WMA WIN

To WMA Or Not ?

The Astronaut In Han Geng

Mundane To Magnificient

Hope In The Darkness – Album Pre-Order

Han Geng is truly one of a kind. He makes music only  for his own pleasure. Why do I  say this? It  is because all the tracks on his 2nd album are out and can be down-loaded online.

Or you can watch them on YT with English subtitles courtesy of the up-loader, Ariel Tong.

Here are the video clips on each song.

I DO NOT LACK

PROFILE

HERO

THE ONE

CAN’T QUIET DOWN

STILL AT YOUR SIDE

CYNICAL (BAD BOY)

BETRAYAL OF TH SOUL

 

And here is  where you can make your order for his 2nd Album..Hope In The Darkness..

 

http://www.yesasia.com/global/han-geng-preorder-version-china-version/1031207594-0-0-0-en/info.html

 

 

 

 

Credits: as tagged in pictures..and Ariel @YT

Clown Mask

The clown face drawn on the mask is not a tiger.

Always smiling, the angle of the lips never changing.

Always wishing everyone to be happy as his birthday wishes.

But the concerned greetings and hugs always feel like negative 10 degrees

He’s full of vagueness and his expressions change habitually

His expressions are only skin deep at any way

He’s full of mystery and he performs habitually

Turning the illusionary truth into disarray

Under the clown mask you are happier then everybody

But you can’t hide, the redness around your eyes

The clown mask shows an expression of innocence

Hypnotizing you to sleep in a boundless dream

Who can see my real face?

The pain of not tearing, smiling yet not really

Who can see my real face?

Do a magic trick and take the mask off

Whose duty is it to maintain world peace?

In actuality everyone is scared that their naked opinions will lead to lawsuit

Who can hear the murmuring under the mask?

It’s very tiring to live under a smile that’s only skin deep

Ignoring the calls of your rivals

Heartlessly protecting  ourselves

The more cold-heartedly I live

The more addictive the loneliness becomes

The different layers of skins under the mask

All hope to feel some warmth

The more you run away from happiness, the distance grows

I can not catch up, yet others find my situation envious.

 

 

Clown Mask is one of the songs listed in Han Geng’s 2nd album. Out of the five songs which have been released, this is the one that appealed to me the most. The lyrics are so appropriate and I can relate to it so well. People in this age and era, tend to hide their true self behind a smile.. This music video is so original that I wished for it to win some kind of award like “Best Music Video” or whatever..

There may be some people out there who are negative about this because they may be  affected by the meaning of Clown Mask. They reacted negatively because it hits the very core of their existence and maybe that’s the way they can express themselves.

Some may not like his concept in this 2nd album  because they may find it too personal. They may think that Han Geng is still too fresh to take on the world with his personal stand  on society. Some would like to see him take the ordinary route and be safe. Knowing Han Geng, he won’t take the safe path. He always like to take risks and he is adventurous too.. He likes extreme sports and live life fully with no regrets.

To those who are antagonists, I would like to say this ” If you don’t eat chilli, you don’t know it’s spiciness”

Please do not say that this song is an insinuation of  his time in Korea. This song is what Han Geng feels and can only be expressed in a song.

Since his return from Korea, he has been “lost” in his direction and place in the Chinese entertainment circle. He can’t find a place to fit in. He didn’t want to live on his past glories. He wanted to start out afresh, just like his 1st album GengXin – Geng’s Heart. Whatever glory, success that he has gained in the past, he wants to wipe it off…he is starting his career in China as HAN GENG  . That’s the identity he wants people  to know, and yet he is beleaguered with anti sentiments and abusive language..! We do not really feel or know of his struggles but we can see his moods in the posts he made in his wei-bo.

It is only from these songs that I fully realised the extent of his sadness and hurt. If he can release his feelings in these songs, then it is safe to say that he was truly hurt and betrayed by those he deems as friends..! Being betrayed by people whom you believed to be your friends really hurts down to the core.!!

I hope that with this 2nd album which contains his hurts and frustrations be finally  put to rest his inner turmoils and start to soar fully in the next album. I would like to look at this album as a therapy for him..a healing process to better look at his goals  and aspirations for the future. It is like a final goodbye to all the strings that are still attached to him..in other words to bury the past and make a clean cut..!

From some feedback which I received from GengFans in China, this MV is making the waves in the music radio and tv stations. There were a lot of praises from those people and they admire his courage and boldness. Admire because Han Geng spoke exactly what they couldn’t say in public..!

Credits:

as tagged in pictures

thanks to YT uploader Ariel Tong for the English subs.

thanks to TianLu for the English translations for Clown Mask

 

 

His Life Magazine – Interview

 

This is the article from the magazine, translated by Wang Jin a fan from China..

Han Geng : Composure/ Calmness is new, maturity is the old.

