The 40-year-old Chang Shilei is a rare "almighty king" in the Chinese music scene, he can write, write, sing, play, and produce, which is deeply praised by people in the industry and loved by fans.
2008 can be described as a watershed year for Chang Shilei's career. Prior to this, he was the "uncrowned king", his name was hit on the record page of famous singers such as Hu Yanbin; in 2008, as a member of the music production team for the opening ceremony of the Beijing Olympic Games, he was remembered by more people with the warm and full of vitality of "Me and You"; since then, he has cooperated with lin Yilian, Faye Wong and other first-line singers to become a hot music producer, and at the same time, through music variety shows such as "Our Song" and "I Am a Singer-Songwriter", and in the "Believe in the Future" charity performance, "The Bay Area Rises bright moon" The performance of the Mid-Autumn Festival Gala and other performances is well known to more audiences.
Chang Shilei, who has accumulated a lot of money, collaborated with his gold medal partner Wang Pingjiu to compose the song "The World is Us" for the 31st Summer Universiade, which will be held in Chengdu next June, "I am very fortunate to be able to show everyone my energy in a musical way." At the same time, Chang Shilei also sent a message to the young athletes, "Sports is a thing that breaks through themselves!" ”
Chang Shilei
Hosting the Universiade in Chengdu allows young people from all over the world to harvest happiness
Because he participated in the creation of the theme song "Me and You" of the 2008 Beijing Olympic Games, Chang Shilei's creative dimension was opened, and his life has changed dramatically. From that time, he said, he "really started creating real-life music outside of his own world." Chang Shilei knows that each musical work, under different circumstances, its functionality may be different. But from the perspective of a professional musician, he always hopes that apart from functionality, the work itself should be a good song.
Although he only had a brief "one-sided relationship" with Chengdu, Chang Shilei was full of curiosity about the city that people around him described to him as "particularly strong happiness", and he hoped that when the Universiade was held, young people from all over the world would experience the happiness of Chengdu.
Red Star News: Do you like sports? In your opinion, what do art have in common with sports?
Chang Shilei: Who doesn't love sports, right? But I usually hang out and have recently started playing badminton. I think people need exercise, how good the exercise is, simple and pure, and can also make your mood very good.
I think everything is closely related, especially music, and everything is related, because music comes from people's lives, different life scenes produce different music, the earliest is people shouting trumpets, isn't this also sports? So it's all expression of emotion, it's all in motion.
Red Star News: The song "Me and You" written for the Olympic Games, do you have any preferences for songs related to such a world multisport event? What are your views on the choice of genres that present nationality and cosmopolitanism?
Chang Shilei: When I was composing music for "Me and You", I also really started to compose real-life music outside of my own world from that time. This year is 2021, and 13 years have passed since 2008, like a dream. Because of working on Olympic music, my life has changed dramatically. Music is more of an instinctive reaction from my point of view, and as a professional musician, I feel very fortunate to be able to make a living from small to college music.
In this era, young people are very happy because of the Internet. But sometimes I also worry because they can hear all kinds of music, too much, all kinds of styles, sources and moods... From my point of view, I have not seriously thought about how to distinguish between cosmopolitan and national, but the complex of Chinese is innate, so I will naturally put nationality into my creation.
Red Star News: Next June, the 31st Summer Universiade will be held in Chengdu. Chengdu is an elegant and fashionable city, and the Universiade is a competition composed of university students, a creative young group, what kind of spark do you think will be between the two?
Chang Shilei: A city is made up of people, everything about it is made up of our people's activities, what kind of spirit a city is, how it faces the whole world, that is, how the people of this city face the whole world.
Now Chengdu is developing so fast, many of the friends I know like the city. I'm curious about Chengdu because I'm usually a very homely person and never run around outside. I came to Chengdu once and stayed for half a day, but I heard my friends describe the Chengdu in their hearts to me, saying that it is a city with a strong sense of happiness. So Chengdu is now a huge city full of surprises for me. I think that if you can do this competition here, young people all over the world will also have such an experience, that is, a strong sense of happiness.
Chengdu has a lot of culture to explore, and I can't wait to experience the city
Playing a small school to learn music, from graduating from a professional college, to engaging in this profession, and then going farther and farther on the road of music, going more and more smoothly... Chang Shilei is grateful for the cultivation of his parents and teachers, and also grateful for the tacit understanding of his partners.
