Take A Chance on Me

Q: Talk a little bit about growing up in Hong Kong and how music played a role for you there?

A: I was born in Taipei and then grew up in Hong Kong. I go to school in New England now. Since I moved around so much, music really helped me ground myself and connect with people. I did my best to become a part of each of these three communities and they were drastically different from one another. I like to think living in these places and having these experiences reflects in my music.

Q: At what age did you realize, Hey I want to be a songwriter!

A: I was 15 and it was April of 2015. I had just played an original song in front of a large crowd for the first time and decided right there that playing my own songs was a lot more fun than the covers I had been doing.

Q: What was the first song you wrote and what was it about?

A: I think it was a very angsty song when I was 12 called something painfully vague. I can’t exactly remember the title but it was something along the lines of ‘Land of Dreams’.

Q: Several articles have referred to you as the “second coming of Paul Simon”, what do you think when people compare you to such a huge singing songwriting legend?

A: It’s a honor! I find comparisons to Paul Simon come up mostly about my song, How Can I. I was listening to a lot of Graceland during the week I wrote that tune, so it makes a lot of sense, actually.

Q: Now you are attending Brown University in Providence, RI, were you playing a lot of shows in the Providence/Boston area? What were some of your favorite venues?

A: I was playing a fair amount both on campus as well as in Providence. I loved playing Fete Music Hall’s Lounge and also had such a great time playing an album release at Askew. I actually played another release show in a dining hall on campus and that was an unforgettable experience to say the least.

Q: What are you working on now in terms of music? Songs? Albums?

A: I’m working on writing lots of new songs and I’m also recording some new tunes I didn’t have to work on earlier this year.

Q: Are we going to see any live streams from you soon?

A: Absolutely. Stay tuned for one n the next couple of weeks on my Instagram Chance.S.Emerson

Q: COVID-19 has derailed so many upcoming scheduled shows…what are your plans for your singing career when the world goes back to some sort of order?

A: I can’t wait to start playing again. As soon as things are back to normal, I’m looking to get down to New York and Philly and up to a Portsmouth and Portland. I was looking forward to playing shows in Providence this April at AS220 and The Met but those were cancelled and I’m definitely hoping to reschedule.

You can hear Chance’s music on Spotify where you can find his latest album release, The Raspberry Man, and his info on Linktree.

Stay tuned for an interview with London folk musician Simon Finn.. Until then, I am Your Music Stylist – Linda Dias