Singer 2018 is an incredibly popular show in China. It is always ranked in first or second place on TV in China and it’s watched worldwide. It is a singing competition and the competitors are well-established, famous singers. Obviously I am rooting for Hua Hua (as you can tell by the title and nature of this post). A competitor you may be familiar with is Jessie J from the UK.
I blogged about Hua Chenyu (everyone calls him Hua Hua). You can read it here. I wrote that post in 2017. He gained a lot of fans because of Singer 2018. ^^ He is my number one favourite singer for multiple reasons. I talked about that in that blog post. Hua Hua is truly so talented. These are his performances in each episode, starting from episode 4 (he did not sing in the first three episodes). The show is not done airing and Hua Hua has reached the finals. ^^
Episode 4 – 齐天 Qi Tian
- This is Hua Hua’s song, not a cover. It’s the theme song for the film, 悟空传 Wu Kong (Remember I wanted to read a novel called Monkey? Wu Kong is the name of that monkey)
- He won first place
- He’s amazing at holding long notes
- He raps in the middle
- After I watched this video a few weeks ago, I wore all black clothes and pink eyeshadow that day LOL
Episode 5 – 孩子 Child
- The original singer of the song is 西樓
- He’s wearing white clothes and sings at a slower pace. It contrasts from the previous episode
- This is not one of my favourite performances of his
Episode 6 – 双节棍 Nunchucks
- The original singer is one of my favourite singers, 周杰伦 Jay Chou
- Hua Hua made huge changes to the song. I actually prefer this a lot more than the original (I didn’t like Jay Chou’s Nunchucks)
- It’s rap heavy
- Hua Hua incorporated Chinese opera – This made the performance one of my favourites from this season
- Hua Hua’s stage presence is phenomenal. When he is not performing, he is a little shy and introverted (but so adorable). When he is performing, he is full of confidence. It’s a big change. I love how dynamic he is
- He came in first place
Episode 7 – 我管你 I Don’t Care
- This is one of Hua Hua’s songs. Everyone in the audience knows this, which is why he invites them to join him in some parts
- It’s one of my favourite songs of his because of the lyrics. It’s about being true to yourself, embracing your uniqueness, and not giving a f*k about others’ opinions. If you’re a regular reader of my blog, you probably know that I value being true to myself, even if it means being a little different. If I cared so much about fitting in, then I would not be wearing fruit hair ties or cosplaying as male characters. ^^
- Back to Hua Hua – It’s clear that he stands by his own lyrics
- He placed in first place
Episode 8 – 易燃易爆炸 Super Explosive
- He is dressed in black because the lyric composer suddenly passed away. He was going to sing a different song but changed it to this at the last minute. It’s his way of mourning her death
Episode 9 – 山海 Mountain and Sea
- The original is by 草東沒有派對 No Party For Cao Dong
- The lyrics are quite deep and sad
- He ranked in fifth place, but I think the performance was wonderful. Up to now, he has always placed in the top three
Episode 10 – 假行僧 Fake Monk
- This performance is absolutely HAUNTING! It’s one of my favourites
- He does a crazy/creepy laugh and I love it!
- We get to see how versatile he is as a singer. For example, he can sing really high-pitched and we see that here
- It is a little different, but that makes him unique, special, and it makes him stand out. I understand that some people are not able to get used to this sort of performance
Episode 11 – 平凡之路 Ordinary Path
- The original is sung by Lion
- He re-arranged the song. When he arranges music, he does not eat or sleep for two days. It is concerning, but Hua Hua says that he feels joy in doing this. This shows how dedicated he is to his work, and how important music is to him. It’s no wonder that he never fails to deliver amazing performances
Episode 12 – 我 I Am What I Am
- The original is by 张国荣 Leslie Cheung
- This is one of my favourite performances of his
- He came in first place
- I love the lyrics. “I am what I am… I like who I am…” – This is a theme in so many of Hua Hua’s songs. Common themes he sings about are enjoying loneliness, being true to yourself, and liking yourself. My values line up with his values very well
- The first thing I noticed was his clothing choice. It looks like he is wearing a bathrobe but I think this choice of fashion goes well with the song’s meaning about being yourself and liking who you are
- After watching the performance, it is clear that he has experienced a lot of pain. Hua Hua opens up to us through his music. In his childhood, he spent a lot of time alone because his father was always working. Music was what he turned to, similar to what anime did for me
- It’s a very emotional song. He is almost in tears and the audience is in tears. I almost cried too LOL
- I almost cried because I was lonely when I was a kid too. I didn’t fit in with the other children at school but I never tried to change myself. At a young age I valued being true to myself. It’s not that I didn’t want friends – I wanted friends who would accept me for who I was. To add onto this – just knowing that he felt pain and loneliness is very sad for me because he is my favourite singer
Final thoughts: The song choices were very deliberately chosen. I know that a lot of non-Chinese listeners like his vocals, but I think it would be great if you could also read English translations of the song lyrics. Then the gaps in understanding will be filled and we can fully appreciate everything he does.
I hope he wins the competition! ^^
Wretched and Divine 