HK star Nicholas Tse launches chilli crab mayo hot dog for JJ Lin's concert
Nicholas Tse (left) launched a Singapore-inspired chilli crab mayo hot dog bun for sale Singaporean singer JJ Lin's tour stops at the venue. Photos: Nicholas Tse/Instagram
Singapore's Mandopop king JJ Lin had some star-studded support for the Hong Kong leg of his JJ20 Final Lap World Tour.
The 44-year-old star performed at Kai Tak Stadium on May 24 and May 25. Hong Kong singer-actor and chef-entrepreneur Nicholas Tse launched a shrimp hot dog with chilli crab mayo, inspired by Singapore's famed chilli crab dish, thatw as sold at the concert venue in conjunction with Lin's gigs.
In a joint Instagram post with Lin on May 23, Tse, 44, said: 'Good music must go with awesome food.'
Lin also posted an Instagram Story of the hot dog buns on May 24 while preparing for his show backstage at Kai Tak Stadium. He could be heard saying in the video: 'A hot dog with a bit of Singaporean style to it. It looks yummy.'
Aside from Tse, many of Lin's celebrity friends also showed their support.
Lin posted a clip of the flower arrangements he received from his show business friends, including Hong Kong A-listers Jacky Cheung and Andy Lau, as well as Taiwanese singer-actor Richie Jen and martial arts movie star Jackie Chan.
Fellow Mandopop king Jay Chou had drinks delivered. Chou, 46, sent over bottles and cups of beverages from milk tea chain Machi Machi, which is known to be his favourite milk tea brand. Machi Machi will soft launch in Hong Kong on May 26.
Lin posted about the drinks in an Instagram Story on May 24 and said: 'Thank you to my bro (Chou) for these refreshing drinks.'
Lin kicked off his JJ20 Final Lap World Tour in Singapore with two nights at the National Stadium in December 2024. This is an extension of his JJ20 World Tour, celebrating two decades since his debut, which ran from 2022 to 2024.
The Final Lap tour has travelled to cities in North America and Europe, including New York and London. After Hong Kong, it will continue on to Taipei and Seoul, and finally end with nine nights at the Beijing National Stadium in June and July. – The Straits Times/Asia News Network
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The Star
11 minutes ago
- The Star
Singaporeans look to recreate slice of home in San Francisco Bay Area to mark SG60
SINGAPORE: Joy Chee sat on a bench facing Gardens by the Bay's Supertrees, her sketchbook and pen in hand. With furrowed brows and unwavering focus, she recreated the towering structures stroke by stroke. The 19-year-old, a second-year computer animation student at the Ringling College of Art and Design in the US state of Florida, is part of a team of overseas Singaporeans hoping to commemorate the Republic's 60th birthday by recreating a slice of it abroad. Their event, themed A Legacy of 60 Years, will take place on Sept 21 in the San Francisco Bay Area. It is being organised by a team of volunteers from SingaporeConnect, a non-profit organisation that hosts social and cultural events for Singaporeans residing in the Bay Area. First conceptualised in October 2024, the one-day celebration will be open to Singaporeans and non-Singaporeans alike, said Richard Chan, 52, one of the event's co-chairs. With a core team of 11 people, this event is SingaporeConnect's most ambitious yet, said Chan, with a projected attendee size of 3,000, and a volunteer pool of 100 to 150. 'This event will be a good opportunity to showcase what Singapore looks like, and who Singaporeans are,' said Mrs Tabitha Chee, 54, Joy's mother and the other event chairperson. Mrs Chee currently works as a human resource associate at a church. The Chees were speaking to The Straits Times while they were in Singapore on a trip to gather archival images and other materials for the exhibition. SingaporeConnect is also working with the Singapore Global Network (SGN) to obtain funding for the event. SGN did not reveal the amount of funding granted to SingaporeConnect, citing confidentiality reasons. This event is one of more than 30 ground-up National Day events being organised worldwide, with celebrations also planned in countries such as Australia, China, Saudi Arabia and the UK, the Ministry of Defence said in response to queries from ST. Chan, a start-up founder, likens SingaporeConnect's vision to the tech hub's mindset. 