The stage which Han Geng chose for his career in the past 16 year :

Han Geng still feels nervous before each stage performance despite having years of experience in it. This apprehension dissolves into excitement at the instant when he starts to dance.
Maturity is old : A teenager who matures really early in life learns not to cause trouble to anyone.
Composure is now: He has experienced most types of negative emotions already. His current motivation in life is not to fulfill what most people deem as successful, he has lived under scrutiny and other people’s expectations for too long. Now,  Han Geng wants to return to being himself.
Han Geng has been pushing forward for 16 years now.
Han Geng is still shooting Vicky Zhao’s new movie <<to our youth which eventually fades>>. The camouflage pants, crisp cut hair and that palm-sized small face makes Han Geng looks almost like a high school student. On the day of the shooting, the sunshine that hit Han Geng’s face looked extraordinarily beautiful.  Han Geng talks about a movie. In the movie, the main lead had to keep running to keep his life. In real life, the 28 year old Han Geng has kept pushing forward in the past 16 years to fight his destiny- the same pursuit which once landed him in the centre of criticisms will carry him further for a long time to come.
Han Geng is from the Hezhe ethnic minority group in China, and at 12, he was very thin and small. During a stage performance in primary school, he was spotted by his teacher for his outstanding body ratio, who then brought  Han Geng to Mingzu University of China to learn to dance. Up till the week before school started, Han Geng could not even do a split. The teacher used some extremely excruciating but express methods to increase his flexibility. Han Geng did not have enough time to bid goodbye to his past, nor was he aware of what dancing could bring for his future.
Dancing one’s way to become a celebrity is unique and characteristic to China…..Nearing the date of graduation, Han Geng started to ponder about his future path. Should he continue to dance or head for university? The offer given by the Shanghai Military Dance Group sounded appealing too, especially since the offer included a free apartment/flat. But deep within, Han Geng felt that his life shouldn’t be just that. That year, SM was having an audition in China, so Han Geng asked his teacher to plan a Jazz dance for him. The results came back: the good news is Han Geng doesn’t need to enter the military, the bad news is that he has to be contract bound for 12 years- the lost freedom was the price he had to pay for the fame.
Youth will inevitably fade away; I want to walk through it calmly and with no regrets.
Perhaps, it is because Han Geng has been labelled as the well-rounded youthful role model for too long, people seems to have forgotten that Han Geng has just turned 28. Very little people feel that Han Geng should still be allowed to throw tantrums. Indeed, In Han Geng’s remaining youth, he can no longer act willfully and irresponsibly anymore.

。
The movie <<To our youth which eventually fades>> seemed to evoke some of Han Geng’s memories. We would always gasps and be held back by his extraordinary journey and life experience, and tend to overlook the fact that he too was once a teenage boy who underwent puberty and has his first relationship. Distance relationship is hard and tedious to maintain. Han Geng was in Korea while his girlfriend was in Beijing, and they could only meet up when Han Geng returned to China to renew his Visa. In the movies, true love can overcome all obstacles, but in real life, distance was a real problem.
Han Geng is very well-known and popular, a simple Weibo update could easily invite tends of thousands of comments. This tremendous attention has also placed him under a microscope, making it very difficult for him to safely secure the things which he values greatly in life. He is so used to placing his whole focus on pursuing the final goal that he often missed out the most exciting bits that occur along the journey.
Han Geng decides to take off the extravagant exterior and return to being himself.
Han Geng shares his happiness and sadness with his friends. In front of them, Han Geng is willing to show his true emotions and return to being the normal being, one with shortcomings and emotional ups and downs. This will allow Han Geng to better face the future challenges while allowing Han Geng to live a happier and fuller life.
The years ahead belongs to himself, he doesn’t want to use extravagant methods or techniques to appeal to audience’s senses. Freedom came with great difficulty, and fortunately his youth has yet to fully fade away. Han Geng wants to sediment his past memories slowly but meticulously, being aware that some things may take time to be fully understood, just like how true charisma develops with time.

Q & A

Q: How does actor Han Geng and singer Han Geng conflict?
A: if I am doing music, I will put movies aside and focus on music, vice -versa. Music is about expressing my attitude and thoughts to other people, and on stage, I want to give my audience an extravagant audio, visual and emotional experience. On the other hand, movie is about being someone else, to let the viewers form an emotional connection with the movie character.

Q: As compared to My Kingdom, in what way is this new movie more challenging?
A: The original novel has been changed up to 70/80%, none of the lines in the novel was used in the movie. My character Lin Jing is a quiet person with few lines, but he underwent tremendous changes in a few years, from being a happy and carefree youth to being a highly capable and matured man.

Q: The female actors whom you have worked with, like Big S an Vicky Zhao, are all experienced actresses. You have less experience in filming, how do you overcome your apprehension?
A: I discuss the character, the script and story plot with the director, screenwriter and executive producer throughout the filming process. Their explanation and guidance greatly helped to infuse this story into my body and mind, allowing me to better grasp the correct ‘feel’ during the shoot.

: Did Vicky Zhao and Gao Xiaosong reveal why they chose you for their movies? Was it because of your music work?
A: No, I don’t think music had a part to play in both, because actors are chosen depending on their suitability for the movie character. So I think these 2 directors did not choose on the basis on the actor’s popularity or music achievements. I like acting, and wish to be an actor, so I am very grateful to Gao xiaosong for giving me the opportunity to film my first movie.

