For those paying attention to the Top 10 songs on the iTunes download chart last week, Chengdu-born Jane Zhang's appearance appeared to come from out of nowhere. But the 32-year old C-pop singer has been working hard to claim her spot in the international spotlight, ever since her first appearance in 2005’s Super Girl, a popular all-girl Chinese TV singing competition. Zhang came in at third place, but won legions of fans with her impressive vocals (she favoured tracks by 90s powerhouse vocalists like Mariah Carey and Christina Aguilera).
After the show, she collaborated with US producers Craig Williams and Reid Hyams to release her bilingual album The One (2006), a sophomore album Update (2007), recorded songs for the 2008 Beijing Olympics, and appeared on The Oprah Winfrey Show in 2009. After four studio albums and a few awards (Best Female Artist at the 2013 Top Chinese Music Awards and Best Worldwide Act at the 2015 MTV EMAs), she is collaborating with Timbaland for a place in the global spotlight.
Zhang has indicated her affinity for musical influences beyond C-Pop (mainly jazz and R&B) before, claiming that "I grew up loving the sound and feel of Western popular music, working with Timbaland allowed me to not only see how great music is produced but also the creative culture behind the scenes that enables the continuous production of great music" (Desire Thompso, Vibe). Her fluid vocals work well with the folk-ish harmonies and energetic hip-hop beats that Timbaland created for this feel good anthem, which sees Zhang shrugging off life's daily adversities to focus on the brighter side of things:
'Cause the world keeps spinnin'Life goes on and onI won't cry for long(Won't cry for long long long)Cause I'll still be winnin'When things are going wrongI turn on my favorite songAnd dust my shoulders(I dust my shoulders off) x3I don't worry 'bout nothing, just dust it off(I dust my shoulders off) x3I don't worry 'bout nothing, just dust it off'
Lyrics:
The funky and fresh song will undoubtedly pique interest in Zhang, but the song's lyrical content is not singular enough to compel long standing attention. The accompanying music video, however, is arresting and memorable. It sees Zhang tripping and traipsing through various references to Western fine art masterpieces: Edward Hopper's "Nighthawks", Vincent Van Gogh's self-portrait, Johannes Vermeer's "Girl With A Pearl Earring", Andrew Wyeth's "Christina's World", Georges Seurat's "A Sunday Afternoon on the Island of La Grande Jatte," Edvard Munch's "The Scream", René Magritte's "The Son of Man", and Salvador Dali''s "The Elephants".
The video has Zhang seamlessly flitting in and out of iconic masterpieces of the Western modern art canon - but will she be able to make a similarly smooth transition into the Anglosphone-dominated global music scene? Timbaland has claimed that their collaboration would allow them to "continue bridging the gap between Chinese and American pop culture", but the track's C-pop influences are difficult to discern. Will Zhang's upcoming record beat Anggun's (1997) to become the best-selling album by Asian artist outside of Asia? Will her sound be 'Chinese' enough to signify her roots, or will it adapt itself to the trending sounds of the moment?
