Karen's World (龔柯允)

My first AIM Award nomination :>

I launched my first malay album last year in Feb 2007 not knowing what the outcome was going to be ... all I remember then ... was how much effort I've put in ... for most part of almost the two-years of my life (other than studying since I stayed in campus), I had spent it on singing lessons, studio recordings, dance lesson, practising at home and more practising ... it wasn't easy at all (oh i almost forgot about my dieting process too, haha) but I didn't regret any part of it ... cos looking back now ... i'm actually very proud of my album, whether it was accepted or not ... I know I did my best and was fortunate enough to also work with some of the best people in the industry ...

Anyway, fast forward April 2008 ... I was invited to attend the AIM press conference a few weeks ago, and little did I expect ... my name was announced 3 times (!!) that day ... best newcomer, best chinese album and best female vocalist category (!!) ... I was SOoooo shocked (especially the third category) because I'm in the same category as my idol Dato Siti ! All i can remember was that I could not believe it ... (even now) click here Karen THE STAR NEWS .

So yes, AIM (for those of you who are not from Msia, it's an award ceremony that is voted / judged by panel of established people from the music industry @ click here AIM info ) so that makes this nomination even more special for me ... especially knowing that my hardwork is recognised by musicians and people that I respect so much ...

Anyway, if you're in Msia .. pls tune into NTV7 830PM this saturday (3rd May) to catch the award ceremony LIVE or you can also attend the show LIVE at PWTC KL, I'm not sure where you can get the tickets but I'm pretty sure you have to pay :< I won't be asking for people to vote for me thru SMS cos it doesn't work like that ... hehe, but i'll still be asking for you guys to continue support me here ok? hehe ...

Honestly .. with all the blessings I've got over the last year .. whether I win any awards or not this saturday, i'm already very very happy :>  Not only that i have many people supporting me but I also finally gotten the recognition from the music industry, so there you go, how could I ask for a better start to my career right?!!


Finally ... Sorry cos i've been rather slow with my blogging ... i will do it more often whenever I have time ... May is busy month again ... as you already know, I'm recording my new songs now and I can't wait for you guys to listen to it soon ya!

Take care!

Karen

PS: thanks so much 4 writing me comments on my new song 太傻 - i'm really glad tat many of you like the song, it's the toughest recording i've got to do so far in the studio ... hehe :>

My final 50th Promo Tour: 12TH APRIL 2008

Hi all ... when my company told me tat my debut chinese album will not be available on any retail stores last year (click here THE STAR and Sinchew ), i was really2 very shocked and disappointed ... knowing tat i've worked soooo hard to record the album, i thought it was really the end :< i didn't really understand the reason to make people know about how illegal download is killing the industry, i mean ... i'm just a newcomer, wat can i really do?

It was not until i started to do my promo ... and seeing many people showing up to support my campaign tat i realised tat many people do care about supporting local Malaysian music and also showing their support for me ( click here: JB Tour ).. it was then, i finally understood why my album 'SHOWTIME' means a lot to my company and also to the industry ...

Well if u r reading tis and you came to one of my 49 promo tours, i really2 wanna THANK YOU for showing your support for me and also for the music industry ... I received many messages telling me tat even though they see my SHOWTIME album on the 'pasar malam' but they refused to buy it until my promo tour came to their town .. these caring people actually waited months to buy my album ... (seriously) and when i finally met them personally, those were the moments tat i will cherish for the rest of my life ... thank you again!

It's been almost 5 months since I first kicked off my promo and yes, I've finally come to my 50TH final tour ... and it'll be back in KUALA LUMPUR SUNGEI WANG on 12th APRIL 2008 (300PM) ... so if you live in Klang Valley area ... please come to support me cos I really2 wanna thank you again personally ... I may not know all of you but i certainly would like to meet you that day ...

UPDATE: I'm also recording new songs now (YES!!) so i'll be spending more time in the studio these days ... and will continue to keep you guys updated okie!

OH - thanks so much 4 those who gave me their honest comments on the song TAI-SHA ... i'll keep you posted on this song okie, YES ... i'll be recording this as my new song also!! yeah ....

Karen

PS: HAPPY APRIL'S FOOL DAY !!

'太傻' .. 給我一些意見，謝謝ok?

