After all the celebrities I’ve met and interviewed, can you believe this is the first autograph I’ve ever gotten? I’m usually more of a get-a-photo-with-the-celeb kind of person, but I was so psyched to be back in action after my maternity leave and everything that I couldn’t turn down the opportunity.
Besides, Orianthi was great. She had none of the airs you might (or might not) expect from someone who’s played for Michael Jackson, plus she stood up to greet every journalist in turn when we entered the room, which not many stars do.
It’s a good thing I took a photo of her autograph before it rubbed off – in an instance of epic fail, I only realised afterwards that this wasn’t done with a permanent marker.
The trailer for The Green Hornet brings back fond memories of when I interviewed Jay Chou last year. Yep, I’m a fan. Can’t say too much about his acting and I have no idea how he’ll fare in this, his first Hollywood movie, but he’s a damn good singer-songwriter in my book.
I wish I could say I impressed him with my marvellous Mandarin, intelligent questions and insightful responses, but even though I stood out, I’m pretty sure it was because I was the only journalist person in the entire place with a baby bump. Here’s an excerpt from my interview, taken from hot Magazine, Issue 148:
You’re going to be in The Green Hornet. How was that experience different compared to filming Asian movies?
Actually, the reason I went overseas was so I could learn new things. The way they make films in Hollywood is very different from Asia – before they start filming, they rehearse for maybe half a month. It’s like acting in theatre. At first, I was a bit impatient. But then I saw how patient Cameron Diaz and the rest of the cast are, how diligent they are in rehearsals, so who am I to say anything? At least I got to see Cameron every day.
Was it difficult to adapt to the language?
It was a bit difficult in the beginning, but after a while, I began to teach them some Mandarin and they were really keen to learn. I spoke to them in my really broken English and my English improved. I wasn’t used to it at first but after I made friends it wasn’t so bad at all.
Do you find acting easier the more you do it?
Actually, acting is easy for me. I like it. It’s fun. I don’t see it as work. I told Cameron that I’m actually a singer and that acting is just something I do for fun, and she was shocked because she’s very serious about her acting whereas I’m just playing.
Many of your films have quite a lot of action in them. Do you want to be an action star?
I’m really happy that people seem to see me as an action star and about the fact that Hollywood wanted me to do The Green Hornet. My first thought was, ‘Why would they choose me? I’m not Jet Li. I’m a singer.’ Action is something I like doing, but it’s not something I’m very good at, I think. After [I signed on to do the movie], I told them, ‘I’m actually a singer. Here, you can listen to some of my music.’ During filming, I’d give out some of my albums and tell people, ‘I’m not really an actor, I’m a singer.’
When it comes to Asian singers, there aren’t a whole lot that I really like and admire. But Jay Chou is one of them. I think he is a brilliant songwriter and he was open, chatty, funny and a little quirky throughout my (group) interview with him so it was great. Lin Chi Ling was also a pleasant surprise. It’s easy to dismiss her as little more than just a pretty face but as it turned out, there is quite a bit of substance under that sweet, gentle facade. The two of them were recently in town with director Kevin Chu for the local premiere of their film The Treasure Hunter.
As someone who gets to interview celebrities – thanks to my job – I’ve had the privilege of chatting with some of the most talented and interesting people I’ll ever meet. As someone who also reads, speaks and writes Mandarin – thanks to my dad who insisted upon my Chinese education – I couldn’t help noticing something the other day: Asian starlets like talking about their weight loss.
Now I don’t mean when they are asked a direct question about it because that would be unfair, but in the last few months, I’ve read at least two press releases with paragraphs devoted to how much weight a particular rising starlet has lost. And I recently interviewed a budding singer who cites her biggest career regret as eating so much that she now has to lose weight. Really?
I understand these aspiring youngsters have a certain physical appearance they need to achieve, especially in the Chinese music industry where the average wannabe star weighs about 45kg or less, but honestly, it makes it just a tad difficult for me to take them seriously when, out of all the things they could be talking about in order to establish themselves as artistes, they choose to announce their weight.
Besides, I’m pretty sure many of the other singers and actresses face the same pressures daily and most of them actually have more important things to talk about and would like to avoid the topic, thank you very much.
One of my highlights of the past month – attending the Black Eyed Peas press conference when they were in town. I know these photos are a little late but the Peas were huge then, they’re huge today and I’m pretty sure they’re still going to be huge tomorrow.
