This will be a joint collaboration between Jessica, my ROL (visit above blog for explanation), and I. We will be pooling our creative brain juices and polar personalities to try to bring you interesting, witty, and sometimes wacky thoughts on Asian Entertainment.

Much of our individual blog materials will be transferred onto J-D Squared, including past posts, downloads, and of course, us, to our new home. This blog, as well as her’s, will no longer be active.

Thank you all for your generous support and kind words. I’ll see y’all at J-D Squared!

~Julia ^_*

Show Luo – One Man Show

Credit: roland149

Anson Hu – One Man Show Rendition

Credit: faloveshow2

Yes, it was a spontaneous, on-the-spot rendition. No, Anson is not extremely familiar with the song. Yes, Show Luo, the original singer and host of 100% Entertainment was so impressed he was stuttering and speechless, as was his co-host Alien Huang (minus the stuttering), another singer-actor.

Anson Hu – Waiting For You

Song: Anson Hu

MV Appearances: Ariel Lin & Mike He

Anson Hu is a rarity in Chinese mando-pop industry.  Back before all the singing competitions brought many young idols to fame, China’s music industry was heavily doused with older, schooled, and critically acclaimed singers – “pop-y” songs and ‘idol” artists mostly imported from Hong Kong, Taiwan, Korea, Japan, or Malay/Singapore. In fact, the trend of “imported idols” is still strong in China’s music sphere today. To release a self-written c-pop album at the tender age of 18 back in 2002 was consider unusual, daring, and against mainland China’s industry norm – after all, Anson would have been competing with the likes of Leehom Wang, F4, the then red-hot Jay Chow, etc. and the stigma of China’s traditionalism in music. To many, he is considered one of the pioneers in the current wave of young, popular, Chinese idol singers who can compete with popular non-mainland China artists.

*Anson Hu – Emperor*

Song/Lyrics: Anson Hu

Credit: Tamahoma

Touting over a billion people, China is a ”must” market for many countries, music or otherwise. So, it’s not unusual to see Chinese fans learning about and eventually going crazy over a Kpop, TWpop, HKpop, Jpop singer or group – but how often do you see other regions going wild over a C-pop idol? Most likely never. After winning multiple awards and producing hit song after hit song, other mandarin-speaking regions finally started to recognize his name and face. In 2007, Anson Hu hit the first great height of his career, releasing Men’s Songs and nabbing almost all major music awards in China with his hit single, A Man’s KTV, a song incorporating 4 lines from classic KTV songs sang by lengendary Jacky Cheung and “King of Songs” Eason Chan. His huge popularity in the mainland finally triggered Anson’s expansion to regions such as Taiwan, often considered as the most innovative and refreshing cultivator of mando-pop music. His talent, as shown in the clips above, voice, hit songs, and somewhat 4-D personality attracted many non-mainland China fans. It was the first time I felt a Chinese c-pop singing artist so favored by another region’s fans.

Anson Hu - A Man’s KTV

Song: Anson Hu

Credit: binkyo

Of the many things I love about Anson, his musical talent, voice, singing range, 4-D personality, stunted speech (sometimes he’s rather inept in vocalizing his thoughts), I admire the dedication and pride he has in his music the most. Anson Hu’s music has many cultural and “oldies” influences (before “retro” became the new “in” for mainland artists), but he’s able to integrate modern styles, such as R&B, rap, funk, rock, etc. into his compositions. A great example combining traditional and modern music is the following song.

Anson Hu – Departing Poem

Song: Anson Hu

Credit: usao10

Track List:

01. 你买单还我买单 (You Take the Tab or do I)
02. 失业情歌 (Laid-Off Love Song)
03. 笔墨登场 (Entrance of Calligraphy)
04. 不曾后悔 (Never Regretted)
05. 罗马假日 (Roman Holiday)
06. 空位 (Empty Space)
07. 林妹妹 (Sister Lin)
08. FUNRUN
09. 勇敢去爱吧 (Love Like No Other)
10. 父亲 (Father)
11. 闪亮的日子(Glorious Days)