在這裡我要跟大家分享我在去年12月接觸到的一首歌--<太傻>。公司同事告訴我說這首歌在1993或1994年的時候非常的 ‘火紅’　(嗯…那個時候，我應該還不滿10歲．．．所以對這首歌的印象不太深刻。)　但當我第一次接觸這首歌的時候，就被這首個深深的吸引．．．過後公 司的同事就跟我分享這首歌的“威水史”〈聽著他們討論這首歌的時候，我還真的覺得自己有點‘孤陋寡聞’，因為遲至最近我才接觸／認識到這首歌。〉但沒關 係，我認為好音樂是經得起［時間］的歷練！

老闆建議我在＜十分紅＞演唱會中表演這首歌，說真的當時我還蠻緊張的，因為對這首歌的掌握沒有多大的把握，而且聽說主辦單位估計將有５０千人出席這個演唱 會，聽到這個數目我更怕了，但是Thx God我做到了!　(而且聽說當晚的觀眾約65千人！)　說真的要站在那麼大的舞台上表演，我不曾試過，剛開始我還挺期待的但當我站在升降台準備上台的那 一刻，我好緊張喔！緊張到緊張到我的腿好像在發抖，在那時候我不斷的告訴自己‘放輕鬆，你一定可以的．．．！’音樂響起，上了台後腦子裡一片空白，只知道 跟著旋律演唱，突然看到一群朋友舉著我的名字／布條為我打起，高喊我的名字，好感動．．謝謝你們。「好享受站在舞台上的那一刻」，這是我临下台前的感覺。 呼．．．下到台下，老闆、經濟人都紛紛對我的演出給予不錯的評語，真的難以致信，我做到了！那天的演出過後，我得到很多朋友對我唱這首歌的評價，當中有褒 有貶，最讓我開心的是，有些朋友甚至建議我 “翻唱"並把這首歌收錄在我下張專輯中。

嗯…所以，現在我需要你的幫忙。你們覺得我應不應該 “翻唱”這首歌呢?　我打算錄製一個DEMO(嘿嘿..像之前一樣),希望你們聽了過後,能夠給我一些意見，謝謝啦！

Karen

15 Years after TAI SHA (太傻) came out .. pls comment 4 me k?

Hi … I consider myself as someone who enjoys blogging a lot but these days I kinda been doing less of it … mainly bcos I’ve been busy and also bcos I dun like to talk about the part of my life where I get to be on stage as an entertainer (people who know me well will know I’m not ‘glam’ at all in real life .. haha), anyway doing promo on many many stages is wat I’ve been (busy busy) doing most part of the last few months (wow!!! time flies again!) … so I guess wat I rather write about is something which i enjoy … about more personal stuffs like my experience outside the life of being an artiste and especially my music discovery journey … I remember that’s how I started to write my first blog .. it was about meeting new friends, sharing my music and also learning more about Friendster, blogs and the internet .. haha!

Anyway, today I wanna talk about my experience on ONE particular song which I had to learn last December (LOVE THIS SONG SO MUCH), I was told tat this song was very very popular back in 1993 or 1994 (when I was not even 10 years old, hhaha!) so it was like listening to a brand new song for the first time … and I was told I’ll be singing this song in front of more than 50,000 people!!! (it turned out to be more than 65,000!!) … It was the toughest thing for me to do so far … well anyway, I DID IT and it was a wonderful feeling … and the feedback from many many people was overwhelming … I got so many positive messages about this and asking me to SING THIS SONG on my next album !!!

So here I am … sincerely asking for YOUR OPINION, do you think I should perform this song on my next album??? I’m thinking of doing a DEMO (haha .. just like how I used to do it the last time) but I really hope to get some of YOUR COMMENTS .. can you HELP ME? The ORIGINAL singers of this song, ERIC MOO and MINDY KE (although I’m not very familiar wit most of their work) performed the song in 1993 so EXCEPTIONALLY WELL and I really feel BIG PRESSURE if I were to sing it 15 years later in 2008 … so PLEASE PLEASE share your thoughts with me ok?? Heheh … right now, the only version I have is this YOUTUBE version, it’s not very clear (and very short) but I hope you can have a listen ok?

Thanks again so so much ya!!

