Despite Taiwanese rock singer Chang Chen Yueh having had some
hit songs, he has never really ranked as a top artist.
Nevertheless many people are familiar with him and thousands
sing his songs in karaokes across the country every day.
He never compromises, never follows trends and his songs are
highly individualistic yet he still considers himself "a mainstream
singer."
Nobody would describe him as "handsome" or "charming" even
though he played supporting roles in movies as a teenager yet, as
his contemporaries fade away, he is still around.
He is still releasing new albums, performing regularly and his
signature scruffy, stylish look is still undeniably cool.
Already in his 30s, Chang has put on weight and grown a
moustache, but people still call him the bad boy - always cool, low
key, stylish and fun. He sings fun songs with humorous lyrics that
are slightly cynical.
Instead of screaming out critical comments, Chang hides them
behind pleasant folk rock melodies and his boyish voice.
This old bad boy has performed a few times in Shanghai, often in
clubs for some kind of event or other.
This Saturday, he is throwing a real concert, or "a party" as he
hopes, with his good friend Taiwanese rapper MC Hotdog.
The 3,000-seat-concert isn't big but for Chang, it's ideal.
"I have just started my strategy for the Chinese mainland market
recently, so it's better for me to build a solid foundation. Three
thousand seats are enough as long as all the audience can really
appreciate my music," says the old boy.
Besides singing many of his songs, Chang will also act as the DJ
at the beginning of the concert to warm up the audience.
He will encourage all the audience to stand up and dance to his
music.
"I want to make my concert into a party and I want to invite all
fans to sing and dance with me," says Chang.
"In my previous concerts in Beijing and Nanjing, all the
audiences ended up standing in the middle of the concert. So, why
bother with the seats? Even the photographers had fun dancing with
me while taking pictures of the performance."
As mentioned before, the concert is a co-operation between Chang
and his good friend MC Hotdog.
The two have worked together many times, holding concerts
together in many places and singing on each others' new albums.
One of the most famed performers in Taiwan's underground music
scene, MC Hotdog debuted in 2001 with an album titled "Gangs of
Hotdog."
The album was discussed because of its similarity to Eminem's,
with lots of swear words, content related to sex and violence, etc.
It localized the Western genre of rap. MC Hotdog raps about the
sub-culture of Taiwanese teenagers and youths, about their troubles
and their demands.
Date: January 26, 7:30pm
Venue: Shanghai International Gymnastic Center,
777 Wuyi Road, Shanghai
Tickets: 280-880 yuan
Tel: 021-6448-0898
(Shanghai Daily January 24, 2008)