Diary entry 41

Wed, 24 Mar 2004

Dear Friends,

So much has transpired since my last diary entry, I don't know where to begin. The chaotic Taiwanese election, the Japanese album, the Chinese album, the English album, the new concert tour, the movie "Mahiruno Hoshizora", the recent birth of my first nephew, meeting with my idol Stevie Wonder in Osaka...the list goes on and on!
It's altogether too much to talk about in one diary entry, so I'll start with what's going on today. I am currently in an airplane en route to Thailand! This is my first ever trip to Thailand, and I am looking forward to this very much. I was invited by Sony Thailand and Channel V to attend the annual Thai Music Awards. I am up for the Best Asian Artist award, but to be honest, I'm just excited to be going to a new country for the first time! Thailand, here I come!
During the past few months, I have spent most of my time recording for the Japanese album and song-writing for the Chinese album. Both will be coming out very soon (April 21, first single "Dream Again", Chinese album October, 2004)!I really hope you all enjoy the Japanese, because I made it for YOU! Let me know if my Japanese has improved...ok, su ko shi?
The Chinese album is still in the works. I have been meeting with professors of ethnomusicology from National Taiwan University, and Central Music Conservatory in Beijing, and have done considerable research already into the musics of Chinese ethnic minorities. The musics of Xin Jiang, Yun Nan, Tibet,Mongolia (and more) have been a huge influence on the sound of this album, and have helped me to create a clearer sonic identity for Chinese popular music.Now that the Japanese album is complete, I will be focusing more on thisproject in the months to come!
Well, that's som of what's on my mind today! The plane is about to land, so I've got to put my computer to sleep now! Thanks for your support, and I'll SEE YOU SOON!

Love, peace and music,

Leehom

Diary entry 40

Tue, 09 Sep 2003

Dear Friends,

I've been sooo busy recently! Sorry for not writing sooner!I'm on a plane now from Shanghai to Taiwan, thinking of you all. So many big things are happening in this next month, I feel like the fruits of so many people's efforts are coming together and creating such an amazing energy!The new japanese maxi-single, "Ai No Ki Se Ki" coming out 10/1, the new book coming out 10/15, the new Chinese album is almost ready, the concert in Taipei stadium 10/11cthere is so much going on! In addition to all this excitement, I have also just recently been chosen by McDonalds to be their spokesperson for China and Taiwan. I recorded a fun song called, "I'm lovin it" and shot the music video yesterday in Shanghai. In the U.S., the spokesperson is Justin Timberlake, and he sings the English version of this song, which is really cool, too! The McDonalds people told me who the spokesperson might be for Japan, but I am not allowed to tell anyone this secret yet! Keep on the look out for this news, it is sure to be a great artist!
So over the past six-days I visited 5 cities in China: Shenzhen, Wuhan, Guangzhou, Beijing and Shanghai to attend and perform at the McDonalds "staff rallies".Just this morning, I met the world-wide CEO of McDonalds, Jim Cantalopo, and one of the original founders of McDonalds the legendary Fred Turner. What a great experience! I'll be arriving in Taipei tonight, and I know I'll immediately turn on my computer to put the finishing touches on the Chinese album. I really really hope you all like it!In the meantime, thanks for all your support! I am hoping to see you all October in Japan at the events. Isn't INC great?! When you guys see Tawa-san and the INC staff, please give them lots of support and positive response! They have been working so hard!See you all soon, and thanks for your support!Love, Peace and Music,

Leehom

Diary entry 39

Fri, 20 June 2003

Dear Friends,

I'm writing to you all from New York right now, where I ambusy recording parts of the new Chinese, Japanese, and English albums. It's good to be back home with my family.The big news here is that Lee-kai is graduating from high school next week and will be attending MIT in the fall.I can't believe my little brother has grown up so fast!To be honest, my diary these days might read something like this: Today I came up with a cool guitar part for one song and recorded it,and then threw away the lyrics to another song and decided to write a whole new set AGAIN...blah, blah, blah,but you haven't heard these songs yet, so it would be premature to start talking about them now. Instead, I'll talk about something that happened recentlyin my life that was extraordinary. It is a song called, "Hand in Hand".On May 12, my good friend David Tao and I were approached by AZIO TV to write and produce a song to help alleviate the SARS situation in Asia. We sat down and decided that what the people really needed, and what we could provide to combat this virus was not charity money, but rather education and awareness of how to stop the spread of SARS. At the time, we felt in particular that people were not being responsible to the community because they were afraid. People disobeyed government quarantines, escaping from hospitals and cordoned off sections of the streets. We felt that this "battle", in order to be won as quickly as possible,needed everyone working together as a team. Therefore, those are the messages of "Hand in Hand": teamwork and the reassurance to not be afraid.David and I wrote the song the next day, and gave the demo to AZIO, who then distributed the song to every Chinese singer who was interested in being part of this project. It turned out to be a whopping 85 of the most popular talents of today and legendary singers of past generations.It was so humbling and awe-inspiring to know that this song would bring so many great artists together to do something for our community.From writing, to arranging, to recording, to turning in the final mixed song, we took all of 7 days. I've never worked so fast and slept so little in a week! All I can remember is going home and crying in my Taipei apartment while listening to the finished product in my computer. It was just an overwhelming feeling of 1,000 emotions all at once.Sometimes we get used to reducing music to sonic furniture, something in your room, placed there to make a fashion statement, or because it just feels comfortable. The danger of this is that it makes us forget to strive for something more than just furniture because the audience is liking it. So seldom do we get a chance like this one, to really make a difference with our music.The whole experience of "Hand in Hand" reminded me of the power of music. The power to communicate, and bring people together in harmony, the power to release some of that nuclear magic from inside the human spirit."Hand in Hand" reminded me of why I am a musician.For me, this song will always be one of the highlights of my career.

Love, Peace, and Music,

Leehom

Diary entry 38

Year 2003
Fri, 02 May 2003

Dear Friends,

It's been a long time since I wrote to you last.So much has happened, so little has happened, but right now, I am in shock from the news of my good friend Leslie.I'm not sure what to do right now, who to talk to, so I'm writing this letter, to my diary.It is so important that we tell one another how much we love them.Each person that we meet in life is a chance coincidence, and a unique encounter.Each person that we meet in life is a living, breathing, loving human being. We often forget that dimension, don't we? It's easier for us to categorize people and see their surfaces only, as suits and ties, as record company staff, as fans, as stars, as Americans, as Iraqis.We are all the same.We are all so weak and vulnerable, lonely, and sad.We are all twisted and sick, misunderstood and in pain. Yet we live for those moments of parting clouds and warm smiles.I believe that each encounter with another human being is a chance to create these moments, and am more convinced today than ever, that "breaking the ice" and disarming our fellow human beings of their fears and isolation is the key to letting us live in harmony.We should all be able to be ourselves, and connected at the same time.Leslie was beautiful, rich, talented, successful...we all adored him.I can't imagine why he would, of all people, feel the desire to end that life.Yet at the same time, I can.It's so easy to fall so subtly down into that black hole, to get consumed by the darkness, and before you realize what has happened, you're trapped inside.We all know the darkness.It comes and it takes a hold of you like you haven't even got a say in the matter.It controls you.Every time I end up there, I am luckily pulled out by something, anything, and lo, I wake up as if from a dream. The darkness is gone without a trace, and I'm free.And in retrospect, I always find it funny how simple and easy it was to get out.It is simple, and a lot simpler, when you have people who are with you in your life.I'm not just talking about a wife, or a girlfriend, but more so about the guy who works the counter at the 7 eleven, the taxi driver, the guy behind me in line at customs...Each is a chance to help each other stay free and in touch with ourselves, to nourish the living, breathing, loving human beings inside the superficial shells of our bodies.Each is an opportunity for a parting cloud.We come into this world alone.We leave alone.But in the meantime, we are here together.Let's try and function like a network, a team, a family, and communicate with one another, because each of us is a part of the whole.These are my thoughts one day after Leslie took his own life.

Leehom

Diary entry 37

Entry VII/2001

Dear Friends,

I just finished my "Unbelievable" concert in Hong Kong, and what a night it was! To be honest, I am still reeling from the high of 12,000 energized fans surrounding the Coliseum stage from all four sides. At every angle, every turn, smiling faces, thousands of voices, singing along.
The two and a half hour concert flashed by like lightning. I actually felt like I was dreaming the lights, the sounds, the banners, the dancing, everything was all too beautiful to comprehend. I want to thank each one of you for giving me this unforgettable experience. All of my supporters, whether you attended the concert or not, I know you were there in spirit. AND a special thanks for all those gorgeous flowers from my fanclubs in Hong Kong, Taiwan, China, Singapore, Malaysia, and Japan! Thanks to all of those fans who flew to Hong Kong from all parts of the world just to see my concert! I hope you enjoyed the concert as much as I did! My fans are the GREATEST!!!! Thank you!!
And now...life after 2/2/02! It somehow never occurred to me that there would be a third of February! In fact, almost every waking moment for the past 6 weeks before the concert was geared towards that evening. From the gym, to the dance studio, to the nightly jog at Taipei's Sun Yat Sen Memorial, to the frequent meetings with my management company, and concert producers, to the band rehearsals, to the re-arranging of each song's live version, to the piano, drum and violin practicing, to the memorizing of lyrics, the meetings with my costume designer...the list goes on.
I must say, I did suffer from this "post-222 syndrome", and on 2/3 felt like keeping even more silent than usual. The feeling is hard to explain, it was a bittersweet "it's over", combined with the rush of "I did it!". I can't really share this feeling with anyone else, it's not like a milkshake, or a bag of popcorn. It was a long drawn out moment, like a deep sigh, like a sunset...a special, and unique memory, just for me.
That day, I did not go to the gym. And on the plane ride to Beijing that afternoon, I enjoyed a glass of red wine, my first sip of alcohol in 6 weeks. I earned that sip. And it tasted good.
After arriving in Beijing, I proceeded to shoot two new commercials for China, the first, E Lai Te sneakers, the second, Gang Shi Lung men's casual wear. I guess life doesn't stop after 222 does it?
Today, I am writing to you from Shenzhen, where I will be performing in China's Central TV Annual Chinese New Year's Special. This being the single most watched TV event in China, it is truly an honor to have been asked to sing live infront of the world's largest television audience. I can't help but think back to my days at Williams College singing with my a cappella group, the Springstreeters for audiences of sometimes a hundred or less. Or my days at Sutherland High School performing in musicals each night for packed houses of 700. In all the performances of my lifetime, I'm sure none comes close to 1.2 billion viewers...I am going to remember tomorrow for the rest of my life I'm sure.
And so, along with the new year, seems to have arrived a whole slew of events that have put me in great spirits! I feel so hopeful and optimistic for the future...one thing is for sure, we are off to a brand new beginning! Let's "JIA YO" together!
Happy New Year, God Bless, Gong Xi Fa Cai, Shen Ti Jian Kang, Wan Shi Ru Yi!