Karen

PS: I'll b back with my DEMO soon i hope ya .. !!! bye!

 

oppppsss ... my belated Happy 2008 Greetings .. hehe

Happy 2008 !!!First of all I really wanna wish everyone a wonderful new year ahead … well this is my lOOOOooooong overdue entry again – but I have my reasons, during the xmas & new year celebration period, I probably slept on average 4 hours a day :- ( My December 2007 was kinda like my busiest month since I first launched my malay album in Feb 2007 … not only I was doing my own café and shopping mall promo tours around the country, there were TV shootings, magazine cover shoots & interviews, dinner shows as well as countdown shows (which was such an awesome experience!).

If u ask me .. I truly had a wonderful and blessed 2007-year even though it was a lot of hard work and sometimes-unbearable moments.  The month of December was extra special cos it’s kinda like a more ‘intense’ version of my entire 2007 year .. I kicked off my 50-venue nationwide promo tour going to soooooo many towns in Malaysia to meet all my supporters & friends.  There were so many kind people that actually made my promo possible .. so come to think of it .. I like to dedicate this blog to them … (if u  one of the people tat came to my promo to support me and we shook hands .. i wanna thank  u again & hope 2 see u again soon ya)

well ...Lots and lots more things which I still wanna update so I guess I’ll leave it on my next blog ya … in the meantime, it’s almost CNY so I wanna wish everyone here, GONG XI FA CAI !!!

Karen

Chinese New Year Glitter Graphics

My special 7th December 2007 Birthday ...

Ok i have a feeling tis is going to b a LOOOong entry ... hehe, I still remember very clearly how I celebrated my birthday in 2006 – I was still living in my UTAR (Sg Long) student flat then … I had exam the next day so I spent the whole day at home doing my final revision before my producer and my dear manager gave me a surprised by bringing me a birthday cake right before midnight (thanks so much guys .. I won’t forget how much you care for me). Even though it was very ordinary 22^nd birthday for me but it made a whole world of difference .. I chose my priority then to focus on my exam and I graduated!! Finally .. bcos of that .. I can pursue my dream in my music in 2007!

Things are very different this year as I celebrate my 23^rd birthday (oh my god!!) … in the last ten months, I’ve launched 2 albums (malay and Chinese) and my schedule have been really2 hectic (almost non-stop) which in many ways I can’t complain because I’m really grateful for the opportunity given to me by so many people this year (thanks ..). I woke up receiving lots of SMS from my friends and had time to quickly check my Friendster (wow .. SOOoo many greetings which I still haven’t got time to approve, sooooo sorry) …

Jayne came to pick me up around noon time to rush for a promo and gathering at Neway when all my dear friends and supporters gave me a surprise celebration (and thanks to Neway – ‘Ai Ning’ for lovely birthday cake again) … this is the first time I celebrated my birthday as an artiste, thanks again for those who showed up, it really mean a lot to me …

Soon after that we rushed over to NTV7 for a variety show (Chinese) shooting – hehe, as usual … I couldn’t stop laughing cos everyone was so funny there … the 3-hour shoot ended up becoming almost 6 hours (we didn’t have dinner at all) and by the time we left the TV station, it was almost 11PM. Luckily in the end, I was still able to celebrate my birthday dinner (11.50PM) with my dear Prodigee family in a Japanese restaurant back in Sri Hartamas … (check out the cute home-made turtle cake!!)

So here u go .. tat’s how I spent my birthday in 2007 … I really wonder, what will 2008 become of me? I guess I believe in God’s will and I also believe in hardwork … if I put in my 101% …one day I will surely see my effort being appreciated (I hope). I learn this from all those lovely and encouraging messages / comments from all my friendster friends ..sooooo sorry if I didn’t manage to reply all your messages (I know I’ve probably offended some of you :< ) … anyway, I really cannot thank you enough for your support throughout this year …

Finally ... I really wanna wish you a very happy and merry xmas for 2007!  So you might ask .. .wat’s my birthday wish(es) for 2007? … Well I wish for my dear sister to give birth to a healthy December baby soon, I wish that there’ll be less tension in my country and everybody would be happier human beings and finally my 3^rd wish … hahah, I guess I will have to keep it to myself this time … hehe

