Why I Admire Jay Chou

In today’s post, I want to talk about the reasons why I look up to Jay Chou, Taiwan’s King of Mandopop but before moving onto the main topic, I want to firstly talk about how I got into him. The first time I learned about Jay Chou was back in 2005 when I heard a few of my friends talking about him in my high school PE locker room. I remember one of my friends was excitedly holding his 3^rd album, “8 Dimensions” and her smile was brimming with excitement. I was really curious about this man whose music can simply bring a smile to my friend’s face that I decided to Google the name “Jay Chou”. This was the moment when I found out he was the most famous male singer in Taiwan. After sampling a few of his songs, I was like “Wow, this man can really sing. I have never heard music as good as his before”. It was then that I finally understand why my friends went crazy over him. When I first listened to his songs, I got excited like my friends and immediately fell in love with his music that I told myself that I had to buy Jay’s CD no matter what. Because I was still a minor during high school, I did not have a lot of money so I decided to buy the bootleg copy of his CD. During the Chinese New Year festival in San Francisco, Chinatown, I was glad to have stumbled upon the bootleg version of Jay’s 6^th album, “November’s Chopin”. It was a deluxe edition with 2 CDs containing songs from “November’s Chopin” as well as songs from his older albums. Almost all of the songs were addictive on first listen.

 The first music video I saw on Youtube was “Lovable Women” or “Ke Ai Nu ren”, his most popular song from his 1^st album entitled “Jay”. The song had a very nice, catchy beat to it and the lyrics were very simple that it was very easy to sing along to. By the time I have done extensive research on Jay, I had the desire to purchase all the official copies of his CDs so I decided to save up money from my job working at the school cafeteria. In 2006, when Jay released his 7^th album, “Still Fantasy”, I knew I had to get my hands on this CD; otherwise, I will regret for the rest of my life. Thus, I ordered the CD online from yesAsia.com. Along with the CD came a big Jay “time-travel” poster. Ever since 2006, I started spending money on everything related to Jay such s his CDs, his movies, books, etc. that I decided to start a collection. As you can see, I have been collecting his merchandises for 6 years. You can find pictures of my JC collection on my FB page:

http://www.facebook.com/#!/media/set/?set=a.10150475806520658.366464.722145657&type=3

Now, moving back to the main topic…
Why do I admire Jay Chou? There are many reasons why I admire Jay Chou. But the number one reason is because I find his music to be very unique. He creates music that are different from other artists; for instance, he is the first Chinese singer to effectively combine Zhong guo Feng (Chinese style) music with Western style music. The first Zhong Guo Feng song I heard from him was “Hair Like Snow (Fa Ru Xue) in which he combined Chinese instruments (Gu Zheng) with Western rap and special sound effects (rain drops).

Another song with the zhong guo feng element is “Fearless” or “Huo Yuan Jia”. In this song, Jay used various Chinese instruments such as drums and the Er Hu and displayed a high Chinese opera singing voice which was combined with Western rock. With these combinations, Jay’s music not only can appeal to Chinese fans but Western fans as well. Also, unlike other artists who focus on only one genre, Jay’s music covers a variety of genres. He is actually the first Chinese artist to use the country genre in his music. There is a song called “Cowboy is Very Busy” or “Niu Zai Hen Mang” featured in his 8^th album, “On The Run” that uses the country genre.

Another reason why I admire Jay Chou is because he motivated me to continue learning Chinese when I have almost given up. Before I knew Jay existed, I was not very interested in learning Mandarin because I felt I did not really need it in the future. However, because of Jay’s music, I realized that Mandarin is very important as it can provide me with a lot of benefits. For instance, I can be able find a job in Asia in the future if I possess effective/decent Mandarin skills and also be able to read Chinese characters which a lot of American born Chinese cannot. When I was little, no matter how much my parents forced me to learn Mandarin, I was never really interested. Because many people like me really wanted to understand what his lyrics are about, I pushed myself to continue with my Chinese studies. Therefore, thanks to Jay’s music, my Chinese has improved in leaps and bounds over the years. Now, I am able to sing most of his songs especially his slow ballads. Moreover, I was glad to have learned that Jay can bring a really big influence to the world through his music. Interesting fact: In Taiwan, lyrics from his music is being used in school exams to test students’ knowledge of the meaning behind his music.

