The Music at the Intersection of Two Cultures
When I was in middle school I discovered the music of Taiwanese pop star Jay Chou. My Mandarin wasn’t good enough to understand his lyrics, but, thinking that his odes to unrequited love were more relatable than those of an American pop star, I’d ask my mom to translate — at least until our conversations became unbearable lectures on etymology, proper enunciation, and somehow, always, my character. But a rare excitement still hung in her voice as she’d sing songs by the pop stars of her generation — Tsai Chin of course, and Fei Yu-ching. Later I learned that my mom was something of a choir star growing up, representing Fengyuan in traveling competitions. […]
