Musical poetics defines the composition of the music itself and forms an artefact of the creativity of musical arts and the techniques used in the creation of musical compositions. The tone and melody of Chinese music are some of the key qualities and outstanding features. Our study seeks to examine the impact of Chinese music consumption on cultural values, identity and social cohesion in the digital era. We recruited 75 participants from the Shanghai Conservatory of Music and performed content analysis of lyrics and musical styles of traditional Chinese music (Kunqu opera, guqin pieces) and contemporary genres (C-pop, hip-hop) that were accessible on online platforms of Youku Tudou and YouTube. We also conducted interviews and surveys to gauge the importance of cultural values and the influence of music. Our findings showed a strong emphasis on music in daily life, with a majority of participants listening daily and spending a significant amount of time engaged with music. Our analysis of cultural values indicated general agreement with Confucian principles and more importantly, we emphasized the link between music consumption and cultural identity. A significant portion of participants felt music connected them to Chinese culture.