I also like the fact that his music raises awareness about many of the problems facing society today. Instead of singing about sex, drugs, and money like many Western artists, Jay sings about issues such as the importance of filial piety ("Listen to Mother's Words"), problem with domestic violence ("Dad, I'm Back"), the simplicity of life ("Paddy Fragrance Rice"), and the casualties of war ("Wounds of War"). I really like how his music helps to bring a positive outlook on life. For example, in his song, “Paddy Fragrance Rice” or “Dao Xiang” from his 9^th Album “Capricorn”, the lyrics, penned by Jay himself, provides encouragement to his audience that they should never give up on life whenever they are faced with a downfall. Due to the increase of suicide rates in Asia, the goal of this song is to discourage suicide and encourage people to live on happily with what they have. Thus, if we fall down, then we should get back up and continue to walk forward and strive no matter what. Also, if we cannot find happiness in our life, then we should look into the other direction and try to find happiness there. We only have one life to live so always stay positive and cherish your life, everyone!! :D

Another reason why I admire Jay Chou is that despite his natural shyness and not having the looks of a pop star, he still managed to make his way into the music scene to become one of Taiwan’s hottest pop star today. I really like the fact that his talent is what had really brought him to the position he deserves to be in today and not because of his physical appearance. To be honest, my first impression of Jay was definitely not a pretty boy but I was immediately blown away by both his voice and his music on first listen.

Jay also taught me a lesson: “Never judge a book by its cover”. Physical appearance is not important; what’s important is the inside. For instance, durian looks unpleasant on the outside and has an unusual odor but once you savour it in your mouth, you will realize how good it tastes.

Acne and my secret to attacking it

One of the worst nightmares I have experienced in my life was having acne. I thought it was pretty embarrassing to walk around in public with a face that looks like a pepperoni pizza. I started developing pimples during 8^th grade which continued throughout almost the rest of my high school years until I finally found the solution to my acne during my senior year in high school. I have tried many products to get rid of my acne but nothing seems to be working well. Some products are just a complete LIE when it says it will clear up your acne; the truth is that it will just make your pimples become even bigger than they originally were. Therefore, it’s best to read reviews before making your purchase. I have tried many products such as Clean & Clear products but they just made my face feel itchy and irritated. The product that finally got rid of my acne was the Aveeno cleansing bar which I got at Walmart for under $5. After trying it for the first day, it was a miracle to find myself waking up the next day with most of my pimples becoming smaller. After being fascinated with the results, I continued using the bar for the next few days to see what was going to happen. Guess what? As expected, more than half of my pimples have faded away and my face felt very smooth and clean than previously.

There are many people especially teenagers suffering from acne and are not sure which product will work for them. Others have tried countless products but it just makes their condition even worse. Because I was once a sufferer of acne and have found a solution that works like a miracle, I would like to share my secret with the ones who wants to get rid of this nightmare. Hope this helps! :D

Korean Drama Addiction

I am currently in love with Korean dramas that I will always try to catch up with the latest ones. Sometimes I would become really absorbed into the storyline that I would fantasize myself as the actress in the story. For instance, as seen in the dramas, I wish can meet a rich and handsome guy someday or love at first sight will exist in my life. I was first introduced to Korean dramas back in 2004 when “Lovers in Paris” starring Park Shin Yang and Lee Dong Gun was broadcasted on my local Chinese channel. At first, I thought it was a Taiwanese drama because the voices were dubbed in Mandarin but after doing research on the drama online, I found out it was a Korean drama and so that was the moment when I was brought into the world of Korean dramas. Although the actors were not quite attractive in “ Lovers In Paris”, the storyline and characters were well developed.

The second Korean drama I watched through my local Chinese channel was the hit series, “Stairway to Heaven” starring Kwon Sang Woo and Choi Ji Woo. I remember my dad and I both were sitting on the couch watching this drama together; we were enjoying the story very much that we tuned in to watch every episode that airs only for an hour each day. The story was very heartbreaking but nevertheless, it was a very good drama. Because the storyline touched the hearts of many audiences, it became the most successful and well received Korean drama worldwide.