LOVE, Karen

My 'SHOWTIME' album launch ... 龔柯允《表演》

 
I’ve been thinking what I wanna write and update since I launched my album on 9^th November … as u can see from my photos ... it was such a wonderful day for me bcos I reached another one of my dream and yet it felt different this time … I had really mixed feelings knowing that I finally have my own Chinese album and it may be my last album : < 

For those of you who r not in Msia (click here) … I have launched my album but it will not be available on any retail stores for now … why? If you’re one of those people who wrote to me asking ‘where to download my mp3 for free?’ … then I guess you have the answer already... This is not my decision but my company’s decision, which I respect whole-heartedly … when no one is supporting original music, there's no need for retail music stores to sell my album i guess ...

so right now, I’m working very hard to promote my album around the country (thanks everyone for showing up in my café tour … it’s really wonderful to see so many of you coming to see me perform live) .. the only place to get my album now is during my live promo tour …

Since the news came out on paper (click here), so many people wrote to me asking me to be strong and they feel really sad for me … I just wanna thank everyone for your words of encouragement and I’m so sorry if I haven’t been replying ya messages … I’ve been spending a lot of time (when I’m not promoting my album) thinking about how I should move forward in my life … I’ve been really fortunate to be given these opportunities in life (I know that) … I just wonder would that be enough if I just continue to work hard? I really dunno …

All I can say is that I love what I’m doing now .. especially when I know my music means something to others and through my songs … never did I expect that I can inspire and touch the hearts of so many of my supporters, this is something which gives me greatest encouragement … so if I’m continue to be given this opportunity I will keep goin no matter how tough it is ..

... 發了華語專輯之後, 我更加備的努力學習我的中文, 每次趁著不用跑通告的時候,就到公司'讀報紙'..(大家可不要小看"讀報紙"哦!) 我通常會選擇一些我感興趣的新聞來閱讀,一個字,一個字大聲的唸出來,唸錯了公司同事就糾正我, 我覺得"讀報紙"有很多的好處,除了可以學習到每個字的正確發音,還可以讓自己認識多一些華語字,最重要的是不用出門就可以知道天下事. 想要學習華語的朋友,不妨跟我一樣多閱讀報紙.

所以,如果你正在看我的BLOG,請給我一些評語,如果有寫錯字,文法錯了,請多多包含及指教..也請大家給我多一點的時間,為了你們,為了我自己,我會努力的學習中文,加油,加油,龔柯允!! Love @ Karen

PS: Really sorry for slow updates ... i've been travelling a lot to promote my album, this weekend i'll b back in my birthplace .. KOTA KINABALU so if u live in KK pls come support me ya! 2nd Dec 730PM BLK A Piazza - Warisan Square
    

Li Dao '離島' Music Video (making of)

It feels like yesterday when i was preparing for my first album launch in Feb 2007 - i was SOOOooo nervous tat day .. suddenly it's fast forward (nine months) and i'll be having my chinese album press conference tomorrow (OMG!), tis time it feels a lot more different as I have already started promoting my album before the PC so i guess right now, i feel more excited than being 'nervous' hehe .. oh my parents will attending the PC too so i'm thrilled to see them again as they fly all the way from my hometown Labuan for this special occasion ...

I won't be writing much tis time as i need to prepare many many things for tomorrow's BIG day .. including an indian-dance choreography (yeah) so i'll write again after tat okie .. i also wanna wish everyone a very happy DEEPAVALI celebration !!

Because of LI DAO '離島' i have received so many well wishes from my 'new' friends .. people who didn't know me until this song, so i really wanna thank everyone for supporting my NEW album .. check out the MAKING OF video for now okie .. i can't wait to show the MV soon (it'll be shown tomorrow during my PC yeah!) so see u soon okie!

My promo schedule - hope you come support me this weekend!

9/11/07 (五) 10.00pm Kepong Wings Cafe

10/11/07 (六) 10.00pm Connaught Park - Halo cafe 海螺餐廳

11/11/07 (日) 10.00pm Behind Time Square - Wings Cafe

Karen

MY salute to Malaysia HERO(es) ...

Many people are taking about our new national hero who just returned from space .. the 'very good looking' Dr Sheikh Muszaphar Shukor (hehe) pls click here: Angkasawan ... I'm very happy tat Malaysian has finally gone to space (yeah)! However ..