'Here in Silicon Valley, we are used to developing start-ups, which are always about dreaming big and persisting through hardships – this is the same mentality we are taking with the SG60 event,' he said. Before this, the team had organised several National Day events, including a live-streamed pandemic edition in 2021, with Singaporeans across five American cities. Singapore's history, in themed rooms The event's theme was the brainchild of Emily Lim, the 33-year-old chef and owner of Dabao SG, a Singaporean restaurant in San Francisco, and a volunteer with SingaporeConnect. The Singaporean moved to America's West Coast 11 years ago in pursuit of her culinary dreams, and fondly remembers her childhood in Singapore. Mrs Tabitha Chee is part of a team of US-based Singaporeans with a lofty plan: to put up a Singaporean cultural festival in the larger Bay Area to celebrate the Republic's 60th birthday. Together with her 19-year-old daughter, a computer animation undergraduate, Mrs Chee has conceptualised an interactive experience which takes visitors through the different eras of Singapore's history: from its time under British rule, to World War II, and the growth of the nation since its independence. The event is slated to take place in end-September, and the team expects to welcome around 2,000 to 3,000 visitors. She recalled playing in her neighbourhood's dragon-shaped playground, catching spiders and tadpoles, and buying food in her primary school canteen for 'just 50 cents'. Drawing inspiration from Singapore's history, she aims to evoke a sense of nostalgia through the event. 'I wanted to revive the Singapore of yesteryears and rekindle some memories. It's this sentiment that makes us human and pushes us to connect more with one another,' she added. One of the highlights will be themed rooms, designed to guide visitors through pivotal moments in Singapore's history: from Sang Nila Utama's arrival in 1299 to the beginning of British colonial rule in 1819, the Japanese occupation from 1942 to 1945, and Singapore's remarkable growth after gaining independence in 1965. Joy, the event's lead artist, is playing a key role in bringing Lim's vision to life. Born and raised in Atlanta, Georgia, she grew up with limited knowledge of Singapore's history. To conceptualise the rooms, she received a crash course in the Republic's history from her mother, who grew up in Singapore, but emigrated to the United States in 1999. Joy Chee's sketch of Gardens by the Bay, a location she has incorporated in her design of the event space. - Photo: ST Joy supplemented her mother's information with her own research on Singapore's art and cultural history and decided to 'incorporate different art styles through the ages'. 'I began researching art references and various artists that were from that period. For example, the room which depicts Singapore under British colonial rule is designed to resemble a traditional British painting, instead of the more brushy and airy style of traditional Asian artworks from that era,' she said. In addition to the themed rooms, the event will feature a performance area with Singaporean talent. Janice Chua, the home-grown creative and associate producer of the film Crazy Rich Asians, will share insights into the movie's production process, while Elisha Tan, a Singaporean comedian based in the Bay Area, is slated to put on a stand-up comedy show at the event. In a dining area decorated with murals of a kopitiam, visitors can enjoy a taste of Singaporean dishes like satay and chicken rice. There will also be kopi and teh at the event, with one vendor putting up live teh tarik demonstrations. Attendees will also have the opportunity to shop for souvenirs at a marketplace showcasing Singaporean entrepreneurs and brands. Lim of Dabao SG said she hopes the event will foster community among Singaporeans living overseas. She said: 'As someone who has lived abroad for so long, I hope to see more Singaporeans come together and embrace the value of shared connections.' As for Mrs Chee, she hopes attendees will come away with a good sense of what Singapore is, which to her, includes not just its food, but also the story of its people. 'The key to Singapore is its resilience. Visitors will be able to see how Singapore has evolved over time, emerging stronger and maintaining its competitiveness at every stage,' she said. - The Straits Times/ANN
New Straits Times
an hour ago
- New Straits Times
Talented Malaysian boy who's drawing his way to global fame — literally
BY the window of a modest studio in Minneapolis, Minnesota, the United States, Adam Musa sits quietly, his face momentarily lit by a flicker of a smile. Outside, the day is overcast, a gentle mist clinging to the glass, and Adam, without hesitation, remarks on the rain. "Anytime it rains here, it takes me back," he says, voice soft and shaded with a wistful nostalgia. It's not just the weather he's remembering, but a world half a planet away: the damp streets, the clang of metal gates, kaki lima (five-foot ways) shaded from monsoon downpours, the tinny hum of hawker stalls, the rust-red of corrugated roofs. These fragments of Malaysia find quiet refuge in his work — woven into the animated universes he's spent years creating. Born and raised in Selangor as one of four