I'm a little sick of people saying Chinese pop is bad when there are so many incredibly talented people in Cpop that do it all unlike some other industries, so I thought I'd make a discussion topic of people who can do all the important things necessary for a song...write, compose and sing them. Basically carry it from start to finish.

Include J-pop as well, because I like some J-pop, but I don't know it well at all.


From China:

Hou Xian - Composes, writes, and sings everything. People says he sounds like Jay Chou, but after you listen to him more you see that he's got this distinct Chinese flair in his songs that I love. I basically loved all the stuff he's produced so far.

Silver Ash - They've got hauntingly beautiful songs. And Ling is beautiful as well, voice and otherwise.

From Singapore:

JJ Lin - He's like my fav C-pop artist right now.

From Taiwan:

Jay Chou - He doesn't write the lyrics for most of his songs, but he has written them for a number of songs that I love, including Qing Tian. Plus he directs his MVs rather well.

Ella - She is so goofy, and I never really saw her as a songwriter before but I really loved the song she wrote for dog. The lyrics make me tear up. Plus she can rap really well.

Those are my favs. I'm missing a lot of the major ones, like Leehom, FIR etc but I just wanted to pick a few favs. What are yours?

From Japan :

Koda Kumi - She writes most of her songs and they've been very successful. Like the most recent song she has written is LAST ANGEL ft. TVXQ.

From Korea:

TVXQ/DBSK/Tohoshinki - They write some songs. And they can all play the piano too.

David Tao
hm. I wonder If Gary does it too...
well there's also Jay Chou.. i don't really like his singing (mumbles) but he writes awesome songs

UVERworld -

ok i haven no idea what they're writing but they write their own music (as well as a lot of jrock bands.. i think all rock bands write their own stuff and play their own instruments)

Yui - I like her "love and truth" and "goodbye days" . I think she writes her own stuff as well

Oh I was going to say Alicia Keys and Ne-yo I dunno if Ne-yo plays instruments
but he has to be one of the greatest songwriters

but is this only limited to china and japan?

and OMG

Hyde from L'arc en Ciel
he is a god and he is so gifted and I love him

Uhh, can't come up with a comprehensive list or anything.
But, in jpop, I think it's definitely Nino from Arashi.
He plays guitar, has a nice voice (but could work on breath control), and his self-composed ballads are to die for.

No, I just sometimes forget there's a world outside Asia when I'm on Soompi.

Hebe writes songs too. well, just two right now, but she's just signed on as a songwriter, so i'm sure there are more songs to come...

and i'm sure there's a lotta ppl, just i can't think right now --__--

From Hong Kong:

- Pong Nan:
He is like a Cantonese singing version of Ben Folds. The melodies, the witty lyrics, the cynical views in his songs. He plays a mean piano, but i am quite baffled by the way he performs live because he twists his body to face the audience and contort his body too much. See his composition works here. I guess someone like him would never achieve very much popularity in Asia, but recently he has indeed tried harder to 'compromise' and write more mainstream and radio-friendly songs for other artists...

- Khalil Fong:
Smooth voice, sings in Mandarin, his compositions have a very distinct funky sound.

- Ivana Fong:
Exploded on the scene after a duet with Jacky Cheung at his concert, in which they performed together on a song she wrote for him. Her career started shortly after she won a song writing competition, and she was signed as a singer-songwriter. Soft-spoken, great sound, writes for all the big names in the industry. Horray for her new Mandarin album (her previous work were in Cantonese).

Ayumi Hamasaki-Queen of Jpop for years~ nuff said? XD

I totally agree with you , huangmeixi. I am sick and tired of people hateing on cpop when they themselves dont even look hard enough to find that theres a lot of talent in there.

Anyways From China/Taiwan/HK

Khalil Fong

Jay Chou

Lee Hom Wang

David Tao

Gary Cao

JJ LIN


Japan:

L'arc En Ciel(Hyde)

Leehom. Not only does he compose his own songs, he plays all of the instruments too (with the exception of like.. saxophones). He doesn't write A LOT of lyrics, but he's been writing more and more now that his Chinese has improved

and David Tao too

Dude...John Mayer much? The guy is brilliant <3

and I also love Meg & Dia, Sarah Bareilles, Colbie Caillat, The Veronicas, James Morrison, Wouter Hamel, Michael Buble...blah blah blah

Jay Chou - Although I don't think he has the best voice, he's still pretty darn talented. And I agree w/ his music videos - very good directing and concepts.

Wang Lee Hom - Good voice, unique style, diverse.

BoA - Although she doesn't write and compose as much, she still has a few good works to her credit, and her singing is already outstanding.

