Ayi Jihu – The Chinese Madonna

Born in the small village of Leibo, in the province of Sichuan China, Ayi has become China’s foremost international Lady of R&B and the first Chinese R&B artist to truly find favor in the West. Dubbed the Chinese Madonna she has remained independent and built a following of millions worldwide. Her ability to crossover and reach so many people through her music, video, film and games has seen her become a cultural Ambassador for The United Nations and other global organizations. Her humanitarian work has made her famous not just for her music and dance, but for her heart and love for the planet and everyone on it. Ayi Jihu is an historic artist, building bridges between East and West socially, businesswise and through entertainment in a way that no one has been able to do before.

Ayi Jihu continues to represent China despite not being a part of the Chinese entertainment system. She was the first Chinese artist to represent the Chinese community in London at the London Week of Peace Concert. Jihu was the first Chinese artist to be awarded so many Social and Cultural Ambassadorships representing not just Chinese, but people in need all over the world. From Sichuan Earthquake victims to those in Haiti and Japan, Ayi can be found working hard to help people all over the world no matter their color or creed.

Through her Art and music, Ayi Jihu also builds bridges and goes where very few Chinese artists have gone before. Her latest album sees artists such as Bobby Brown, Kasinova Tha Don, Lil Mo, Eagle E, Jagged Edge, Hipost, Punjabi MC, Bre, and many more on board. She has worked with many great R&B artists from all over the world as she fulfils her dream to bridge the gap between China and the West and help billions of her own people discover true R&B while helping those in the West truly get closer to understanding China and her culture.

Ayi has worked alone with her label Shlepp Records/Shlepp Entertainment Ltd. She has forged her own path, turned down much to keep true to what she believes in and now she stands on the brink of being one of the world’s greatest icons.

You may only just now be learning about Ayi Jihu as she is set to take US and UK TV by storm in 2011/2012. As her Fear Chaser Movie gathers momentum and the Fear Chaser game picks up more and more players, already reaching 110 Million kids worldwide, Ayi Jihu will become a household sensation on a global level. It may seem as though it all happened overnight.

However, those in the know, will know, that behind every overnight sensation is at least 10 years of hard work. This is China’s time to shine and this is also Ayi Jihu’s time to shine. In her own words: “If I had listened to people I would not be here. People have questioned my dancing, singing, acting, speaking, even my right to even try what I am doing. If you give into your fears and listen to the wrong people you will not achieve anything, because what I realize is that people are just afraid, of almost everything. I do not allow these people or anyone to stop me from following my dreams and doing what I was born to do and so far every day I wake up, I smile and think I proved them wrong again.

ASIANCE: Ayi, it is a pleasure to meet you. Tell us a little about your childhood in Leibo and what it was like growing up there.

Ayi: My childhood was fun. I was just like every other girl in my village I guess, having the pressure of being a good student and finding entertainment at the same time playing, singing and dancing around. I did not know much of the outside world really. To me my life was just normal, but when I came to the West I saw that things were very different. It was a bit of a shock, mostly the people. In China we have to study much, much more.

ASIANCE: Do you come from a family of entertainers? Who inspired you when you were young?

Ayi: Not really but Yi people have it in their culture to sing and dance. I always knew I wanted to sing and dance since I was in kindergarten. As soon as I hear music, I want to dance. I’ve always taken part in any festival or school entertainment. I guess you could say I was the head girl in our version of Glee Club lol, so it’s always a part of me. As I got older, we heard about Michael Jackson. After watching his videos, I wanted to be become an entertainer! We had never experienced anything like him before. Everyone wanted to sing and dance like Michael Jackson.

We had no clue what he was singing about but still knew every word!

ASIANCE: How did you first get started in your singing career?

Ayi: It was something I always wanted to do. I used to go clubs watch and try and copy what I saw.