Download

After his hit and award-winning album 2 years ago, Anson releases Music Life on 12.08.09. The album includes songs that have been released in commercials, singles, and ceremonies in the last 2 years, but also new never-before-released compositions like Laid Off Love Song aka the more ambiguous title Music Life. I have yet to be disappointed with Anson’s albums, as he’s constantly incorporating current themes to retain my attention. In his last mini-album, he renditioned old 1930s-1950s songs to celebrate China’s 60th anniversary. This time, Anson’s newest album touches on the global recession and economic impact on people’s lives. Looks like I’m going to be rolling into my 8th year as a fan. ^_^

Anson Hu – Laid Off Love Song aka Music Life

Song: Anson Hu

Credit: fountainpark723

So have I converted you yet? If not, go to my Youtube page for more Anson Hu songs and live performances and/or J-Box for his previous albums – that should do the trick.

After over a decade of Asian entertainment viewing, I’ve developed a certain sensitivity to “potentials,” or more aptly put, a gut feeling about actors/productions. Moon Chae Won first popped onto my radar when Brilliant Legacy, or Shining Inheritance, starting airing in Korea. I was instantly turned off when what seemed like a 10-minute, cliched, korea-has-no-police-no-cameras-nor-traffic-laws, car-chase scene by the 2 leads appeared in the drama. But Moon Chae Won’s, whom I did not know her name at the time, pensive and soulful eyes caught my attention. I remember thinking, ”who is this actress?” and feeling the urge to look her up…but the lack of intrigue from the 2 lead characters/actors, other entertainment, and life threw me off that train of thought.

 Credit: dramailuvu

It wasn’t until My Fair Lady that I rediscovered her, found out her name, and officially researched her repertoire. Perhaps its because I’m innately fickle, so I adore actors who diversify their roles and works. Having seen glimpses of MCW’s previous character, I knew MFL‘s role was a contrasting one. But a strong contrast in roles does not make a good actress – it depends entirely on the successful embodiment of that character – and Eui Joo of MFL was a refreshing, creative, witty portrayal. That character became my focal point of the entire drama. And yes, I did make comparisons, as reluctant as I was to MFL’s leading actress, YEH. But before I go any further I must express a few sentiments.

I believe:

1. natural talent is just as important as hard-working perseverance.
2. instantaneous grasp of a role/character is more inspiring and creditable.
3. instantaneous acting chemistry between actors is more awe-inducing and laudable.
4. creative, original, and/or unique acting mannerisms or dialogue expression attests to an actor’s talent, whether natural or learned.
5. actors who can successfully switch from one vastly different role to another and maintain equal if not greater charm than his/her previously successful role(s) is worthy of acclaim.

Therefore, I am not easily impressed with actors who take a long time to embody a character, achieve chemistry with their co-stars, develop character charm in front of the camera, or switch to a new, entirely different role. What construe as “a long time?” It depends. But I seem to applaud a performance and become passionate about a particular portrayal/character within the first 10 minutes of onscreen appearance, and an actor within the first several works I’ve seen. I attribute my quick assessment to having watched too many movies/dramas for my own good and knowing myself well, that it only takes me a relatively short time to know whether a) I’ll love the acting portrayal b) I’ll love the production c) I’ll want to watch it at that particular time d) it’ll be enjoyment, enlightenment, or both that I’ll be getting from watching.

That said, it may be due to the lack of immediate embodiment of characters and chemistry between the other leads of the drama that made MCW’s EJ more attractive, innovative, and inspiring to me. So I moved onto another MCW work, Painter of the Wind, a drama I’ve been meaning to watch because of my great liking for Moon Geun Young. Needless to say, I was again impressed that MCW was able to hold her own and have such amazing chemistry, with another female no less, in the first major drama work of her career.

I haven’t had the desire nor opportunity to go back and watch Brilliant Legacy, but the many proclamations of Chae Won’s acting in this drama, and the below MV, has lulled me to attempt this somewhat daunting task.

Brilliant Legacy – Moon Chae Won and Lee Seung Gi

MV Song: Lost Without Your Love

Singer: Amy Pearson

Credit: beolacuatui

Regardless of whether I do watch BL or not, Moon Chae Won is one of my biggest discoveries this year, and I am definitely going to keep my eye on this astute and talented actress.

Having discovered Amy Pearson with her song, Now and For Always, from the wonderful days of We Got Married – Season 1, I have provided her marvelous debut album, Who I Am, at J-Box.

