"Cyber Songstress" Zhu Jingxi: Eastern wisdom and aesthetics are my roots

Yangcheng Evening News reporter Hu Guangxin

When she appeared on Riding the Waves Sisters in 2020, Zhu Jingshi appeared on the stage with an aesthetic that was very different from the public's. In the program, she was neither sweet nor "beautiful" - her futuristic look and makeup were different from the mainstream. She wasn't sweet or "beautiful" on the show - her futuristic look and makeup were a long way from mainstream beauty. She describes the process of participating in the program as "a human observation program for a weak AI", and it was through this program that Zhu and her "Cyborg doppelganger" Akini Jing began to come into the public eye.

New album with Chace coming this year

Zhu Jingshi likes to collaborate with different musicians. From the famous electronic band Wafimen to young musician Gao Jiafeng to the more up-and-coming "Henan Rap God", Zhu Jingxi's list of collaborations includes many different styles of musicians. Her new album "Never Ending Farewell" with newcomer Chace has been eagerly awaited by fans for almost a year. What will happen between Zhu and Chace, who both specialize in electronic music? We'll have to wait and see what happens with the new album, which is expected to be released this year.

Yangcheng Evening News: How does it feel to work with Chace for the first time?

Zhu Jingshi: I've worked with a lot of musicians, and every time I create something with a different person, it feels different. Not necessarily in terms of music, but also in terms of their respective aesthetics and even their personalities in life, which stimulate me and give me different inspirations. This album was a long time in the making, one or two years. But the time we spent in the studio together wasn't that long, basically a week or so. We sometimes look at movies, watch the news, watch documentaries, feel the tone, find a motivation, and then we do our own thing.

Yangcheng Evening News: What exactly do you watch?

Zhu Jingshi: For example, I will play him Tarkovsky's movie "Flight into Space", there are some scientific documentaries, such as sunspots, and so on, like these more interesting things. And then also watch a little talk show.

Yangcheng Evening News: The new album has announced three songs, Bones, Don't Want to Be A Dragon and Blessing Blessing. Among them, "Don't want to be Alone" plays a harmonic terrain of "Alone" and "Alone". How did this come about?

Zhu Jingshi: First of all, I think it's funny, and secondly, I think a lot of people feel lonely, and if there is a specific anthropomorphic image of loneliness, it will feel more vivid. The new album will be a concept album with a complete story line in which Aaron is one of the main characters. But I don't want to tell the whole story for now, I think it's important to give people a little space, the mystery of the work is very important.

Yangcheng Evening News: How will you get along with "Ah Long"?

Zhu Jingshi: I am a person who can draw strength from loneliness. But I hope that human beings can realize "Aaron's freedom", when they want to be Aaron, they can be Aaron, when they don't want to be, they can not be Aaron.

Yangcheng Evening News: In your mind, what is the image of "Ah Lung"?

Zhu Jingxi: In fact, I think the name "Aaron" is very five people, haha. A person named "Ah Long" should look like Jenko and wear his tropical shirt.

Yangcheng Evening News: Is there a chance to work with the Five Stripes?

Zhu Jingxi: I don't know yet, but I think anything is possible. We also know each other before, once met their agent, also said in the future is there a chance to play together a little.

People and cyborgs are the same, looking inward to get out of a rut

On this new album, "Never Ending Farewell," is her identity Julia Zhu or AKini Jing? she says, "Both. These two identities change and switch every day." In her opinion, there is no way to completely separate the "human Jennifer Chu" from the "cyberpunk Akini Jing," and "it's natural for me to do something with a cyberpunk aesthetic in such a context! "

Sheep Town

Yangcheng Evening News: When was the image of Akini Jing born? Is there a specific birthday?

Zhu Jingshi: It should be around 2018 or 2019, I don't remember the exact day, but I should indeed seriously think about what day she was born.

Yangcheng Evening News: after having such a cyborg identity, how has your perspective on the world changed?

Zhu Jingshi: It's very different. A lot of things that humans see as numb still look fresh, precious and beautiful to Akini. For example, the loneliness, sadness and isolation that humans want to avoid are all very precious experiences for a Cyborg. Some of the things I'm sad about and want to avoid, Akini sees as an opportunity to feel. My last album, Plastic Paradise, was about one of those things.

Yangcheng Evening News: does Cyborg really want to have human emotions?