People would tell me just how good a dancer I was, but I never took it seriously. I grew up singing and dancing but I never thought a Chinese girl like me could do anything in the Western music scene as no one had ever done and I did not even know where to start. I went to help out a friend on a video shoot and once again, I somehow stood out and caught the eye of the producer of the video. It all started there really. When I look back on it now, it may sound silly to some, but I believe it was destiny or being led by god or something, because I met the person who has so far made me able to realize all of my dreams. It has to be more than luck.

ASIANCE: How did you get the reputation as “The Chinese Madonna”?

Ayi: I have no clue! When I first started performing in Macau and China, no one had seen anything like me before. They called me the crazy Chinese girl who danced like a black woman and sang rap! Lol. I guess it just got around that I was different. I had a rapper on stage with me, two dancers who were more Rap video than casino. I think it may have something to do with the fact that Madonna is known for doing her own thing in China, not falling into line so to speak and that is the reputation I got in China. Being a bit sexy I guess Madonna was all they could think of!

ASIANCE: You have represented China at many functions. Do you think the timing is right, on the heels of the Olympics, that China take a larger role in the entertainment industry?

Ayi: I have represented China at many, many things but all unofficial; The London Week of Peace, The United Nations, Music from a Bottle, A Celebration of Women Foundation Inc. I could go on and on. I am always representing my country and people, but I do not wait to be asked. I just do it. I think China’s role in the music industry will grow, but I do not know how fast. I think it is mainly up to the people to decide how they want to represent themselves in the new world they are building. Chinese people tend not to make a big fuss and noise in other countries, even in their own. Something has to change and perhaps I can help it change a bit. One thing for sure, the time is right now!

ASIANCE: One of the things I have read about you is that you raised funds for the victims of the Sichuan earthquake. Why is it important for you to give back to the community?

Ayi: It is the most important thing one can do. Giving is what we are here for, not taking. It was very important to me to build my philanthropy along with my music, not wait until I am a big star and then start doing all that stuff. A big part of what I am doing and why I am doing what I am doing is to help people. I have a voice; I might as well use it to raise awareness of what people need around the world just to be able to have a decent life. Otherwise what is the point of it all? The best part about all of that is I really enjoy it. When you give something to people, help people or make something change for the better it’s the best feeling in the world.

ASIANCE: Tell us a little about the albums you released?

Ayi: ‘Try Me’ was my first album and that was the more rebellious me. I guess that helped me get the Madonna tag too with some of the lyrics. I wanted to make a statement about what it’s like to be a woman these days. I wanted to let women know it’s ok to be strong and sexy and in control, but that we must also remain women. I think my other tracks, and EP’s have all been part of the growing and learning process for me. It has been hard for me to make loads of music as I don’t have a normal artist life. My charity and philanthropic work and my film and TV work are constant. However I will be releasing a new album in 2012 and it will be the new Ayi Jihu. Still R&B, still hard edged, but my lyrics and direction are now about what I am doing and what I believe in which is Fear Chaser and helping people fight their fears, in love, life, in everything.

ASIANCE: Can you describe to us your creative process?

Ayi: My creative process is very weird but it works for me. When we write a song or get songs given to us I have to translate them to Chinese to get the natural tone and vibe in my native tongue then I translate it back to English. It can sometimes be a bit time consuming but that is the best we that works for me. My producer wanted me to feel and sing natural and fuse my Chinese inflections and tone with my western one, not just to be all western or all Chinese. I am fortunate enough to work with great people, writers, producers etc, they are the best and I am very comfortable with them. When it comes to the writing of songs I do most of that with Stevie and we tend to write things from experience or vibe as we go along. We have about 20 songs ready to record which we have been working on for over a year.

ASIANCE: You have collaborated with many artists. Can you tell us some of them and is there anyone you would like to collaborate with in the future?

Ayi: What many people don’t understand about this business is that not everything you do gets released. It’s like that with movies, so many are made and never seen for one reason or the other. I have collaborated with several cool artists, like Punjabi MC, Sisters of Harmony, Eagle E, Fugative, snoop, Kasinova Tha don, Case and others. Some of the tracks will be out soon. Some may never really show up. It’s not always in my hands, I just go and do what I have to do. As for who I would love to work with, man there are so many, Sean Paul! Is one for sure. I love him.

