FREE TO SING Songbird Stefanie Sun cuts the commercial ties that bind her to the record companies and does her own thing with a big heart.
By Lim Yann Ling
NOW busy with her 11th album - her first attempt to put together one on her own - Stefanie Sun is also planning a concert next year.
The singer, who grew up in Singapore and spends a lot of time abroad these days, pauses to share her thoughts on how she celebrates the Christmas season.
“I actually like the whole retail efforts of Christmas jingles and fake snow and although I have never seen real snow, the festive mood in Orchard Road is good enough for me. Christmas is Christmas, it’s always special,” she says.
“Charitable causes are always at the back of my mind. I do hope to make another trip with World Vision in 2009 and follow up on the Sichuan earthquake’s aftermath with Mercy Relief.”
And what would be the best way for her to celebrate the season?
“The most memorable way is to celebrate with the entire extended family, which is 40 of us did once at my parent’s place. There were barbeque chicken wings, turkey, and log cake. It was a fabulous mix of traditional and local.” she says.
This year has been a milestone for Sun as she has severed most of her business ties with her record companies.
“It was a painful decision to make,” she says.
“I remember typing in an sms, ‘I am not signing it. I am going to be free.” It still sends shivers down my spine when I think of it now, but it’s good in a way,” she says of her recording contracts.
The Mandarin pop queen’s debut album Yan Zi created music history in 2000, when her signature track Cloudy day (Tian Hei Hei) became the most requested song on the airwaves.
Breaking the million -album mark in sales in 2001 with her third album, Kite, she has come a long way, but shows no sign of stopping. ———————————————————————————————————