Another successful drama was “Winter Sonata” which I have never seen before and would like to watch it someday. As I started catching up on other Korean dramas, I realized that the storyline in almost every drama is always the same because there would always be someone passing away at he end. Due to these repetitive tragic ending, I got sick and tired of them that I decided to give up on them in 2006. However, in late 2010, I was pulled right back into the world of Korean drama after my friend recommended me to watch “Secret Garden” starring Hyun Bin and Ha Ji Won. She told me it was a must-watch drama so I decided to give it a try. At first, I thought it was boring because nothing seemed to be happening but then I find it to be interesting later on. Compared to those tragic dramas, ”Secret Garden” had a magical theme to it. It was about a man and woman who switched bodies whenever lightning struck.

Another drama with a magical theme is “49 days” , which is about a girl who became a ghost after she died from a car accident but then she met a grim reaper who was willing to give her another chance at life if she managed to gather genuine tears from 3 people unrelated to her. In order to perform this duty, she borrows the body of a woman she has never met before.

 Ever since “Secret Garden”, I have kept up with the latest Korean dramas and realized that the trend in the storyline have changed every year. Dramas before 2009 focused more on tragedies and dramas from 2009-2011 focused on the magical/mystical theme but this year, (2012), the trend focused on time traveling; I guess this is my favorite theme out of them all. A time traveling drama I have seen this year was “Rooftop Prince” starring Park Yoochun and Han Ji Min; it’s about a Prince from the Joseon Dynasty who travels forward many years to end up in modern time Korea.

 Another time traveling drama which is next on my list is “Time Slip Dr. Jin” starring Kim Jaejooing, my favorite Kpop singer. His acting has improved a lot from his first Korean drama “Protect the Boss” so I wanted to see how it will go for him in his 2^nd Korean drama. I don’t recall how many k-dramas I have seen but these ones are my personal favorites:

1. You’re Beautiful
2. My Girl
3. My Girlfriend is A Gumiho
4.Rooftop Prince
5. 49 Days
6. Secret Garden
7. Sungkyunkwan Scandal
8. Lovers In Paris
9. Stairway to Heaven
10. The Moon That Embraces the Sun
11. Dream High
12. Jewel In The Palace
13. Baker King, Kim Tak Gu
14. I Miss You 

Korean Dramas have became very popular around the world even in in Latin American due to the huge spread of the Korean or “Hallyu” wave. I realized that the Korean wave has become stronger over the years and I’m sure it will continue to do so now and into the future. Hwaiting, K-dramas!!

Piano!

My interest for learning piano initially began after watching Jay Chou’s “Secret” back in 2007. I was quite impressed by Jay’s piano skills seen in the movie especially the 4 hand piano duet. The piano battle between Jay and Yuhao really captivated me as well. This was the moment when I told myself that I wanted to play like Jay someday. Here is the complete battle scene from “Secret”:

My dad used to play a bit of the piano back in the days but now he forgot everything he had learned. I’m glad he still owned a lot of piano books and piano scores purchased like 20 years ago. Thus, to put the books to good use, I tried learning it by myself. To start off, I needed a piano. My dad owns a brown piano but it still needs to be tuned up after sitting in the cold for all those years. I heard that beginners are suggested to start off with an electronic piano before moving on to the “real” piano. So I went to Target to buy an electronic piano and immediately got started on my lessons. However, along the way, everything became complicated and I eventually gave up because I knew I wasn’t playing the piano correctly so there wasn’t any point in continuing. I felt like I needed a piano instructor to teach me the correct way of playing but my dad did not approve of enrolling me in piano classes at that time because he didn’t think I really needed it.
After giving up on self taught piano lessons back in 2007, I thought I was never going to touch the piano again until my dad finally approves of enrolling me in piano classes in the summer of 2012 (recently)!! I’m glad I encountered this musician at the bus stop 2 months ago who really motivated me to play the piano. This person plays both the piano and guitar and performs locally in bars/pubs. When I asked if learning the piano is really complicated, this person responded by saying, “Piano is based on timing”. After hearing those words, I posted it on my Facebook and when my dad saw what I wrote, he responded on FB by saying, “There’s a piano store at Great Mall that teaches piano”. I was speechless when I saw my dad’s response.
After searching for the correct piano instructor, I was finally enrolled! I have already attended 4 classes and I’m loving it! The more I practiced, the more I’m falling in love with the piano. I cannot wait until I know how to play decently so I can be able to play Jay’s music and feel much more closer to him! Jia you, Laura! :D
Now, off to practice!