“Music saves people’s spirits. Becoming a singer is not only about earning money and supporting life. We hope that our songs can comfort those who have lost their hope to activate their confidence and hope for the future”, said Mr. Ze, the lead singer of the band Mobby Kingdom (莫比帝国).
My chat with Ze was the first online interview that I have done, due to the reason that the band was at that time performing in Beijing. Though I haven’t experienced such a format before, Ze and I still managed to communicate efficiently. I am lucky to have heard him tell the story of his musical career and the reasons why he gave his own band such a name.
Speaking of the band’s musical style, Ze described it in three expressions; “beautiful lifetime”, “hope” and “the strength in morality”. He explained that after graduating from college, life wasn’t as good as what they were taught it would be in school. As he realised the cruelty of reality, he started to compose healing songs for himself. The purpose was to lift his mood and regain a positive attitude.
Ze is a person who produces lots of exquisite ideas in his daily life. He named his band “Mobby” because he admires Moby, the musician, DJ, producer, photographer and director. And given he expects his band to develop to be even better than Moby, he added a “B”. Then there is the girl Ze could not forget; she is a super fan of the band “Yura Yura Teikoku” (“Teikoku” means “kingdom” in English”). Hence Ze named his band “Mobby Kingdom”.
For Nanjingers, there is a song that must be introduced called “Write You a Love Letter in Blue Whale” (我在蓝鲸为你写情书). You might wonder why this has a relationship with Nanjing! The pronunciation of “Nanjing” in Chinese is very similar to that of the blue whale, which is “lan jing”. If you look closely at the spelling of those two syllables in the quote, you will find that they are nearly the same!
Mobby Kingdom’s songs are all very understandable. For those who have heard them, they have garnered comments such as, “This is a new style that can move you and me with power and warmth”, “My girlfriend listens to this song every day” and even “You guys are the pride of Nanjing”. No doubt, they are fervidly liked by their audiences, and those who enjoy their songs support them with sincere emotions.
When being interviewed, most of the singers I have spoken to said that they insist on making their own songs because of their love for music itself, along with the inspirations and emotional support provided by their fans. So did Ze imply in the interview. He added that though sometimes he also doesn’t know what to do with difficulties in life, his ideals and ambitions made him continue doing what he really likes to do.
Mobby Kingdom’s third album is now in production. Ze says they usually release one album per year. Looks like more of those comments from proud Nanjingers shall be soon coming their way!
