Back in the days of girl group Cookies, Kary Ng Yu-fei was widely regarded as the only one of the nine with any genuine singing talent.
Her vocal chops helped her stand out and perhaps rescued her from a career of performing synchronised dances in matching outfits. Ng has gone on to establish herself as a successful Canto-pop singer.
Her song Too Much Pressure (2007) was named best original song at the 27th Hong Kong Film Awards and opened doors for the youngster, leading to her first solo concert and lead roles in films. Next week, the 23-year-old ventures into uncharted territory by taking part in a local theatre production, Sing-a-long, based on Canto-pop's glory years.
What is the play about?
It's a comedy about a bunch of teenagers growing up listening to Canto-pop and how this music changes them. We'll be singing popular verses of more than 100 Canto-pop favourites from the 1980s until today and reliving some of the local music scene's unforgettable past, like how the fans of Leslie Cheung Kwok-wing and Alan Tam Wing-lun used to quarrel; the shocking news of the death of Beyond's Wong Ka-hui; the romance between Andy Hui Chi-on and Sammi Cheng Sau-man, and we will focus on new stars too such as Miriam Yeung Chin-wah and Kelly Chen Wai-lum. The audience will hear songs that might conjure up memories of bad break-ups, or serious fights with friends, and so on.
You were born in 1986, so weren't many of the songs unfamiliar to you?