Plain fish no more
Malaysian singer Fish Leong has not only become prettier, but is
also topping the charts, by Chang May Choon
THIS Fish has morphed into a butterfly.
Five years after her Mandopop debut, Malaysian singer Fish Leong has
finally blossomed from plain Jane to Queen Of Ballads.
Much like the butterfly-shaped stand on which she descended onto the
stage at the opening of her recent concert in Taipei, the 26-year-
old popster is spreading her wings and soaring up the music charts.
With her crooked teeth fixed, her petite figure toned - with some
help from a slimming salon endorsement - and her wardrobe revamped
to look trendier and sexier, the made-over Fish has made both fans
and media alike sit up and gawk.
One of her fans, Tan Jun Yan, 16, remarked: 'Fish has become so much
prettier these days.'
Indeed.
Now Fish has a luminous glow about her, and she croons with
confidence on stage - a far departure from the shy girl hiding
behind centre-parted hair years ago.
Celebrity stylist David Gan, who styles Fish's hair,
commented: 'When Fish first debuted, she was just another average-
looking singer, a litle chubby, uncouth even.
'But she's been changing slowly. Her style is classic, like Teresa
Teng. She's not a beauty, but she has good vocals and she looks
polished and presentable.'
Whatever Fish is doing, she's doing it right.
SELLING MORE ALBUMS
In the past year alone, she has sold more albums than in the
previous four years combined.
Both her new album, Wings Of Love (her seventh release), and her
previous, The Power Of Love Songs, have sold over a million copies
each, according to her record label, Rock Records.
Fish has also topped several music charts from Taiwan to China,
Malaysia and Singapore, and attracted lots of male fans.
The singer herself observed: 'Suddenly I'm seeing a lot more guys
turning up at my autograph sessions, and their eyes seem to be
telling me, 'Finally you've become beautiful'.'
The secret of her successful metamorphosis is, in a word, confidence.
Fish, who was in town last week to promote her new album, Wings Of
Love, said she is no longer as meek and withdrawn as she was when
she first started out.
She moved to Taipei from Negri Sembilan to pursue showbiz dreams
after being discovered by famed Taiwanese producer, Jonathan Li.
Then a raw and impressionable 19-year-old, Fish said her confidence
was badly shaken when she overheard someone from her record company
grumble that she was 'very hard to package', given her plain looks.
'My heart ached, and I felt like crying whenever I was in bed at
night,' she recalled in a wistful tone.
Further rubbing salt on her wound was the lacklustre response to her
debut album, Growing Up Overnight, which got drowned in the deluge
of media reports on the destructive 921 earthquake in 1999.
'I used to be cheerful and mischievous, but after that, I became
introverted and withdrawn, and I closed myself up.'
It was her unwavering love for singing and firm support from her
family that kept her going, and luckily, things changed for the
better after the success of her second album, Courage.
But it wasn't until her best hits compilation last year, The Power
Of Love Songs, that Fish truly blossomed.
By then, she had fixed her crooked teeth and increased her smile
wattage. Showing some cleavage on the album cover also did wonders
for album sales, and in turn, boosted her confidence.
She said of her new self: 'I used to hide in one corner to observe
and wait for people to initiate conversation, but now I'll take the
initiative.
'I feel more comfortable with the (showbiz) environment, so
naturally I've become more approachable, and I'm smiling a lot more.
'I can be myself again. I'm more at ease with myself, and I can joke
around even.'
Well, Fish is not the gregarious laugh-a-minute sort, but she was
certainly sweet, obliging and humble during our interview at
Goodwood Park Hotel last week.
Neither does she make any radical moves in her music - this can be
seen by the karaoke-friendly love ballads that she consistently puts
out.
However, she insisted she is game to try new musical styles.
In her new album, for instance, she delivered her first rock number,
Wings Of Love, penned by label mate Mayday.
'I had doubts whether I could do rock, but Ashin (of Mayday) thinks
I'm suitable, and David (Tao) thinks I'm okay too,' she said.
'It's through their recognition that I found confidence.'
She also hopes to try R&B and work with Lee Hom and Jay Chou in the
future, and harbours a 'little dream' of releasing an all-female
compilation album together with her friends, including Cheer Chen,
Tanya Chua and Stefanie Sun.
'I'm like a caterpillar that has just morphed into a butterfly and
is eager to fly. Once I have the confidence, I'm very eager to show
people what I can achieve.'
Wings Of Love is out in stores
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Too busy for love
HER career may be soaring, but Fish Leong's love life is drawing a
blank.
She ended a seven-year relationship with a Malaysian musician
recently.
Attributing the split to their constant separation, she said: 'I was
so busy with work that I had no avenue of venting my emotions, so
during my recordings, I poured my emotions into my songs instead and
I felt very relieved.'
Now, she says she is too busy to date.
But if she has to fall in love, she hopes it will be with someone
attentive and humorous, who gives her a sense of security.
How about David Tao, 34, who tailor-made the song, I Know It All,for her new album?
After all, Fish did gush about how caring and detailed he was, and
how he noticed the more lively side of her.
'He said he once saw how I'd sway my body to the beat of the music
while waiting for my turn to perform on stage and it struck him that
I'm not so quiet after all.'
But she just chuckled and said: 'He treats me like a little sister.
Our age gap is too wide.'
* The New Paper, 2004-11-06
