Dou Jingtong: Star in the making
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E-mail China Daily, May 30, 2016
It's evening at the 798 Art Zone in Beijing. Singer-songwriter Dou Jingtong emerges from a coffee shop next to a live-house venue, where she has just performed.
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Dou Jingtong plays her recent gig in Beijing's 798 Art Zone. [Photo by Jiang Dong/China Daily] |
Fans scream her name and take her photos on cellphones.
"I love you," one young woman tells her idol.
In her tight blue jeans and a loose white blouse, Dou, 19, smiles shyly and waves at people.
Success has come early for the soft-spoken musician, who released her debut album, Stone Cafe, in April. It is in English.
Released in digital format on QQ Music, a platform of Chinese internet giant Tencent, the album has been heard more than 40 million times within three weeks, setting a record for Chinese musicians.
"It's a miracle for such a young Chinese, who just released an album and sings in English, too," says Andy Ng, general manager of Digital Media Service of QQ Music, adding that the company has launched a new project, Music Plus, to support young talents.
On China's music scene, Dou is a rare emergence. Fans are impressed by her silky voice and singing style that mixes electronic, alternative rock and other elements.
The daughter of pop star Faye Wong and rock veteran Dou Wei, she has been living under the limelight since childhood.
Her mother, a Beijing-born singer who rose to fame after moving to Hong Kong in the late 1980s, is one of the country's best-selling female artists.
Her father, a former lead vocalist of legendary Beijing rock band Black Panther, is a musical genius to China's rock lovers.
The couple's marriage ended in a divorce in 1999. Both have withdrawn from public life since.
But the paparazzi are now following Dou Jingtong.
"I don't want people to stereotype my music because of my family background in music," Dou Jingtong says.
Stone Cafe has songs, such as May Rain, My Days and Chimes, which she wrote while studying songwriting in the United States.
The album is named after a school canteen where she wrote them.
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