Chinese superstar Lay Zhang on going ‘West’ and beyond

Lay Zhang isn’t like your usual ult.

In his decade-long pop career, he has taken the road unlike any other. Lay skyrocketed to fame as a K-pop idol, a member of the legendary group EXO that debuted in 2012.

Four years later, he released his debut solo EP, "Lose Control," and has put out a total of four full studio albums and four extended plays since then. He has been credited as a songwriter, an arranger, and a producer in each.

Lay the solo artist has been making a mark with his own brand of traditional-meets-modern M-pop, fusing traditional Chinese elements and sounds from instruments like hulusi and guzheng with the likes of EDM and hiphop.

“Incorporating my culture in my music is very important because my culture is who I am, my background. I am a proud Chinese person first before an artist, so I just want to share all the good things about my culture. I hope it inspires others to do the same,” he said in a recent Zoom interview with the Philippine press.

In his latest EP, "West," Lay serves as a captain in a musical journey “seeking the Western Continent” and “the mystery around it.” He opens the EP with "Veil," blending distorted traditional erhu sounds with trap beats, all while inviting his listeners to “take off your mask and show me your real you.” Its intricately made music video also reflects this same harmonic blend of the ancient and the modern, the East and the West, and the real and the dreamworld for more visual impact.

"West" has a total of five tracks, including the Chinese and English versions of Veil. The other three are "3 Wishes" that paints a selfless kind of love; the R&B track "Understand," which is Lay’s other favorite song in the EP aside from the lead single; and "I Don’t Care" that’s meant to address cyberbullying with the superstar singing, “They can spit their poison but I won't care.”

Lay has always been vocal about his mission to bring mix-Mandarin-pop to all corners of the world, rapping about “taking China to the world” in his epic 2020 song, "Lit."

This personal mission is what sets Lay apart from the rest. And he is doing so with much success. Apart from breaking records in the Chinese music industry, he is also China’s highest ranked Mandopop star on Billboard 200 chart and the first Chinese artist to enter the iTunes Top 60 in the United States with his third album NAMANANA.

As a testament to his growing western popularity and to further his mission, the Chinese star is literally heading west as he takes his "Grandline 2: Infinite Lands" tour to the US. He is also headlining the first-ever "MetaMoon Music Festival," which aims to celebrate Asian culture at Barclays Center in New York City in late November. 

Beyond West

Despite his countless achievements as a multi-hyphenate, Lay still feels unsuccessful, at least from his own point of view.

“I don’t think I am a very successful," he said. "For me, successful is one moment. At that moment, maybe you’re a success. But I think our life is a long time, so we have to keep your mind and always look ahead and dream big and never give up and always try, try your best. That’s when we make a great thing happen.” 

Lay, who spent the early years of his career with at most 11 other members, admitted that being a solo artist can get a little tough. But the artistic freedom it gives can be all worth it as it allows him to go beyond his comfort zones.

“I have more freedom to choose a concept I want to try. So that’s why I try to experiment as much as I can. I’m still finding my sound. It's a process and it’s fun to make all kinds of music. So my goal is just to get better each day and discover my sound,” he said.

“I want to try a lot of genres. Hiphop is different from me because I grew up with ballads. But I love the energy and the attitude of hiphop. I hear that house music is getting more popular. Maybe I will try it next. I am open to all kinds of music because it is art.”

Filipino XBacks and EXO-Ls can expect more than just a new sound from Lay in his next project.  He also hinted about shooting a documentary, expressed interest in collaborating with Filipino artists, and promised to meet his Filipino fans in person the soonest time possible.

“For me, the next 10 years is so far and also it’s so close… I don’t want to waste time so every day I just do my best whatever I can do,” he said. — LA, GMA Integrated News