I think there's another hero which we have all overlooked ... he didn't goto space or make international headlines by doing something groundbreaking, but he's now my role-model ... and his name is Wireman S. Krishnamoorthy (dun ask me how to pronounce, hehe) pls click here: HERO ... he's my real HERO because he did what most of us dare not to do under such situations and when it really2 matter most!!  I'm SOOooo proud of him (he's only 19!!). So i wanna dedicate my blog to him and hope tat more Malaysians will follow his example and make him our role model ...

Anyway, my album will be coming out soon (29th October 2007) .. it's really exciting and i'm very nervous ... I'll come back again to talk about my album on my next blog ya .. pls take care for now @ Karen

*UPDATES* My very first chinese song '離島' ... PREVIEW here

**Updates** Thank you SOOooo much for those who really spent time helping me to translate the chinese lyrics - on behalf of those readers who now can understand the meaning of my first chinese song, thank you all for your wonderful help!! I like many versions of the translation (tis is such a wonderful gesture from u guys!!) and have chosen one (thanks Keith) to put below in my blog .. hope u enjoy the song okie!

It's another long holiday and i like to wish all my muslim friends a very happy HARI RAYA (new year) ... once again, I won't be able to go back to my dear Labuan Island to visit my parents bcos i'm busy preparing for my chinese album launch ...  i believe everything happens for a reason and right now, it's important tat i stay in KL bcos i've waited a long time for tis ...

If u haven't heard it yet ... I finally have my very first chinese song 離島 which went on-air last week, you know ... i stayed tune all night on monday to wait for my own song (MYFM) and it was really wonderful to hear my own voice introducing my radio single (hehe) ... i was even more surprised when i received SMS from Jayne (i was in a studio at the time) last wednesday .. tat my single 'LI DAO' was voted no 1 on MYFM night chart ... believe it or not, tear started flowing down from my eyes when i saw the SMS, i guess apart from me being very very happy .. i cried bcos i felt tat my hard work was being appreciated by all my supporters ... i really can't thank all of ya enough for believing in me for so long ... <thank you>.

For those who wrote to me about 'Li Dao' .. i hope tis special song also touch your heart and make you appreciate where u r from even more, i know it's not easy to search for your own dream being away from home .. it certainly makes me miss my dear home so much everytime i sing tis song ... anyway, i hope someone can help me translate the lyrics (PLEASE) so tat friends who cannot read chinese can also understand the meaning of this song ... thanks again, and i wish all of you a happy holiday ...

from KAREN

離島 (leaving the island)
詞:黃明志 lyrics:huang ming zhi
曲:張捷惟 song: zhang jie wei

靠坐在陌生的床 牆角還擱著行囊
Sitting on the foreign bed, the luggage sitting in the corner
窗外的霓虹燈搶了 月亮的光
the neon lights outside the window shining brighter the the moon light
來自大海的方向 從地圖的另一端
coming from the sea, from the other side of the map(world)
背著夢想 也帶著揮不去的牽掛
carrying my dreams, and also bearing the longings that I can’t leave behind

風 啊 風 把我帶到這地方
wind, oh wind, who brought me to this place
藍色的記憶還留在我海上的家
blue colored memories still left in my home on the sea.
輕輕躺在這城市的中央 寧靜的夜晚 眼角淚未乾
gently lying in the city’s central, in the still of the night, my eyes still wet with tears
墜落在被月色撫摸的窗台上
falling onto the moonlit window ledge.

喔喔 風 啊 風 吹送著我的牽掛
oh oh, wind, oh wind, blowing away my longings
伴著海浪指引方向送到你臂彎
accompanying the directions of the sea waves into your arms
走啊走前往夢想的路上 每次感覺孤單 看著月兒彎
moving towards the dreams, whenever I’m feeling lonely, I look towards the crescent moon
彷彿笑著說 “你要勇敢 別害怕”
who seems like smiling and saying, “you must be brave, don’t be afraid”
擔心月兒會孤單 星星守護在身旁
worried that the moon might be lonely, the stars watched over it by it’s side
安靜地陪我夢了一段 家鄉
Silently, accompanying me, dreaming a dream of my hometown.