Love, Leehom

Diary entry 36

Entry V/2001

Dear Friends,

I'm writing to you today from my hotel room in the Genting Highlands, Malaysia, which was the site of the Malaysian golden melody awards, 2001. What an honor to be awarded "Producer of the Year", "Composer of the Year", and "Song of the Year" for "Wei Yi, the One and Only"! I would like to reiterate what I said in my acceptance speeches...thanks to all of you, the listeners of my music. You continue to give me strength and inspiration. Thank you for giving me the opportunity to do what I love. Without your ears, there would be no music.
Yesterday was Thanksgiving, which traditionally is the time when my family and I MUST get together to sample Mom's latest culinary inventions, as well as her standard classics: pumpkin pie, apple pie, corn-on-the-cob, pan-fried ribs, and of course, succulent stuffed turkey! This year's Thanksgiving also coincided with another celebration, Mom and Dad's 30th year wedding anniversary!
Congratulations Mom and Dad, you guys are the greatest! To be together and in love for 30 years is such a rare and special thing, I only hope that I can have that kind of success as a husband! Even though a phone call is no substitute for returning home to New York to celebrate these two momentous occasions, we'll have to reenact the festivities during Christmas time, when we meet up together in Las Vegas, OK? Lots of love to my family!
Touring between China, Singapore, and Malaysia this week was kind of fast paced, but it sure kept me busy. It was especially nice to be back in Taiwan the last few days, I hadn't been back to Taipei in three weeks, and was really beginning to miss my friends there!
Between album promotion, and preparing for the release of my new music book, I also have begun visiting the gym regularly in preparation for my world tour! Ouch! It's been a while since I've worked out like this, and my body is making me pay for it!
Take care everyone and I'll be seeing you soon！

Peace on earth, Leehom

Diary entry 35

Entry V/2001

Dear Friends,

I'm writing to you today from my hotel room in the Genting Highlands, Malaysia, which was the site of the Malaysian golden melody awards, 2001. What an honor to be awarded "Producer of the Year", "Composer of the Year", and "Song of the Year" for "Wei Yi, the One and Only"! I would like to reiterate what I said in my acceptance speeches...thanks to all of you, the listeners of my music. You continue to give me strength and inspiration. Thank you for giving me the opportunity to do what I love. Without your ears, there would be no music.
Yesterday was Thanksgiving, which traditionally is the time when my family and I MUST get together to sample Mom's latest culinary inventions, as well as her standard classics: pumpkin pie, apple pie, corn-on-the-cob, pan-fried ribs, and of course, succulent stuffed turkey! This year's Thanksgiving also coincided with another celebration, Mom and Dad's 30th year wedding anniversary!
Congratulations Mom and Dad, you guys are the greatest! To be together and in love for 30 years is such a rare and special thing, I only hope that I can have that kind of success as a husband! Even though a phone call is no substitute for returning home to New York to celebrate these two momentous occasions, we'll have to reenact the festivities during Christmas time, when we meet up together in Las Vegas, OK? Lots of love to my family!
Touring between China, Singapore, and Malaysia this week was kind of fast paced, but it sure kept me busy. It was especially nice to be back in Taiwan the last few days, I hadn't been back to Taipei in three weeks, and was really beginning to miss my friends there!
Between album promotion, and preparing for the release of my new music book, I also have begun visiting the gym regularly in preparation for my world tour! Ouch! It's been a while since I've worked out like this, and my body is making me pay for it!
Take care everyone and I'll be seeing you soon！

Peace on earth, Leehom

Diary entry 34

Entry IV/2001

Dear Friends,

Today I'm writing to you all from Singapore, backstage at the Live House Pub. In one hour, I'll be giving a mini-concert here for the promotion of my new album, "The One and Only". Wish me luck!
Wow! The work of the day is finished, and I am now writing to you from the business center at the Four Seasons Hotel. The concert went really well! Parts of it were quite interesting, funny and unforgettable! I was in a sentimental mood during the concert, as I think many of the audience could sense. I sang a lot of slow songs with emotions straight from my heart. I think I performed well, and was so happy to see so many smiling faces in the crowd. I can't believe it's been a whole year since I was last here in Singapore! It's good to be back!
NEWSFLASH! At the request of countless numbers of music-loving fans, I am pleased to announce that I will be releasing a music book in December, complete with sheet music for all of this album's songs! In addition, I have written my own comments next to each song, consisting of thoughts, feelings and stories that I would like to share with all of you. In light of this book's imminent release, I will not use the weekly diary as the forum to discuss each new song in detail just yet. I don't want you all to say, "Oh, I've read this already in his journal!" when you read the book!
So...this week. This week has been absolutely crazy. I went from Nanning to Changsha to Shanghai to Hong Kong to Singapore in the last 7 days. At each city, my schedule was crammed with TV and radio appearances, press conferences and fan gatherings. I must say, this week really flew by because the pace was nothing short of relentless. I am glad to have had the opportunity to see so many fans in so many different places. Weeks like this remind me what a huge stage Chinese pop music plays on, and what an honor it is to be making music for so many people. Thanks to everyone who came out to my events! You guys always give me energy and put me in a great mood!
Also this week, I just want to say, thank God for e-mail and cell phones. I love SMS! I don't know what I'd do without these means of keeping in touch with my friends and family! Thanks to all you mobile phone service providers who let me roam around Asia on one SIM card...but can you please give me a break on your prices?! They're out of control!
Thanks for reading.

peace on earth, Leehom

Diary entry 33

Entry III/2001

Dear Friends,

Tonight, like every night, I am alone in my hotel room. For some strange reason, the routine feels overbearing right now, and homesickness squeezes my heart sore all around my chest. Although the sound of the air conditioner's fan saves me from having to listen to utter silence, the wind is slightly too cold on my naked body. I turn it off, and then notice a slight ringing in my right ear. It is the ear that held the headphone monitor as I sang at tonight's "Ming Ge Yi Shu Jie" concert in Nanning. As usual, the crowd was a crazy sea of young noises, the music was pumped full of life, my voice was strong and passionate... I love my job.
But the nights are so lonely. The memories of tonight's CCTV live concert seem to only accentuate the stillness of my bedroom now. When my writing inspiration comes to an end, then I'll turn off this bedside lamp and sleep. I have come to believe that men mature in isolation. Isolation, being along with one's thoughts can be a form of meditation and enlightenment. Perhaps one matures when he realizes that he is ultimately alone in this world, and that he must take responsibility for his own life, because no one else will.
Physically being alone speeds up this realization. Like Tom Hanks in "Castaway". I believe in building from the ground up, whether it be corporate models, orchestra scores, or interpersonal relationships. For example, one needs to learn to love himself before being able to love others. One needs to be able to live in harmony with himself before being able to live together with another person. I guess if I look at it that way, I sure am leading the life these days, becoming a secure individual.
Thinking, meditating, feeling, composing,...searching for that rhythm in my soul that will make the whole world tap their feet. Yes, I miss my friends, and loved ones, but tonight, I wouldn't trade this loneliness for anything. Thanks for listening to my thoughts tonight, friends.

Goodnight.
peace on earth, Leehom

Diary entry 32

Entry II/2001

Dear Friends,

I'm writing to you today from the Kuala Lampur Airport in Malaysia. Last time I was here was to do promotion for "China Strike Force" more than ten months ago. Now, here I am again with my brand new album, "Wei Yi, The One And Only". I want to give a big thanks to all the fans in Malaysia for the huge turnout at my appearances in KL, Penang and Ipoh. What a great sight to see so many thousands of fans singing "Wei Yi" at the top of their lungs!
In this week's diary, let's start talking about the album itself. The songs, the melodies, lyrics and stories behind their conception…beginning with:

"Wei Yi, The One And Only"- this song was written on Mykonos Island, Greece between 5-6 a.m. This family vacation in mid-August was filled with slow afternoons and ocean-side breezes, tanned bodies and tall drinks, all the amenities of a proper summer vacation were in full effect. It had been almost two years since the last time I took a day off, let alone week, so there I was, finally having an opportunity to slow down and reflect on my life, my own personal life. There was no work to be done in Greece, my schedule was completely BLANK for the week! I do believe that time came to a grinding halt, actually forever stopped during the course of those few days, as part of my spirit continues to rock gently on a sailboat coasting across the Aegean Sea. It was those same Greek stars and night sky, that inspired countless classic stories of Gods with human character flaws, that gave me loneliness on the morning of August 17. I quietly crawled out of bed so as not to wake my sleeping brother and father, then exited the house and began to walk aimlessly in the cold, empty street. It was 5 o'clock a.m. and I watched my moonlight shadow jot a few lines in his palm pilot, the song thus began:

　　　　wo de tian kong duo me de qing xi
　　　　tou ming de cheng nuo shi guo qu de kong qi
　　　　qian zhe wo de shou shi ni
　　　　dan ni de xiao rong que kan bu qing
　　　　shi fou yi ke xing xing bian le xin
　　　　cong qian de yuan wang yi quan dou gei pao qi
　　　　zui jing wo wu fa hu xi lian zi ji de ying zi
　　　　dou xiang tao bi…tao bi.

