Justin Lo Ting-wai used to be rather reticent in interviews. But having appeared in a couple of movies, and with two concerts lined up at the Hong Kong Coliseum this month, the 34-year-old singer-songwriter is learning to be more communicative. He's also saying farewell to the local music scene before starting a new life in Beijing.
New York-born Lo arrived in Hong Kong eight years ago and started working as a composer and producer. Then his vocal talents were discovered when he was a back-up singer at a Leo Ku concert in 2005. He landed a recording contract with Gold Label and hasn't looked back since.
Can you tell us something about the Around the World concerts?
I'm going to rearrange songs into different music styles, including jazz/Motown, Latin, Bollywood, dance/hip hop and rock. The costumes, choreography and stage design will match the music. I'm going to feature more than 20 musicians and play with them in different sets. There'll be a rotating stage, while one band is performing, the other one will be setting up.
Which musicians are you going to work with for these concerts?
Basically, I'll invite all the musicians I know in Hong Kong to play with me, such as my uncle Ted Lo, guitarist Eugene Pao, percussionist Chris Polanco and bassist Ray Covington. I'm trying to get Jun [Kung] but he might be out of town. These are all people who I've worked and jammed with over the years. They've watched me grow up in this industry. Usually, when people have concerts, they only spend a few minutes introducing the band. But this time, the band is the show. I'm not going to have guest singers.