Q: What were you like before your first meeting with Gao xiaosong?
A: I have met Gao long before the filming began, because he once invited me to participate in a music play. Due to rigidity of my schedule, I had to reject the invitation. After some time, he gave me the script <<My Kingdom>>, and recommended me to read for its good plot and complemented that I would have an advantage in terms of action movies.

Q: Da S is quite hardworking and responsible?
A: Yes. I realised that actors’ fighting spirit during filming is no way inferior to a singer performing on stage; behind each minute of stage performance is 10 years of hard work offstage.

Q: How is Vicky Zhao and Gao Xiaosong different in their working style?
A: Gao endows actors with more freedom and encouragement to perform while Zhao pays more attention to details and is a perfectionist; she will request for a reshoot if a slight flaw is spotted. After all, Zhao has been an actress for many years and would have a lot of experience and thoughts regarding the shoot. The story plot appealed to me, especially the character LinJing underwent dramatic changes; I have never tried to portray such a character before, hence I would very much like to give it a try.

Q: This movie is about youth, have you had a passionate relationship when you were young?
A: I had one right after my high school graduation, the year I went to Korea. I could only see her once every 3 months, and it was a very tough to maintain that long-distance relationship. So I would like to say that I have not experienced a very passionate relationship before, and it is quite a pity.

The boss Han Geng: I don’t feel like a boss   

Q: How do you feel as the boss of your team?
A: I don’t feel like a boss, because my team is made up of my friends, and we tend to engage in discussions to bring out the best outcome.

Q: Are you good at persuading and convincing other people?
A: No. I am bad at expressing myself. If I perceive my idea to be outstanding, I would try to find other ways to convince them. Other times, I would compromise.

Q: What do you think can be improved about your team?
A: I think all is well now. My team is made up of close friends who understand each other well. They are very capable and serious in their work, striving to achieve the best results at every stage. I believe that we are growing together as a team.

Q: You are preparing for your next concert right? How will it be different from the first concert?
A: The first concert was held before my album release, we were short of time and were unable to pay too much attention to details. Yet, I still feel proud for being able to put up such a show in that time constraint.

Q: Are you more relaxed about the second concert?
A: Not really. The concert has fully occupied my mind.  I want to blend the album concept with the concert to present a splendid show. Many concerts are like a fan meeting, where the singer keeps singing till the very end; I want to add in more, to give my audience a different experience.

Q: You have great tolerance, how have you changed over the past 2 years? Or do you still keep everything to yourself?
A: I have become even less outspoken, and this is probably the norm in society. I have to learn to bear, there are those whom I believe in, and there also people whom I don’t dare to believe in. The environment has become very cold and most people are like this, so I have to change in order to adapt to and survive in this environment.

Q: How do you overcome the obstacles?
A: I think that lack of trust between people is undesirable. Thus, the lyrics in my new album describe this apathy between people, my inner feelings— what will my future turn out to be? What do I live for? When should I express my true emotions and deep thoughts when facing people.

Q: Music should be an incredibly strong and powerful tool for you right?
A: I want to convey love and warmth to people with the new album, to teach people how to love; I want to initiate more programs like Lovelife.

Han Geng— A big boy who is serious in front of the camera, a superstar which picks inspects the outcome of the shooting meticulously. He may not have been labelled as being a matured man yet, but in our(magazine) heart, we already view Han Geng as the most reliable and meticulous superstar. Walking in with his custom made microphone, Han Geng exhibits his unique Geng-style charisma.

When Han Geng and his assistance stepped into the filming scene, we noticed a case. It turns out that Han Geng brought his custom-made, highly valuable microphone along for the shoot.
Han Geng brought his small team of 3 co-workers, and entered the scene casually. This was nothing like what I (magazine) pictured to be of an artist who returned from Korea, and this prompted me to want to learn more about him. In fact, just like how Han Geng is so supportive of the Lovelife Charity program, Han Geng has also been  striving to maintain the things which belonged to him.
Our main theme for this shoot is a blend of old Romanian elements with modern elements. We invited the extremely popular idol superstar Han Geng, hoping that his modern element blended with Romanian elements will bring out a new Han Geng for his fans.
When shooting one set of clothes, Han Geng proposed to roll up the sleeves, and discussed with our fashion designer on the appropriate changes. In the midst of making the changes, Han Geng’s mischievous nature created a very fun working atmosphere for us (magazine). After finished shooting each set, Han Geng will inspect the photos and discuss with the photographers on how to improve, displaying professionalism throughout.

This extremely popular idol, because of his flawless cooperation, the whole magazine shoot took less than 4 hours. The whole process was very joyous, and even during the resting time, Han Geng reiterated that he wants to bring warmth and love to people, to let people understand how to love and not be so cold. This 4 hours was really memorable and impressive, and we (magazine) believe that more fans will continue to support Ham Geng  and charity.

Credits: Wang Jin..and pictures as tagged.

 

 

 

 

His Life Magazine Article