I must have subconsciously been thinking about how unfair love can be. How two people can be in a relationship, yet feel so differently about one another. She might be unhappy, while he might be completely convinced that she is "the one and only". When two lovers are far apart, all they have to hold on to is their promise, which in this case, is already fading more and more transparent, floating away like yesterday's air. He wonders if the star that they had wished upon together had had a change of heart, perhaps decided to abandon their wish, as it seems to be falling apart. Finally, he considers giving everything up in order to make it work. Getting away from absolutely everything, even his own shadow seems to be the only way that he can be with her.
Many of the love songs that I have written in the past are about long distance relationships, "Forever's First Day", "You Can Tell Me","Mary Says", "Trust", to name a few. You can add "Wei Yi, The One And Only", and "An Quan Gan, Sense of Security" to this list now, too. I guess when it comes to writing love songs, I can't help but write from my heart. My own personal feelings at that given time move me and inevitably come to the surface. That is how I felt, sitting alone between 5 and 6 a.m. on Mykonos Island, Greece, August 17, 2001. Thanks for listening to this song and letting it into your lives.

Peace on Earth, Leehom

Diary entry 31

Year 2001
Entry I/2001

Dear Friends,

It's great to be back. Back here in Asia, back here on stage, back here with all of you! It's been a long time since I last wrote in my weekly diary, but here I am with a new album, "The One And Only". I missed you all so much and I thank you thank you thank you for the patience and support you have shown me in the interim. Lots of love to all the fans!!! There is so much that I need to share with you, and I still believe the weekly diary is the best place to do it, so thanks for reading!
As always, this album is very different from ones that I have done in the past. But I'm not going to do a song by song break down in this week's diary, I'll save that for later. Instead, I want to share a little with you about the last year and a half of my life, since "Forever's First Day". Perhaps it will give you some insight into understanding the reasons behind this album's changes, both musical and personal.
At first, when my album was released on September 27, the feedback was quite mixed. I actually expected this to be the reaction because of the more mature song-writing approach, a rougher live sound, and a more artsy image. A surge of positive and negative e-mails flooded my mailbox: "This is Leehom's best album yet!", "I like the old Leehom better!", "I like the songs, 'Bian Huai(#8)' and 'Bai Hu Li(#7)'", and "Leehom really needs a haircut!" were all popular titles.
Today, in my journal, I want to stress one point: I am the same Leehom you have known since the days of "Love Rival Beethoven". I am the same Williams College graduate born and raised in Rochester NY, who wrote "Frozen Dreams" with his fans in the summer of 1998. I am still the dreamer with strong ideals in his music, striving to communicate with young audiences, working hard to be the best musician that he can be. You all should understand that this is still who I am, and nothing will ever change that. Some recent events in my life have merely brought out different sides of me. These events are the ups and downs and imperfections in life, which like grains of sand in an oyster, may be painful, but often have beautiful results. The results, in this case, are the songs of my new album.
Last year was a rough time for me. I spent the entirety of the lonely year living in hotels; rarely did I ever even have the opportunity to see my friends and family. In addition, rumors about me were written up by the tabloids on several occasions...but that is all in the past now.
The events of the year and a half, both the good and the bad, are all reflected in this album's songs, giving what I believe to be an honest and accurate portrait of my feelings at this stage in my life. I have changed naturally, as always, in response to different experiences. However, it is important for my fans to know that who I am, and what I stand for, is still intact, along with my pride, integrity and dreams. I'm writing to you this week from my hotel in Taipei. Thanks for listening and we'll talk more next week!

Peace on Earth, Leehom

Diary Entry 30

00/12/30~01/01/05

Dear Friends,

This is my last entry into the "Leehom Diary" for the album "Forever's First Day" 's promotion period, and I'd like to thank the staff of all Sony Music Internet Departments of Asia, Xin Bao (especially Wing Peng), and Juliet Chee (for 30 excellent translations from English to Chinese), and finally to all the readers, for sharing the past seven months with me.I think every artist's goal is to express himself in a way that is individual and unique, regardless of his medium. To me, this diary has been yet another way to achieve this goal . Self-expression is the first step to dialogue, to communication and the exchange of ideas. It is the opposite of static, laze, and passivity. I am a "do-er" perhaps because of a fundamental idealism that things can be better, and that I can make a difference.I see the internet as a means by which entertainment news is no longer monopolized by reporters, and we musicians now have the power to write about what we may deem to be more pertinent to our music.In 2001 and beyond, I expect the internet to become even more of a threat to the recording industry. With broadband access, users will find themselves able to download movies, CD's and sophisticated software programs for free in a fraction of a second.Although the internet may spell the demise of record companies (and piracy companies), I am still interested in finding new ways to use it in the musician's favor. Composing "Frozen Dreams" online was the first attempt. Now this diary has proved to be a worthwhile endeavor not just in Taiwan, but also worldwide. Because it is an international media, I am sure I will continue to write this weekly diary on my www.sonymusic.com.tw website for future albums just like I did for "Forever's First Day".In the meantime, I'm going back to New York. Back to the life I miss so much of never going to bed, but sleeping when sleep overtakes me in front of my computer, or with a guitar in my arms. This is the life that I have been away from for the last six months, and it's high time to go back. Wish me luck and inspiration, and I'll see you next time with a brand new album filled with new sounds, new beats, and new adventures.Thank you with all of my heart, for your support, your e-mails, your call-ins, your word-of-mouth, your energy. Thank you for letting me be part of your lives. You are all an important part of mine.peace, love, happiness and music in the new year!with much love,Leehom

Diary Entry 29

00/12/23~00/12/29

Dear Friends,

The new year, century, millennium, or whatever you want to call it is upon us. To me, it is a time to step ten steps back from the usual perspective I may have on my life and take a good look.Like a painter having perhaps just completed one more corner of his vast canvas, the section we call 2000 is now put in context with the past. Hopefully, you all will look onto your canvases and, like me, be able to smile...whether the year was hard or easy, I am stronger for it, and what I accomplished this year...is beautiful when I stand back and take a look.Now as I walk around this painting, I notice how much of the canvas is still blank. If I really wanted to, I could easily change this piece into a modernist, or impressionist, or even a boring still life...But the funny thing is, it seems to be taking a shape of its own, ever so naturally. Yes, the brush is in my hand and whatever I paint is of my own free-will, but there is a common theme that has already arisen, something unavoidably individual, and as basic as one's penmanship.I write differently than anyone else in the world writes or has ever written. Even in all of my inconsistencies, there is some constant which is slowly becoming clearer. Maybe I dot my "i"'s funny, or maybe six times out of ten, I'll write my "A"'s capital...maybe it's becoming clearer to me how I want to live my life and what I am going to paint in the remaining blank parts my canvas.Scientists say that time travel is possible. I know it is, and I do it in my mind frequently. I'm actually 80 years old sitting on my rocking chair in my house in the mountains and I just made a wish. "I want to go back to the day 12/30/2000 when I was 24. I want to see the faces again of those people who touched my life, see them the way I remember them, young and beautiful". I lean back in my chair and close my eyes, then "poof", here I am. I walk over to the window and the first thing I notice is how easy it is to get up out of this chair. There is no more pain in my lower back or right knee. I look out the window and laugh. This is Hong Kong, exactly the way it was that day before New Year's Eve. Next, I walk to the mirror in the my hotel and am shocked. Who is this stranger? Look at all my hair! Look, there are no wrinkles on my face! I lean in close and smile, "I'M BACK!" and it feels great to be living it all over again.I really do do this quite often. My 80 year old self keeps my head filled with good advice. When I'm nervous for a performance, he time travels back and screams, "Gimme the microphone!" or he'll come to me and say, "Don't be such a fool! She's a nice girl, beautiful and smart. And there you are, too preoccupied with you job to do anything about it! Call her back!"I hope to live my life like it's the second time around. I hope to appreciate the time that I have while I'm still here. I intend to keep creating and working hard to fill this canvas, which is my life, with as much beauty as I can. These are my new year's resolutions for 2001.Happy New Year to all of you.


With much love,
Leehom

Diary Entry 28

00/12/16~00/12/22

Dear Friends,

Christmas time is here again! Have you finished your shopping? My Christmas this year is going to be spent in Hong Kong performing at an outdoor show! I'm looking forward to spending my Christmas on stage celebrating en mass with whoever wants to come. You're all invited!Today I am writing to you from Singapore where I am attending tonight's premier of the Mandarin Chinese version of "China Strike Force". All day long, Norika, Ruby and I have been interviewing with the local press. Also, we had a gigantic autographing session with the fans! Tomorrow we are all going to Malaysia together to continue the tour. This is going by so fast!Wow! Last night's premier went so well! Singapore's premier was in a luxurious theater with an excellent sound system and almost 1000 seats. This really added to the experience! Plus, with such a big audience, the laughter, the tension...all the emotions in the movie were magnified.As you may have guessed, I am already in Kuala Lampur writing to you from the hotel business center in between press interviews. It is the first time Norika and Ruby have come to Malaysia, so it looks like I'm going to have to show them around KL, not that I'm an expert either! I'll just have to do my best in the one day that we are here.Tomorrow I am going back to Taiwan at long last. Although only for two days, I will be happy to be back "home" and see my friends and Grandma. This time in Taiwan, I will be rehearsing for my 2001 new year's concert in the Taipei Sports Stadium. I'll be sure to perform my new song "Take Your Time"'s Mandarin version, and also sing some holiday songs in addition to songs from my albums. I hope you all can come to the show, it'll be loads of fun!Finally I want to thank all my fans for the incredible attendance at all of the "CSF" premiers. So far, for Hong Kong, Singapore and Malaysia alike, I was so touched to see so many of you come to watch the movie. It really does mean a lot to me, being my first movie and all, for you guys to show your enthusiasm and support. Thanks and Merry Christmas!