siblings, Adam's earliest years were shaped by an atmosphere where creativity was strongly encouraged. His mother, an artist herself, served as both muse and mentor. "She was always supportive of making art," he recalls fondly. It was with his brother, though, that he spent countless afternoons sketching characters from video games — makeshift heroes and pixelated villains rendered in pencil and paper. Those simple doodles would become the earliest evidence of a fascination that, in time, evolve into a career in animation. His first foray into bringing drawings to life came through Flipnote Studio on the Nintendo DS. "I tried to make game animations in it," he remembers, grinning at the thought. It was the tactile delight of movement, the subtle illusion of life conjured from still images, that held him in its orbit. Soon after came Flash, and with it, a simple loop: a character turns a corner and disappears. That figure would later re-emerge in his animated short Horned Cook Gola, a film that, like much of his work, folds whimsy into everyday life. "I was always drawn to the visual and motion aspect in media even as a child," explains Adam. A LANGUAGE OF MOTION Ask Adam about the works that shaped him and the conversation veers easily into reverence. He speaks of Revolting Rhymes, the Roald Dahl-inspired animation that left an early impression on him. "The sound, music, voice work, animation, colour and design — it's so good," he says, tone laced with enthusiasm. It was the kind of work that expanded his understanding of what animation could be: a space where storytelling, aesthetics and sound design converged in concert. In the same breath, he mentions Lilo & Stitch, drawn to its watercolour backgrounds and the way it crafted tenderness and alien strangeness in the same breath. "Stories where creatures and aliens interact with people in meaningful ways," he notes, are the ones that linger with him longest. It's no coincidence then, that his own stories occupy that same liminal space — where the fantastical brushes against the textures of daily life. His move to Minneapolis, a city better known for its lakes and indie music scene than as a global animation hub, came almost by instinct. He describes the city's creative undercurrent as one that felt unexpectedly inviting, a community where new voices were welcomed and strange ideas found room to breathe. "I felt like I belonged when I started hanging out with new friends and seeing new places with them," shares Adam, smile wide. He remembers walking the streets during Art-A-Whirl, an annual Northeast Minneapolis art crawl. One stop in particular left its mark — a chaotic, makeshift marketplace called the Hellavision Television Network Fleamarket. It was scrappy, weird, unvarnished, and exactly what he needed. Adam found not just kindred spirits in Minneapolis, but also opportunities. Nice Moves, a local animation community, invited him to speak earlier this year about 2D animation — a moment he describes as an "incredible honour". In a discipline often dominated by studio hierarchies and gatekeeping, these local, independent circles offered him a rare kind of creative democracy. And yet, as with much of animation, the work itself is solitary. "The practice does involve multiple hours of labouring alone. But I kind of like that," admits Adam. There's no complaint in his voice, just a recognition of the rhythms of his trade. The hours stretch, the movements are minute, but the quiet immersion is a comfort. Continuing, he shares: "The process requires you to be in your own mind for a very long time." It's not loneliness, but a chosen solitude — one that makes space for characters to form, to move, and also to make mistakes. Within this self-contained world, Adam's characters emerge. They are, more often than not, creatures or people with ordinary, almost workaday existences. "I find myself telling stories of characters with just ordinary jobs, not those with supernatural powers," he explains. 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But ask him about what matters most, and he speaks not of awards but of collaboration. Confides Adam: "Finishing the film, getting to work with voice actors and composers — it felt like I was getting closure for them, while also motivating me to tell more stories." These smaller victories — those private, unseen resolutions — are, to him, the truest reward. Like many artists, Adam is not immune to creative droughts. When the well runs dry, he turns not to contemporary influences, but to himself. "I look back at the drawings I made months or years ago," he confides. Old doodles, once forgotten, become unexpected seeds for new ideas. "Even an old sketch can present itself with a lot of questions about what kind of story it can carry." Sometimes, it's not a drawing but a memory that