Track List :

01. Oh Yeah!!!
02. 七天 (7 Day)
03. Tomato
04. 爱情，习作 (Love, Practice)
05. I No
06. 开心餐厅 (Happy Restaurant)
07. 吉米宝贝 (Jimmy Baby)
08. 风雨 (Windy Rain)
09. A
10. 最寂寞的時候 (When Most Alone)
11. 听见了吗? (Do You Hear?)
12. 再见勾勾 (Goodbye Pinky Swear)

Download

After grabbing the 2009 Golden Melody Award’s (Taiwanese Grammy) Best New Artist amid tough competition, Crowd Lu released his 2nd album on 10.31.2009. Crowd Lu is one of those unique people you cannot avoid noticing. Perhaps it’s his “geeky-homebody” getup or his weird, yet endearing train of thought that has much of Taiwan’s HS/college students in an uproar and urge to mimick his iconic style/music. Crowd, or Vitas, as he’s often referred to because of his ability to sing in high-pitched “dolphin” songs, was once in a devastating car accident that almost crippled his leg. Yet, the guy is amazingly go-lucky, happy, and innocent in the way he views music, the world, and people around him. There is a boundless, free, and real quality to his self-written, self-accompanied, and self-sang music. And perhaps that is his greatest appeal; that his music speaks to practical, everyday life while maintaining a sliver of humor and brightness to it. 

Crowd Lu – Oh Yeah!!!

Song/Lyrics: Crowd Lu

Credit: supernicemusic

Crowd Lu – I No

Song/Lyrics: Crowd Lu

Credit: supernicemusic

Track List :

01. 看月亮爬上来 (Watching the Moon Climb Up)
02. 穿越人海 (Passing Through the Crowd)
03. 何必在一起 (Why Bother Being Together)
04. 微笑 (Smile)
05. 量身订做 (Specifically Tailored)
06. 勿忘心安 (Memorable Peace)
07. 龙鳞 (Scales of the Dragon)

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Jason Zhang released 3rd album, Through Trilogy, on 11.02.09. He was most broadly recognized as being a talented contestant of Hunan Broadcasting Station’s SuperBoy, a spinoff from the sensational SuperGirl singing competitions, in 2007. Talent, heart, passion for music, and filial duty describes Jason Zhang. Coming from a destitute family, Jason matured young, knowing the value of family and hard work. Perhaps it was his reticence and seriousness that contributed to his lower likeability/popularity in the competition. After placing 4th in SuperBoys (a complete travesty in my opinion b/c I judge singing competitions by talent and range potential, not likeability and popularity), Jason’s fans continued to support the multi-talented singer. He obtained much support from the MC’s of the singing competition, even gained a sweet romance with Nana Xie - a comedic, tomboyish, highly popular MC of the Hunan Station (their friendship-turned-romance was highly controversial at the time of the competition). Now Jason is considered one of the most popular and sought-after young male singers in China, as well as one of the most happy and fulfilled.

Jason Zhang – Watching the Moon Climb Up

Credit: fountainpark723

Jason Zhang – After Tomorrow [download]

MV Appearance: Nana Xie

Credit: coolxuemin

Having already been somewhat jaded from previous SuperGirl competitions, the 2007 SuperBoy was the last straw for me. It proved to prevent all future viewings of Hunan Station’s singing competitions. My favorite contestants at the time of the SuperGirl and SuperBoy competitions, who I thought should have won…did not win. But if I were to be shameless and direct, almost all of them have succeeded in greater bounds than the ones who did win. Of my favorites included Jane Zhang, Bibi Zhou, Jason Zhang, Wang Zhen Liang, and a few other extremely musically talented singers. So even though I was miffed at the popularity contests of these competitions, I am rectified by the fact that the industry and public at large gave them their due opportunities, successes, and awards. I am infinitely happy that China’s music industry has not receded to pure superficiality as it came dangerously close to between the years of 2005 – 2008. I think there is a nice balance now to the music industry, but it can definitely learn from Taiwan and spur more popularly innovative and creative musical talents. Ok, rant and post over.