with love,
homeboy

Diary Entry 27

00/12/08~00/12/15

Dear Friends,

This week it has been drizzling little more than mist everyday in Hong Kong. The water collects on the windshield magically, or as if by condensation, the roads shine black like polished leather. Yet there's no reason to carry an umbrella, because the people never seem to get wet.This is the week of the premier for "China Strike Force" ("China White" outside of Asia). In two more days, I'll be sitting at an outdoor drive-in theater watching my movie debut in front of a predicted crowd of 3,000. I hope my fans are able to get enough tickets, I know they've been hard to get.Because this is the week of the premier, I am busy these days with promotion for the movie: magazine, newspaper press conferences, and movie-related fan gatherings. All of this promotion is really making me excited to actually see the movie on Friday, 12/15. It should be action-packed entertainment.Anyway, as most of you know, I've been going through a lot lately. Along with my first movie experience came a lot of business baggage that I had to deal with. The most aggregious of which was the failure of Norika Fujiwara and my duet to come through due to...ahem, technical difficulties. I've learned through this experience that there are some things that are best just left alone, unsaid, and in the past. Even though in this instance, at the request and the support of the movie company, I had already written the song with Coolio and had finished recording the instruments, even though I had put a lot of time and heart into the song...I can let it go.However, the redeeming point here, is that my Engl ish solo track "China White" is to be the theme song to the movie in the release outside of Asia. This song (self-written and produced) will also be available on the "China White" soundtrack which is being released by SONY in January. I hope you all like my title track...it's like nothing I've ever sung before!One last very important note for this week. I have decided that I will take a temporary break from writing this diary after the end of 2000. Although it is very important to me and to the fans to continue, I would like be completely free from other committments and emersed in production for my new album beginning in January. Although reluctant to take time off, I figure, my news every week would be something like "I recorded the drums track for song "Untitled #7" today...blah blah blah. Boring stuff to write in a diary anyway!I'm looking forward to seeing my friends and fans in Singapore and Malaysia at the beginning of next week when CSF begins its promotion tour.I'm also looking forward to seeing my "long time no see" friends and fans in Taiwan on 12/31, when I will be doing a countdown new year's concert in Taipei. It's been too long since I've been in Taiwan and I really miss you all!To all my fans, thank you so much for your continuing support for my music...and now my movies! I love you all very much!

yours,
Leehom Wang

Diary Entry 26

00/12/02 ~ 00/12/08

Dear Friends,

I am writing to you today from my hotel room in Hong Kong. Today marks the 26th week, or half year anniversary of my diary! I hope you've been enjoying yourselves as much as I have. This diary, in fact has become a widely used source of information by the local press of any city that I go to. Often reporters, in order to prepare for an interview will go find my diary at www.sonymusic.com.tw and find out what they might want to ask me. I am always so happy when I see reporters with my diary printed out in their briefcases...instead of tabloid magazine clippings or misquoted statements that I never made. This week in Hong Kong is comprising of two main categories of events. First, continuing promotional activities for my new single, "Take Your Time". Second, beginning promotion for my first full length movie, "China Strike Force", also known as "China White". But to be totally honest, at this point I would just love to pack up my bags and go home to my studio in NY, leave the whole pop entertainment scene behind for a few months. I'm a musician and I'm out of practice. I feel like practicing piano today, but first, I need to find a piano. There's a gorgeous Steinway grand in the lobby of my hotel, but I played that yesterday morning for an hour, and then was asked by management to stop. I don't think it would be such a good idea to jeopardize my good relationship with management as I am still staying here for another ten days. So , after a quick lunch by myself, I go to the biggest music store in Hong Kong, called Tom Lee. Boy, am I in heaven here. They must have at least 50 pianos in stock! I choose a Yamaha grand, my personal favorite, and plus, this one is in the back of the room, and no one will ever see me. After a few hours of undisturbed practicing, I hear someone behind me playing "Descendants of the Dragon"! I swivel around on my bench to find that it's a little girl no more than seven years old! She is amazing, and plays the whole song while her little sister looks on. I'm happy toying with the idea that maybe something I did inspired that beautiful child (though I am aware that she probably just learned the song off of sheet music, and not my version!). For the rest of the afternoon, I practice with optimism in my spirit...and continue until they start turning out the lights at 8:00. I feel much better now, having spent my day off practicing piano in pure unadulterated solitude. I spent quality time today...and am much happy this way.

cheers,
Homeboy

Diary Entry 25

00/11/25 ~ 00/12/01

Dear Friends,

It's 4:00 a.m. and my family is asleep, but in twhours, I'll be checking in my luggage at the Rochester airport. In 24 hours, I'll be back in Hong Kong. "Wait!", you say, "Why are you still in New York? Weren't you going to Japan first?" That question will be answered in time. It's a bit complicated. But for now, I have to go back and mix the song "China White" which will be the English theme song of "Lei Ting Zhan Jing". Back to work. Wait a second! I haven't even left home yet and I'm already talking about work! This cannot be! I'm still going to enjoy my last hours of Thanksgiving vacation! Ahhh.(deep relaxing breath) much better. Let me start over:Dear Friends,This has been a wonderful week. Thanksgiving 2000 turned out to be all that I had dreamed it to be. My mom is the world's greatest cook and once again flexed her culinary muscles to the joy and amazement of an audience of hungry brothers, cousins and father. Might I add, that the audience is no longer hungry.and quite a bit fatter after this week's bacchanal. It all began with working up an appetite. My cousins and us three brothers went sledding for most of the day on a gigantic hill behind the local middle school. The snow was dry and fluffy, not wet and sticky, so it provided the perfect consistency for sledding. Sledding, is a sport that I have not played in probably seven years, and I had forgotten how genuinely silly it is. It involves 15-20 seconds of childish ecstasy as you rocket down the hill in a whirling cloud of snowdust (Wheee!!!), and then a much longer period of time running back up the hill (which is the part that works up appetites). Sledding is simple, and pointless, yet can provide entire afternoons of entertainment and thrills. After all, I am a kid who loves to have a good time. It's just funny how easily I am amused sometimes. Wheee!!! Thanksgiving dinner included cranberry pudding, salad, stuffed mushrooms, stuffing, baked sweet potato, generous amounts of sake, red wine, and white wine, and of course, the main attraction was a juicy 18 pound turkey baked to a golden, shining crisp. Dessert was four beautiful pumpkin pies with whipped cream on top. We ate and talked about good times we've had together, and then ate some more, and talked about my younger brother's future educational plans, ate some more and talked about my goals as a musician, ate some more, and then were about ready to burst. That was Thanksgiving dinner, courtesy of Wang Ma Ma! Bravo! This week, I am grateful for having been able to spend time with my dear cousins, brothers, parents, and some of my best friends from high school and college (who I consider to be part of my family anyway). There is nothing so important to me as my family, and I feel truly blessed to have them. God bless them, and bless you all as well this holiday season.

Happy Holidays,
Leehom Wang

Diary Entry 24

00/11/18 ~ 00/11/24

Dear Friends,

Outside is 50 degrees Celsius, and I am chilly sitting by the window. At this moment, I am flying twelve kilometers over the clouds above Lake Michigan, having just crossed the border from Canada to the United States. It was a beautiful sunrise this morning?the entire circumference of sky was arched in red flame. The cloud formations had a lumpy texture and looked like glowing magma in the stomach of a volcano. I wish you all could have seen it, motionless above the world, this palette was spectacular. Witnessing the sunrise from an airplane make you humble before what great powers lie beyond the distance. And it is a small portion indeed of this distance over which I traveled today. Fifteen hours ago my plane left Hong Kong, stopped in Tokyo and now is about to have another layover in Detroit. In four more hours, I?ll arrive at my home in Rochester, New York. It?s been a year since I?ve been back? Wow! Here I am! Back in my own room, working on my own computer, using my own mouse and sitting in my own chair. These things make me happy not because of any attachment to material things, but because they fall into my hands like familiar friends. Being home recalibrates my meters. Having spent every night in different hotels for the last eight months, I have become adrift, like a ship with no anchor, or a kite with no string. Nothing holds me down, I have no base on which to rest or lean upon, and there is little constant in my life except for my music. It accompanies me wherever I go. Although this is a fun way to live, being home reminds me that things can be different, and more down to earth. Being home lets me be myself: 100 percent just a normal guy. For the next five days that I am in the States, I plan on taking it easy, eating and sleeping a lot, and preparing the recording session. For the most part, here in New York, I am ready to relax, enjoy the snow and spend time with my family. This Thanksgiving is a long awaited respite in the crazy world of being a pop musician in Asia. The snow falling makes things quiet in the neighborhood, the soothing whir of my G3, and my soft breathing through a slightly stuffed up nose are the sounds as I sit in front of my computer at 2:14 a.m. finishing this letter. Though it's cold outside, even my feet are warm inside my house. I can almost hear my heartbeat, it's a happy one. It's good to be home.

Happy Thanksgiving,
Lee-hom

Diary Entry 23

00/11/18~00/11/24

Dear Friends,

Outside is 50 degrees Celsius, and I am chilly sitting by the window. At this moment, I am flying twelve kilometers over the clouds above Lake Michigan, having just crossed the border from Canada to the United States. It was a beautiful sunrise this morning?the entire circumference of sky was arched in red flame. The cloud formations had a lumpy texture and looked like glowing magma in the stomach of a volcano. I wish you all could have seen it, motionless above the world, this palette was spectacular. Witnessing the sunrise from an airplane make you humble before what great powers lie beyond the distance. And it is a small portion indeed of this distance over which I traveled today. Fifteen hours ago my plane left Hong Kong, stopped in Tokyo and now is about to have another layover in Detroit. In four more hours, I?ll arrive at my home in Rochester, New York. It?s been a year since I?ve been back?

Wow! Here I am! Back in my own room, working on my own computer, using my own mouse and sitting in my own chair. These things make me happy not because of any attachment to material things, but because they fall into my hands like familiar friends. Being home recalibrates my meters. Having spent every night in different hotels for the last eight months, I have become adrift, like a ship with no anchor, or a kite with no string. Nothing holds me down, I have no base on which to rest or lean upon, and there is little constant in my life except for my music. It accompanies me wherever I go. Although this is a fun way to live, being home reminds me that things can be different, and more down to earth. Being home lets me be myself: 100 percent just a normal guy.

For the next five days that I am in the States, I plan on taking it easy, eating and sleeping a lot, and preparing the recording session.

