Chinese New Year songs

After independence, Singapore’s economic growth spurred the development of its entertainment industry. Local record companies and subsidiaries of international music labels sprang up, including Tong Aik Records, Life Records, Tony, Polygram, EMI Records, Guts Records, Victory Records, Great Union Organisation, Form Records, Suwah Music, and Free Town Records.

Many of them released Chinese New Year albums or songs to capture a share of the festive market. These songs could be heard throughout the island during Chinese New Year and have become an integral part of popular culture in Singapore.

Early Chinese New Year songs

During the period around Singapore’s independence, many Chinese New Year songs were covers of songs from China (1940s) and Hong Kong (1950s). Famous singers of the time included Chang Siao Ying, Huang Xiao Jun, Mah Ai Nee, and Natasha Han (who came to Singapore from Taiwan in the early 1980s).

Some popular Chinese New Year songs such as Gongxi gongxi (Congratulations) and Hejia huan (Happy Family) were originally from the soundtracks of anti-war films, while others like Chunfeng wen shang wo de lian (The Spring Breeze Kisses My Face) were from romantic films. They became synonymous with Chinese New Year because their lyrics captured the spirit of the season.

In the 1940s and 1950s, many musicians from Shanghai, such as siblings Yao Min (1917–1967) and Yao Lee (1922–2019), who were signed to Pathé Records, moved to Hong Kong to continue their musical careers. The songs they produced were light and melodious, with catchy lyrics about valuing time and expressing hopes and dreams for a bright future. Chinese New Year songs from this period, such as He xinnian (New Year’s Greetings) and Xiang wang xiao’er bainian (New Year’s Greetings to Wang Xiao’er), combined Eastern and Western influences by using part of the melody of Jingle Bells while featuring lyrics about East Asian values towards family reunions and peace.

Xiang wang xiao’er bainian (New Year’s Greetings to Wang Xiao’er)

At the time, there were also Chinese New Year songs in Cantonese, Teochew, and Hokkien,¹ but they were not as popular as Mandarin songs locally. One exception was Mo Mei Ling’s rendition of the Hakka folk song Fa dacai (Be Rich), which became extremely popular in Singapore and Malaysia.²

Fa dacai (Be Rich)

New wave from Taiwan in the late 1970s

In the late 1970s, Chinese New Year songs from Taiwan became hits in Singapore. One popular song, Bai danian (Happy Chinese New Year) by folk singers Allen Chao and Huang Da-cheng (1954–2008), changed the lyrics in the original Xiang wang xiao’er bainian (New Year’s Greetings to Wang Xiao’er) from Wang Xiao’er to lianhua meimei (Little Sister Lianhua). Other songs like Liu Wen-cheng’s Caishen dao (Here Comes the God of Wealth) and Shiyou hongbao (Oil Red Packets) also became extremely popular, with lyrics reflecting the concerns of the time, namely ordinary people hoping to strike it rich in a period of inflation. In 1979, the music label Tony released a Chinese New Year album featuring an all-star group of Taiwanese singers called Zhaocai jinbao (Ushering in Wealth and Prosperity), which became the best-selling album of the year.³

Shiyou hongbao (Oil Red Packets)

Around the same time, Cantonese television drama series from Hong Kong became popular in Singapore, and actors such as Adam Cheng, Liza Wang, and Jenny Tseng also released festive music in a bid to seize market share from Taiwanese songs.

The 1980s saw another wave of popular Chinese New Year songs by Taiwanese singers Anna Lin, Lee Mao-shan, Fei Yu-ching, and Long Piao-piao, as well as Malaysian singer Cuang Sie Cong. Interestingly, while the cassette tapes were sold out in Singapore and Malaysia, they did not fare as well in other Mandarin-speaking regions, showing that Chinese New Year songs have gradually become a more integral part of festive celebrations in Singapore and Malaysia.⁴

Long Piao-piao even released a new album each year featuring the zodiac animal for that year, with some self-written songs. She was known for her unique vocal technique and contemporary musical arrangements, which have made her a part of the collective memory of a whole generation of Singaporeans and Malaysians.

Tunian pao diyi (First Place in the Year of the Rabbit)

Chinese New Year songs in the 21^st century

At the end of the 20^th century and the beginning of the 21^st century, a new genre of Chinese New Year songs emerged in Singapore and Malaysia in response to commercial demand, performed by singing groups headlined by child stars. These included Timi Zhuo (Taiwan), Eight Superstars, New Southern Records All Stars, Four Golden Princesses, M-Girls, and other groups, all of whom released Chinese New Year albums.

Local artistes and Chinese media, such as Mediacorp and Chinese radio stations under the Singapore Press Holdings (now SPH Media), also jumped on the bandwagon, releasing both original songs and covers. Other local singers and internet celebrities have also tried their hand at composing Chinese New Year songs, such as Lao yusheng (The Lo Hei Song) by Singaporean music trio LimTayPeng, which was commissioned by the Singapore Chinese Cultural Centre and released in 2019.

Newer Chinese New Year songs mainly use electronic keyboards and percussion to create a strong rhythm and celebratory beat. Those after the 2020s incorporated elements of hip-hop and rap, as well as Singlish and other Singaporean expressions to create a festive atmosphere, marking a significant departure from traditional Chinese New Year songs.

In recent years, getai, usually seen during the Hungry Ghost Festival in the seventh lunar month, has also started to make an appearance during Chinese New Year, from the River Hongbao celebrations held at Marina Bay to other Chinese New Year concerts around the island. These concerts are also streamed online.⁵ Chinese New Year songs by internet celebrities from Malaysia have also been made available to Singapore audiences through online streaming, such as New Year Beng Beng Beng by Malaysian quintet Five Dan, which features elements of the Malay folk song Rasa Sayang for a new take on tradition.⁶

Table 1: Popular Chinese New Year songs in Singapore in the 1960s and 1970s

Compiled by Lee Kok Leong

*In chronological order

Table 2: Chinese New Year Songs from Hong Kong and Taiwan that gained popularity in the late 1970s

Table 3: Original Chinese New Year songs by Mediacorp and SPH Media