The 37-year-old took a year's break last
year after his album,
Light
of Love, turned out to be a dim effort with critics taking
him to task for his vague musical style
Emil Chau has been lying low for some time.
And while his many fans may not have exactly forgotten the pop sensation, news headlines no longer brand him a "Heavenly King Killer." He got that title when his albums raked in better than the Hongkong Heavenly Kings Jacky Cheung, Andy Lau, Aaron Kwok and Leon Lai.
But last year the 37-year old's star fell a little when his album, Light of Love, turned out to be a dim effort.
Critics around the region took him to task for his vague musical style. He repeated the forms of several songs -- a sign that novelty and creativity were no longer assets he could boast.
A jaded Chau took a break. For the past half year, he concentrated on being a good husband to his Caucasian American wife Constance, and father to his seven-year-old son Andrew and two-year-old daughter Anya.
"My wife was complaining that I didn't spend enough time at home," he recalled.
"I didn't even sleep on our new bed for as much as a month, and I was jet-setting on world tours and publicity trips."
He took over most of the household chores at home in Taipei, ferried his son to school, and even helped him with his homework.
"I felt like I was a normal person again," he said. "And I was assured that my kids will not grow up not knowing their father well."
Now a rejuvenated Chau is back, ready
to wow his fans again with his latest Mandarin release, Friends,
which came out just last week.
The album, he promised, is a return to his familiar, proven musical style: a lot of feel-good love ballads that set you humming along with the easy-listening melodies.
Now, sitting at the Cafe Palm at the Oriental Hotel, he looks at you right in the eyes and says, almost apologetically: "I was churning out a lot of songs at one point. It got really saturated, and the products were rather superficial. My fans preferred my old style, I know it."
For the new album, Chau went back to his former producers Liu Zihong and Liu Simen -- who were responsible for his past signature hits, like the unforgettable Make Me Happy, Make Me Sad.
Click for lyrics
And while he was recording the album, the star made sure that he was not distracted by the inquisitive press. He accepted no interviews, simply because there was too much at stake with this release.
"I give this album a good 95 points," he said. "Not 100 points because there is no such thing as a perfect release."
With this album came a renewed contract with Rock Records and Tapes -- at a time when many popular singers, including Faye Wong, have switched labels for higher pay.
A lesson Chau seems to have learnt is this: It is safer and better to stick to old familiar territory.
You can be sure that there will be more familiar Mandarin hits coming from him. But he plans to stay away from Cantonese pop, for which he sees a bleak future -- even though he was born in Hongkong, and has, in recent years, made a successful foray into the Canto-pop market with his Cantonese releases.
"In five years' time, more Hongkongers will be speaking Mandarin," he said. "My personal view is that Canto-pop will not survive."
And in any case, the singer said with a smile that creased his eyes: "It will be really tragic if I would still be singing then. I want to go backstage in about five years' time."
His production house in Taiwan, Stars' Ferry, is on the lookout for new singing talent, especially those aged between 17 and 20.
As for the "Heavenly King Killers" label, Chau is only too eager to disown it.
"The term Heavenly King is dated. What do you call other promising singers like Andy Hui, Hacken Lee, and Alex To?" he asked. "And if you are one of these four so-called Heavenly Kings, would you always wish to be compared with the other three?"
"Just call me a 'father singer'," the wholesome family man recommended. "There is no need for a killer since a Heavenly King no longer exists, to me."
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