For the most part, here in New York, I am ready to relax, enjoy the snow and spend time with my family. This Thanksgiving is a long awaited respite in the crazy world of being a pop musician in Asia. The snow falling makes things quiet in the neighborhood, the soothing whir of my G3, and my soft breathing through a slightly stuffed up nose are the sounds as I sit in front of my computer at 2:14 a.m. finishing this letter. Though it's cold outside, even my feet are warm inside my house. I can almost hear my heartbeat, it's a happy one. It's good to be home.

Happy Thanksgiving,
Lee-hom Wang

Diary Entry 22

00/11/11 ~ 00/11/17

Dear Friends,

This week I'm writing to you for the Genting Highlands in Malaysia. This is the site of the first annual Asian Golden Melody Awards. It was already a great honor for my album, "Forever's First Day" to be nominated in 6 categories: Best Producer of the Year, Best Male Vocalist of the Year, Best Composer of the Year (for Huan Xi Cheng), Best Arranger of the Year (for Lung De Chuan Ren), Best Lyricist of the Year (Shi Fang for Shang Kou Shi Ai de Bi Ji), and a top 15 Golden Melody Song of the Year (Forever's First Day). It was even a greater honor to win three of these awards: Best Male Vocalist, Best Composer and Golden Melody top 15 Song of the Year. Thank you all so much for your support, your encouragement, and your love. Without you all, the fans, the media, and the hard working staff at Sony Music, I'd still be jamming with my friends in the pubs five nights a week for audiences of 40 people. Thank you for letting me bring my music to Asia, the largest stage in the world.

It is an overwhelming feeling of gratitude that I have towards all of my fans...days like today, I really feel that all my recent hard work has paid off.

Speaking of hard work, I'm finally taking a break! In just a few more days, I'll be back in New York eating turkey with my family. That's right! Thanksgiving is just a few days away! It's been a year since the last time our family got together, and if you've been reading my weekly dairy in the last 6 or 7 weeks, I've been constantly pining for this day...well it's almost here.

The next time I write to you it will be from my house in NY, on my own computer. The ground outside will be covered in snow, and the Wang family will be warm indoors, trying to get as fat as we can. My letter next week will surely tell of what sins I have committed at the dining table, and I'll be sure to let you know how much taller my 15-year old brother has gotten in this last year. I can't wait to see him...I can't wait to see everybody!

Unfortunately it is only a four day trip for me! I'll let you know how things develop with this "China White" soundtrack. Basically, I'm spending most of my time this week in Hong Kong finishing up my three songs on the soundtrack.

Talk to you next week...from home.

love, Homeboy

Diary Entry 21

00/11/04 ~ 00/11/10


Dear Friends:

I am writing to you from the airplane flying from Taiwan to Beijing. Last night I received a "Top 10 Idols" award in Taiwan, an award that has special significance to me because I was the recipient of the Top 10 Idols Best New Artist Award of 1997. Was it that long ago? My, how time flies! Thanks to all you fans for the amazing support you've given me over these years.

This week I have been spending most of my time in recording studios. Every day I've been eating pizza and McDonald's, recording the guitar, piano and violin, walking out of the studio as the sun is rising. Ah, everything is back to normal, this is the life I am accustomed to! I have three new original compositions coming out next month on the "China Strike Force" (Lei Ting Zhan Jing) soundtrack. This is the first time for me producing for a movie soundtrack and I've found it to be very different from producing my own albums. An important distinction is that the songs on my own albums are very personally motivated, whereas the songs in a movie appear for a specific purpose: to enhance the dramatic effect of a scene. I am inspired to write for the "China Strike Force" soundtrack when I see the footage of a particular scene, and then ask myself, "What do I hear here?" And then, as if by magic, I really begin to hear something. I write it down, and that is the song! "China Strike Force" premiers in Hong Kong on December 15th. I hope you guys will like the soundtrack and my acting!

Today I am heading for Beijing for a huge exhibit and press conference held by the Bulova watch company. I have recently become the spokesperson for Bulova watches and I have written them a song called "Time to Fall in Love" (Mei Tian Ai Ni 24 Xiao Shi). This single, which will be released on 11/17 by Sony HK and Sony China will feature not only the Mandarin and Cantonese versions of this song, but also a VCD of this song's music video, and a whole lot of new pictures. "Time to Fall in Love" is a song written in 12-bar blues (lan diao) form, but is not obviously blues.

I enjoy writing this weekly letter to you all because it gives you the opportunity to hear my news and my opinions straight from my mouth. I will continue to use this venue to respond to some of the questions you've asked me on the internet and in recent interviews. Who will handle the distribution and promotion of my next album? Of course, Sony. My last album's marketing and promotion were handled by a team of young and talented individuals called Dorian, at Sony's request. I never left Sony, nor do I intend to. As for who will handle my next albums marketing and promotion, just like last album, it will still be under Sony's jurisdiction.

Have a nice week,
Homeboy

Diary Entry 20

00/10/28 ~00/11/03

Dear Friends,

I've been writing in this diary for 20 weeks now, and have always kept it sincere and positive. Of course, just like you, there are many things in my life that are less than pleasant; why not write about those things? The answer is simple: I believe in contagious optimism. Love and music are stronger than hate and ignorance. It is easy to be swept by the waves of frustrated negative energy; it takes strength to stay positive.

Being a public figure means that I am subject to praise as well as criticism. I've had my healthy share of both. Of course I read the tabloids, of course I read the Internet, of course I have my finger on the pulse of public opinion towards me. So what happens when I hear news of a Taiwanese band's satirical version of "Descendants of the Dragon"? Well, to be perfectly honest, I don't care. It's not going to affect me or the people who really listen to and like my music. I know that many of my fans are upset about their rendition, but the beauty of music is that it is freedom of expression. If they wanted to spend the time to write a song making fun of another artist,that's their own prerogative. It is not my opinion, so I don't have to take responsibility for it.

I'm putting my heart and soul into my art, and learning a lot along the way. I'm more interested in spending time improving myself as a musician and a creator than using my energy in destructive ways.

Enough of that. This week I performed in Wen Zhou for the first time and then to Shanghai to finish filming for China Strike Force. That's right, China Strike Force is finally finished as of today! After four months of dangling off the edges of buildings, fighting bad guys and writing songs backstage, it's all over. And like any ending or goodbye, it is a bittersweet pill to swallow.

Although I have not even seen the fully edited version yet, I know this will be a good movie, and something I'll be able to watch over and over again. It's coming out first in HK on December 15th, subsequently in the rest of Asia and worldwide. I will be attending most of the premiers of CSF in many different countries, so keep a look out!

From now until the end of the year 2000, my projects are 3-fold. First of all, I must produce and perform some songs for the sound track of CSF, including a song co-written by me and Coolio, and also two new original songs that I will perform solo. Believe me, I am happy to be returning to the recording studios!

Secondly, my new single for Bulova watches "Time To Fall In Love" will be released in just one more week! I will be spending much of the next week performing and promoting this song.

Thirdly, I will be beginning the production of my new album for 2001. As you already know, I will be doing both English and Mandarin versions of the album, so I definitely have my work cut out for me.

Tomorrow morning I'm at long last returning to Taiwan. It's been two and a half months since the Mid-Autumn Festival. Two and a half months since I last was there. I can't wait to return to Taiwan and see all of my friends in Taiwan!

Truly,
Homeboy

Diary Entry 19

00/10/14 ~00/10/20


Dear Friends,

This week my friends have gone back to the States and I am now in Hong Kong finishing up shooting for "In The Name of Heroes". Boo Hoo, I miss them already. So things are back to usual, living by myself in the hotel and looking forward to Thanksgiving in New York.

On our last day in Heng Dian, I had dinner with my three college buddies and Coolio. The atmosphere was of genuine friendship and relaxation as we danced around the cozy restaurant to Coolio's new album...which is still unreleased. After dinner, we purchased copious amounts of fireworks and beer and dispensed of them in the middle of one of the behemoth temples of cardboard, which although merely part of a movie set, looked like nothing short of the Taj Mahal under a starlit Heng Dian sky.

There is nothing so enjoyable to me as making a new friend, especially one who feels as passionately about music as I do! But to be completely honest, becoming such good friends with Coolio really caught me by surprise. Why? I suppose because we come from such different backgrounds and walks of life. He grew up as a gang member in Compton, California (notorious for being the poorest and most violent area of America) and used to have to bring knives and other weapons to school just to protect himself from getting beaten up. I could write for an entire month about all the crazy stories Coolio has shared with me about growing up in Compton, but most of them aren't suitable for family audiences...the point is, his home town is quite different from Rochester, NY, where I grew up. And he's quite a remarkable man for surviving all of that and coming out a winner, achieving what he has today.

But there we were, four Williams College graduates, and a rapper from the hood, hanging out in a tiny town in the Zhe Jian province like we'd known each other for years. Like children playing at a neighborhood party, we chased each other in the grassy fields shooting firecrackers in the air and howled to the moon like coyote. That night, the words pop star, record sales, contracts, and tabloids no longer had any meaning or relevance whatsoever. There was no pressure from anywhere, only the realization that we are all so much more the same than we are different.

Love,
Homeboy

Diary Entry 18

00/10/07~00/10/13

Dear Friends,

Today I am writing to you from Heng Dian, where I have been shooting "China Strike Force" for the last week. I have been having enormous fun here, especially because three of my best buddies from college came to visit me all the way from the United States. Seeing them has reminded me that friendship can be like brotherhood, and we'll always stick together like family. Between my group of friends from college, we share a wealth of experiences, laughs, and hardships. These experiences provide for endless conversations and jokes on classes that we had together, music we used to listen to together, or ex-girlfriends that we can still laugh about together. Since college, I must admit that sometimes in Asia, it can be frustrating to meet so many people every day, but none of them gets to know you for who you are. Nobody bothers or has the time to scratch beneath the surface of mundane conversation. I'm lucky and blessed to have people in my life with whom I really do see eye to eye.

