[article] Girl Power in Asian Pop Scene

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Girl Power in Asian Pop Scene

By Cathy Rose A. Garcia
Staff Reporter

KWANGJU _ Whether they are performing pop, dance or rock music, top Asian female artists showed they’re more than just beautiful faces at the third Asia Song Festival last Friday.

Kitchie Nadal is one of the most popular singers in the Philippines. At 26, Nadal does not only have a unique melodic voice, but she also composes her music and writes poetic lyrics.

Definitely not one of those music industry manufactured pop princesses, Nadal is in control of what kind of music she wants to do, and she wants to stay ``real.'' ``(In the music industry) it’s so sad because that you’re expected to be someone you’re not. You have to compromise, but I don’t want that,'' she told The Korea Times.

Nadal said she does not want to be constrained by labels such as pop or rock singer.

``I don’t want to be labeled. It’s like I’m putting limits on myself,'' she said.

In the future, Nadal wants to bring her brand of Filipino music to the rest of Asia, but she’s still waiting for the right opportunity.

On the other hand, Hong Kong pop diva Kelly Chen may be known to Asian audiences as an actress, but she has sold millions of pop albums in the Mandarin Chinese-speaking market.

In a separate interview, Chen said she would like to expand her music career to the rest of Asia but admits it will take a lot of time and effort.

``I would like to conquer other Southeast Asian countries, but I would need to spend time for it. It is difficult to go around because of my schedule,'' Chen said.

Chen said she finds there are not as many challenges for female singers as for female actresses.

``There are not so many barriers as a singer. Music is universal. But as an actor, there are many movies that require male leads but there are not much stories that require female leads,'' she said.

Japanese pop superstar Koda Kumi is known for her sexy and stylish image and has recently received the MTV Japan best female singer award.

``At first, I was conscious about this image, but I really exerted effort to bring out myself, since I have this complexion, slim body and fashion of my own, which I think is my charm. When they say I’m sexy, I just take it as ‘that’s me.’ I enjoy what I’m doing,'' she said, during the Asia Song Festival news conference on Thursday evening

Tanya Chua, a singer-songwriter from Singapore, said she also wants to share her folk music with other Asian audiences. Chua, who combines Chinese and English lyrics in her songs, recently won the best female singer award at Taiwan’s Golden Melody Awards.

Girl Power in Asian Pop Scene