Joyce Jonathan poses for a photo at the Canton Tower on May 30, the day of Dragon Boat Festival. [Photo/Canton Tower]
“Guangzhou is really big and oriental, and its people are open-minded,” said Joyce Jonathan, French singer and songwriter at an exclusive interview with Newsgd.com on May 30, 2017 right before she gave a concert in Guangzhou.
This is actually the second time Joyce gave a concert in Guangzhou. Therefore, when she talked about her concert and Guangzhou with us, she was very excited.
She told the reporter that when she first performed in Guangzhou last May, she didn’t have a lot of time to visit the city, only having a glimpse of the market and food. This time she visited several places around the city, and see many different things, green nature, lake, tower, and so on.
Joyce pointed out there are a lot of different things in big city Guangzhou, so that she would come back again to see more. And she got some ideas inspired by the city, therefore, maybe we can look forward to a song about the city in the future.
Joyce Jonathan sings at her concert at the Central Station of Yangcheng Creative Industrial Park, Tianhe District, Guangzhou, on May 30, 2017. [Photo: Newsgd.com/Monica]
Joyce’s concert in Guangzhou was the last stop of her tour in mainland China. After Guangzhou, she would head to Taiwan. Speaking of her tour, Joyce said, “It is crazy! It is amazing! We made 8 shows in 10 days.”
Joyce felt that in different cities, people are different. “In Guangzhou, we have the most beautiful venue, the most beautiful team. I am really excited about the show, can’t wait to play, to meet Guangzhou’s audiences, and I am going to sing a Chinese song in French tonight,” said Joyce right before the concert started.
The Chinese song Joyce sang in French is Chinese singer-songwriter Cui Jian’s “Greenhouse Girl” (花房姑娘). At the concert, she also sang a famous and popular Chinese folk song “Jasmine Flower” (茉莉花) which was sung along by all the audiences. Joyce explained that she is not fluent in Chinese and can’t compose in Chinese, but she loves to sing Chinese. “Singing in Chinese is really musical. Chinese people sing really well, because of the voice under the noise which is the perfect place to sing well,” said Joyce.
Joyce Jonathan sings at her concert at the Central Station of Yangcheng Creative Industrial Park, Tianhe District, Guangzhou, on May 30, 2017. [Photo: Newsgd.com/Monica]
Joyce is closely connected with China since childhood. She first came to China when she was 11 years old and accompanied her mother on a business trip. She was influenced by her mother’s affection for China, who run Chinese travel business in France. Then she and her two sisters went to a French school where they could learn Chinese.
This is Joyce’s fourth time performing in China. She was still very excited about her recording the Global Spring Festival Gala with Beijing TV when she was 21 in 2012. She worked with Chinese-born singer-songwriter Qu Wanting and is thinking about working with more Chinese singers. “I love collaboration. There is a culture exchange. It’s important to share different minds,” said Joyce.
(by Monica)
Joyce Jonathan (M) enjoys Cantonese dim sum at Canton Tower, Guangzhou, on May 30, 2017. [Photo/Canton Tower]
Side story: Since May 30 was also the Dragon Boat Festival, Joyce also talked about the festive food zongzi and activity Dragon Boat Race in the interview. “The zongzi tastes really really nice with different nuts and stuffings inside. It’s really tasty,” Joyce smiled, “I saw the boats from the top of Canton Tower. It was really beautiful and amazing view.” Besides, Joyce and her team members also visited the Chen Clan’s Academy where she learned how to make Chinese paper cutting from paper-cut craftsmen.
Joyce Jonathan poses for a photo at the Canton Tower on May 30, the day of Dragon Boat Festival. [Photo/Canton Tower]
Joyce Jonathan (M) and her team members pose for a photo at the Canton Tower on May 30, the day of Dragon Boat Festival. [Photo/Canton Tower]
Joyce Jonathan (M) and her team members pose for a photo before the concert in front of the Central Station of Yangcheng Creative Industrial Park, Tianhe District, Guangzhou, on May 30, 2017. [Photo: Newsgd.com/Monica]
Joyce Jonathan sings at her concert at the Central Station of Yangcheng Creative Industrial Park, Tianhe District, Guangzhou, on May 30, 2017. [Photo: Newsgd.com/Monica]
Joyce Jonathan plays guitar at her concert at the Central Station of Yangcheng Creative Industrial Park, Tianhe District, Guangzhou, on May 30, 2017. [Photo: Newsgd.com/Monica]
Joyce Jonathan sings at her concert at the Central Station of Yangcheng Creative Industrial Park, Tianhe District, Guangzhou, on May 30, 2017. [Photo: Newsgd.com/Monica]
Audiences at Joyce Jonathan's concert at the Central Station of Yangcheng Creative Industrial Park, Tianhe District, Guangzhou, on May 30, 2017. [Photo: Newsgd.com/Monica]
Joyce Jonathan (M) and her team members wave to the audiences at the end of the concert at the Central Station of Yangcheng Creative Industrial Park, Tianhe District, Guangzhou, on May 30, 2017. [Photo: Newsgd.com/Monica]
Audiences at Joyce Jonathan's concert at the Central Station of Yangcheng Creative Industrial Park, Tianhe District, Guangzhou, on May 30, 2017. [Photo: Newsgd.com/Monica]
