Fish Leong When We Talk About Love World Tour – Singapore

Singapore Indoor Stadium
March 30

Since Fish Leong released her debut album Grown Up Overnight in 1999, the Malaysian ballad queen has taken listeners on a journey through the ins and outs of love, traversing its exhilarating highs and devastating lows.

Known for her emotive, soothing voice, the 45-year-old singer has plenty of experience in that regard. She was married to Taiwanese businessman Tony Chao from 2010 to 2019, and in a relationship with Taiwanese entrepreneur Darwin Lin for a few months in 2020 and 2021.

When it comes to negotiating differences as a couple and picking oneself up after a failed relationship, she knows what she is singing about.

Her March 30 show, her first here on a four-sided stage, comes after her divorce from Mr Chao, with whom she has a nine-year-old son. Apart from familiar hits such as Love Song (2009) and Wings Of Love (2004), she also reminded the 8,500-strong audience not to give up on love even in the face of difficulties.

Here are three love lessons from her 165-minute 20th anniversary show, which featured 27 songs and five outfits.

1. Love takes courage, but is also full of joy

A genuine connection does not fall from the sky. It takes guts to confess one’s feelings and risk rejection.

As Leong sings in Courage (2000), one of her most famous songs: “We all need courage to believe that we will be together.” Being able to commit to someone takes inner strength and fortitude.

Often, the impetus to connect romantically has a spiritual or cosmic dimension. Parallel Universe (2019) depicts a protagonist being drawn to a loved object as if it were the “most brilliant and hot solar system”, as if being pulled by a beam of light. It is an instinct which should be followed without fear, Leong sings.

Of course, if one’s feelings are reciprocated, a relationship can be full of sweet pleasures and heady excitement. Quiet Summer (2004) paints a blissful state of contentment where the protagonist relishes: “I can pretend not to see you/or I can miss you secretly/until I touch your warm face.”

2. Heartbreak is part and parcel of love

However, a relationship is never smooth-sailing. First, there is the issue of timing. Not everybody falls in and out of love at the same pace.

Slow-To-Cool-Down (2019), for example, explores the aftermath of a failed relationship, where one party’s ardour has not yet abated, leading to a sense of frustrated desire.

Sometimes, a third party might also be involved, as the song The Intruder (2003) depicts. Call it infidelity or betrayal, the very presence of cheating signals that the relationship’s fundamentals are shaky.

As Leong sings: “The difficulties between us existed before she appeared/Although I am angry, I understand that it is wrong to let her bear the blame.”

And when one experiences heartbreak, it can be gut-wrenching. The lyrics of Pain That Breathes (2007) depict this agony: “Humming the song you love hurts/reading your letter hurts/even the silence hurts.”

3. Relationships may end, but one grows from the experience

It is unreasonable to expect all relationships to work out. Along the way, one could face instances of miscommunication, missed opportunities and break-ups.

In the face of such tumult, one should retain an inner calm, as depicted in Time Is Like An Ocean (2023). As Leong puts it: “Don’t let yesterday’s waves disturb this peaceful sea.”

After all, as The Adults (2023) aptly describes, adults never stop growing. Even after negative experiences, they can let their old wounds heal and let go of resentment. They can learn, recover and try again.

In any case, one should never give up on love, for it makes lives rich and beautiful. In Twilight (2019), Leong sings: “Don’t miss the starry sky because of a moment of tears.”

Consider these nuggets of advice from a singer who has spent more than two decades crooning love songs, and faced her own challenges with love. In the concert’s final moments, a handwritten message by Leong flashes on the Jumbotron screens: “To Singapore, dreams will come true. Be at ease, and love.”

Wise words.