Utada Hikaru, anyone? x]

I totally agree. Hikki writes great music.


Most, if not all, jrockers compose their own songs. Miyavi , Gackt, etc...

Philippines: Ryan Cayabyab, Ogie Alcasid. They are the only two that made the most impact on me.

Korea: JYP?

Outside of asia:......Brian McKnight. I think he writes his songs and produces for others too.

Leehom Wang
JJ Lin
Gary Cao
Jay Chou
Penny Dai
Jolin? I heard she's written one or two songs..
Fir, NanQuanMaMa, Soda Green?

And in Australia.. Delta Goodrem.. She writes music but not sure about lyrics tho.

DBSK! they sing well and they are starting to write their own songs!
love their new songs the've written!

jay chou, huang yida and jolin are not bad =D

Ayumi Hamasaki, Utada Hikaru, ZARD, Nakamura Fukiko (singer of CORE OF SOUL), Tetsuya Komuro, Yoshiki, Arai Akino, Misako Odani, and more.

Um, DBSK? No offense, they harmonize nicely, but composing/writing really is stretching it when after three albums all they have to show are two songs. Although I think Evergreen was nice. White Lies was kinda plain. But we'll see in the future.

H.O.T is a much better example of talented, well-rounded boyband.

^ There's also 여우비 (Sun Shower).. although that doesn't add much to the list. It's a really beautiful song though.
Also, Spokesman & My Page are written by Yunho and Junsu respectively.

From Japan

Wada Masaya - he has composed/produced/arranged a lot of songs not only for himself but for a lot of artists like CHEMISTRY, DBSK, SMAP, Sowelu to name a few. He is also a singer

Monkey Majik - all of their songs are their compositions. I love their voices *O*

m-flo, Emi Hinouchi, Atsushi and Takahiro of EXILE, mihimaru GT

and how can we forget one of Japan's music genius, Sakurai Kazutoshi of Mr.Children ^^

Well as everyone knows, Utada Hikaru ^^

Kpop...

I only know that Alex and Horan of Clazziquai Project

But DBSK isn't focused on the boys' writing and composing talents, but on their performing talents so I'd agree with DBSK. They're only starting out on this composing part of their careers. HOT, though, isn't well rounded at all when considering their vocal talent- I love their songs and they're excellent songwriters, but their voices weren't so remarkable.

JJ Lin, yes. Jay Chou is definitely talented, but I don't think his voice is special enough to balance with his awesome songwriting.

BUT HECK YES HAMASAKI AYUMI XD and Utada Hikaru as well, of course.

only 2 for me
Lee Hom Wang
David Tao

Some DBSK fans are just really loyal, aren't they. ^^;;

My list:

- ayaka is amazing in live performances.
- Mandy Moore's most recent album is awesome.
- Wang Lee Hom. Enough said.
- Oda Kazumasa does some nice work too.

All of the above write, compose and sing their own songs.

And garnet_moon, you're so biased. *lol* TAKAHIRO has only written (or composed?) one song. AHAHAHA.

Other than the ones mentioned... Soda Green (Taiwanese band)

He has written already 2 songs... XD (Dream Catcher and I believe) People just don't know of Dream Catcher as it is just an album track (I think he also wrote Kawaranai mono ^^)

Additional

Kobukuro, GReeeN, Suga Shikao, YUI

For Cpop: Jay Chou and Wang Leehom, they're all geniuses when it comes to making music!

For Jpop:
Ayumi Hamasaki: I don't really like her but she writes (almost) all of the songs in her album.
Gackt: He composes, writes and sings his songs
Utada Hikaru: Amazing composer and songwriter. She started at a young age, 15?

Wang Lee Hom - I think he is one of the most talented artists out there He is a genius when it comes to all things music!

and I'm not being biased but I really do think that G-Dragon from Big Bang is one of the more talented young artists in the business

what about tank? JJ lin, gary cao and leehom are all great
jay's not the greatest singer, but he's hella talented nevertheless

I LOVE LOVE LOVE LOVE her new album

*high fives you* gardenia much?

well the title of this thread was for ppl that write lyrics and compose music, not just performing... I don't know many kpop artists that do their own stuff...

hey.. what about "K"? or how about Younha?

I forgot about american singers. don't a bunch of them write their own stuff (except for idol singers)... again rock bands or perhaps country. I don't listen to their genre but I'm impressed that rock and country artists play and write their own stuff.

ne-yo xD

he writes his own music & does others toos. he wrote beyonce's irreplaceable.

My top 5 favorite are:

David Tao. He's so incredibly talented. He started off as a songwriter and not only has he composed countless songs, he's written lyrics and produced for countless songs too. I love his compositions and his voice. Top Notch musician.