Track List:

01. 她扔了根火柴(国) (She Threw Away A Match)
02. 月亮说 (Moon Says)
03. 大笨钟 (Bulky Clock)
04. 低科技之歌 (Low Tech Song)
05. I’m Sorry
06. 我不打算流眼泪(国) (I Don’t Plan on Crying – Mandarin)
07. 小团圆 (Little Reunion)
08. 记住 记住 (合唱: 王菀之&常石磊) (Remember Remember – Duet)
09. 粒糖有毒 (Candy Has Poison)
10. 迷失艺术 (Art of Confusion)
11. 月亮事(国) (Moon Business – Mandarin)
12. Mary Had A Little Clock

Download

Ivana Wong, one of the first and most notable female song-writing and singing artist of the Cantonese music industry, as many of their female singers did (do) not compose and are heavily packaged by record companies, released On Wings of Time on 10.29.09.  She was, to me, a breakthrough from the dance-y, pop-y, and flashy young generation of Canto singers in the early 2000s. Her music is not usually mainstream and has more of a soul-searching aspect to it, but I love the originality and creativity of her works – very melancholy indie.

 Ivana Wong – Moon Says, Bulky Clock

Songs/Lyrics: Ivana Wong

Credit:  minishopm12

Track List :

01. 雨后天空 (The Sky After Rain)
02. 画沙 (Painting Sand)
03. 唱首歌因为思念 (Sing A Song For Missing You)
04. 热气球 (Hot Air Balloon)
05. 笨鱼曲 (Stupid Fish Song)
06. I’m Sorry
07. 你不爱我了 (You Don’t Love Me)
08. 舞带威胁 (Dance of Coercion)
09. 很旅行的爱情 (A Love That Is Journey)
10. 那年我们一起许愿 (The Year We Made A Wish)

Download

New artist Cindy Yen debuts with prominent support from legendary Jay Chow, lyricist Fang Wen Shan, and magnate record company Sony Music on 10.30.2009. Cindy’s album has Jazz/R&B influences and instrumental emphasis due to her background. The girl is skilled in both piano and violin, and writes her own music – following the growing trend of musically inclined female artists in Taiwan. And to show off these attributes, Sony released the following theme track MV, featuring a duet with Jay Chow and Cindy’s instrumental talents.

Cindy Yen & Jay Chow – Painting Sand

Song: Cindy Yen

Lyrics: Fang Wen Shan

Credit: mleXiHuanNi

Track List :

01. 关于我 (About Me)
02. 解high人 (Solve For “High” Person)
03. 看见什么吃什么 (Eat What You See)
04. 耳朵 (Ear)
05. 飘 (Drift)
06. 说谎 (Lying)
07. 心酸 (Heartache)
08. 唐人街 (Tang Ren Road)
09. 歇斯底里 (Hysteria)
10. 另一个自己 (Another Me)
11. 感同身受 (Similar Feelings)

Download

Yoga Lin, one of my favorite contestants and the winner of Taiwan’s Million Dollar Star singing competition, the legendary Season 1, released his 2nd album on 10.30.2009. Of this 1st season, a record number of now-famous talented singer discoveries were made, including Yoga Lin, Jam Hsiao, and Aska Yang Zhong Wei. Yoga Lin, as the youngest “Prince” of the “Four Princes” of Season 1, is often compared to his idol, King of Songs and Singing Genius, Eason Chan, who also arose out of a singing competition and has a very laid-back, mesmerizing, unique interpretation of song vocalization. Like Eason, Yoga has an uncanny ability to express & make “unpopular” or “cold” songs, likeable. His record company is not averse to spending big bucks on this now 22 year old “singing genius” – spending record budgets on a newbie, hoping to nurture another King of Songs. For Yoga’s debut album, Mysterious Guest, check J-Box.

Yoga Lin – Lying

Credit: Urasiansourcecpop

Normally, I would briefly introduce an artist and give a sampling of the songs that characterizes the artist’s style and/or songs I like, but I’ve been moody due to a serious bout of the common cold, so I’m going to babble a bit.

As most have come to realize, I have a “thing” for artists who are creatively unique, whether it’s singing, acting, personality, or whatever characteristics/talents the person possesses. I discovered Abin (pronounced Ah Bing) early this year - Febuary to be exact - several months after he had released his album in Taiwan, and only in association with Penny Dai, another talented, creative song-writer/singer/director that I love.  Well, I was knocked over by this guy’s ability to touch me with such sensitive and spell-binding singing and song-writing, and don’t get me started with the soulful guitar playing – I fell so hard you could literally peel me off the sidewalk. 

