Gin Lee is a realistic character who jumped out of a Japanese manga. In 2011, she made the decision to come to Hong Kong from Malaysia to become a singer. Since then, her singing talent has been widely recognized, and she has even performed at the Hong Kong Coliseum. When asked if she has achieved her goals, she said she will continue to pursue higher and farther dreams, so there is no end in sight. She likes to mention her rational personality and knows that she has the persistence of a Virgo. She won’t consider giving up until she reaches her limits. Gin Lee possesses elements of dreams, perseverance, and never giving up. I regret not asking her which passionate manga series she likes.
Comfort requires wisdom
Last year, just before the end of the year, while Gin Lee was still in the process of leaving her previous record label and had not yet finalized a new one, she chose to return to her birthplace in Malaysia to think things through. Whether it was for family visits or to refresh herself, she initially thought she would have a leisurely six-month vacation. However, in the middle of it, she unexpectedly confirmed her joining with Emperor Entertainment Group, and the anticipated slow-paced life did not materialize. Before the students could even enjoy their summer vacation, Gin Lee had already released her third chart-topping song, “Good Enterprise,” following “Dum Dum” and “The Little Matter of Unrequited Love.”
Because it is written by Wyman Wong, unexpectedly, the song “Stand Tall” is like a fast song, but it is actually a slow song that reminds people to stand tall no matter what difficulties they have experienced. “Cantonese slow songs are about telling stories, and behind the lyrics of the new song “Stand Tall,” there are actually many of Wyman’s thoughts. He also revealed that the lyrical style of this song is different from his previous works. In the beginning to the middle of the lyrics, there are many instances of the word “you”; while in the later part, the word “I” is scattered throughout, seemingly sad and sorrowful is “you,” but in reality, it is a reflection of one’s past self.”
Comforting others actually requires wisdom, it’s not about speaking more kind words to soothe their hearts. Just like singing a love song, it’s another matter if it can touch the listener’s heart, even if you sing until tears stream down your face. “There is a big difference between English songs and Cantonese songs. English song lyrics don’t necessarily need to be profound and moving, they just need to focus on expressing the music. On the other hand, Cantonese slow songs have strict requirements for lyrics, whether the pronunciation is correct, which word should be emphasized, which word should be relaxed, it can definitely affect the emotional transmission.”
Some kind of burden
To maintain creativity, Gin Lee revealed that creative people are actually quite abnormal. When experiencing negative emotions, they can feel both pain and sadness, while also reminding themselves to remember this feeling for future singing or music videos. Being rational in sadness and analytical in emotions, this is how Gin Lee describes her multifaceted nature. “I don’t know how much of myself I have presented to everyone since my debut, but I believe that everyone has different facets. One of my facets is the Gin Lee who always enters a certain mode when facing the camera. For others, this mode may make me lack a sense of ‘spontaneity.’ I value performance and I am cautious about saying the wrong things. It’s not easy to relax and let go of burdens, but I still hope that one day I can say, ‘That’s OK, it’s okay to make mistakes.'”
Cold joke
Gin Lee has been in the industry for 12 years, coming to Hong Kong alone from Malaysia to pursue her career. She is already extremely passionate and motivated, and although her journey hasn’t always been smooth sailing, she has never talked about giving up. In addition, she has hardly any negative news, no scandals, and no dark history. The public only knows Gin Lee as the image of a love song, with a distinct style. Coincidentally, Gin Lee has a song called “Ukiyo-e,” which is one of the representative traditional arts of Japan. It emerged during the Edo period in the 17th century and mainly depicted various aspects of social life at that time, such as beautiful women, samurais, and landscapes. Because it often used colors like red, blue, white, and black, it had a visually striking effect. However, despite leaving a deep impression, it is still a traditional art form. As it has transitioned into the 21st century, it has had to blend with contemporary popular concepts, resulting in many contemporary ukiyo-e artists, such as Sanbayashi, who paints diligently as a salaryman, and Yuko Shimizu, who creates whimsical and dreamlike works.
Gin Lee, who admits that she is not very good at entertaining the public, also acknowledges that in the entertainment industry, she cannot be too “artistic” and needs to have down-to-earth topics as a common language to connect with the public. “Actually, I can tell corny jokes too. Until one day, when the people around me responded to my corny joke with the phrase ‘That’s a good one,’ I knew that I had become much more talkative compared to when I first entered the industry.”
“Unknown” and “Already known”
Gin Lee is a curious person who is afraid of being bored and living too routine. New excitement gives her life more energy. Whenever there are new attempts or changes, she always faces them with anticipation and rarely worries or feels uneasy. “I really like to imagine things I have never done before because every new beginning is rare. After joining a new company, I planned my music career again and planned to release songs continuously this year, and release an album at the end of the year. In fact, some of the songs for next year are already prepared.”
I have to say, Gin Lee, who used to be a sprinter in high school, was naturally fast, and it’s no wonder that she no longer longs for the starting point after becoming an athlete. “I rarely say ‘I knew it’ or think ‘if I had more chances, maybe today would be better.’ Everything happens for a reason, even if the choices made are wrong, there must be some meaning for people to learn from it, right? I haven’t done anything terribly wrong, nor have I done anything particularly “bad.” At most, the boldest thing I’ve done in life is coming to Hong Kong alone, right? Besides, I am a rational and calm person, with a very low probability of acting impulsively. Before making a decision, I will definitely do a lot of analysis.”
Gin Lee is even more of a Virgo than a Virgo. She has also checked her birth chart before, and several of the positions belong to Virgo. Occasionally, she would use “perfectionist” to describe her own Virgo personality. Perhaps others only see her insistence on not allowing mistakes, but who would have thought that “never making mistakes” comes from her willingness to spend 40 days practicing a song before she is willing to go on stage to perform.
Executive Producer: Angus Mok
Photographer: Ricky Lo
Art Direction: Ricky Lo & Mimi Kong
Styling: Mimi Kong assisted by Yoanah Chan
Videographer: Kason Tam & Alvin Kong
Video Edit: Kason Tam & Alvin Kong
Makeup: Circle Cheung @ndnco
Hair: EveChiu @w work shop
Interview: Ms. A
Wardrobe: Anteprima, Ambush, Bottega Veneta, Christian Louboutin, Kev Yiu, Max Mara, Victor Chan Studio