JJ Lin. Although he doesn't write as many lyrics as David Tao, he is a wonderful composer and singer. Sometimes he lacks a lower range, but nonetheless he has beautiful vocals. His compositions like "Jiang Nan" actually give me goosebumps. He's also one of the better dancers out of the songwriters to boot.

Wang Leehom. Great composer, producer, and lyricist. He's a very versatile composer whether it is pop, ballads, r/b, or rap songs. When he first debuted be didn't write much of his lyrics because of his can I say "crappy" mandarin, but in the past 5 of his albums he's wrote or co-wrote all the lyrics to almost all the songs. He also has a beautiful voice and even performs many of the actual instrumental sections of his songs himself.

Jay Chou. He's such a talented composer. Granted his voice isn't the best of the bunch, but he has his own flair and he's a great rapper. Vincent Fang writes most of his lyrics, but he still writes some of his lyrics. He's also branched out into other things such as directing.

Gary Cao His voice his just to die for. Even though he's still somewhat of a "newcomer" I think he's soooo talented and soooo underrated. He may not have the dance moves or the conventional good looks going for him, but I think his musical talent makes up for all that and more. Dude you all need to youtube this guy.



There is a plethora of artist like these 5 in the cpop industry and you'll find these hidden jewels if you take the time to seek them out. The sad part is many of the more "talented" artists aren't as popular as the better looking not so talented artists and therefore don't get as much attention. However, just because they aren't as noticed, doesn't mean they don't exist.

Whoever said that Jay's vocal talent doesn't match his compositions, needs to go to his live concerts...NOW! I used to think his singing was a little off, but he's improved so much! Recently, in his concert, he sang so well, I was blown away. He even composed a new tune for Tui Hou during the concert, singing it in a completely different melody while the original one played. Not only that, but his acting has improved, very much so (I wonder where all the MV acting talent has gone to during his films!)...and his lyrics, although simple, are one of the best (Qing Tian, Ge Qian, Cai Hong!). And you got to love how he forgets his lyrics on stage and improves perfectly - and how he is famous for mumbling (even on the cd!).


I'll mention two more artists that haven't been mentioned.

TANK - His classic songs Gei Wo Ni De Ai, Wo Men Xiao Shi Hou - who could forget those songs?

Justin Lo - Granted, he is an arrogant ass now, but he did have great songs.

If we're also talking about Korean artists - there are plenty! Epik High, Younha, WheeSung, G-Dragon...it goes on and on.

Have you heard of Justin Nozuka?
He's absolutely amazing. He writes most of his own music, plays acoustic guitar, bass, and piano, and most of all he has one of the most soulful voices I've ever heard.

And...
how about Big Bang?
Those boys are super talented.

Otsuka ai
Tsunku
Chage & aska
Keisuke Kuwata
Yamashita Tatsuro

Justin Timberlake

The man can sing, write, dance, piano, guitar, beatbox, produce...

You can't deny his talent.

^i was totally thinking of justin timberlake when i read the topic. srsly, he's one of my fave singers. his songs are beautiful. i agree with all that you said.

i know an indonesian; ariel.. he's teh vocalist for peterpan, yeah theyre band name is peterpan, haha he writes most of the lyrics and composes most of their songs. and their songs truly are great. the other band members write lyrics and compose songs too, but not as much as ariel.

mmm bigbang? gdragon writes lyrics, compose songs. he raps well too. they do their own choreography, their talented as hell. and i dont think im being biased cos tehyre my absolute fave group. haha.

Most rappers , although you do get a few ghostwritten (bow wow)

Eminem is the best all rounder i think , composing, producing, writing wise he has the best skills

Not to mention :

Snoop
Lil wayne

i <33 justin nozuka. his brother, george nozuka, and reynard silva are pretty well-rounded too.

alicia keys is just amazing. and utada hikaru. i honestly cant think of a lot of kpop groups but i think big bang is pretty good. they're madmadmad talented and im not just saying that cuz i absolutely adore them : )

Jay Chou
David Tao
Leehom
Khalil Fong
Justin Lo
Hins Cheung
Jj Lin
Gary Cao

SE7EN. NE-YO Christina Aguliera. Kanye West.
They're all so unique and on top of their game

American
- Justin Timberlake - His music is amazing.
- Alicia Keys- Very talented.
Asian
- Utada Hikaru - Amazing voice.
- X-Japan - Legend!
- Hyde from L'Arc-en-ciel - I love his music.
- Guang Liang - His songs and voice go well together. <3

hmmm... i'm gonna say ben gibbard. very talented. =)

regina spektor! i looove her songs, and she writes most of them ...