So was I a little miffed that Abin didn’t make the nomination for the Taiwanese Grammy’s? You bet. But considering the stiff competition - 3 of the 5 nominees were Million Dollar Star contestants, and many other newcomers who were also skipped out of a nomination - I was pacified in knowing that Abin’s singing career in Taiwan had at least got off to a great start. Also, I liked all of the nominees so it wasn’t like I wanted them to not get their nominations.

Abin is not new to the music industry, having released albums in Malaysia, but 2009 was really the year he expanded from Malay to Taiwan and the broader Chinese/Mandarin music market. Part of his reason for not giving up on being a singer/song-writer was to realize his father’s dream, who passed away without making it as a singer. I also love that he’s nice and soft-spoken, but sticks to his philosophies and is – you all know I’m a sucker for this – an independent thinker – which makes guys more irresistible to me. I won’t expound any further in case your expectations get too high, so here’s Abin with his 2 Taiwan-released albums.

Abin Fang – Good Person Abin [Debut Released 11.10.2008]

 Track List:

01. 坏人 (Bad Person)
02. 回去吧 (Go On Back) *In memory of his father*
03. 深爱的老朋友 (Beloved Old Friend)
04. 风 (Wind)
05. 哼哼爱 (Humming Love)
06. 你不必爱我 (You Don’t Need to Love Me)
07. 心痛 (Wounded Heart)
08. 闯 (Charge)
09. 回纹针 (Clip)
10. 胭脂雪 Ft. 江淑娜 (Rouge Snow Ft. Nana Chiang)

Download

The album, Good Person, really gained momentum for the upstart Malaysian artist in the first half of 2009, with his hit song Bad Person capturing the #1 position on KTV (Karoake) charts for 10+ weeks, and remains in the Top 5 as of the date of this post.

Abin – Bad Person

Song/Lyrics – Abin

Credit: dirpeter

Abin – Wind

Song/Lyrics - Abin

Director: Penny Dai (Love the concept & cinematography of this MV)

Credit: enjoymusicrec

Abin Fang - Regrets [Released 10.16.2009]

Track List:

01. 棋子 (Chess Piece)
02. 天黑黑 (Dark Dark Sky)
03. 暗示 Ft. 弦子 (All I Wanted to Say Ft. Xuan Zi)
04. 遗憾 (Regrets)
05. 不必在乎我是谁 (Don’t Need to Care Who I am)
06. 曖昧 (Ambiguous)
07. 胆小鬼 (Scared-y Cat)
08. 剪爱 (Severing Love)
09. 猜心 (Suspicious Heart)
10. 泪海 (Sea of Tears)

Download

Regrets is a rearranged, compilation album of songs from famous female singers, including Faye Wong, Coco Lee, Amei, Stephanie Sun, and many other divas. Too anxious to spread the love that I haven’t picked out my favorite renditions in this album yet.

Abin – Regrets

Credit: c8527706jm

Abin – All I Wanted to Say

Credit: mengsion

 Track List:

01. 发光的简讯 (Luminescent Message)
02. 小乖乖 (Little Darling)
03. 寂寞，好了 (Be Lonely, Then)
04. 爱是对的 (Love Is Right)
05. 日蚀 (Solar Eclipse)
06. 你看不到的天空 (The Sky You Can Not See)
07. Hey !
08. 我的宝贝 (My Baby)
09. 打不倒男孩 (Incorrigible Boy)
10. 走 (Go)

Download

Evan Yo released his 3rd album, Be Lonely, Then on 10.09.2009. He debuted in 2006, at 18 yrs old (they kept using his Asian age, 19),  under great “sponsorship” from famous Taiwanese MC, Jacky Wu, who also endorsed Jay Chow and Jolin Tsai to fame. Having been top of his class entering Taiwan University’s music school, and having tall, good looks, Evan was heavily touted as the next Jay Chow/Leehom Wang. His music has many western rock, funk, and jazz influences, and he is extremely talented in violin, piano, and singing (as they are his majors). Unfortunately, Sony Records hasn’t been able to really differentiate and time his releases properly – Evan has met stiff competition from Million Dollar Star participants entering the music industry – who’ve taken T-music scene by storm. That said, I’ve never been a believer that ratings/popularity = quality, so I’ve listened to all his albums, saw some of his variety appearances showcasing his talent, and my conclusion? He’s a talented potential and a cutie. For his 2nd album, Search Evan Yo, please go to J-Box - here’s Never-ending Summer off of 19 debut album.