ASIANCE: You also have worked in Film, Television and Fashion. Can you tell us a little about your work in these fields?

Ayi: With television I have been blessed to have done several TV shows in Asia and in Europe. I am hoping to do one in the USA this year called Flyy Girl. With fashion, I am not quite sure what to say. I think I’m short for fashion, but photographers and designers seem to like me and keep asking me to do shoots so I go and do my best. I think I have done more than 10,000 pictures since I started, wow! I always feel a bit funny taking photos though because like I said I don’t see myself as a fashion model at all. With movies, I have been asked to do a few, but so far nothing has really panned out. I never thought I could act at all, but once again people keep telling me I have a natural talent for it and that the camera loves me. I am getting acting lessons and training in when I can though. I am working on my own movie Fear Chaser which has really taken off. We are starting with the short version of the movie and I know it will be huge.

ASIANCE: Your pet project now is your Fear Chaser short film. I understand it has a personal meaning to you. Can you tell us about it?

Ayi: It’s all about fear and how it affects what we do and how we act and react in life. I realized that fear was holding me back in many ways and when I spoke to Stevie about it he told me ‘well you seem to be doing a good job of fighting your fears Ayi’. That got us both talking and thinking about the subject and out of that Fear Chaser was born. We created a kind of super hero who could see and fight your fears. We thought it was a cool concept and a great idea, and when we got approached by Adventure Quest to make it into an online game, we were really surprised but said yes. What did we have to lose? We did not expect it to go ballistic and have 25 million kids play the game. Now Fear Chaser is this huge global movement in the making. We have big directors, actors and names in Hollywood looking at the movie idea, and the TV idea. It’s just gone crazy. I guess we struck a chord in people. Fear Chaser means the world to me. I use it in the schools when I speak to the kids to explain how fear makes them fail to achieve or bully other kids. I want to make this movie and we are going to start with the short film version. This is my mission for the foreseeable future. It’s all about Ayi Jihu the Fear Chaser!

ASIANCE: Where can people go to support Fear Chaser?

Ayi: I am asking people who wish to be a part of this movie or just support us to go here: http://www.kickstarter.com/projects/shlepp/fear-chaser-short-movie and get involved. Because the movie is live action and animation it’s very expensive and we need a bit of help. We also want to keep control of the project and make sure it is done the way we envisioned it in the beginning. Hollywood has a way of watering down and changing things to suite themselves and we do not want this to happen to Fear Chaser. We know we have a winning formula and a great fan base to build on, and we just want to get it done right and honest.

The first official Concept Trailer for Fear Chaser Starring Ayi Jihu

Kickstarter is the perfect platform to get people involved and fund independent projects. Many people look at me and think I am part of some massive company or situation, but we are small and independent and we have remained so despite offers to go with big players, because they do not understand me, what I am doing or about and where I am going. They just want to use me to make some money for them. So it is really important that we grow ourselves and keep control and we need the help of people with the short movie.

All it takes is a few moments of your time to check it out and show your support get involved. You could end up being in the movie or even coming to the launch party and premier. It’s a great opportunity for everyone.

ASIANCE: Aside from your current projects where do you see yourself branching out into in the future?

Ayi: If I told you all the plans being spoken about and offered to me right now you would think I was crazy. I just want to take each thing as it comes and do my best. I do not want to limit myself.

There are many things on the horizon for me and 2012 could be my most important year. It has already started well. I am blessed in that many people are beginning to realize the importance of China and how I can help them move forward. My fan base just continues to grow around the world and therefore I feel if I keep my feet on the ground and remain humble and my team sticks with me I can do just about anything I put my mind to.

ASIANCE: Where can we find out more information about you and your work?

Ayi: Please just go to www.ayijihu.org to find out what I am doing, get the press and blogs etc. My website iswww.ayijihu.com and you can get most things there. People can download my songs on itunes just type Itunes Ayi Jihu, twitter is @ayijihu, facebook page www.facebook.com/chinesestarayi