The land song is a praise of the land sung by folk artists from door to door during the Spring Festival. The land song, like the flower-drum dance and the dragon & lion dance, is a widespread folk custom to celebrate the Chinese New Year. It originated from the words of praise to the God of the Land by folk storytellers. The God of the Land is one of the gods in Taoist mythology. As the guardian of the land, he is commonly worshipped by the people. Temples built for him are found in almost every village in China. For this reason, people will not refuse those who come to sing land songs and will give generous alms.

In the 1950s and 1960s, many people in the Liusha River area made a living by singing land songs, mostly in Changsha, Yiyang and Xiangtan. They usually wore some iron piece rings, and when singing land songs, they would tap on any part of their body to make a tinkling sound. Some of the old artists would tap a broken bowl along the street and enter homes. The crisp percussion sound combined with the catchy lyrics is extraordinarily appealing.

The artists who sing land songs generally do not have teachers to teach them, but rely on social life experience and their own ingenuity. In addition to mastering some basic hymns, it is important to be flexible. The land song composed by Ningxiang folk artists is a kind of Ningxiang mountain song. The land song can be said or sung, mostly in seven-character lines, and the language is colloquial so that it is easy to understand.