Evan Yo – The Sky You Can Not See

Credit: gilliansham

Evan Yo -Be Lonely, Then

Credit: urasiansourceCpop

Evan Yo – Nunchucks (On-the-spot Soft Rendition)

Original ‘Nunchucks’  by Jay Chow

Credit: emerl1233456

Evan Yo – Variety Appearance

(Jacky Wu endorsed him on all his MC-ed shows and Rainie as well being his “older sister” at Sony Records)

Credit: hkevanyo

Artist: Charice, 17

Country: Phillippines

Charice – Listen

Credit: 2welve4ever

     Most of you have probably heard of this Youtube sensation that guested on a popular Korean variety program called Star King, who then went on to Ellen, Oprah, and slew of big-time talk shows across the globe. Not only is she recognized in her natural market, Asia, she’s been well-received by North American and European countries as well (I hear the Italians are quite crazy about her).

I have yet to see such a young, Asian singer be so widely hyped and accepted by audiences world-wide. Perhaps it’s because of her unrelentless passion for singing despite her down-trodden circumstances growing up that has captured people’s hearts, or that her voice strikes a cord with listeners, but whatever it is, it seems like this young singer is going to be an international phenomenon, if not already.   *Her version of Listen never gets old – it’s always goosebump-inducing.*

Charice – Torete

Credit: scubajoe12

 Charice – The Climb

Credit: jessica86s

Artist: IU, 16

Country: Korea

IU – Gee, Lies, & Sorry Sorry

Credit: jerryhdiffy

     Perhaps it’s the over-packaged, and over-gimmicked (in trying to differentiate them) presentation of Kpop artists/groups by companies, that I’ve become immune to the Kpop scene. So I was pleasantly surprised to learn of IU; a young, lyrically-emphasized, music-writing, guitar-playing, indie-soul singing, non-Kpop-cookie-cutter-presented talent.  IU’s debut in mainstream music sparked talk of a revival in the industry, and a new generation of teen singers. From the second album it seems IU’s label is still tweaking on how to “image” her to be accepted in mainstream Kpop; But many are waiting to see if, and how, this young artist survives and revoluntionizes a growing indie-Kpop segment of mainstream Korean music. For an introduction to IU -  Read Here   *I love the above video, not only for her renditions but also for the host of the program. lols. I wish she would release an album with her renditions/covers – it would be an instant seller.*

IU – Officially Missing You

Credit: lemonlove9

IU – Mia (2008 Debut)

Credit: modfactory

IU - Monday Thru Thursday

Credit: kpopcornchicken

Artist: BY2, 16

Country: Singapore

BY2 – Don’t Go Away

Song/Lyrics Contributions: BY2

Credit: e2jiayou

     Singapore has long been known as a place that cultivates talents and rear innovative musical artists. Many of their notable singers gained popularity because of their creative leanings, industry acclaimations, Chinese “Grammy” winnings, and critical hype. So I was surprised to discover a new, identical-twin duo (Miko & Yumi), who shows diverse potential in singing, musical creativity, dancing, and transcending borders when they’ve been mundanely marketed.  They’ve trained in Korea and Japan for various styles of dance, studied piano and violin, learned various languages (touting Chinese, English, Korean, Japanese, Taiwanese, etc.), and sing well (despite their “idol” image). Of course, their youth, prettiness, and maturity also contributes to BY2′s star potential, but I’m more intrigued by their expansive repertoire of talents. Not partial to how their company has imaged them (or outfit-ed them – too sexy), and their pop-y song selections (they are capable of diverse genres), but I guess that’s a trend in Asia hard to bypass.

BY2 – DNA

Credit: honeyjohnny0214

BY2 – Variety Dance Appearance

Credit: binhuang0307

BY2 – Not Mature Enough (Live)

credit: victoria11177

For additional videos, check juliakgrl YT.