experimental, and cinematic soundscapes, songs emerge that absorb punk energy as well as influences from traditional music. Congee Rats creates a dense, emotional universe: introspective, dark, and highly socially conscious. The lyrics and soundscapes deal with power relations, identity, and the experiences of marginalized communities. The result is a project that is both provocative and touching: electronic music as a message, performatively charged and always in search of new aesthetic friction.