"For me, I hope that good music, a good song, can bring everyone a sweet dream." This is how Bai Jugang explained his creative motivations as he released his fifth album, "Wild Lover." This album, meticulously crafted over two and a half years, is built on 14 minimalist narrative pieces, creating a twin universe of "The Land of Illusion" and "The Land of Romance," revealing Bai Jugang's current musical universe through the adventures of a rock knight.
"In the past, I always wanted to tell everyone a complete story with one song, but then I realized that for a song, expressing too many things would lose focus." Bai Jugang said frankly that he hopes to convey a message to fans and listeners through an album: On the road to growth, we can learn to first accept our imperfect self, love ourselves, embrace ourselves, and then have the ability to love others.
Bai Jugang describes "Wild Lovers" as an album steeped in avant-garde and experimental thought. The unique design inspiration for the album's first track, "Land of Illusion," came from an installation art exhibition he saw in Yunnan: "All the installation art there was reassembled from scrap metal." The exhibition's concept of "life blossoming amidst the ruins of the wilderness" is also profoundly captured in the song "King of the Garbage Country," also found in the first track. The songs in the second track, "Romantic Land," explore the themes of love and freedom. The song "Half" even references Chopin's Farewell Nod, creating a musical dialogue across time and space. Speaking about the core concept of "Wild Lovers," Bai Jugang offers a unique perspective: "'Lover' can be both a noun and a title, but also a verb—learning to love, learning to love."
【dialogue】
The Paper: "Wild Lovers" is your fifth album. What was the preparation and production process of this album like?
Bai Jugang: I started preparing for this album almost two and a half years after finishing my previous album, "I Want to Run Towards You with All My Strength," in 2022. During that time, I selected about 50 or 60 songs, and after repeated screenings, I finally chose 12, plus an intro and an outro, for a total of 14 songs.
The main reason it took so long is that my creative philosophy has evolved as I've learned more and gained more experience. I used to want to tell a story through each song, but for an album with 14 songs, telling so many stories is a challenge, especially considering the sheer volume of information. I don't want my fans to feel pressured by my music. So, I've been thinking about what method, structure, and style would best express my current thoughts and feelings?
While pondering this question, I discussed with a musician friend: Why do so many people crave music that feels "good" to them? In my opinion, there's no absolute good or bad in music. Good music is anything that inspires, heals, brings joy, and provides strength and warmth. My creative goal and original aspiration is to use a good piece of music, a good song, to bring everyone a sweet dream. And the source of that sweet dream might lie in a simple expression—much like how the simple phrase "You look beautiful today" can brighten someone's day. The beauty of this simplicity and purity also made me realize that I need to spend more time refining the content I want to express through music, making it more concise and clear.
I deeply cherish the natural connection I develop with my fans through songs and music. I often receive letters from fans, sharing stories about their lives and telling me which songs have been important to them at certain times. This is one of the driving forces behind my creative process.
The Paper: The album is divided into two parts, "The Land of Illusion" and "The Land of Romance". These two names are very vivid, especially "The Land of Illusion". What is its origin?
Bai Jugang: The initial framework for "Land of Illusion" came from a trip to Yunnan to attend a friend's wedding. There, I visited the "Land of the Wilderness" created by Xiaodao. It was a truly fascinating place. The entire installation was reassembled from discarded scrap metal. Objects once considered trash were given new life through the artist's ingenuity, becoming unique works of art.
As I slowly walked through it, I was deeply moved. The feeling of freedom and romance was particularly strong. It felt like a place to "collect lost items," not just broken objects, but also memories that had brought beauty, happiness, and warmth to others. This was also one of the main sources of inspiration for the new album's song, "King of Trash Country."
As for "The Land of Illusion," the core theme of the first part, I want to convey two messages: first, learning to look directly at ourselves; second, as expressed in works like "The King of Garbage Country," "Savage," and "Back to the Next Level," accept the world as it changes, and accept how we are defined, good or bad. Even in the limited time and solitude of space, we must see ourselves clearly and truly feel our inner selves.
Lyrics of "King of Trash Country"
The Paper : Were other songs on the album, like "Sa Ye," also written under specific circumstances? It seems like each song has a very clear purpose.
