Welcome to Karaoke Saturday, a regular feature on the Beijinger where we help fill out your karaoke repetoire by recommending some of today’s best Chinese pop songs as well as the musicians that make them.
Millions of hearts were broken when Taiwanese superstar Jay Chou secretly married girlfriend Hannah Quinlivan two years ago, but the disappointment didn’t stop there. With a languishing discography of late, it seems Chou is content to give up the mantle of the “King of Mandopop” in favor of his new gig of appearing on mainland reality TV shows.
Luckily for us, one man with a voice of gold is poised to reign in Chou’s absence. That man is JJ Lin (林俊杰).
Lin is a Taiwanese singer originally from Singapore who has been setting the Chinese pop scene on fire with his unique soul and RnB-influenced vocal stylings that haven’t been heard since, well … Jay Chou.
Since he first appeared on the scene almost 15 years ago, Lin has distanced himself from the rigidity normally associated with traditional Chinese music to adopt a freer use of rhythmic syncopation and melodic embellishment. Evoking the adult contemporary styles of crooners like Peabo Bryson and James Imgram, Lin remains a Mandopop anomaly by actually incorporating modern influences into his singing unlike his peers that woodenly sing over a hip-hop beat.
Lin’s impressive vocal talents are on display in “Twilight” (不为谁而作的歌), a track from his 2015 album From M.E to Myself that also happened to win the 2016 Pensado Award for Best Non-English Song. “Twilight” takes a detour from the usual syrupy ballads about “boy loses girl” and “boy is so sorry that he gave up girl’s love” by addressing the lack of civility in modern Chinese society.
“Twilight” serves as Lin’s “thank you” letter to the world at large. During the video’s introduction, an interviewer jokes that if Lin is grateful to so many people, he should write out a list of names. To which Lin stoically replies, “No. I’m going to write a song.”
Here are the Chinese lyrics to “Twilight” with accompanying pinyin and English translation (and here are some links for a YouTube mirror, a live version with easy-to-read Simplified Chinese lyrics, and some mainland live–streaming options):
(Verse 1)
原谅我这一首
Yuánliàng wǒ zhè yī shǒu
Please excuse this song that不为谁而作的歌
bù wéi shuí ér zuò de gē
wasn’t written for any one person in particular感觉上仿佛窗外的夜色
gǎnjué shàng fǎngfó chuāngwài de yèsè
I feel like the darkened night outside my window(Verse 2)
曾经有那一刻
Zēngjīng yǒu nà yī kè
Once, when looking back回头竟然认不得
huítóu jìngrán rènbùdé
I suddenly couldn’t recognize who it was需要从记忆再摸索的人
xūyào cóng jìyì zài mōsuǒ de rén
requiring me to fumble through my memory
(Pre-chorus)
和他们关心的 的地方
Hé tāmen guānxīn de de dìfāng
The things we cared about together, the places和那些走过的 请等一等
hé nàxiē zǒu guò de, qǐng děngyīděng
that we walked through together, wait a minute(Chorus)
梦为努力浇了水
Mèng wéi nǔlì jiāo le shuǐ
A nourished vigor wills a stronger effort爱在背后往前推
ài zài bèihòu wǎngqián tuī
love pushes forward from behind the scenes当我抬起头儿才发觉
Dāng wǒ tái qǐ tóur cái fā jué
Only when I lifted up my head did I realize我是不是忘了谁
wǒ shìbushì wàng le shéi
that I have already forgotten who it was
(Chorus)
累到整夜不能睡
Léi dào zhěngyè bùnéng shuì
So tired that I couldn’t sleep all night夜色哪里都是美
yèsè nǎlǐdōu shì měi
Beauty is everywhere out in the night一定有个人
yīdìng yǒu gè rén
There must be someone out there她躲过避过闪过瞒过
tā duǒguò bìguò shǎnguò mánguò
Who is it that has hidden away, run away, dodged away, concealed away?她是谁，她是谁
Tā shì shéi Tā shì shéi
Who is it? Who is it(Verse 1, Verse 2, Pre-Chorus, Chorus, Chorus)
(Bridge)
也许在真实面对自己才不顾一切
Yěxǔ zài zhēnshí miànduì zìjǐ cái bùgùyīqiē
Regardless of everything, it could be that when confronting myself去探究当初我害怕面对
qù tànjiū dāngchū wǒ hàipà miànduì
I was afraid at first of the confrontation(Chorus, Chorus)
The video ends with JJ Lin speaking to the listener:
People on Earth; help each other
The smallest god in the universe happens to share the same name as the greatest
They are called: thank you.
Got it figured out? When you’re ready, try singing along to the vocal-less karaoke version.
If you like what you hear, try listening to some more JJ Lin:
- She Says 她说: A more traditional Chinese crooner pop ballad done to simple piano accompaniment.
- Exquisite Story 故事细腻: JJ goes international with lyrics in Mandarin, English, and French.
- Black Keys 黑键: Classical, and EDM? Your boy JJ has got it covered.
- Back to Back Hug 背对背拥抱: For when face-to-face is not appropriate.
- Little Dimple 小酒窝: Here is JJ singing in a much more traditional Mandopop style.
More stories from this author here.
Twitter: @Sinopath