Last week I promised to tell you all a little about Heng Dian, so here I go: It is quite a small town, the streets are narrow with an occasional bicycle or tiny covered cars called "du du che". The entire city seems to have been constructed for the purpose of shooting movies and television series, and in one word, the sets here are, amazing. The main place we shot looks like a gigantic castle, a Chinese fortress, complete with twenty foot standing bronze statues of dragons and warriors. However, as this is all part of the set, upon closer inspection it becomes obvious that the statues are made of paper mache. Things like that are the predominant look of the architecture here in Heng Dian, massive structures that look like they were made by the Emperor Qing Shi Huang Di. There are areas of bridges that look like longs stretches of the great wall of China. This place looks like straight out of the history books!-but it was only just built within the last few years. Things here are also quite inexpensive. My friends were blown away when they could get their hair washed and an hour and a half massage for one US dollar! But before you think of coming here for your next vacation, just be warned that you will be a few hours drive from the nearest airport, which is in Hang Zhou.

My buddies and I spent a bit of time this week with Coolio, just hanging out, writing songs and even shooting our own movie with a digital mini-DV camera.Since we were all inspired working on the action movie "China Strike Force", we decided to take advantage of the incredible scenery, set and costumes of Heng Dian and shoot our own little kung-fu movie just for fun. Everyone put their two cents in to come up with a story line and story board from which to base our filming. And today, although only half done with the movie, humorously titled, "Fists of Water", it's turning out to be hilarious. The crux of the story is that I am a kung-fu fighter who becomes powerful every time he takes a sip of "Wa Ha Ha", the number one distributed bottled water in China (I endorse this product in China and the bottle has my picture on it!). The story begins with my "Wa Ha Ha" having been stolen to be used for evil purposes by the evil villain. An epic battle ensued, which is the quest for Lee-hom to retrieve his water, save his sister, and put and end to the evil villain's treachery. On a side note, Coolio plays my kung-fu teacher and dresses in full traditional Chinese garb. It's a real blast! Maybe!-just maybe, I'll let you see it sometime!

Tomorrow I am returning to Hong Kong to finish the shooting of "In the Name of Heroes". I will COMPLETE this movie in one week! Then, at the end of October, I will spend one more week shooting "China Strike Force" and then I'll be done with both movies! I can't believe it's almost over! I've been shooting these movies since the end of June! It's been a tiring but rewarding experience, and I can't wait to go to the theater and watch these movies!

Thank you all for your continued support. I really missed seeing any fans or doing performances this week. Also thank you again to "Xin Bao", for printing my article every week in your newspaper. All the best, and I'll be sure to keep in touch!

Love and good music,
Homeboy

Diary entry 17

00/09/30~00/10/06

Dear Friends,

Just back from Singapore last night promoting my new album "Forever's First Day", and writing to you today from my hotel in HK, in one hour I am leaving for Heng Dian in the province of Zhe Jiang.what a crazy life this is!
Singapore was wonderful, I hadn't been there since last November, for the Singapore Golden Melody awards.
I can't believe 10 months have flown by so quickly. This time in Singapore, I gave a few appearances including a live mini-concert with a few hundred fans broadcasted on the local radio station FM 933, an autographing session, and an appearance as special guest for a live TV charity show for the Singapore heart foundation. Both were great experiences, it's always great to see my fans face to face, and performing for charity makes my feel so fortunate to be blessed with the gift of music. It's nice to be able to be doing what you love and also putting to a good cause.
Another highlight of my promotion tour in Singapore was seeing my dear friend and violin teacher, Lim Soon Lee. Mr. Lee taught me the violin for a few years between the ages of 9 and 13, and remains to this day one of the most influential figures of my music education. He is simply the epitome of a musician.and a true music lover. Nowadays, he is spending more time conducting his orchestra with the National University of Singapore, and touring abroad doing appearances in Japan and the United States. What is most remarkable about Mr. Lee is that as he teaches, he has the ability to inspire his students. His soft spoken voice reflects an inner strength and constant dedication to his craft. I cherish the fact that although throughout the last ten years, we have gone down such different paths in the music world, we still are able to converge and talk about Brahms, or Michael Tilson Thomas, or Yo Yo Ma. He is one of the handful of musicians that understands me. Last night, I flew back to HK and had a concert in the Convention Center for approximately 8,000 people!
What a great night! The crowd was unusually responsive to the songs "Don't Be Afraid" and "Descendants of the Dragon" and "Julia" and "Crying Palms". It makes such a difference to me that the audience is receptive and into the performance.this is one of the major ways in which I can gauge how well I performed. Since, your reaction was so positive last night, today I am in such good spirits! Thank you!
Now for a week in Heng Dian. I am about to get on a plane to Hang Zhou and then take a four hour bus ride to a little town I've never heard of before called Heng Dian to continue shooting Stanley Tong's, "China Strike Force". The population of this town is only a few thousand and supposedly was constructed primarily for the purpose of shooting movies. It is a city within a city filled with sets and props etc.
I'll be doing primarily action sequences with Coolio, Norika, and Aaron. Wish me luck! I'll tell you more about it next week after I come back.
I hope you are all doing well, my cyberspace friends.
Thank you for letting me share my life with you, and thank you for your continued support.

Yours, Homeboy

Diary entry 16

00/09/23~00/09/29

Dear Friends,

Today I am writing to you from my hotel in Hong Kong, I just arrived from Shanghai after a long week of shooting "China Strike Force" and I am exhausted. Although I have bruises and scratches all over my body from doing my own stunts, I have a great sense of accomplishment and pride from this week's filming. I also have a deeper appreciation for the work of previous action movie stars like Jackie Chan and Jet Li (not that I could ever compare to the amazing work they have done!).
To be completely honest, my Friends, in Hong Kong action movies, what you see is what we did. These stunts are for real. These stunts are often dangerous and frightening, but when working with such professionals, mistakes never happen. They cannot happen because if they did.I shudder to think of the consequences. I've learned to trust members of the stunt team with my life, and we've grown quite close because of it.
This week I found myself hanging off the edge of a building with nothing but a wire to hold me 70 feet above the busy streets of Shanghai. The chilling rain was pouring down provided by three fire hoses, and every inch of me was soaked completely through for at least 2 hours. In between shots, I had to stay suspended on the wire, so the crew brought me hot ginger tea to drink so I wouldn't catch cold. The shot was filmed so that it looked like I was climbing up a thin vertical pole on the side of the building hand over hand all the way up to the roof. All the while I was quite conscious of the fact that if the wire broke, I would not be here writing to you today or ever again!
While I was suspended up there, horrible memories of a concert in Kaoshiung in the summer of 1996 entered my mind. It was one of those celebrations held by a major radio station, however, this year for some reason, it was poorly organized and the artists had no opportunity to rehearse. There were several other singers performing that night, and I was supposed to fly onto the stage with a wire, attached to my waist. I knew it was a bad idea to use the wire without a rehearsal, but there was really no time to protest. Soon enough, the MC said, "Here's Lee-hom singing 'Love Rival Beethoven'" and the crowd began to cheer. I held the microphone in my hand and got ready as the first measures of the introduction began. Five men offstage began to pull me up, up, up. Well, just as I was beginning to be lifted, the wire snapped across my body, and down I fell, hitting the ground backstage.luckily I had only gotten a few feet off the ground and was able to get up and run quickly, from backstage to center stage to perform my song without missing my entrance. That night, I sung "Love Rival Beethoven" with my heart beating crazy in my chest! I kept thinking how stupid and dangerous it was for me to have agreed to use a wire for my entrance, and how lucky I was to have not gotten seriously hurt.
When we finally finished the stunt in Shanghai, it was six a.m., I was tired, cold, sore, and soaked, but at the same time euphoric. This was a high point of my week and at that moment I knew I wanted to share it with you all. I watched the playback in Stanley Tong's monitor and I knew that that shot was worth it, it looked so cool, like I actually was scaling the wall of the building all the way up to the roof. But even more exhilarating than watching the playback, was the knowledge that: I did it. Even though, it was dangerous, we now had it on film forever.and nothing can ever take that away from me. Some risks are just worth taking.

Love, Homeboy

Diary entry 15

00/09/16~00/09/22

Dear Friends,

Another week has passed, and today I find myself in Shanghai continuing work on Stanley Tong's "China Strike Force". We began shooting today at 5 p.m. and will probably continue till 6 a.m., pretty much the same schedule as I've been having in Hong Kong during the shooting of "In the Name of Heroes". If this keeps up, I won't have to adjust at all to the jet lag when I go back to New York for Thanksgiving! Oh God, don't get me started thinking about my mama's cooking.I've eaten in the some of the best restaurants of the world, but I'd put my mother's home cooking at the top of the list. There's just nothing like having dinner at home with my family. Of course, years ago, I took it for granted, but now I realize what a privilege and pleasure it is to eat at that table, especially now, as eating a meal at home is something that I haven't done in almost a year.
This last week I have been between Malaysia, Taiwan, Hong Kong and Shanghai. One of the highlights for this week was on the 16th , when we had a wonderful get together with 500 fans at Planet Hollywood in Hong Kong. It really blows my mind when I hear so many kids singing along with my songs in Mandarin, especially since their mother tongue is Cantonese! I was especially happy at the fans gathering because so many of the kids came up to me and said "I really like your music" or "I like the song (not one of the main singles). That one is my favorite". Those comments are encouraging and refreshing for someone like me, who spends so much time writing all the material for my album. I sometimes feel sad because I know that most of the public only knows my new album through the songs "Forever's First Day", "Descendants of the Dragon" and "Don't Be Afraid" because these were the songs that received most of the radio and MTV airplay. But if you want to know my honest opinion I still favor the songs "City of Pleasure", "the World of Wild Imagination" and "Love is a Stage" and I'm glad to hear it when there are people listening to and appreciating these songs too. Thanks for your positive feedback and enthusiasm at the fans gathering on the 16th. Days like these keep me going!
In another one and a half months, both of these movies will be complete. First "In the Name of Heroes", which will finish shooting in mid-October, and then "China Strike Force" which will wrap up in early November. I am really getting excited, not for the shoot to end, but for the showings to begin! So far, I have seen preliminary edited footage for both of the movies, and I am so amazed at how things are turning out. I had no idea, after editing how exciting everything could look! Once again, I am reminded how lucky I am to be part of a project involving so many talented professionals.
I have written many new songs and bits of music in the last few months since the release of "Forever's First Day", and I will be getting back into the studios in Hong Kong next week to start recording some demos. It'll be so great to get to work again in my field of expertise. These demos, hopefully will be the beginning of a new release.possibly a new single coming out before the end of the year!

