[專訪] Khalil Fong interview

[rururuby (rururuby)]

(Hong Kong)[Time Out Magazine] - Issue 25, April 1 – April 14 2009

We talk to rising Cantopop sensation Khalil Fong about the jazz in his music.

As a Hawaiian-born Chinese who lived in Shanghai and Guangzhou during his early
 years, 26-year-old Khalil Fong is a young man with roots as international as
his flavour of music. Having being exposed to soul and R&B as a teenager, Fong
 developed to take on influences from music idols such as Stevie Wonder, Brian
 McKnight, The Roots, and John Mayer. Fong, who is fluent in English, Putonghua
, Shanghainese, and Cantonese, has been praised as a lyricist, performer,
composer, and arranger. Despite being signed by Warner Music Hong Kong in 2004,
 he has only recently sprung to prominence, nabbing Commercial Radio’s 2008
award for Best Male Singer. His fourth album, Orange Moon, is on sale now.

Do you come from a musical family?
One could say that. My dad is a drummer. He and Eugene [Pao] actually met in
Hawaii before I was born. My mom is a part-time lyricist. She helps out with my
 lyrics sometimes, but she’s really in education. For the last 15 years,
she’s been creating curricula in English-language training for kindergarten
and primary schools in Shanghai and Guangzhou. Actually, my music is featured
in some of her children books.

How did you get your nickname ‘Soulboy’?
[Laughs] I like soul, and I’m not a grown man yet. When I came out with my
first album, I wanted something fresh and catchy. So I chose that as my
persona. Now the name ‘Soulboy’ is usually associated with my musician credits
 as an instrumentalist. For writing and arranging credits, I go with Khalil
Fong.

Congratulations on your new album Orange Moon. Is it your bestselling album to
 date?
Probably. Basically, Orange Moon is my CD for the masses without doing
something I wouldn’t want to do. It’s the most easy-listening and commercial
 friendly of all my releases. It’s my ode to fans. But they can also easily
find traces of Motown and my musical influences like Stevie Wonder in the album
.

You have always cited Stevie Wonder as one of your main influences. In fact, in
 the song Little, Little Insect, you quote Ebony & Ivory in one of your lines.
 Was that conscious?
That was unconscious. In fact, I never thought about that. You’re the first
one to bring it up. But the scatting on If Love is definitely a conscious
tribute to Stevie from his song Sir Duke. Stevie has been my biggest hero
because he introduced soul elements to pop.

You often use two of the best bass players in the jazz industry, Sylvain
Gagnon and Ray Vaughn Covington. How did you meet these guys?
Sylvain and I met at one of his jazz gigs. I used Sylvain on my first mini-show
 in 2005 at the Arts Centre. Sylvain also arranged horns for me in the
Wonderland album and the current one.I met Ray Vaughn at one of Soler’s
concerts. I saw this black dude playing bass in a rock setting, but his lines
were totally soulful. I wondered, ‘Where did this guy come from?’ And he told
 me he’s from Philly. I was like, ‘jeez, everything I listen to is from
Philadelphia!’ From that moment on, I knew I found my real bass guy. Ray
contributed to the live, analogue feel that we tried to create in the Orange
Moon album. Like Al Green says, you can’t beat the texture and sparks of a
live, warm sound.

Henry Chung

(註：Eugene Pao是香港非常有地位的爵士吉他手)

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→ rururuby:這篇不錯 啾談了很多 i like it~~
推 schee:看了這篇 去找Ebony&Ivory這首歌 真的有句旋律很相似~
→ schee:"Ebony,Ivory..." 跟 "對不起, 對不起..."
推 schee:                 小小蟲裡的
推 WEIYAYANG:多事貼一下阿啾以"如果愛"來致敬的"Sir Duke"live版
→ WEIYAYANG:http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Hi9yANYCqwM
推 mieki:用英文訪談感覺更能表達大同的想法呢!