Tia Ray hits a high note

Host Tian Tian recalls one occasion when he and Yuan were traveling to the US to record a program for a music channel. They met at a US airport, both jet-lagged, yet Yuan appeared exhilarated. She shared an anecdote from her flight: she had encountered a typhoon, nearly missed her plane, and amid the turbulence, wrote a song titled Lucky Rain on board.

"Life is short. We only live once — maybe less than 30,000 days. You have to go for it," Yuan reflects.

"To me, 'going for it' — that energy, that strength, that faith — whatever drives me, music is the foundation. Music helps me understand who I am and why I'm here.

"I love high-pressure, challenging creative environments," says Yuan, who can now step confidently into collaborative spaces as a leader.

Since her second album, Tiara, she has been traveling to the US to record and work with local musicians.

"At first, collaborating with Grammy-winning producers, I was so conscious of their judgment," she admits.

"But now I can communicate with ease. As a Chinese singer, I feel a growing cultural confidence."

She credits her ability to connect across cultures to her years in bands.

Around 2010, she joined The Knuts, a jazz-rooted group that blended R&B, soul, hip-hop and funk, with members from China, the US and the Dominican Republic.

Such experience taught her how to listen, adapt, and create with artists from entirely different backgrounds — a skill that now defines her creative voice.

Though she had been supported by renowned singer-songwriters such as Zhang Yadong, Liu Huan, and Khalil Fong, Yuan remained what many considered a "niche" artist in the public eye for a long time.

It wasn't until the release of her album Once Upon A Moon in October 2021 that she began to notice a shift — more and more young listeners were discovering her music.

The following year, the album earned her a nomination for Best Mandarin Female Singer at the 33rd Golden Melody Awards, while the album was also nominated for Best Vocal Recording Album.

"In the past, every step I took sometimes felt like an exhausting struggle," she says. "But now it's different. I feel like I'm walking a path lined with flowers, and everything feels lighter."

"Because I feel like I'm being lifted," she adds.

She recalls the most moving moments from her sold-out tours last year: "When the entire audience stood up and sang along to songs I never expected them to know, I was stunned.

"In that moment, it was like being a hot-air balloon. It takes someone to light the fire, and it takes shared breath and shared energy — that's the 'gas' that lets it rise slowly. And when I finally lifted off, I felt like the balloon had grown big enough and steady enough to carry everyone who lifted me up, all together, drifting higher and higher.

"That feeling … it's beautiful."

Contact the writer at xingwen@chinadaily.com.cn