Saturday, November 03, 2012
《第12届全球华语歌曲排行榜颁奖典礼》
The Global Chinese Music Awards are into their 12th year, and it's only the 2nd time that it's held in Singapore, with a regular rotation of host cities Singapore, Kuala Lumpur, Taipei, Hong Kong, Guangzhou, Shanghai and Beijing. I attended the ceremony in 2006 when it was first held in Singapore, and again last night, thanks to tickets from Wenjian and Quanrui.
Yes, I genuinely thank F&N Fruit Tree Fresh for letting us win tickets again! (I didn't win, but I benefitted.) The seats were really great and it was a very worthwhile 3.5-hour show.
I took pictures and had uploaded on Facebook, but I won't be posting them here, since they aren't exactly worth sharing anyway.
If you were not there at the Indoor Stadium last night, nor did you listen to the LIVE radio broadcast, you can still catch the TV telecast tonight (8pm, 3 November 2012) on Channel U. But here's some thoughts:
1. As with the case of the annual 新加坡金曲奖, the turnout wasn't stellar. This is expected, because not many fans will want to pay to watch their idols perform just 5-10 minutes in a 'mixed' event like an awards ceremony. The organisers should further consider the possibilities of keeping costs low to drive down ticket prices.
2. The Warm-up segment (before the actual ceremony) included a Gangnam Style dance performance. Let me say this: We should all be SICK of this by now, STOP IT! And what is more ironic than having a Korean song played during a ceremony that celebrates Chinese pop? At least during the 星光大道 segment, when 罗志祥 was asked if he'd incorporate Gangnam Style in his dance moves, he said “不会，我支持华人音乐。” Nice, for once.
3. The BEST part of the ceremony, was the performance segment by 林俊杰。He was given the longest performance time and he nailed it with a live band, performing hits from winners of the "Best Album" award from previous years. That included [爱爱爱]、[安静]、[淘汰]、[寂寞寂寞就好]、[一千年以后]、[学不会]。The live atmosphere was quite electrifying. Watch it HERE.
4. The WORST part of the ceremony, was when 李伟菘 was presenting awards. He can be a genius in composing songs, but he's a nightmare when it comes to addressing crowds. The hosts on stage must have been perspiring over the countless 冷场 moments and over the irrelevant things he said. If it was on Halloween, I might still think that he was arranged as part of the festival.
5. The most meaningful part of the ceremony, was when 蔡健雅 performed [掌声响起] as a tribute to 凤飞飞。It was definitely a must-sing, but I would also have enjoyed it more if it was made into a medley, with songs like [枫叶情] and [松林的低语]。These are my true favourites.
6. I was very looking forward to hear the 自弹自唱 by 曹轩宾 [可惜不是你]，and 曲婉婷 [我的歌声里]。Both were indeed superb and they both got the stadium singing along, although both of them were still relatively 'new'. But I still preferred another live rendition by 曹轩宾 [可惜不是你] in a China show: HERE. On the other hand, 曲婉婷 surpassed expectations.
7. 丁当、郁可唯、杨丞琳、阿杜、伍家辉、OLIVIA、陈芳语、陈奕迅、杨宗纬、MR. and 薛凯琪 all performed songs that had been frequently played over the airwaves in the past year and were hence familiar. I would appreciate if they included lyrics on the big screens, as that would encourage the audience to sing along with the familiar tunes, making the event even more enjoyable.
8. On the other hand, 容祖儿、TWINS and 大嘴巴 did songs that I hadn't heard before, and was unable to register any lasting impressions for now.
9. 东山少爷 was the only singer that I hadn't heard of, and that was because he specialises in Cantonese songs. If it weren't for the regional reach of GCMA, he wouldn't be here. But his Cantonese song [光阴的歌] was good, and it qualifies as a bonus for the night.
10. 陈洁仪 was awarded the 流行乐坛卓越歌手奖。If you try googling this award to see who else have received it in the past 11 awards, the answer is NONE. Oh, so just because it's held in Singapore, the organisers decided to create it out of thin air, so that they can honour a Singaporean here. But it's fine, because I'm actually not complaining. I've got friends from China who has NEVER heard of Kit Chan, because she's only bigger in Singapore and Hong Kong. Awarding this one-off prestigious award to her will help in her name overseas. She did [喜欢你]、[兄妹]、[心痛] etc, and you can bet that it was one superb segment that needed no elaboration.
11. 罗志祥 did a short medley of dance songs. Ok, enough said. He's got the loudest cheers from all around, but did he sing at all? I don't get it.
人生是黑白的.
2:31 PM <3
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Wednesday, October 31, 2012
MSN Messenger.
Have you already forgotten about it?
With the rise of smartphones, it's really become yet another sunset item.
Gone are the days of overnight MSN chats where gossips and nonsensical stuff prevailed.
Gone are the nights when massive group chats took up more time than studying.
Teenagers today do not even install the latest MSN Messenger into their desktops (if they haven't already gotten their iPads and Galaxy Tabs), instead, they scramble to update their existing WhatsApp on their smartphones.
Tonight, I opened my MSN, with the hope of finding a certain contact to discuss certain matters. But all I could see, were just 10 'Online' acquaintances. What happened to the other 100-odd friends who had been permanently online whenever I signed in?
Is it time that I remove MSN Messenger from my life?
人生是黑白的.
10:50 PM <3
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