Bai Jugang : Yes, "Savage" was inspired by heroic characters from classic Chinese literature and mythology, like Wukong and Nezha. Take Wukong from "Journey to the West." The Buddha considered him unruly and disobedient, but Wukong himself was simply following his heart. He had his own distinct loves and hates, his own attitude and way of looking at the world. Whenever I see these heroes, I think of myself. I long to live like them, hoping to be like them, no matter the circumstances or the pain they endure, to rise again and again and charge forward like a warrior. "I'll let my wild side run wild, unleash my youthful unbridled energy" became the song's core message, and the sentiment I most wanted to convey when I wrote it.
Another song, "Back Up, Hook Down," is also anchored by a clear image. When I wrote this song, I kept thinking of Batman in Gotham City. When night falls, he upholds justice in this city, using his own rules. The "back down, hook up" trick itself is a Rubik's Cube technique. Mastering it allows you to master the "rules" of the cube. This song expresses the idea that life's choices and circumstances are ultimately within our control.
The Paper : There are a lot of chanting and percussion in "Dumb as a Wooden Fish", which is very distinctive. How did this song come about?
Bai Jugang : Everyone's under a lot of pressure these days, whether it's making a living, working, or studying. Everyone carries different kinds of pressure. So I started thinking about my own state of mind when facing pressure. Honestly, I want to just relax for a while, but I can't really do it. This somewhat conflicting state of mind became the first small incision for songwriting.
One day, I picked up a zhongruan and was playing it when the sound of a wooden fish suddenly popped into my head. Strike an electronic wooden fish to "accumulate merit" has been a trend lately, a popular way for people to relax in today's world. I wondered, since everyone enjoys the soothing effect of just "strike," why not use a real wooden fish? So, I tried combining the zhongruan and the wooden fish, and the idea of "strike, strike, break free from the shell of worry" naturally emerged. Later, I specially invited teacher Doudou to help produce this song. He helped polish many details, making the song even more healing.
I performed this song offline once. The atmosphere was great and I could feel that both the stage and the audience were happy, relaxed and free.
The Paper : There is also a vivid image in "Don't Lose the Energy to Be a Fool." Can you talk more about this song?
Bai Jugang : I usually write a few words for each song. For this song, I wrote, "Reality always tries to smooth our edges, but there are always some 'fools' who choose to cling to their innocence and confront the world head-on. I consider myself one of those 'fools.' "Fool" is by no means a derogatory term to me. I want to dedicate this song to those who work late into the night counting the stars, those who secretly write poetry on the crowded subway, and those who have been taught countless lessons by life yet persevere. Aren't these the people we all call 'fools'? The seemingly unrealistic dreams and absurd notions I write about in the lyrics reflect our youth, aren't they? Who hasn't, in a cramped rental apartment, fantasized about changing the world? But then, the rent rises, the hair turns gray, and the body can't bear it anymore. As the burdens of life gradually pile up, even the courage to be foolish is drained away by life."
For a while, I felt like I wasn't brave enough anymore. When I wrote songs, I was constantly agonizing over whether they were appropriate or mature enough. I was no longer the Bai Jugang who'd bravely challenged the world. Had I lost my courage? This thought kept lingering in my mind.
The lyrics repeatedly sing, "I've run out of energy to be a fool." Doesn't that sound like the wry smile you get when drinking with old friends? I remember chatting with my best friend from 8 pm to 7 am, sharing countless stories of our own foolishness and lost courage. It was this in-depth conversation that inspired me to write this song and to dare to sing it.
Finally, I want to say, "Don't lose the courage to be a fool" isn't just cliché; it's a truth only those who've fallen on hard times know. This world needs calculating, intelligent people, but even more so, fools who dare to mistake a streetlight for the moon. After all, isn't it that unquenched courage to defy reality that allows us to live like human beings in this concrete jungle? Isn't it that unwavering naiveté that keeps us from losing our sense of naiveté?
The Paper : I saw a video in which a blogger kept saying that you were very "sincere" while listening to your adaptation of "The River".
Bai Jugang : People express themselves in many ways, and I'm fortunate to have such diverse means of expression, able to communicate with everyone through music and my lyrics. My fans listen to my songs, read my writings, write to me, or share their feelings in the comments. Every time I see this, I can truly feel that my way of expression can truly bring some changes to their lives and give them the strength to continue living bravely and forging ahead. This also makes me very happy, because they can feel the feelings I want to convey.
