The Cantopop queen talks astrology, karaoke and being the soundtrack to all those ads. By Leon Lee

With her songs and commercials ubiquitous across Hong Kong, Joey Yung is a name even Cantopop haters would be familiar with. The self-proclaimed ‘nobody’ has worked her way up to become the queen of the genre, winning scores of fans with her romantic ballads and furious dancing as well as numerous awards. Last year, the youthful songstress celebrated her tenth year as a singer but she shows no signs of slowing down, and this fortnight she’ll be performing with fellow Cantopop stars Grasshopper, Big Four and Ekin Cheng at Summer Pop.

Hi Joey, you’ve just come from a press conference. What was it for?
Something really cool – it was for the first 3D music video by a Hong Kong singer. The video was for a love song from my last album called Scarred.

That does sound pretty cool. So did you have to act in front of a green scene?
I didn’t really look into the process, I just know they used a 3D process to film the video.

So let’s move onto your music. Do you get bored of always singing love songs?
[Laughs] I’ve sung all the different types of love songs there is and there was a time when I was bored of them because I thought that there should be more to life than just love. There are many other messages that I want to spread with my God-given voice. But in the last two years, maybe it’s because I’m getting older, I’m starting to understand that love songs and music in general is very important. We listen to music to express our happiness and when we are sad, it’s like a friend that would listen to our complaints and console us.

Maybe you can try something different for your next album.
I’ve thought about that! I was thinking maybe for my next album, the whole record would analyse our society. I would sing about things that everyone wants to know about. However I’m an artist with endorsement deals so whenever I make a new album, there has to be one or two songs that could be used for commercials.

Do you think obligations like that limit you as an artist?
In some ways it does, but in other ways it’s given me opportunities. There are times when I can’t do what I want and I would get annoyed but I’m an optimistic person. When you think about it, in a time when the music industry is struggling, life would be harder without these sponsors supporting us. So we would sit down with them and negotiate a compromise on certain decisions.

If ten years ago someone told you that you would become Hong Kong’s Cantopop Queen, would you have believed them?
Absolutely not. I wouldn’t have even dared to think about that. However on my one and only visit to a fortune teller, a face reader, he told me that I would become a successful person in the future. Of course, I didn’t believe it back then but it might’ve been because of this reading that my record company decided to develop my career. Soon my first album was released and I’ve been on this path ever since.

What’s a typical day like in the life of Joey Yung?
If they ever want to film a documentary of my life, it would be terrible. Besides work, I’m a pretty boring person. Once I get off of work, the only place that I want to go to is home. Sometimes if I’m not too tired after work, I would go shopping or watch a movie. Actually I really like to sing karaoke.

Do you sing your own songs in karaoke?
Very little, don’t you think I sing enough of it every day? I’ll sing other people’s songs but if my friends really push me, I’ll do one, or when they’re going through a breakup.

Apart from music, I’ve heard you have an interest in fashion and design. Have you ever tried to design your own stage costumes?
I would discuss with the costume designers about what I want and give them references. But actually designing my own, I don’t think I have the knowledge to do it. I would like to learn more about it and if I can wear clothes designed by myself in the future, that would be great.

That doesn’t sound too far-fetched because you don’t seem to shy away from hard work. I’m kind of the same way.
Oh yeah? What’s your astrology sign?

My sign? I’m a Leo.
That’s good, born in August.

You believe in that type of stuff?
Yeah, Leos are compatible with me. I’m a Gemini.

Good to know that we’re compatible. Getting back to fashion, what do you think is the best trend in Hong Kong today?
[Sighs] To tell you the truth, I think Hong Kong lacks creativity and people don’t really have an idea of what is beautiful. It seems people don’t really spend a lot of time trying to figure out what’s fashionable. No one is perfect so we wear clothes to hide our flaws and highlight our strengths. Hong Kong people tend to just blindly follow trends. But obviously not everyone in Hong Kong is like this.

That’s quite deep.
Ten years in this industry is a very long time and I’ve learnt a lot. I’m only sharing with you what I’ve experienced. I could have never imagined achieving this type of success. When I think back, this last decade passed by so quickly. But I don’t think I’ve changed much except I’m ten years older. I’m still the same happy and simple girl.

Joey Yung plays Summer Pop at the Coliseum from Friday 27 to Sunday 29. Tickets: 2734 9009; www.urbtix.hk.