words rachel mok

Meg Chan proves she doesn’t have to be in a band to make happy music

Contrary to what many people may think, singer-songwriter Meg Chan is not a new face in our ever-changing music industry. For she was the vocalist of local college rock trio Star Box who released two albums before splitting up. After that she returned to the working world but is now taking off on her musical journey again with the solo EP, Single Happy.

Her story began in 1999 when the now well-known singer-songwriter Chet Lam invited Chan – both were studying at the City University of HK at the time – to join his band. “They even had a manager already,” she chuckles, recalling how things happened so quickly. Together with Jone Chui and Albert Au, now a renowned songwriter and an entertainment news anchor respectively, they were soon signed by Taiwan’s Rock Records. The band based themselves in Taiwan and, despite Lam’s withdrawal at an early stage, managed to carry on, releasing two albums even though their heart-warming Mandarin language acoustic tunes were not well received in our Cantopop-oriented city.

Although quite active in the live music scene in the past few years, Chan is still sometimes described as a complete newcomer by the press. Is she even slightly upset about this? “Actually it’s good, I was always known as Ah Fung (from her Chinese name Chan Fung) from Star Box,” she says. “But now people will know I am Meg Chan. It’s good to give people a fresh feeling.” I wonder if it is actually lucky for us (though tough for her) that Chan started her music career in Taiwan. If she had been signed by a major record company in Hong Kong, we would now have another beautifully packaged, perfectly imaged soulless singer. But for her, it is personal growth that counts.

“When I was in Hong Kong, I was just a karaoke person and didn’t know much about music,” she confesses. “But the friends I made in Taiwan listen to a wide range of music, and that was when I started to learn more about different genres.” During Star Box’s two and a half years in Taiwan, Chan was particularly close with Fish Leong, the Malaysia-born pop artist who now dominates the Taiwanese music scene. The two often exchange records, and Meg Chan realized she could actually write her own songs. Though not proficient in any instrument, she would record melodies vocally whenever they popped into her head. She penned and wrote the lyrics of three of the songs on her new seven-track EP including Hate, the first tune she ever wrote.

Chan’s fragile voice is reminiscent of the early Faye Wong – someone the singer really looks up to. But the similarity also had its woes. “When I had my first singing class in Taiwan, the first thing my coach asked was if I was a fan of Faye Wong.” On admitting she was, the coach’s advice was, “Put her records away for a while because you are imitating her too much.” Thinking back, Meg found it good advice: “I got to find my own style,” she says

Another artist the singer admires is Madonna – Chan once flew all the way to Holland for her concert. Nothing could stop her – not even losing all her luggage upon arrival could alter her mood. “From that I learned the most important thing to take when travelling is your credit card,” she says. Although Madonna’s concerts play all over the world, Chan got her Dutch treat. The venue, she says, was like a disco with people dancing and drinking beer. “And of course there was… weed,” comes the unexpected memory. “At one point Madonna actually said on stage, ‘There’s some funny smoke here!’”

Meg Chan will be performing at Backstage on May 16. The show starts at 10:30pm and entry costs $140 at door with one drink.