reels him back in. A rain-slick street. The sound of a gate clattering shut. The hiss of frying dough at a pasar malam. These unassuming moments — what he calls "comforting memories" — serve not just as creative fuel, but also as tethers to a place he left behind. The path hasn't always been easy. Animation is, by nature, an iterative process, and the act of showing work to others can feel both vulnerable and gruelling. "Every time something I'm presenting is unclear to someone with fresh eyes, I have to take a step back," he admits. It taught him the virtue of clarity, of leaning into choices that, while obvious to him, might read faster and cleaner to others. "I've learnt that it's okay to lean into things that may feel obvious and cliche, because it reads fast to those who want to understand what I'm trying to communicate," shares Adam. It's a wisdom hard-won — one that allowed Horned Cook Gola to resonate widely, both online and on festival circuits. When asked who he'd most like to show his work to, his answer is simple. His friends in Malaysia. "They've been instrumental to my growth as an artist and a person. But it has been a while since I last caught up with them," he replies, somewhat wistfully. That sense of belonging, of carrying pieces of home across borders and time zones, is at the heart of Adam's work. Each film, each animation loop, each oddly endearing character, is stitched with remnants of the places and people that shaped him. And when asked why he continues to create, through deadlines and solitary hours, he becomes reflective. "I create because I love the characters I create. I find them endearing, so much so that I end up building worlds around them!" Continuing, Adam shares: "I think it's fun to engage with worldbuilding this way, and as an artist and animator, I have so many opportunities to illustrate things I love into the backgrounds and the characters of these stories." Adding, he elaborates: "Uniquely, there's a distance that comes with telling a story through art and animation. Though I technically have control over these characters, it's exciting to have them make decisions I'd never make. They feel like my own little action figures, so I find most of them to be really adorable — no matter what they do." WARMTH OF HOME On what compels him to spend long hours hunched over a screen, carefully coaxing frames into motion, Adam enthuses: "I just love animation and how much I can do with it myself. My drive for creating is totally fuelled by a desire to make richer worlds for these characters I've created. And when I like what I'm working on, I'm eager to share it when I can." There's a simplicity to the way he frames it, but it belies the tenderness with which he approaches his craft. For Adam, animation isn't just about spectacle or polish; it's about building small, self-contained universes where kindness lingers, where the fantastical feels familiar, and where even a cook with antlers can find a place to belong. Each character he sketches, each background he paints, carries with it a texture of lived memory — flashes of damp streets, the gleam of metal gates under morning rain, the hush of a kitchen stall just before dawn. If his life were an animated short, Adam imagines it drawn in the loose, affectionate lines of Ronald Searle or Malaysia's beloved Lat — styles that embrace imperfection, that capture the crooked warmth of real life. And the ending? It would be, perhaps unsurprisingly, about food. Says Adam: "Rest and getting to eat good food — that might be the best thing ever. And I get to draw food on top of that." But even this small indulgence is layered with meaning. In a life shaped by movement between continents and cultures, food becomes more than sustenance. It's memory, ritual, and connection. It's his mother's cooking, the bustle of pasar malam stalls, the familiar steam rising from a plate of noodles on a rainy night... To draw them is to reclaim those moments, to summon them into the present. From Malaysia's rain-soaked evenings to Minneapolis' snow-laden streets, Adam continues to animate the world through a lens coloured by memory, belonging, and the quiet, enduring beauty of ordinary lives. FRAME BY FRAME What's the weirdest or most sentimental thing sitting on your work desk right now? I have a very old Kirby Cafe pencil case that a friend bought for me a very long time ago. It's been covered in charcoal for about nine years now. I love it. A movie quote, lyric or line of dialogue that lives rent-free in your head? "Who, Disco? Who, Techno? Who, Hip-Hop? Who, Bebop? Who's been playing records in his bedroom?" from The Great Intoxication by David Byrne. If you could have dinner with one fictional character — animated or otherwise — who would it be, and what would you want to ask them? I would love to have dinner