Canto-pop’s singer-songwriter AGA talks about how Hong Kong’s sounds and her first jobs have influenced her music
- Agatha Kong discusses her latest single, ‘CityPop’ – the Japanese genre that inspired it, and the importance of solitude
- Before being the first female artist since Faye Wong in 1996 to win Best Female Singer and Best Singer-Songwriter at the Ultimate Song Chart Awards Presentation, she faced a lot of rejection
HK’s popstar, AGA, whose name is Agatha Kong uses her many past experiences as material for her music. (Photo: Universal Music)Hong Kong’s famed popstar Agatha Kong (known as AGA) has always been mesmerised by Hong Kong’s bustling streets, immersing herself in the sights and sounds of its comings and goings.
Born and raised in the city, the 33-year-old singer-songwriter is famous for singles such as Superman and 3am, which have racked up more than five million views on YouTube, and she spoke to Young Post about the inspiration behind her songwriting and her sound.
Among the city’s many artists reviving Canto-pop, Kong is hoping to bring some retro textures onto the scene with her latest lead single, CityPop, from her first English album set to be released later this year.
CityPop vibes and the joy of being alone
When Kong was younger, she enjoyed walking in time to the clatter of passing trains, and listening to the mingling babble of pedestrians, cars and trains as they boisterously crossed paths.
These unique sounds are featured in the first few seconds of CityPop.
The artist thought, “If I could put this ... into my music, it would be fun to start with.”
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Capturing the vibrant city was only one aspect of Kong’s vision for CityPop, though. The song also pays homage to the Japanese music genre from which it gets its name.
The genre of city pop emerged in Japan during the 70s and flourished in the 80s. Its soft and groovy tunes combine jazz and R&B, and exude a bubbly, relaxing vibe. It emerged in 1970s Japan alongside the rise of music technology, which inspired the record players, cassette tapes and vinyls featured in the landscape of CityPop’s music video.
Beneath the song’s appeal to the ears, Kong explains why she chose not to fill the single with the exuberance of modern life typically associated with metropolitan cities. She stated simply: “I want to talk about the joy of being alone.”
In her lyrics, she argues that the solitude allows her to relish her time with herself – necessary for living in a city where it is important to fend off external noise.
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She explains that this noise comes from everyone else’s opinions and can make it difficult to be yourself.
“There are a lot of calculations of who we should be and how we should act ... I feel like we [should] all just own up to who we are,” she explains.
Seeking quietude from the turbulence of life is the perfect opportunity to set sail on “a soul-searching journey”, she says.
Kong’s songwriting journey started while she was a flight attendant
Clearly, Kong is thoughtful about every song she composes. This is a result of many years of songwriting, which began even before her 2013 debut – while she was still working in other jobs. Starting from a young age, she worked in many different part-time jobs, including sales, marketing and even at a yoga centre. Her first full-time job was as a flight attendant, and it was also her last job before she became a singer.
“I understand what it’s like to be working-class,” she says, adding that when writing music, these work experiences have helped her to be empathetic to others’ experiences.
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Although none of those positions were related to the music industry, many of her past experiences have been crucial to her creative process. She often asks herself, “What was my feeling when I had to travel an hour and a half to a shop that I have to open at 5am? What song was I listening to?”
While these jobs provided material for her music, in the end, she realised they also held her back from fully engaging in her craft.
More than 200 of the songs AGA had written were rejected before she finally sold one – and it was a hit. (Photo: Universal Music)
In the four years before her debut, she had been learning about songwriting from renowned music producer, Schumann Lee. But in the first three years, she couldn’t sell any of the 200 songs she wrote for him. Describing the doubt that was filling her mind, she recalls, “That was the darkest place I have ever been.”
At the time, she was still working as a flight attendant, and she had to make the risky decision to be “invested fully in music”. She says, “I quit my job and I dedicated myself fully to music.”
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After years of persistence, success
Everything she did became related to music: she formed her own band busking on the street, and she sang harmonies and composed songs for other singers. And finally, after three years of rejections, she sold seven songs in a row. One of the songs she wrote was Canto-pop singer Fiona Sit’s massive hit, Better Me, which became Sit’s biggest hit with more than 10 million views on YouTube.
Since then, Kong has released two hit albums and numerous singles. Last year, at Hong Kong’s prestigious Ultimate Song Chart Awards Presentation, she took home the coveted Gold Award for Best Female Singer and Best Singer-Songwriter. The last female artist to win both prizes was Canto-pop legend Faye Wong in 1996.
This year, she is not only preparing for the launch of her first English album, but also a concert on the theme of dreams. And she feels lucky that she didn’t let her initial songwriting struggles wear her down.
“When I write one song, it means that I have one more chance to step forward,” she says.
She emphasises, “Ignore all the ‘noise’ from others because one hundred people will tell you to give up. You need to believe in yourself.”