Singer-songwriter, composer, and producer Scott Hsu says that he has struggled over the years with the feeling of “being Asian enough”. But writing songs in Mandarin has given the Massachusetts musician a window into his Taiwanese culture, as well as an opportunity to engage with Mandarin, which he spoke with his parents.
“Participating in Jade Music Fest Vancouver last year inspired me to explore different ways of expressing myself in Mandarin,” Hsu tells the Toronto Spark via email. “I was especially inspired by Jacq Teh’s song ‘Like U’, which had a seamless blend of English and Mandarin. I’d never imagined writing mus
ic that mixed the languages this way.”
Hsu points out that most music tends to be monolingual, even if it’s occasionally seasoned with some words or lines from another language. But the former teacher says that it’s rare to see English and Mandarin “go back and forth seamlessly in music”.
However, Hsu decided to embrace this approach with his new pop-rock song, “陪你 (I Just Wanna Be With You)”. He describes it as “a Chinglish Shoegazey Pop Rock song about chilling with your homegirl”.
“That seamless transitioning back and forth matches the way I grew up talking in Mandarin with my family and other second-generation Mandarin speakers,” Hsu reveals. “Sometimes we’d substitute words because we wouldn’t know what they were in one language, but other times we’d substitute because the words were better at expressing meaning in one language than the other.”
Hsu co-directed the official music video with Cedric Yu in a small house in Vancouver. Yu was responsible for cinematography; Krystal Chan and Cassidy Johnson oversaw lighting. In addition to Hsu, the cast includes Vancouver musician Alex See, Adrian Pang, and Huy Pham. Check it out below.
Watch Scott Hsu’s official music video (above) for 陪你 (I Just Wanna Be With You).
Read Scott Hsu’s full comments
Toronto Spark: What led you to write this song?
Scott Hsu: I wanted to capture the feeling of wanting to be cozy and tender with a loved one, especially when life gets stressful from work or other kinds of drama. In Mandarin there’s a phrase 陪你 (pronounced Pei Ni), which roughly translates into “be with you”, that I captures this sentiment. A more direct translation of 陪你 is “accompany you”; it implies you don’t want somebody to be alone or feel lonely. It’s something you’d say to someone near and dear. That’s where I got the hook for the song, “I just wanna 陪你.”
Toronto Spark: What are you most proud of musically in this song?
SH: Lyrically, I’m proud of the blending of English and Mandarin because it feels like a very authentic expression of my cross-cultural identity as a second-generation Taiwanese American. There’s a simplicity to the Mandarin and English lyrics, and a playfulness to how the mix together that I really love. I was able to express the feelings I wanted without having to use expensive words. Musically, I really like the blending of moods for the song. There’s a dreamy quality to the intro and the interludes, a sweetness to the lyrics, and a driving rock energy to it.
Toronto Spark: Why did you decide to include some Mandarin lyrics?
SH: I think many Asian Americans like me struggle with the feeling of “being Asian enough”, and my limited language proficiency has played a part in this. In one of my promo reels for my song I say “POV you’re Taiwanese American with the Mandarin proficiency of a 3rd grader, but you’re a songwriter and the best way to learn adult Mandarin is by writing songs in your heritage language.” Writing in Mandarin has given me an opportunity to re-engage in Chinese culture, and it’s given me an appreciation for how poetic the language can be.
Participating in Jade Music Fest Vancouver last year inspired me to explore different ways of expressing myself in Mandarin. I was especially inspired by Jacq Teh‘s song “Like U”, which had a seamless blend of English and Mandarin. I’d never imagined writing music that mixed the languages this way. Most music tends to be monolingual, occasionally peppered with some words or lines from another language as added spice.
Songs that are truly multilingual also tend to partition the different languages. For example, the bridge is in a different language, or there’s different languages in the verses of the song. It’s rare to see the English and Mandarin to go back and forth seamlessly in music. That seamless transitioning back and forth matches the way I grew up talking in Mandarin with my family and other second-generation Mandarin speakers. Sometimes we’d substitute words because we wouldn’t know what they were in one language, but other times we’d substitute because the words were better at expressing meaning in one language than the other. I think that’s the strength of this song. If you understand both English and Mandarin, there’s a resonance that you can have with the song that feels familiar and nice.
Toronto Spark: The video was lots of fun. Why did you decide to speed up the editing? What were you trying to do visually?
SH: I’ve always loved music videos that incorporated cool camera effects and wanted to bring some of that into this video. I wanted the interludes to have a dreamy quality to them and thought that using stop motion would be a fun way to show the “magic” of 陪你 energy. For the storyboard plot I wrote:
“Scott and the crew are all housemates in a cozy little Vancouver house. Scott has the power of Pei Ni which allows him to float around the house. He spreads his Pei Ni vibes to the crew and grants them the ability to fly at the end with Pei Ni energy.”
Toronto Spark: What else would you like our readers to know about this song?
SH: I took a big creative risk with this song because my current audience won’t necessarily understand all the lyrics. At the same time, I feel amazing sharing this song, because it shows a side of me that for the longest time I’ve felt ashamed to show as a musician. I also wrote this song for myself as a way for me to reconnect to my Taiwanese heritage. I hope my cross-cultural listeners vibe with the feeling of it, and I’m hoping that people will resonate with the song even if they need the subtitles from the music video to understand all the words.
Scott Hsu will play the Jade Music Fest in Asia, which runs from April 25 to 28 at Huashan 1914 Creative Park in Taipei. Follow Scott Hsu on Instagram @scotthsumusic and Bluesky @scotthsumusic.bsky.social. Check out his other music videos on YouTube and find his music on Spotify, Twitch, TikTok, and Discord.
Learn more about the communities that make up Canada on the Toronto Spark website. Follow Charlie Smith on Bluesky @charliesmithvcr.bsky.social. The Toronto Spark is also on Bluesky @torontospark.bsky.social.
