Prudence Liew Mei-kwan is thrilled to be back on stage after years away from the limelight. However, the singer says being a full-time mother holds more appeal for her at the moment. 'I do miss singing,' said Liew (right). 'But my family and life in the US have changed me. I may not be able to put all my effort into developing my career like I did in the past. I want to spend more time with my family. My baby is just 15 months old. I don't want to leave her for too long.'
Based in San Francisco, the 40-year-old singer and mother of three has returned to Hong Kong for a music show to be held at the Hong Kong Convention and Exhibition Centre next Wednesday.
The gig, part of the now.com.hk's Love Music 05 concert series, pays tribute to 80s music. Liew will play her own dance numbers from the era, as well as Japanese and European covers, together with girl band At 17 and newcomer Yan Ng Yat-yin. It will be Liew's first stage performance in three years since she was a guest at veteran entertainer Wu Fung's concert. Groups Tat Ming Pair and Grasshopper, singers Joey Yung Cho-yee and Denise Ho Wan-sze and Edmond Leung Hon-man will also be performing on the night.
Sitting at the cafe in the Mandarin Oriental Hotel, Liew looked vivacious and healthy. She stressed that she's not re-launching her music career in Hong Kong, but is concentrating on doing an album and concert next year. 'I feel really happy about my life right now and don't want to change it,' she said. 'I have a happy family, caring friends and can do things that are interesting. It's a blessing.'
Liew moved to the US after her last Cantonese album Thinking of You ... Day and Night was released in 1994. It was also when her first marriage ended. 'At that time, I had some problems with my voice - it took a lot of effort to hit a tone,' said Liew, who re-married three years ago. 'My self-esteem was low. It was a big struggle.'
Since then, she hasn't done much recording, apart from her first Putonghua album, Love Yourself, in 2000 and a jazz compilation, Salute Deux, in 2003. A planned concert in Hong Kong last year was cancelled when her baby became ill.