Thanks for all your support,
Homeboy

Diary Entry 14

00/09/09~00/09/15

Dear Friends,

I am writing to you from my hotel room in Kuala Lampur. I just finished a wonderful show at the Sunway Lagoon for an audience of approximately 5,000. Wow, what fun! I haven't been in Malaysia for over a year, and it was really great to see so many enthusiastic fans. In the last four days I have travelled between East Malaysia's Kuching, and West Malaysia's Penang, Ipoh, and Kuala Lampur in an action packed promotion tour for my new album, "Forever's First Day". Thanks especially to the Malaysian fans and also to all my fans across Asia, thanks for your continuing support!
Last night, I turned on the television and "Dead Poet's Society" starring Robin Williams was showing. Although I was tired after a long a day of travel, I stayed up and watched the whole thing from beginning to end. What an amazing movie! I have seen it before, but never with as much clarity as I did last night. What exceptional performances the actors gave, such natural and spirited cinematography, and above else, the script was itself a poem. "Suck the marrow from life" and "Carpe Diem" (latin for "Seize the Day") are lines that will stay with me forever. As will the scene which I am about to describe...
Professor Keating stands up on his desk in front of the classroom and hollers, "Why do I stand on my desk?" One of the students guesses, "to feel taller?" "No!" the Professor yawps to the class, "to remind myself to constantly look at things from a different perspective". One by one he asked his students to come up to the front of the classroom and stand on top of his desk. Indeed, one by one, the boys saw the classroom from a fresh perspective, their eyes radiant with the sense of adventure. His point was that poetry is not something having one and only one interpretation. Never be satisfied to accept another person's explanation of poem ... even if it is the poet himself. Always ask yourself, "how does this make ME feel, and why?" Think for yourself; don't be a conformist.
Keating told his class of teenagers, "You may see yourselves in a few years becoming doctors, lawyers, or mathematicians, and therefore may think that this poetry class is something you don't need to do well in. So you blow it off. Don't misunderstand me, medicine, law, science, are all noble pursuits, dedicated to saving or improving the quality of our lives. But poetry: romance, love, music, these are the things that make life worth living." Of course, I don't remember exactly what Keating's words were, but that is how I understood them.
So dear friends, this week, I implore you to be romantic and to suck the marrow out of life. I often talk about music with you. I talk about my album and about the musical events and ideas that went into its creation. Yet most of you, I dare say 99%, are not musicians and may think, "what does this have to do with my life?" Well, what Keating said to his poetry class rings true for me with music. It is one of the things that makes this life worth living. And that is why my CD player is turned way up right now, as I stand atop my hotel room desk. Not only does Led Zeppelin sound better up here, but I'm also seeing my room from a new perspective. Give it a try...what are you waiting for?

Yours truly,
Homeboy

Diary entry 13

00/09/02~00/09/08

Dear Friends,

To be happy. I think this is the most important and most difficult task of a human being. I'm not talking about the eating MacDonald's cookies and cream ice cream happy, or buying a new pair of Prada shoes happy. I'm talking about the kind of happy when you can say to yourself."I am truly a happy person, there is nothing more I'll ever need." It comes from within, that much I know, and few people are lucky enough to be blessed with it.
The greatest day of my life was June, 5 1998. I had just graduated from college, and signed a new record deal with Sony. The whole world was before me, and if this wasn't enough to put me in good spirits, on top of it all, it was my big brother's wedding day. My brother Leo and I are the best of friends. Having grown up together, I can honestly say I have spent more time with him than anyone else in the world. Even so, we only understand each other well enough to know that we are very different people. He has always been a scientist, and I have always been musician. And although the quests of scientists and musicians may be one in the same, we have different basic beliefs and methods of finding answers.
A year previously when Leo called me up in my dorm and said, "Lee-hom, I just proposed to Stacy", I was in a state of panic. I thought he had done something rash, perhaps getting engaged was in some twisted way an act of rebellion.that would be more like him. I told him he was probably working too hard in the lab, and needed a vacation. "Take it easy, be careful" I said, "let's not do anything we might regret". I basically said to him everything that I might say to a man pointing a gun in my direction. His indefensible rebuttal was, "I honestly can't imagine being happier with another person". I couldn't argue with that. At that time, I cursed under my breath, for I knew Leo was using his finely tuned debating skills on me. His uncanny ability to win arguments had won him so many competitions in the past. However, on June 5th, I became convinced that what he said was true.
On this day, I saw Leo in almost unrecognizable form. Standing next to his fiance Stacy, he was happier and prouder than I'd ever seen him in his life. Much happier than at his college or high school graduations, or any birthday or Christmas. Happier than when he'd beat me in chess or a video game. His happiness that day was indefensible. There was no, "let's have a rematch", or "best out of three". He knew he was about to win a bigger game.
As the day progressed, I watched my brother turn from a bachelor to a married man. This transformation made a huge impression on me. Though only two and a half years older than me, my brother knew what he wanted in life, and was happy. His words, "I honestly can't imagine being happier with another person" echoed in my head throughout the day, and I was knew that I was witnessing the greatest miracle in life: love. I write about it all the time in my songs, and I believe strongly in its power. However, to possess it in one's own life.that is a rare gift.
In my studies as a musician, I have come to realize that there is some connection between love and happiness.but I can't tell you exactly what the relationship is. Nor have I heard of a scientific way to create either of the two. If I ever find out, I'll be sure to let you know. But in the meantime, I'll keep looking for answers in my own ways.through music.

May you find inner happiness this Mid-Autumn Festival,
Homeboy

Diary entry 12

00/08/26~00/09/01

Dear Friends,

Due to an overwhelmingly positive response to Lee-hom's weekly diary, I have decided to continue writing. It has already been over two and half months on the internet at www.sonymusic.com.tw and a month and a half for Taiwan's Xin Bao. Thank you all for supporting this effort, which simply began as a result of my frustrations when talking about the music in my new album "Forever's First Day". Since the first few weeks, in which I wrote in detail about my musical concepts and events in my album, it has become more of a venue to communicate with my readers and fans directly without being filtered through any reporters. It is also a venue in which I can keep in touch with everyone, seeing as recently, I have been spending so much time overseas. Thank you for reading and making this a worthwhile and meaningful exchange.
This week, I spent quite a lot of time reading biographies. In between when the director yells, "cut!" and "action!", there often lies an abundance of spare time, and this week, I've been indulging in books. My hotel in Hong Kong is connected to shopping mall, so I don't even have to step outside in order to make my way to the bookstore. So far I have been reading books on the so called pioneers of 20th century American classical music: Charles Ives, Edgard Varese, Henry Cowell, and John Cage. I don't want to bore you with too much technical detail about why these guys are considered important figures in classical music's history, but I want to bring this up so that you can understand more about where I'm coming from as a musician.
You've got to respect and admire a man like Charles Ives. Although he was a genius, and composed jaw-dropping music, he was supremely depressed and a recluse for most of his life. In 1947 he won the Pulitzer Prize for music.for a piece he had written 40 years earlier. In other words, he was pretty much unappreciated, his accomplishments unknown to the world, who only discovered his greatness towards the end of his life. I find it amazing that Ives had the integrity to work on something that he alone knew to be new and unique in the face of alienation and harsh criticism. And when he finally was recognized in 1947 by the Pulitzer Prize panel of judges (and subsequently by the rest of the world), Ives stood at the podium, award in hand and defiantly cursed, "awards are the symbols of mediocrity!". Although outwardly sour, people close to him attest that he was actually ecstatic about having been recognized for his accomplishments after all these years.
I am no Ives. However, this month, something very Ivesian happened to me, CNN interviewed me about a song composed over two years ago, called "Frozen Dreams" on my "Revolution" album. They were interested in me because "Frozen Dreams" was the first song ever to be composed over the internet. Like Ives, after completing the song, I knew I had done something new, something that maybe possessed enormous potential. I was excited! To my dismay, at the time, most people didn't think it was such a big deal. It was written about and talked about in the press as a news point, but never really dealt with as an important development in the meaning of the word "composer", traditionally an individual, now, in the case of "Frozen Dreams" can be an amalgam of internet surfers. Now, over two years later, CNN thinks it's news. I find that pretty funny, but of course I'm happy that the story was done, albeit eventually.
In the meantime, I am moving on, trying to infuse my music with more new ideas. Why? I guess for the same reasons that Ives chose not to compose in the style of Brahms. One, because it's been done before, and two, because I want my music to be my own form of self-expression, not someone else's.

