The folk songs in northern Shaanxi, northwestern Shanxi and Qingning, Gansu are sung in two regions, belonging to the Loess Plateau and the Yellow River Basin respectively. Although their music rules and lyrics are different, they have many similarities in expressing people's livelihood sufferings. These sad songs are rare in folk songs in other parts of China.

Among the folk songs in northern Shaanxi and northwestern Shanxi, there are "Sacrificing the Spirit" and "Walking to the West Exit". In the folk songs of Gan Qingning, there are also "Xiachuan" and "One Brother is a Left-behind Person".

Because life is very poor, many men, in order to make a living, either "exorcise evil spirits and sacrifice spirits" like the name of the song "Exorcise evil spirits and sacrifice spirits" or become "foot brothers" in "Down Sichuan", driving livestock to transport goods for others for a long distance, often taking dozens of days or even half a year or a year to go back. Or, like the title of "Walking to the West", go to "Walking to the West", be a "person who goes out" and "person who leaves home" in "Brothers Company", go to other places to make a living and suffer all kinds of hardships. I'm afraid it will be difficult to return to China after three to five years. Those who stay in their hometown are elderly parents, wives and children, or "second sisters" and "sisters".

Among these songs immersed in bitterness, "Brothers are People with Bad karma" is the most sad. Men's tears are enough to move people, and in this song, men cry to women in a humble way that makes their spine cold-the helplessness and helplessness sung by piles will make people cry from their hearts.