JiZO Lexy: Hey Dawen! Thanks for taking the time
out to do this interview with JiZo! Please do
introduce yourself to the viewers/readers who
don’t know you.
Dawen: My pleasure, and thanks JiZo for having
me! Hey folks! My name is
Dawen.
I’m an R&B/soul singer based in Los Angeles and
I’ve just released
my
debut album “American Me” on
iTunes and
Amazon.com.
JiZO Lexy: Now I want to let you know first off
that the first time I heard your music, the
first thing I thought was, “OH WOOOOOOOOOOW.”
When did you realize that you had such a great
voice?
Dawen: Aww, thank you, I appreciate the love.
Growing up, there was a lot of singing around
the house which inspired me to become a singer.
My Dad loved classical music and would sing
along to opera. My older brother used to lead a
few rock bands in the basement. As early as
elementary school I was getting involved with
choirs and anything that gave me an opportunity
to sing. Later on, my training at Berklee
College of Music and Northwestern’s School of
Music really provided the foundation and
practice that I needed to get my voice to where
it is today.
JiZO Lexy: You’ve touched a lot of sensitive
topics in your songs, from love to racism and
stereotyping. Your song “Wake up” really touches
base on how Asians are so easily stereotyped
that we all know kung-fu, that we all have
accents and what not of that sort. Do you think
this will help change our future outlook on
social injustice and racism?
Dawen: “Wake
Up” was written out of personal experience.
Every lyric in that song comes from an actual
quote that someone said to me growing up. I
hope people who listen to the song will not only
think about how they are stereotyped but also
how they stereotype others. By rejecting
stereotypes we empower ourselves and we define
ourselves instead of letting others do it for
us. By not stereotyping others we can open the
dialogue that furthers understanding in our
diverse community. I hope that songs like “Wake
Up” can give us a voice and let our views be
heard. If we all start to speak up and speak
out then yes, we can help change our future
outlook on social injustice and racism.
JiZO Lexy: You also have a very wide range of
musical influences, which stretch from Mozart to
Charles Mingus to Erykah Badu and Bob Marley.
What other influences can you include with that
list? And please, do elaborate on why! =)
Dawen: Stevie Wonder, Curtis Mayfield: They
both write music that touches upon social
injustice and racism. I remember the first time
I heard Stevie Wonder’s album Innervisions,
and Curtis Mayfield’s album Curtis. I
felt like they were describing my
experience as an Asian American! I remember the
first time I heard the songs “Living for the
City” and “Don’t Worry.” I stopped
whatever I was doing and just kept listening.
The words were so powerful and really spoke to
me.
Jon Brion: This producer/songwriter/film
composer can do anything. Rock, hip-hop,
classical…his diverse range as a musician really
inspires me.
Leonard Bernstein, Aaron Copland: Two of my
favorite classical composers. In addition to
being phenomenal conductors, they both have a
distinct American sound.
張震嶽
(Zhang Zhen Yue),
陶喆
(David Tao),
王菲
(Faye Wong),
鄧麗君
(Teresa Teng): These artists inspire me for
different reasons. Zhang’s songs have
particularly clever lyrics; (David) Tao
revolutionized a whole new way of singing that
helped pave the way for artists like Jay Chou;
(Faye) Wong and (Teresa) Teng both made me
realize how beautiful the dialects of Chinese
sound in music. Together they all keep my
Mandarin from deteriorating while reminding me
of my Chinese and Taiwanese roots.
JiZO Lexy: How did you get involved with
singing and playing piano at the age of 6? What
made you want to pursue it?
Dawen: It’s funny because there’s this
stereotype that all Asian American parents force
their kids to learn piano or violin. For me it
was the opposite. My brother and I begged our
parents to get a piano. We desperately wanted
piano lessons! In fact, I had my first piano
lesson before I even had a piano. I practiced
playing imaginary keys over the fireplace! I
think I saw the neighbor’s kid playing piano and
decided I really wanted to play, too.
With my Dad and bro always singing around the
house and listening to music, naturally, I
wanted to sing, too. Oddly enough, my earliest
moments of singing were inspired from
instrumental music and not the human voice. I
remember seeing the Disney film <i>Fantasia</i>,
particularly the part with the Pegasus and
the Greek gods,and wanting to sing along
to all the parts of the orchestra.
JiZO Lexy: If you weren’t singing/songwriting,
what would you be doing career-wise?
Dawen: Hmm, maybe be a gourmet chef… I love
eating and cooking food, haha. Or open up a
bookstore that doubles up as a jazz bar. I’ve
always wanted to own a shop where people could
read books and listen to some good music. Throw
in the Jack and cigars…
But honestly, I can’t think of anything else I’d
rather be doing right now. My friends told me I
could never work in an office. And I agree, I
don’t think I’d make it to the end of the day.
JiZO Lexy: I have read that you play the piano,
guitar and mbira dzavadzimu. What is a mbira
dzavadzimu?
Dawen: The mbira dzavadzimu, or mbira, for
short, is a native instrument of Zimbabwe. It
is a small rectangular piece of wood and has
metal keys that you play with your thumbs. It’s
also referred to as a thumb piano. I had the
opportunity to learn how to play in college and
the experience changed my life. It opened my
perspective to a whole new way of appreciating
and listening to music. Up to that point,
everything I had ever known was bound to the
Western tradition.
JiZO Lexy: Since JiZo promotes the ever growing
Asian American community, I wanted to get a
little personal and poke at you. Break it down
for us and tell us about your Asian American
background.
Dawen: My parents are from China and Taiwan.
I grew up in Boston, moved to Hong Kong when I
was fourteen, returned to the US for college in
Chicago, and now live in Los Angeles. When
I lived abroad my schoolmates referred to me as
“The American.” When I moved back to the
States however, I was treated as “the
foreigner”. I constantly got the all
too-common question: “Where are you really from?” Ironically,
I was regarded more as an American when I lived
outside the US than I have ever been regarded
living in it. I identify equally as Asian and
American. For me, there is no hyphen. I
continuously celebrate this fact.
JiZO Lexy: You recently moved from Chicago to
Los Angeles. How hard was it to settle down and
adjust to a new city?
Dawen: For the most part it’s been a smooth
transition. My brother here has helped me a lot
to adjust. I couldn’t imagine if I had moved
here blind. The biggest change for me is the
driving. In Chicago, I took the ‘el,’ rode the
bus, and used cabs to get everywhere. Now I
drive all the time. My carbon footprint has shot
through the roof. And traffic sucks! But all in
all, it’s been great. Gotta love the weather
here, you can’t beat it!
JiZO Lexy: Your album just released on
09/09/09. (That’s such an awesome date…) What
other goodies can we expect from you in the near
future?
Dawen: The timing was good and well, the date
felt pretty fortuitous, you know? I suppose
08/08/08 would have been better, but than I
would have had to compete with the Olympics…
Up next, I’m planning to go on tour with my
6-piece band around Southern California, and
other parts of the country to promote the album,
American
Me. Pick up your copy today on
iTunesandAmazon.com, or get the CD on my website,www.dawen.us.
I’ll also be working on a new music video with
the help of my fans. So visit my websites to
stay updated on all the latest news and
excitement!
Be sure to check out his stuff, subscribe to his
youtube, follow him on Twitter, join his fanbook
on facebook and add him as a friend on Myspace!!
Thanks for viewing guys!
