Singer-Songwriter Linying on life, love and her music career

If there was one surprising thing that Linying has discovered about herself recently, it’s that she can be very obsessive about her hobbies. 

This quirk was a result of a tart-making accident that produced experimental flavours such as lavender chocolate with angostura bitters. It reveals a tenacity that the singer-songwriter, 28, never knew she had.

“I remember seeing a picture of a grapefruit tart on Instagram [during the circuit breaker in 2020]It is something I adore and am constantly craving. At the time, all of the F&B outlets were closed, and that was what sparked my whole spiral into researching and baking. 

“I would look up different protein content in flour to compare what could get me the best possible product, and I would be very exact and uncompromising. As it turns out, I have some discipline and some level of meticulousness which you wouldn’t necessarily expect an artist to have, I think,” she says with a laugh.

For someone who confesses that she has never really cooked – or baked – before, Linying dove headfirst into one of the most intensely difficult pastries to make at home. Linying’s passionate approach to music is also evident. 

Linying has been a local star since 2016, when she began to make a name for herself in the music scene. Her emotive and lyrical songs often capture the emotional rollercoaster of heartbreak and love.

Her debut album has a touch more hope and optimism this time. There could be wreckage here. The eight-track record was released last month. Good behavior, an up-tempo tune that is also Linying’s favourite composition so far.

“I have waited my whole life to write a song like this one,” she declared on Twitter earlier in January this year. 

And true to her introspective style, Linying explores the realisation that one doesn’t have to put on their best front in order to be truly accepted in a relationship.

“The idea behind Good behavior comes from the baggage of past relationships where I always felt like things would be okay if I just “behaved”. Like if anything went wrong, it’s because I couldn’t control my emotions, and if I was just able to hold it in, then nothing would go wrong. This feeling that people only want me when I’m on my best behaviour was something that stuck to me subconsciously.”

It’s an empowering revelation, one that’s a part of a journey encompassing an almost worldly perspective on life, love and relationships. 

“This album is just me navigating all these things, noticing these things, and asking myself, do I want to be governed by that, or should I let go? Most of my songs are about my inability or inability to let go. But it reaches this apex. Good behavior where I’m finally like, maybe it’s too good to be true, but whatever comes, comes, and you shouldn’t live in fear.

“That’s not to say that I’m now enlightened, and no longer living in fear. I’m still scared of everything that comes my way, but it’s important, I guess, to have these moments of bravery and to remember them,” she says.

Charting her growth

Linying is perhaps the most well-known Singaporean term. The Road aheadThe 2021 National Day song she co-wrote with Evan Low. Her popularity has increased from a small community of fans of indie music to the mainstream. 

“[Being a songwriter] is something that I’m very happy to be recognised for. When people zero in on the lyrics, that kind of makes me very happy… rather than just be an artist, whatever that means. NDP is fun because you get a few strange fans and comments on social networks. Generally I don’t get many odd comments, but every now and then I get a few creeps in my inboxes. But it’s OK; it’s easy to ignore and a decent price to pay,” she chuckles. 

Linying has made a lot of progress since her 13th birthday when she sang in a secondary school competition. Growing up, Linying, the daughter of a math teacher and business owner, listened to country songs like Dolly Parton, Loretta Lynn, and Kenny Rogers. 

Says Linying: “That was what shaped my music early on. This country music’s descriptive storytelling and narrative nature has shaped the way I write, and is what keeps me drawn to music. It paints such an exact and visual picture. That’s where my love of specificity comes from.”

It was electronic music that gave the young songwriter a head start in the industry. Her YouTube channel, which featured videos she sang, attracted the attention of DJs and electronic music producers. This included German producer Felix Jaehn, whose remix of Jamaican singer Omi’s song Cheerleader The song was co-written by her and topped the Billboard Hot 100 in 2015. Eagle Eyes. Later, the track was played at Coachella 2016, a popular music festival. She was a third year student at the National University of Singapore studying European history. 

Sheer maxi dress, Longchamp. Kate Spade floral earrings

Fast forward to 2022 and Linying has collaborated with other notable talents such as Chris Walla, former guitarist of American alternative rock band Death Cab for Cutie. The song was the result of their collaboration. Daylight Goes Into One DoorThe first single from the album is “The First Single”. Unlike Good behavior, Daylight’s rousing choral-like composition is a melancholic interpretation of the fleeting nature of life. 

“It’s this realisation that I had when I was a child, where everybody I loved is going to die, and one day, I’m going to feel the pain and ‘pay’ for how good things are right now. The more things are good now, the more painful it will be. This is the guiding theme of the entire album. Life and death, love and loss – these are such a natural and essential part of the human experience.”

Coach cotton T-shirt and Military Boots Maxi skirt, Tory Burch Floral air dry clay headband from Luulaa

Comforting her listeners

Linying does not dwell on these heavy themes, but she hopes to connect with her readers through the honesty with which she reflects upon the highs & lows of her life.

“My music doesn’t offer any solutions. It’s more like I’m the friend that cries with you. I don’t give you any solutions to any of your problems, but I acknowledge that they are there and we can all go through it together.”

Linying has reached out to her listeners through the weekly newsletter and Telegram group subscribers, by sending her songs. Linying adopted this routine over Covid-19, just like her baking hobby.

“I’ve always been told [at marketing label meetings]I needed to engage more with my fans or post more on social networks. I’ve always felt very frustrated by this, because I would feel like, what is there for me to tell people? I don’t really want to share what I ate all the time or what I’m wearing [at the moment]. There are some parts of me that I maybe don’t want to put out in public. I would always feel like my career would be under threat if I don’t share my whole life in excruciating detail. 

Covid-19 was a great way for me to realize that music is the best way to connect with my fans. I found the crowd that I am most comfortable with. I feel like I could be friends with all of them – they are never disrespectful, and they are always so courteous and polite. I can see that they are able to understand the music and how they interact with it. That’s probably my proudest achievement of 2021,” she says earnestly.

What does she want her listeners to take away? Linying thinks carefully about the question.

“I don’t think it’s going to change the world or anything like that, but I do hope that for anyone who listens to these songs – maybe they are going through the same thing right now, or they have gone through it before, or they will go through it at some point – that they will find comfort and company in it. I think that’s the main thing. Music has been a constant companion in my life, and that is what I hope to share with you. It’s just the company.”

Turtleneck printed top, Etro. Clou de Forge silver single earring, Hermes. Oversized sunglasses, Miu Miu

Linying recommends…

The self-confessed foodie shares her top homegrown restaurants.

“One of my favourite local discoveries is this lei cha (a Hakka dish comprising a mix of tea leaves, herbs, roasted nuts, seeds and grains) place at People’s Park Centre called Thunder Tree (thundertree.sg). They are organic, vegan, and have a vegetable farm that they grow organically. Everything tastes incredible fresh. I’m always amazed by how they make their noodles taste so good without any sort of alliums in it. It blows me away. Another place that I really love is Kobashi (@kobashi_sg), a home-based sourdough donut bakery.”

PHOTOGRAPHYWee Khim, assisted Ivan Teo
STYLING Lena Kamarudin
HAIR Marc Teng
MAKEUP Lolent Lee, using Chanel
MANICURE Flutterytips from Rebecca Chuang