Unusual Flower

Art is about more than the works produced by artists, but the rock singer Jiang Xin lives in the hope that people will focus on her music and her ten-year career in rock 'n' roll and less on her personal relationships.

When her long-anticipated fourth album, I Am an Unusual Flower, came out early in 2007, her fans finally got what the album they'd been waiting for three years. But before Jiang could even begin sharing her music and the life experience she pours into it with her fans, she was again hounded by questions about her alleged relationship with Dou Wei, one of China's greatest rock singers, who was married to pop diva Faye Wong at the time.

Jiang said, "I've had other boyfriends before: why just ask me about Dou Wei? What in the hell are they looking for? I am sick of it!" But despite her trials with an inquisitive press, she said, "I am getting used to it. Now, I just keep silent."

At 5 p.m., looking out at a jammed East Third Ring Road, Jiang lights a cigarette with her graceful hand. She is tall and thin. The dim lights of the coffee shop soften piercing eyes.

"I believe there are people who really care about my music rather than those gossip," Jiang, 30, said.

At 19 and after dropping out of the university, she fell in with a group of China's rock pioneers at a Beijing disco. Her friends were members of the leading rock bands in China at that time, Tang Dynasty and Black Panther. Among them were the brilliant Dou Wei, Zhang Ju and others, who would become some of the most popular and influential rock stars in China.

"I loved their passion and music," she said. "They gave me albums of western singers like Bob Dylan and Sting that were totally different from what I had heard on campus."

Jiang became an "insider"and spent lots of time watching the stars produce music and make records. She has now become a mature rock star in China with her own fame and following.

Jiang's rock talent was well-recognized from the beginning, when she sang at pubs in Beijing before 1995. Many people went to listen to her singing because she was the only one, then, who could sing in English, and because she expressed her own personality via her singing and dress on stage.

"I gradually came to understand what rock music really is," she said. "When I sang on stage, I just wore jeans and T-shirts. Flashy dresses were not necessary for me after I had my music with me. That was enough."

Her simplicity and distinctiveness attracted Zhu Xiaomin, one of the earliest rock-music producers in China. Soon her performances in pubs came to an end; she continued her rock dream in other ways. But it is not an easy thing to make a rock album without any studio experience.

"I didn't even know how to use a microphone, let alone keep up with the beat," Jiang recalled. She had nothing except her hoarse and low-pitched voice, which has become essential to her rock style.

On October 26, 1995, Jiang recorded her first song in a studio. "I will never forget that day." The Flowers Never Die, her debut album, is now considered a rock classic in China. She credited her "teachers" with helping her to get it done.

She wrote three songs for the first album, and learned that writing lyrics was easy for her even though she'd never done that before. "Almost everyone has dreams such as flying high into the sky, especially when they are young and full of imagination," she said. "I love daydreaming and writing. I wrote naturally when I heard the rhythm. So it was not difficult for me at all."

Her attempt to make a second album was cut short when the record company she used went bankrupt. "I had already finished my song writing then, but I had to postpone recording." Still, she didn't give up, although it took a while for her second album, May, to come out in 2001.

Time changes things and the time that had passed saw Jiang evolve from being a singer to a singer/songwriter who could express her own thoughts and attitudes in her artistic creations. All the songs on May were written and composed by Jiang. "I found the best way to express my life. That is the music from my heart," she said.

Immersing herself in her musical world, two years later, Jiang released her third album Purity after signing with the record label Modern Sky. A remarkable list of China's renowned rock musicians contributed to both the creative and production sides of this album, making it one that could not be ignored. Xu Wei, a friend and widely acclaimed rocker, produced the album. Songs like "White Poppies" were written, composed and produced by Gao Xiaosong, a pioneer with the former Campus Ballad Wave. Playing guitar was Li Yanliang, who is recognized as the No. 1 guitar player in China. And his solo playing, especially in the middle of the song, forms a dynamic accompaniment to Jiang’s calm and detached singing style.

But, for all the famous rockers contributing to this album, the singer/songwriter herself was responsible for all the lyrics, as well as for composing and producing two of the tracks. "Light" is one of them. "I like to compare myself to a flower——a daisy or a rose——which is nurtured by the light of nature." The longing for light has led Jiang Xin through the ups and downs of life to her present peaceful state of mind.

Like her previous three albums, the forth album, I am an Unusual Flower, also signals her maturity. Songs such as "Spring," "Rainbow 2006" and "I am an Unusual Flower" reveal a more positive attitude. She is still sensitive, but time has turned her into a mature woman blessed with beauty and wisdom.

Jiang said she doesn't worry about fame; she is more concerned that people understand her music. Through listening to her music, people will soon understand that there's much more to this rock star than the being described as "Dou Wei's ex-girlfriend."