The one thing I will always remember about this press conference, other than seeing and talking to the Peas in the flesh, is how security wouldn’t allow R out of the room to go to the toilet. And this was before the Peas arrived. MA had to go earlier so she got out safely and was confronted upon her return by a security guy who wanted to know where she had been. She said, “Err… the toilet?”
About 20 minutes later, R decided she had to go but when she tried to leave the room, security said, “Sorry, but you’ll have to find another way.” As if there was a window. Or an opening through the ceiling. Or a toilet behind the stage.
apl.de.ap, Taboo, Fergie and will.i.am eventually showed up, of course, and even though they were over an hour late, I was so thrilled I forgave them. Currently loving their song ‘Imma Be’.
2AM. They don’t speak English too well but they sure can sing.
Estranged. This is the actual view from where my seat was. So I found a better corner and maximised my camera’s zoom function.
Raygun. Their single ‘Just Because’ is really growing on us in the office.
Pixie Lott. She’s only 18 years old and an absolute darling. And talented.
Boys Like Girls. They’re a little scruffier than you’d imagine a band with the words “boy” and “girl” in their name would look.
Hoobastank. They said they were probably the least dressed-up of the bands there. They were right.
The All-American Rejects. I swear there’s never a dull moment with these guys.
Kasabian. The guys made it, swine flu rumours and all.
MTV VJs Denise and Utt. This is the view from my corner, without zoom. I regretfully concede I may need a better camera, tough as my old-school Sony Cybershot is. The flash just didn’t cut it this time.
There are several reasons why I love doing what I do. Meeting talented, interesting and nice people (good-looking is just a bonus) and getting to hear their stories probably ranks on top. I’ve never been very good at telling my stories; I always feel the dramatic ones are overly melodramatic and almost everything else is boring. And so I’ve always preferred writing about someone else. Especially when they have something interesting and/or intelligent to say.
All-American Rejects Tyson and Mike had lots to say. As did Doug and Jesse of Hoobastank. I was lucky enough to land a group interview with both bands during MTV World Stage Live In Malaysia last weekend. And I’ve probably said this before, but as big a fan as I am of talent, I am an even bigger fan of nice. I feel being talented, famous and successful doesn’t give a person the right to be an arrogant ass, and it’s far more difficult (and underrated) to be nice, especially when you don’t have to be, than it is to be talented. You are born with talent after all.
(This quote by rabbi Abraham Joshua Heschel that I think I read on Sivin’s Twitter has stuck with me all fortnight. “When I was young, I used to admire intelligent people; as I grow older, I admire kind people.” Yep, I’m definitely getting older. And yes, I had to Google the rabbi.)
So these guys were really nice. Which was fantastic. We got a quick photo opportunity with Pixie Lott while she was grabbing a bite – I felt bad about interrupting her finger sandwich, actually – but otherwise, I didn’t really get a chance to meet the other bands that were in town. From what I heard, most of them were pretty approachable. Which is the way it should be I think, but then again, I have always been a tad too idealistic. I’ll come back to that later.
I’m not sure what I expected from the interviews – laughs, great quotes, interesting insights? – but one thing I didn’t expect was to be inspired and to walk away with a whole new respect for Hoobastank. Without taking anything away from Tyson and Mike (shuffle the names around and you get Mike Tyson) who were wonderful and quirky and weird in a really cool way, it was Doug and Jesse who struck a chord as they talked about their music and how the band has been playing together for 15 years and how they try to stick to their ideals as musicians.
It wasn’t even a question I’d prepared but one that came to me in the last five minutes of the interview. And it was just amazing to me how a bunch of guys started a band in high school and named it a stupid word they didn’t even know the meaning to – those are Doug’s words, not mine – and 15 years down the road they’re still playing together because they love music so much. Obviously they’re not the only band who’s done that and it’s all nothing I didn’t already know, but somehow, given the context and hearing it from the guys themselves as they talked about money and integrity and being homegrown…
It could hardly have been more timely for this slightly jaded, cynical writer who was and still is going through this idealistic and integrity-obsessed phase. I’m demanding more integrity of Y and myself and I’m revisiting my ideals as a writer. Is it really possible to be an earning writer without sacrificing my integrity? I understand the pressure to write what others want to read, especially when money is on the line, but surely there must be a way to balance both? I remember someone once telling me I was too idealistic, it may have been my mother, and oh dear, it’s starting all over again.
