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HK Magazine

I was born in Hong Kong, and moved to L.A. when I was around twelve.
This is my first interview since my re-launch!
I’m shy.
I studied fashion and wanted to be a fashion buyer.
I didn’t really plan on being a singer. I was only 20 at the time and being so young, you just want to try different things.
I won a singing contest in Japan. That’s how I got into the music industry. It was just all so serendipitous.
I was drawn to the whole European New Romantics genre in the 80s. I was influenced by that kind of music.
I decided to return to Hong Kong from Japan since my family was here, and you know, I could speak and sing in Cantonese.
I never listened to Cantopop when I was growing up. Just Sam Hui’s music through the movies.
I actually rapped in my Japanese single, “Borderless.” Nowadays, there’s an MC or a ubiquitous rap part in every pop song, but in 1989, it was still really uncommon for Asian music.
I had no idea how to rap. The African-American guy who was coaching me told me that there’s really no right or wrong in music.
I’ve always wanted to do an album with no lyrics, just scatting, or “mood music.”  But I don’t think Hong Kong is ready for that yet.
I like singing harmony and doing the backing vocals more than the main melody. You can be more creative and play with it.
I want to collaborate with the fashion industry. They can let me be more experimental and imaginative at shows.
My fantasy is to work with Ryuichi Sakamoto. He can make pop music that’s trendy, and then he can go ahead and create the most experimental aural art.
As a singer, I am only an interpreter.
Singing live is really important. You have to connect with the audience.
It’s not about the awards, concerts... at the end of the day, it’s the relationships you have developed that matter.
I don’t take any of the Chinese medication that the Cantopop people swear by.
I’d rather spend most of my money traveling. I like experiencing the local lifestyle of different places.
I used to go to Japan every year because I absolutely adore their food.
And their culture, their aesthetics. everything just has that certain je ne sais quoi element to it.
People thought I was a lesbian because I shaved my hair short for one cover.
I’m not a lesbian, but I have a lot of gay and lesbian friends because I work with a lot of them. I like their straightforwardness and, oh god, their humor.
The last concert I went to was K.D. Lang’s. The moment she opened her mouth and sang, I was immediately enthralled.
People thought I suddenly stopped my career because I was a diva bitch and had problems. But it wasn’t like that. I stopped because I was seeking something new.
I don’t really care about the Hong Kong’s media misconceptions about me.
I won’t clarify anything to anyone. I don’t like explaining myself to people. You can’t expect everyone to understand you.
Now I’m a single mom and most of Hong Kong is thinking, “My my my, what is she doing?” But come on, it’s the 21st century already.
My son is one of my happiest achievements in my life. He is the happiest and best thing that’s ever happened to me. He’s changed my view of life.
My son didn’t want me to leave him tonight for my rehearsal and this interview. He was like, “Mommy don’t go!” and I tried to explain to him that mommy has to work, but I don’t really know if he gets it.
He kind of has an inkling of what I do. He’s seen some of my music videos, and was humming along. I asked him, “Is mommy singing?” and he was like, “No, I’m singing!”
I don’t regret anything; not the choices I’ve made in my music career and not the choices I’ve made in life.


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Cantopop Star Shirley Kwan

Magazines

Shirley Kwan is a major Cantopop diva of the 1980s, 90s, and now – thanks to her recent comeback – the 00s. She talks about her son, her music and the perils of misinterpretation.