The Paper : Speaking of the album, it seems you want the songs to carry a lot of meaning and expression. For you, does melody come first, or does the lyrics or the idea come first?
Bai Jugang : For the fourth album, half of the lyrics came first, and the other half came first. For the third album, the music and lyrics were basically done at the same time. For the album "Wild Lovers", I wrote the lyrics first and then started composing the music. This is also the biggest change I made this time.
This album took so long to produce, in part, because polishing the lyrics is time-consuming. I wrote six or seven versions of the lyrics for many songs, and the longest-lasting song took me six months, on and off, to write. I wanted to accurately express what I wanted to convey. Also, as a complete album, I wanted its content to flow throughout, to have a certain coherence, so I put a lot of effort into organizing and polishing the lyrics.
The Paper : Was this adjustment difficult? Compared to releasing lyrics and music together before, was it more burdensome or more difficult?
Bai Jugang : It was even harder. For this album, not only did I write the lyrics first, I also wanted to break away from the constraints of rhyme, avoiding rigid rhyme patterns that would limit the expressive content. Of course, this also made the music composition quite difficult, but I also found it quite challenging. The final result was quite surprising; many of the songs on this album were written in one go.
The Paper : How would you describe this album? More avant-garde, experimental, or more complete?
Bai Jugang : Each of my albums incorporates numerous experimental and avant-garde elements. I prioritize instrumentation, vocals, and lyrics, and I don't want to be limited by a specific style when it comes to arrangement. In my opinion, arrangement should always serve the purpose of expressing the song's content.
For example, in the song "Half," part of the next installment, "Romantic Land," I experimented with a song called "Farewell." While listening to classical music, I had a sudden thought: If I could blend my own music with classical music from centuries past, wouldn't it be like having a conversation with the musicians of centuries past? So, I inserted Chopin's "Farewell" into the prelude to "Half," allowing the two melodies to intertwine and blend, which I found quite romantic.
For "Sa Ye," I initially considered using the famous guzheng piece "Fighting the Typhoon," as its performance and concept perfectly matched what I wanted to express. However, due to the significant differences in rhythm and tempo between the two, I ultimately chose to combine the guzheng's finger-shaking technique with heavy music, adding a foundation of electronic music to give the song the desired "wild" feel I was aiming for.
The Paper : Speaking of rock music, are you a rock person at heart, considering you participate in music festivals and band shows? How do you define rock music?
Bai Jugang : To me, rock music is open and extremely free, and shouldn't be constrained by the times or fixed ideas. Rock music itself is profoundly reflective. As long as you're still experiencing yourself and trying to connect with the world, no matter how you express yourself, I believe it's a form of rock music.
I don't want to judge music production by the criteria of whether or not it can create a hit single. I hope my music can make people calm down and think, can relax when they are tired, and can give listeners strength when their bodies need energy.
The Paper : In a short video, you shared that many songs have been revised ten thousand times. For example, Ma Di was also very helpless when talking about "Nanshan Nan". As a musician, can you understand the phenomenon that people suddenly flock to certain songs?
Bai Jugang : For the music industry to thrive, it requires the combined efforts of musicians and listeners. People often say, "Good songs are hard to find." This is partly because, in the current music landscape, there's an overabundance of new releases, and with so many new songs available, finding the right music is like searching for a needle in a haystack. Secondly, with today's fast-paced lives, people often lack the energy to explore new sounds and instead prefer familiar songs—those that evoke memories and bring back images.
Here, I would also like to take this opportunity to say: I hope everyone can be more patient with musicians and singers like us, and try to listen to our new songs and albums. Maybe there will be a song that can really touch you.
The Paper : Accurate expression of lyrics can bring a sense of picture. How can the melody express this sense of picture?
Bai Jugang : Different tones and modes will indeed bring different visual effects to the song, affecting the emotions conveyed by the song, and thus affecting the audience's auditory experience.
Sometimes when we're writing, we do use modes and tonality to shape the mood and atmosphere of a song, complementing the lyrics. For example, for "Silly Tree," I originally chose the key of D major, which sounded particularly sunny and hopeful. But as the lyrics became clearer and I sang it more and more, I realized that the hope the song conveyed wasn't a sudden, overwhelming brightness, but more like a ray of light filtering through the leaves. So, I ultimately switched to the key of F, allowing the song to imbue itself with a sense of hope while also infusing it with a hint of melancholy.
