“You might be lost or not quite sure what to do with your life, but we need to move on,” Jay Fung tells Apple Music. “You must hold it down. Just hang on.” If anything, a difficult 2020 has made the singer stronger. The Edmonton, Canada-raised artist first emerged on the Hong Kong talent show The Voice 3 in 2011, and since then his songwriting has been equally influenced by his Chinese and North American cultural backgrounds. This past year served as a wake-up call for Fung, who tragically lost his grandmother to COVID-19. “‘Awaken’ [the title track from his seventh album, released in late 2020] is a reminder to pay attention to the important things in life,” he says. “I’m close to my grandmother. She raised me in Canada. My mom told me she was confirmed with COVID-19, and doctors said she might pass away within 24 hours. It just happened and I was very emotional and out of control. That day, I heard ‘Hang On’ [from Boston-bred alternative rock band Guster]. It’s like I’m sending a message to her telling her to hang in there. Don’t give up.” That same message of hope is at the core of his hand-picked New Year’s playlist. “There was plenty of negative emotions going on with my friends and myself, so I want to bring some positive feelings for everyone,” he says. It features his own track “A New Day”, which he describes as being “about faith. You’ve gotta have faith.” Looking towards 2021, he says, “I’m quite happy 2020 is over. I hope everyone can have a positive mindset and momentum to do whatever they want and achieve their own dreams.”
