2005–2014: Show You Colour and other fields of activities
On 23 March 2005, Cui released the album Show You Colour. He stated that this album is "more diverse, more independent, more cohesive... containing pop, rock, electronic, and hip-hop music", attempting the "maximalism" of music. China Daily described it as distinguished from "all of Cui's previous albums, and probably from any other rock album in China". Reviewers described the album as a "concept album", and pointed out that the album continues the musical style of The Power of the Powerless, incorporating genres including folk, hip-hop, funk, big beat, drum and bass, and digital hardcore. The album was well-received by media and critics. The Beijing Star Daily gave this album a score of 95/100, stating that the album signifies Cui's "official transition from a great rock singer to a great musician". Cui won Best Rock Singer at the 6th Top Chinese Music Awards for the album.
You You, Cui Jian's manager, said that the problems of his performance permits sometimes being refused by local authorities had "gradually gone with time". Since 2005, all bans on Cui were lifted with the exception of the song "Last Shot". Danielle Fosler-Lussier, Professor of Music at the Ohio State University, wrote that the government blunted Cui's revolutionary reputation by allowing him access to media and inviting him to official state events. In July 2005 Cui appeared at the "Great Concert on the 60th Anniversary of the Victory of World Anti-fascist War", a state-sponsored event in Beijing. He did finally play with the Rolling Stones at the Shanghai Grand Stage on 8 April 2006, singing and playing "Wild Horses". He performed his first English song "Outside Girl" and played with Public Enemy at the 2007 Beijing Pop Festival. Cui performed at the Hohaiyan Rock Festival in Taiwan on July 8, 2007, after numerous previous attempts to perform there were derailed by the Chinese government. The head Zhang 43 called Cui "the most important rock star in Asia".
After the 2008 Sichuan earthquake, Cui donated 51,200 RMB and organized a charity concert titled "Get Over That Day" with China's rock music community on 22 May, raising over 400,000 yuan in disaster relief funds. At the December 2009 Beijing Exhibition Center concert, "Rock 'N' Roll on the New Long March V21", Cui tied a red ribbon to call for attention to AIDS awareness. An ambassador for the annual Earth Hour campaign, Cui performed at an outdoor concert, Green Now, to celebrate the World Environment Day and encourage a low-carbon lifestyle at the Shanghai World Expo on 5 June 2010. From 31 December 2010 to 1 January 2011, Cui Jian collaborated with the Beijing Symphony Orchestra to stage the "Rock Symphony Live Concert" at Beijing Workers' Gymnasium, marking Asia's first integration of rock music with a symphonic orchestra performance. At the concert, he unexpectedly performed the banned anti-war song "Last Shot". October: The Rite of Spring, the first dance drama under Cui's full directorship, premiered in Tianjin in 2014.
In 2006, Cui directed the short film The Age of Repairing Virginity, which was selected for the feature and short film competition categories at that year's Vladivostok International Film Festival. He made a cameo appearance in Jiang Wen's film The Sun Also Rises. He also directed the "future" segment of the 2009 film Chengdu, I Love You. In October, he attended the Busan International Film Festival to promote the film. Following his attendance at the premiere of Chengdu, I Love You in Venice, Cui proceeded to Madrid to hold his debut solo concert in Spain. Bai Qiang produced a 3D concert film and documentary titled Transcendence about Cui Jian, which was screened in Beijing in May 2012 for an enthusiastic fan audience, though its prospects for mainstream release in China remain doubtful. The film ultimately grossed 370,000 yuan at the box office.
On 17 October 2014, Cui's feature film Blue Sky Bones was released. Xie Fei stated that the film was submitted to Chinese Film Bureau for review as early as 20 August 2012. However, due to its content touching on "Lin Liguo selecting concubines" and homosexual themes, the project has yet to receive approval. The film, a nonlinear tale with a musical theme, tells the story of a young rocker who moonlights as a hacker. It won the Special Mention at the 8th Rome Film Festival and the Special Jury Prize at the 10th Jecheon International Music & Film Festival, earning Cui Best New Director at the 2015 Chinese Film Media Awards. Receiving mixed reviews, the film grossed 4.14 million yuan at the box office.
On 18 May 2006, Cui issued a statement addressing the Dou Wei incident, calling for sound legislation on news reporting and strong protection of artists' privacy. He submitted a bid proposal to design the 2008 Summer Olympics opening ceremony to the Beijing Organizing Committee for the Olympic Games, but was eliminated after the first round of presentations. In November 2012, Cui announced plans to open a security guard company, citing dissatisfaction with the behavior of security guards at rock concerts in China. On 16 April 2013, Cui released his compilation album The 3rd Sound of China via global digital music platforms for the first time. On 17 April, Cui unveiled a custom "Blue Bone" smartphone to interact better with his fans. He is first artist to launch his own custom smartphone in China. Cui was invited to perform on the 2014 CMG New Year's Gala. It has been seen as the final stage of Cui's political rehabilitation. However, he eventually withdrew the show after organisers tried to censor his performance. For this action, he was listed on the Human Rights Foundation's list of Outstanding Work in the Field of Human Rights. In September, Cui and fellow songwriters co-founded China's first musician-initiated copyright agency.
On 18 July 2006, Cui was awarded the "Hall of Fame Musician" accolade at the Chinese Music Media Awards. He was invited to present himself at the 20th anniversary of the Goethe-Institut on 1 November 2008, where he was awarded the title of "Goethe Cultural Ambassador". Southern Weekly named him the "2012 Chinese Dream Practitioner". In 2013, Cui was honored with the Tenco Cultural Operator Award at the Premio Tenco ceremony in Italy, and collaborated with Francesco Baccini in a joint performance.