Have a great week,
Homeboy

Diary entry 11

00/08/19~00/08/25

Dear Friends,

This week has been full of inspiration, and flew by in almost no time! The most significant thing that I accomplished this week was my participation in a movie written and directed by Leslie Cheung (Chang Guo Rong), called "Wu Yan Cao" which is part of the government's anti-smoking campaign. This movie will be shown in health classes in schools across Asia and hopefully will deliver this positive message in a powerful, and not-too-preachy way. I can't wait for the premier in Hong Kong on September 26th.
Cast members include Chang Guo Rong himself, Mei Yan Fang, and Muo Wen Wei; I have been spending my days this week acting with them. They are all talented, brilliant, and pleasant to be with, I feel so lucky to have had this opportunity. I am proud to have been part of a movie that promotes quitting smoking. One of my favorite scenes is a very intimate and romantic one between two young lovers played by me and Karen. In this scene, Karen gives my character a gift, to show him how much she loves him; the gift is that she will quit smoking. In this movie, quitting smoking is portrayed as an act of love, and gesture of generosity. I find it much more powerful than using scare tactics, listing the hazards of smoking, typical of most health class movies.
What made the filming even more enjoyable was that this movie, because it is a public service, did not have any commercial overtones; there was absolutely no business involved (for once!), and everyone was working hard simply because they loved what they were doing. The vibe on the set of "Wu Yan Cao" made me feel like I was back in school working on a play with my friends at Williams College. I am convinced that this is the way art alwa ys should be.
During my senior year in college I composed and directed the musical, "The Bite That Burns!" as my honors thesis. The cast included 20 of my friends, the orchestra included 20 of the school's best musicians, the costumers, lighting technicians, sound technicians and set designers were all students as well. Everyone worked like dogs, and did it for free. We all simply wanted to make this musical the best that it could be. During the course of the year, as I directed rehearsals, I began to realize a very precious feeling of comraderie between the hundred people working on this project. By the end of the year we were like a family, and when the show closed, several of the cast members cried because they had grown so attached to the network and the feeling of working together. Believe it or not, the entire production cost was under $2,000 dollars US, and we ended up actually making quite a bit of money for the Williams College drama club through ticket sales.
It is this comraderie, or team spirit that is something often sadly amiss in the "real world" of commercial music. I wish working in the real world was just as simple and innocent as it used to be in school, but we live in a world where musicians have to coexist with businessmen. A record executive friend of mine once told me, "Take two pop stars, one is an excellent musician but a mediocre businessman, and one is an excellent businessman but a mediocre musician, I would bet that the second artist has a more successful career, because today's music industry is not only about music". Regrettably, I must admit that his words are true. But I don't care, I would rather be a great musician.
Weeks like these are especially enjoyable. It has been like a breath of fresh air to work on this project "Wu Yan Cao". These days, when I'm not shooting, I'm usually practicing my violin on the set or writing new songs. I will most likely have some new songs, not an entire album, released before the end of the year. I'll tell you more about those next time!

Imagination and Love, Homeboy

Diary entry 10

00/08/12~00/08/18

Dear Friends：

It was great to see so many of you last Saturday when we had tea together with Xin Bao. The atmosphere was quite mellow and relaxed, not at all like work, but more like just meeting with friends. It was also great to chat with many of my fans online last week. The greatest thing about the internet is that I can chat with fans from all over the world; unlike other forms of media, it is completely international. Thank you all for the support you have given me as I continue to shoot the two movies CSF and TEKKEN, while also promoting my new album, "Forever's First Day". It sure is keeping me busy!
It happened again this morning. I woke up and had no idea which country I was in! Album promotion from 10 a.m. -6 p.m., and then we film from 6 p.m. -6 a.m. To be honest, I never even have time to appreciate the amenities of these fancy hotel rooms, they are just the places where I crash when work is done. That is why I sometimes wake up and have no idea where I am.moving from one hotel to another makes it almost impossible to differentiate between them!
There is quite a lot of down time during the filming of these movies, during which time I sit down with my music notebook and write, write, write. I have written many new songs already, some of them are good ones. Everyday, I sing these songs to myself so I won't forget how they feel. It' s funny when you sing a song that no one else in the world knows but you. That's what it feels like to be a composer. Sometimes it can be quite lonely, and the loneliness doesn't end until you take that music from your heart and make it happen for the world to hear. Once you've shared it with the audiences, then you are at peace. These days, I find myself longing to get back into the studios where I feel like a fish in water. Don't get me wrong, I'm having a wonderful love affair with this new creature called, "acting", but first and foremost I am a musician, and I miss my studio.
Am I happy with this lifestyle? Yes, but only for the time being. This life style is a bit out of my control. Of course, it was my decision to commit to these projects, but now my 24 hours are at the mercy of production companies to schedule, they argue between each other about who will get my time, and when they decide, they arrange for the plane tickets and hotel rooms, and "POOF", like magic, I'm there. That's how thing go in this business. It's kind of crazy. I love living a crazy life, but I also think freedom is of utmost importance. That's what I love about my production period, I am the executive producer so I do all the scheduling. Even though I may be just as busy as I am now, at least I arranged it that way.it seems to make a big difference mentally.
I'm told by the experienced actors on the set that next year, I'll look back and be so thankful that I spent the second half of 2000 working on movies. I suppose they're right. I can only imagine what it will feel like to watch myself on the big screen in a movie theater for the first time. What a thrill that will be! I'll have to bring all my family and friends to the theaters when CSF comes out in the US, and when TEKKEN comes out next summer, my new album will be all done! Ah.such happy thoughts! But for now, I've just got to suck it up and deal with the long hours and lack of sleep.
Have my dreams changed this year? No, not really. My goals still include making unique contributions to Chinese pop music, writing a Chinese musical, a symphony orchestra, and composing my first English album. Next year, I will be releasing my first English album in Japan! I am already looking forward to working on that project. Otherwise, no, I don't have delusions of becoming a Hollywood movie star, and my dreams still are pretty much centered around becoming a more adept and mature musician. Your support and friendship continues to be my greatest source of inspiration. Thank you, and have a great week.

Love, Homeboy

Diary entry 9

00/08/05 ~ 00/08/11
Dear Friends,
Today, I am writing from my hotel room in Hong Kong. I haven't slept yet and it's already 8 a.m. Uh Oh. I have a magazine interview and photo session in three hours. You'll understand if I look tired though, right? After all, I'm a musician, and we're allowed to look tired! This week I have an anecdote to share with you all that is very special to me. Endless neurological research has been done on the effects that music has on brain activity. Supposedly, children show an increase in overall IQ, memory, and spatial-relation/visualization capabilities. I personally, don't think there is any absolute way to measure a person's intelligence, so I don't know how much those studies mean to me, but I do know that music has taught me about myself and most importantly, has taught me quite a lot about how I learn. Learning how to learn can be the most difficult lesson of all. Everyone learns differently. Just ask your friends how they prepare for a test, and you'll be amazed how many means there can be to the same end. To memorize information, some students will prepare flash cards with the questions on the front, the answers on the back. Some prefer to take advantage of a short-term memory and cram the night before a test. Some people have to eat a big breakfast before a test, and still others have to stay up all night in order to perform well the next day. Everyone is different. At the age of six, I began studying violin under the Suzuki method, founded by Japanese educator and violinist, Dr. Shinichi Suzuki. Under the Suzuki method, children are taught how to learn songs quickly and play them accurately, eventually committing them to memory. Suzuki believed that all children are born with talent and are a product of their environment. Therefore, if well nurtured, any child should be able to realize his talents. The Suzuki method consists of ten books, generally learned one year at a time, and is designed to provide children (under a Suzuki method teacher) with just the environment to let their talents mature. In elementary school, I can remember attending large group lessons and master classes in which 10 other kids and I would dress up in suit and tie and simultaneously play "Minuet in G" from one of Suzuki's beginning books. We looked like baby ducks following their mother. It was cute, and the parents of these kids always took a lot of pictures. I think it gave the parents some feeling of reassurance, like they weren't wasting their money on all these violin lessons, because at least they had these adorable pictures. In my opinion, these group lessons did more for them, than for us! When I was 15, I finished the Suzuki method and started with a new teacher at the Eastman School of Music. His name was Oliver Steiner, and studying with him changed my whole approach to being a musician. He also changed my whole approach to learning. I wish I could share with you what it was like studying with him, who was a student of Dorothy DeLay, the world's most famous living violin teacher. Although I cannot document on a weekly basis every lesson with Oliver Steiner, I can share with you the one lesson that impacted me the greatest, and give you insight into how his mind worked... It was a beautiful autumn afternoon in Rochester NY, the leaves had mostly fallen from the trees in as many colors as there are in nature's pallet. Like every week, I was to enter Professor Steiner's house from around the backyard, excited to share with him what I had practiced and learned in the last six days. This week, however, as I approached the house, he was standing in the window, motioning for me to be quiet. My eyes followed the direction of his index finger across the grass and the piles of raked leaves in his yard. There stood a young deer, with a clean coat and a handsome body. Professor Steiner motioned for me to come inside; I did ever so carefully so as not to disturb the deer, who still stood there motionless. His profile smiled as he gazed out the window fondly at the animal before him. "These are the best violin lessons", he said. He was talking about the deer. "See how effortlessly he stands. He is strong, yet at the same time, so relaxed that it looks like a breeze could come and lift him away." And then, as if the deer had heard what Professor Steiner just said, he began to dance. It was more like a jumping around in small circles across the lawn, and finally breaking into a free and proud run, which carried the deer far away and out of our sight. It disappeared without a trace, like fine red wine in crystal. "Just like when you are holding the violin under your chin, there needs to be the same ease. When you are playing the most difficult passages in Paganini, I should be able to imagine a breeze come by and lifting the instrument out of your arms." Mr. Steiner was right. To this day, I believe that watching that deer dance was the most valuable and unforgettable violin lesson that I have ever had. In that week's lesson, Oliver Steiner had showed me just how connected different aspects of our life can be. Seemingly unrelated subjects often contain the same principles, and it is only up to us as to how we make sense of them. After this lesson, I began using the Suzuki method again, but this time I applied it to my schoolwork. I was so happy to be able to connect two areas of my life that I had never thought shared common thread! Like I said, everyone learns differently. But at the crux of my learning process, I have learned, is the technique of repetition. The technique of repetition can be divided into two main categories: tempo (including rhythm), and technical difficulty. For example, I used to play new violin pieces from top to bottom and play them flawlessly, but at half the final tempo. Every day, I would play the piece one notch faster, until it was up to the speed that I wanted it. That way I never made mistakes, only tempo adjustments. Other times, technical difficulty would demand a different approach, I would take a new piece and first work on hard chunks, section by section, sometimes drawing the dividing lines at strange and counter-intuitive places. Finally, after all the toughest section were under control, I would join the sections together. There are countless variations on these two methods that I still use when I am memorizing lines in a movie, learning dance moves for a pop song, or trying to learn new phrases in Japanese. However, sometimes my brain doesn't work this way. After all, we are not machines. And as I get older, I try to appreciate the lessons we can learn from nature and our surroundings. I have found that some of the greatest and most profound knowledge can be found in the most unobvious places. Who would have known that my greatest violin lesson was taught by a deer? Since then, I have learned that I need only to open my mind as a student to be surrounded by great teachers. That's all for this week, I'll be going to Shanghai for a day tomorrow and then returning to Taiwan for a concert on the weekend! I hope you're all having a great summer, all the best to you and thanks for your support!
Very truly yours,Homeboy