with the main character illusionist from The Illusionist (2010), from the animated film directed by Sylvain Chomet. I just want to see him mime things. Some of my favourite character performances I've seen in animation for sure. I could ask him anything and he wouldn't say a single word, and that's okay. What song or album do you instinctively put on when you're pulling an all-nighter animating? I've recently been enjoying Imaginal Disk by Magdalena Bay, the whole album! If you could bottle one feeling or moment from your life so far and revisit it whenever you wanted, what would it be? The feeling of independence and possibility in both art and life. What's the last thing you googled? An ice cream place near me! In an alternate life where you're not an artist or animator, what would you be doing? I could be getting into the culinary arts, or music, or game development…
Sinar Daily
4 hours ago
- Sinar Daily
Sober clubbing brews fresh beat for Singapore Gen Z
This is no underground rave, nor a brunch gone wild. 21 Jun 2025 01:00pm This photo taken on May 24, 2025 shows people mingling over coffee drinks at an alcohol-free clubbing event in Singapore. Swaying to dance music and TikTok-fuelled pop under a disco ball, young punters are packed shoulder to shoulder while sipping on coffee, their energy powered by pour-overs rather than pints. (Photo by Roslan RAHMAN / AFP) SINGAPORE - Swaying to dance music and TikTok-fuelled pop under a disco ball, young punters are packed shoulder to shoulder while sipping on coffee, their energy powered by pour-overs rather than pints. This is no underground rave, nor a brunch gone wild. It's a caffeine-powered daytime clubbing sesh -- part of a growing wave of alcohol-free, Gen Z-driven events gaining traction in Singapore and elsewhere in the world. This photo taken on May 24, 2025 shows people mingling over coffee drinks at an alcohol-free clubbing event in Singapore. Swaying to dance music and TikTok-fuelled pop under a disco ball, young punters are packed shoulder to shoulder while sipping on coffee, their energy powered by pour-overs rather than pints. (Photo by Roslan RAHMAN / AFP) At a recent event in Singapore's trendy Duxton district, the space was jammed by 4pm, with baristas churning out fancy coffees and DJs spinning back-to-back sets. The crowd grooved with energy, even without the usual liquid courage. "A lot of people think alcohol gives you the high, but caffeine sometimes can do that too," said Aden Low, 21, co-founder of Beans and Beats which organises coffee raves at different venues. "That's why the atmosphere at our events tends to be quite energetic." The parties blend curated music with specialty coffee served in white paper cups. The vibe is light, friendly and very Gen Z. "It's also the idea that this is a safe space," said Esther Low, 31, who was at the event in Duxton. "When you go to a club setting, there's usually this underlying intention to hook up. So, for me, that's personally why I would prefer this." Several reports say Gen Z is chugging fewer pints than previous generations, with the sober curious movement gaining popularity on social media. Sober curious people cut back on drinking or abstain altogether, often citing health reasons and better mental acuity. "Changes in alcohol use have been observed in population surveys and cohort studies. Generally, alcohol use among young adults has decreased," the World Health Organization said in a 2024 report. Club culture update From London to Los Angeles and Melbourne, similar coffee raves have swept up the social scene, appealing to young partygoers who also want to avoid hangovers. Ashley Chean, a Singaporean student who has been alcohol-free for a year, said she appreciates these sober gatherings. "When I lived in Paris, I realised I had a lot of alcoholic tendencies and I didn't want that to be my lifestyle," the 20-year-old told AFP. "More and more of my friends are sober or sober curious." The coffee clubbing events are usually held in cafes and other spaces such as rooftop bars -- as long as there's room for DJs and baristas to do their thing while people dance. The parties typically end by late afternoon, just in time for golden hour selfies. Besides the health benefits of avoiding alcohol, the events appeal to cost-conscious youth in Singapore, one of the most expensive cities in the world. The excess drinking and hard-partying ways of Gen X -- fuelled by anthems like the Beastie Boys' "Fight for Your Right (to Party)" and hip-hop videos glamorising club culture -- are fading for members of Gen Z. While organisers don't see Singapore's glitzy nightlife and clubbing being replaced, they hope their combination of beats and brews will keep the dance floor buzzing. "As long as we bring the vibes, we'll be OK," said Ashley. - AFP More Like This