Chang Shilei is a sensual person who is born with the sensitivity of an artist. Once, he "lived only in his own musical world, only in his own insights, only in the comfort zone he created for himself." But he's also a rational person, and he tries to break out of this "comfort zone."
Red Star News: You wrote songs for the Universiade this time, what kind of inspiration did the city of Chengdu bring to you?
Chang Shilei: I have to come to Chengdu first, to eat, to feel the atmosphere, to feel how the happiness of the city is so ubiquitous - this is a way. But I don't actually do this music in my life. When you create music, inspiration does come from life, but when your job is to make music, you have to use your knowledge, your experience, your technique, etc., it is a manifestation of comprehensive ability.
I am also starting to exercise now, I can ride a bicycle around the city, nothing is impossible, this unknown possibility is actually the most attractive to me. What I can be sure of is that this process must be a burst of happiness, because not to mention Chengdu, now the whole of China is bursting with happiness. I believe that Chengdu is very representative: it is safe and happy, the pace of life is fast and slow, it is tense and relaxed, there is a lot of culture to dig into, a lot of young people come to this place to build it, it is full of life, so I can't wait to experience the city of Chengdu.
Red Star News: You have emphasized that you are "a man made for music". For a song of the universiade genre, how do you balance the creative subject with your musical preferences?
Chang Shilei: My music preferences will be stronger when I am young, because at that time, it doesn't matter how big the world is, my world is the most important, I only live in my own music world, only live in my own insights, live in the comfort zone I have created for myself. It doesn't have to be safe, but it makes me feel comfortable. Whether it is really safe or not depends on whether you can organically integrate with this society after you really stand in society, and whether you can adjust when you encounter problems and difficulties.
So every song, I think it's a very good fate, because I didn't think that one day I would have such an honor to write for the Universiade, then all the musical work I did before that, probably to wait for this time, so come on.
Red Star News: In the songwriting of this Universiade, you and Teacher Wang Pingjiu are cooperating again. Do you have any consensus on creation?
Chang Shilei: If there is no consensus, there can be so many new songs, and there can be no tacit understanding without trust. Tacit understanding is priceless, at least for me and my profession, and I am also very, very grateful to know such a person, and then we have worked together for so many years, I feel very happy.
Because I myself have been blessed by music a lot, I know that when a person hears a piece of music that helps him, or a piece of music that leads him, or even has a saving effect, his feeling at that moment is very liberating.
Sports must break through themselves and interpret "youth" with their own state
The Universiade is a comprehensive, young people's event. "You just interpret the word 'youth' in your own state!" Chang Shilei sent a message to the young athletes participating in the Universiade, he said that young people should do what young people should do, youth is only once, should be no complaints, no regrets, "I think youth is to burn, sometimes even burn more thoroughly, it is particularly good." ”
Chang Shilei on the stage
Red Star News: Some netizens commented, "Chang Shilei is the bearer of the star-chasing industry, and chasing idols into partners is also a kind of happiness!" ”
Chang Shilei: A person who loves to draw, he first started to copy; people who love music also had to practice other people's songs at the beginning. I think the musicians I like, young people may use the word "idol" to express, but in my opinion, it is more of a group of people with the most connections in their careers. Because different musicians, artists, and composers have different personalities, lives, and experiences, it is because they are different that they produce different beauty.
When you are young, you may like it more singlely and look at it with a critical eye, but the more you grow up, the more you find that it is because of a different life that there will be different music. I was particularly fortunate that when I was young, I was full of curiosity about the world and could simply accept the influence of some artists. But now you will feel that the more you see, the more you desire to express your life experience, and you are more willing to open yourself up more and take the initiative to create more works.
Red Star News: As a grand event for young people around the world, how can we learn from foreign athletes for their strengths? And what are the Chinese attitudes and Chinese spirits that you think we need to export to the world?
Chang Shilei: I think young people should do what young people should do, as you get older or experienced, it is difficult for you to have the explosive energy of youth. Youth should be without complaint or regret, and the two words "youth" should be interpreted in their own state.
Sports is a thing that breaks through itself! Breaking through yourself is a very simple thing, just do yourself well, do what you are doing well, and then actively enjoy the unique, even gone energy brought by youth. I think youth is to burn, sometimes even more thoroughly, which is particularly good.
From my point of view, I think the world is big, and it is difficult for me to say what to do, because it is not easy for me to do myself well and satisfy myself. I feel like I'm lucky to be able to show everyone my energy in a musical way.
Red Star News reporter Ren Hongwei intern Wang Zuxi According to the interviewee
Edit Bao Chengli
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