She was the hot favourite to win the Best New Artist at this year's Taiwan Golden Melodies Award. Tong En, at 22 years old this year, came back to the music scene after a year with her 2nd album packaged with several surprises. Firstly, the production team has decided to give Tong En a makeover, not only appearance wise, as well as genre of songs selected for this album. We have seen a more lively and rebellious Tong En in her debut album - a teenager who wants to be herself, and I believe the lukewarm response may be the reason in a differing outlook for this entire album. A girl-next-door look was chosen abruptly as the overall image for this album. 袁惟仁, one of Taiwan's well known producers, took the challenge this time round to enhance Tong En's vocal potential and capacity in several ballads. Even though he did add a tinge of folk pop, it still fails to brighten the gloomy atmosphere created in this album.
When I first heard a snippet of the title track 不准哭 on Tong En's blog, I was amazed by the improvements she have made over a year. A right amount of emotions instilled, plus Tong En's impressive vocal control throughout the song, touches the hearts of those listening to this song. 一下下, a local composition by Xiao Han and Eric Huang, is another heart rendering piece and Tong En handled the song with ease, coupled with emotional, heartfelt vocals. Both of them definitely live up to their name as the 'golden' pair of musicians in Singapore.
Her versatility was amplified in her debut album, as she juggled with different genres of music then. Similarly in this album, the selection of songs challenges Tong En's vocal capacity and capability. For tracks like 悲伤作业 and 若无其事, she tends to exert more power in her vocal presentation, giving her voice a rather raw feeling in these soft rock pieces. On the other hand, in tear-jerking ballads such as 一个人遗憾 and 在你眼里 depict a more feminine and delicate side of Tong En. Personally, I prefer the latter, especially her pleasing finishing at the high notes, producing a soothing, lingering sensation in the ears of her listeners. Another favourite of mine in this album goes to 三点半, composed by 阿怪. Folk seems to be the best ingredient to spice up her voice, as we hear her performing this track relaxingly and comfortably. A song suitable to be played on a lazy weekend afternoon.
Her duet with Van Fan in 相爱 came as a surprise. Credits should be given to the producer, Huang Shu Jun who managed to blend the voices of both singers beautifully in this romantic piece.
With this album, Rebecca has convinced me and most critics that she is a talented singer, however her record sales failed to reflect this thought. Immense competition and piracy has led to disappointing sales, and this was further worsened by the record company's sloppy and poor promotion scheme.
We can only pray for the release of her next album.