Zhu Jingshi: Any species wants to try and have what she doesn't have, and evolution and reproduction are even more the biological ****iness of all species. This is my understanding made from a human perspective. So, since Cyborg is a mix of human and mechanical, she definitely has a part of her nature as a human. Just how much of that part, no one knows.

Yang Cheng Evening News: is Akini related to Akira?

Zhu Jingshi: Yes, after all, Akira is a milestone work of cyberpunk, and it gave me some inspiration and motivation.

Yangcheng Evening News: In the past few years, cyberpunk has been re-popularized globally. From Hollywood movies such as Alita and Attack on Titan to video games such as Cyberpunk 2077, the fashion industry has also begun to use cyberpunk elements more and more, and Akini is one of the waves in this wave. What is it about cyberpunk that appeals to you the most?

Julia Zhu: When the concept of cyberpunk was born, it was a speculation, an imagination, but now it is almost the real world. Nowadays everyone is inseparable from the Internet and technology, and like it or not, cyber is our daily life. In such a context, as a musician and a creative worker, I think it's natural for me to do something with cyberpunk aesthetics.

Yangcheng Evening News: The concept of cyberpunk itself implies a pessimistic imagination of the future.

Zhu Jingshi: I always emphasize that what I do is "cyberpunk aesthetics", which is not the same as cyberpunk. I'm just discussing and articulating some works in the context of cyberpunk aesthetics. There's a very important core to this aesthetic - whether it's in film, painting, comics, or literature - and it's that any cyberpunk can only get out of the rut if he or she truly connects to his or her own heart. And that's what I believe: that one has to look inward in order to change oneself and one's surroundings.

In a way, this coincides with the culture of the East, which emphasizes digging deeper into one's possibilities. As a Chinese, the culture, wisdom and aesthetics of the East are my roots, and they are also the things I like to try. When people encounter bottlenecks in the technological era, Eastern wisdom may be able to help mankind find a way out and a solution. This is also something I would like to explore in my work.

Creators can be capricious, and should be brave enough to express themselves

During the interview, Zhu Jingshi laughed, "I'm very 'sub', 'sub' in my bones, unspeakable. that is unspeakable." Cyber aesthetics, electronic music, Y2K style styling ...... Zhu Jingshi is active in the mainstream vision, but always comfortable with her beloved subculture. She confessed that the music genre or not, appearance style or not, are just a piece of clothing in the closet, "those are the outer clothes, the core is actually the person itself."

Yangcheng Evening News: You've tried a lot of different music genres before, and in recent years you've focused on electronic music. Some people see electronic music as a future music trend, what do you think?

Zhu Jingshi: Although this is often said, as a creator, I don't think I can promote electronic music, and I don't do it deliberately. I'm just very capricious and subjective in recommending different types of music to listeners. Also, although I love and am relatively good at making electronic music, I'm not really tied to any genre. For me, music genre is like a piece of clothing in the closet, electronic music, folk music, rock, folk music, ambient music, or even the ambient sound of nature, it's all just a coat, the core is actually the person you are.

Yangcheng Evening News: The year before last, he was on the hit variety show "Ride the Waves of the Sisters", and recently participated in the music variety show "National Music Festival". Have you encountered any obstacles in appearing in the mass media as a subculture like Cyber Singer?

Julia Zhu: Do you think as a sister, you would listen to the show's crew? (Laughs) I'm actually very thankful to the showrunners. If you have confidence in yourself and what you are doing, you should be brave enough to express it. Whether there is space or not is another matter, the point is whether you do it or not. Also, I think the zeitgeist has actually come to this, it's the internet age, the information age, and the discussions about cyberpunk and pan-cyber are all going to get louder and louder. It's just that what I'm doing is a little bit ahead of its time.

Yangcheng Evening News: Are you positioning yourself as a singer or an artist?

Zhu Jingxi: I can be both.

Yangcheng Evening News: You recently participated in the "National Music Festival", among the young national music contestants, did you feel some qualities in them that are different from other generations?

Zhu Jingshi: I think they are very compatible. Some time ago I listened to some "sub" young Chinese musicians, and I was curious about what these young Chinese musicians would think of them, so I shared the music with them. To my surprise, they said they had a lot of similar songs in their repertoire, but they didn't know what style of music they were talking about. They have both practiced traditional instruments for more than 10 years, but they are also completely receptive and tolerant of other types of music and culture. Young people nowadays aren't so organized, but are very hardworking and focused when it's time to dig in, and I especially like that about them.