The Greater China market vs the Malaysia/Indonesia market, language aside, what are the key differences in the music landscape for these markets?
We spoke to Shila Amzah, the Malaysian singer whose rise to fame came when she participated in “I Am A Singer” (Season 2) in 2014. She eventually finished third overall in the Chinese reality TV competition and is currently based in Hong Kong.
Shila Amzah has her sights set on Taiwan
Shila Amzah: The beauty of music is that it has no geographic and language boundaries. We do often listen to music even we do not understand the lyrics, as long as they are pleasant to the ears. If I really need to compare, I guess China has a wider acceptance of different genres of music. Apart from the pop culture, the folk culture is equally strong, which I personally find very interesting. I was recently appeared in a folk music TV programme, and during the film I got the chance to speak and work with some remarkable veteran folk song singers in China. They are so friendly and inspiring and we got so carried away with our conversation in preserving this type of music and singing techniques, which I found equally important and relevant to the countries of South East Asia.
How about the audience, any fundamental difference?
Shila Amzah: The Chinese fans are very passionate indeed, whenever I go in China I seem to bump into fans who would like to take a snap with me or just to say hi and show their love to my songs. Back home in Hong Kong and Malaysia, fans are more casual and welcoming with my presence. They usually giving me space to do my personal activities and gather with my families and friends. Of course, there will still be a few who will politely approach me for photos and I’m generally are happy to fulfil their wish. I must say I enjoy both part of the worlds. One thing they are in common is that whenever I am on stage, they become so crazy and passionate of my live performance. This really gives me the power to SING!
Besides Mainland China and Hong Kong, are you also setting your sights on Taiwan?
Shila Amzah: Taiwan most definitely! The music scene in Taiwan is also very developed, producing a lot of remarkable singers and musicians over the years. I cannot wait to work with them if possible. My passion to the work of Leehom Wang has been well documented in the media so I guess I don’t need to repeat myself here. Recently, I have a song produced by famous singer songwriter Khalil Fong and we have plans to feature this song in Taiwan, my Hong Kong team is currently planning for this in conjunction with my upcoming first Mandarin album. Stay tuned!
source: http://www.music-asia.com/
