Four female musical artistsโbased in Toronto, Vancouver, Kaohsiung, and Taipeiโhave brought their voices together in a tribute to their grandmothers. At last month’s Jade Music Fest in Vancouver, Canadians Jacq Teh and Van Lefan joined Taiwanese Hakka singer-songwriter Shu Chan Chiuย and HoNi band vocalist Yizy to perform their new song, โ๐ฒ๐๐พ๐บ๐ฝ๐ ๐บ๐ ๐ธ๐๐ ๅฎๅฎไป่กโ for the first time.
Their composition imagines different live paths that their grandmothers might have taken had they been free to choose their destinies. And Lefan, Teh, Chiu, and Yizy sang this song in four languagesโTaiwanese Hakka, Fujianese, Taiwanese Hokkien, and English. In so doing, they embodied the Jade Music Festโs ethos of building bridges across language barriers.
Moreover, with โ๐ฒ๐๐พ๐บ๐ฝ๐ ๐บ๐ ๐ธ๐๐ ๅฎๅฎไป่กโ, the four musical artists are expressing their admiration for these matriarchs, whose strength shaped them and whose unspoken dreams still echo. This tribute extends beyond their own families, reaching every woman still learning to walk steadily toward her future.
โThough our upbringings differ and our languages vary, we share similar life experiences,โ Yizy reflects in a Jade Music Fest news release. โThis resonance can only be deeply felt when creating togetherโit’s truly precious.โ
Watch the live music video of โ๐ฒ๐๐พ๐บ๐ฝ๐ ๐บ๐ ๐ธ๐๐ ๅฎๅฎไป่กโ.
Origins of song go back to cooking workshop
The Jade Music Fest recently unveiled a live performance video of โ๐ฒ๐๐พ๐บ๐ฝ๐ ๐บ๐ ๐ธ๐๐ ๅฎๅฎไป่กโ on YouTube. An official music video will be released on YouTube and all streaming platforms in early January.
In addition, the festival posted a behind-the-scenes video feature on YouTube, which reveals the inspiration behind the song. The origins of โ๐ฒ๐๐พ๐บ๐ฝ๐ ๐บ๐ ๐ธ๐๐ ๅฎๅฎไป่กโ date back to a ricecake-making workshop in Taipei last April. It came during the Jade Music Fest in Asia, where LeFan, Teh, Chiu, and HoNi were all performing.
Other musicians at the workshop included Cree-Oji musician Aysanabee and Mississauga-raised singer-songwriter Tennyson King.
Watch snippets of a cooking workshop that inspired a song.
Jade Music Fest promotes cross-cultural collaborations
At that time, the four female musical artists realized that they were the first generation of women in their families who could chart their own course in life. Their song stands as a living bridge between Canada and Asia, demonstrating whatโs possible when stories and cultures flourish together.
HoNi guitarist Mei Hsiao and HoNi cellist Sheng Zhi worked with the four women in crafting the song.
At the Jade Music Fest, HoNi also unveiled a second cross-Pacific collaboration with Vancouver singer-songwriter Daniel Lew. They performed their new song, โThrough the Lineโ, on November 8 at the Revue Stage on Granville Island.
The Society of We Are Canadians Too launched the Jade Music Fest in 2022 to elevate Chinese-language and mother-tongue-based music in Canada and around the world. The festival also promotes cross-cultural collaborations, like the ones that led to the creation of “Through the Line” and โ๐ฒ๐๐พ๐บ๐ฝ๐ ๐บ๐ ๐ธ๐๐ ๅฎๅฎไป่ก” earlier this year, Jade Music Fest musicians also created a music video for a new Lunar New Year song, “New Year Is Here”, which they performed in English, Mandarin, Taiwanese Hokkien, and Cantonese.
To learn more about the Jade Music Fest,ย visit the websiteย or follow the festival on Instagramย @jademusicfest. Learn more about the communities that make up Canada on theย Toronto Spark website. The Toronto Spark is on Blueskyย @torontospark.bsky.social.
