A Famous Singer in Your Country

Tell me about a famous singer in your country.
You should say: who the singer is
how you found out about him/her what is special about him/her and explain why you like this singer.

– Zhou Jie Lun: from Taiwan + extremely famous – Age + appearance + fans
– Music styles = modern + traditional
– Creative songwriter + musician
– Actor too + director: promising future
Let me tell you about one of the most successful Taiwanese pop singers of the past 10 years. His name is Zhou Jie Lun, but he’s also known as Jay Chou in English. In spite of his young age, he’s made a name for himself all over Asia.

Jay Chou just turned 30, but I think he still looks quite young. It’s probably because he’s extremely energetic on stage. I wouldn’t call him handsome, but he’s definitely charming. He can count on teenage fans, and many young people really appreciate his music as well as his philosophy of life. Jay Chou is famous for being hardworking and meticulous (= precise). He is often called a “control-freak.” He’s a perfectionist and that’s why people like him.

I’m fond of his music for different reasons. First of all, he mixes traditional melodies with western styles, and this is very innovative. He often asks musicians to accompany his singing with traditional Chinese instruments such as the guzheng and the pipa, and he combines the whole thing with either R&B or rock music. In a couple of songs, he even blended classical music with Spanish guitar. He describes his own genre of music as cross-cultural, definitely international.

In addition, Jay Chou is a celebrity because he writes his own songs: he actually comes up with the melodies himself, and he also writes the lyrics. I think that’s actually how he started in the show business: he was a composer at first. The themes he approaches are pretty different from other singers too. He chose to sing about many contemporary issues such as domestic violence (= between a man and his wife), drugs, as well as the gap between rural and urban areas in China. And frequently, he mixes ancient poetry with modern Mandarin. It’s very creative.

On top of this, he was chosen to interpret a few roles in movies, and I think he’s quite a good actor too. He’s extremely talented. He’s so well-rounded; it’s almost unfair to be gifted like he is! Last year he came to Fuzhou to give a concert, but I was on vacation at the time, so I missed his performance. I truly hope I’ll get another chance to see him on stage someday.