I still can’t quite believe that you are gone. I know I wrote two pieces on you today for work, but those photos we ran of you make me feel as if you are still very much alive.
The industry, the country, is mourning. I don’t know if you realise how many lives you have touched, but your influence was phenomenal. So many are so sad, although, as I wrote this morning in the office, “sad” doesn’t quite cut it when we’re talking about losing a nation’s champion of love, equality and acceptance.
I was privileged to have spent several hours with you once. I don’t know if you remember doing that interview with me. I thought you were beautiful in your passion, words, warmth, grace and elegance. And now that you are no longer with us, it is my hope that the ideals you carried, your dreams of seeing a people united, a people blind to the differences of race and religion, will shine on.
You will be missed so much I cannot even begin to imagine.
The last time I was at KLCC was… I don’t remember when, and suddenly I’ve been there twice in two days. For work. Although I also had fun.
The first was the Nike Manchester United press conference on Friday. I’m no football fanatic – my allegiances usually lie with the better-looking team although I also appreciate the game – but I was happy to brave horrendous KL traffic for this. I’m actually related to Manchester United fans, my mum, brother and brother-in-law are supporters, and for a brief period back in high school, I even rooted for the team, um, when David Beckham was part of it.
Having declared my love of football-kicking eye candy, I have to say I’m feeling a lot less antagonistic towards the Red Devils since the departure of Cristiano Ronaldo, who I find incredibly whiny, ill-behaved and overly-gelled, and the arrival of Michael Owen, who I have a soft spot for.
When Sher and I finally settled down in the press conference tent, we got the not-so-great news: Only four players were going to be at our press conference because there was another one going on at the exact same time. And the wonderful news: There was plenty of food to tide us over what would turn out to be a long wait, including chocolate balls, chocolate brownies and cheesecake squares. We couldn’t have hoped for better, really.
Here’s Sher deliberating our third round of food. We eventually gave in to the call of the chocolate ball, or at least, I did. Excuse my grainy pictures, my trusty phone doesn’t do too well in anything less than direct sunlight.
And here they finally are! (From L-R) Darren Fletcher, Darron Gibson, Rio Ferdinand and Luis Nani.
The guys later played a five-minute exhibition match against the winners of a street soccer tournament, which Sher, Mary and I watched from the comfort of the air-conditioned tent. I’m usually a big fan of the sun so believe me when I say it was absolutely sweltering – even I knew better than to sit outdoors and melt gradually into a sticky puddle when there was an alternative.
But when it was all over (read: we were forced to leave the tent), we accidentally found ourselves in the very choice position of standing right by the VIP lane. And that’s where my camera phone did not let me down this time.
As for the second reason I was in KLCC, it was a lot less exciting – a makeup workshop organised in conjunction with our magazine – and I have zero pictures from that.
The first song I heard after learning about Michael Jackson’s death was ‘You Are Not Alone’. It made me sad. In the past, I’d watch footage of girls going hysterical, sobbing and fainting while the King of Pop performed and wonder what would happen when he died. I guess now I’ll find out. Except, this wasn’t quite how I imagined he would go. Not on the eve of his comeback series of concerts, not when for the first time in years, he seemed like he might be getting it back together again.
Talent trumps controversy. That was my first thought as I sat in my car. Granted the man has had his faults, his eccentricities, his many, many controversies, but he was also one of the most talented people the world has ever seen. He was the greatest in what he did, and although there will inevitably be imitations of him, I don’t think there will ever be another combination of songwriting, singing and dancing like Michael Jackson. Oh the dancing, especially the dancing. And that is what people are going to remember.
My second thought was, now I’ll never get to see him live. I should have gone the one chance I had, that one time he performed in KL. It’s a constant regret of Y’s, one that he brings up from time to time whenever we talk about concerts and live performances. Guess it’s too late now. I think if I had seen him, his death would feel even more surreal. I think it’s a sign that I’m getting older when celebrities I’ve actually heard of and listened to and watched start dying. Until this morning, I’d forgotten that Michael Jackson was already 50 years old. He would have turned 51 in August.
When his London concerts were announced, someone in the office asked if he was healthy enough to perform. I guess so, I said. He seemed pretty alright from what we saw of the press conference. And then someone (and none of us could remember which of us it was) said, what if he dies during the concerts? As it turned out, he never even got to start. Rest in peace, Michael. I know you’ve got some pretty nasty stuff to your name but you deserve to be remembered for your music. That’s your real legacy and I hope we don’t screw that up.
