Beijing-born London-based multi-talented artist Fifi Rong has released her latest single ‘Dream On’ on the 18th of June. The single follows the release of breathtaking single and videos ‘Another Me’ and ‘Only Man’ and precede her upcoming self-produced solo album, There Is A Funeral In My Heart For Every Man I Loved. Fifi Rong has collaborated with the likes of Skepta (on his hugely successful UK No. 2, Mercury Prize-winning album Konnichiwa) as well as Tricky, Yello, and Phaeleh, and Emika. The songstress has racked up over 3.2 million plays across major streaming platforms and received previous support from The Guardian, The Times, NME, FACT Mag, The Irish Times, Dancing Astronaut, Earmilk, Wonderland, CLASH Magazine, Complex, BlackBook Magazine, FLAUNT, XLR8R and The Line of Best Fit to name a few.
Fifi is deeply involved in her project Yi Jing 意境 Live Performance Series which is designed to bring the worlds of online concerts, short films, and performance/sonic/visual art all into one reality, with the aim to build a community of loyal aesthetes and avid music/art lovers. The artist has also begun to release her work as NFTs, marking herself as one of the forerunners in the exciting field.
The singer-songwriter has found inspiration in new forms – from the undeniable stylings of modern music to the acapella voice of a shaman from Peru and the texture of Wong Kar Wai’s movies. In turn, her own sound can be associated with the likes of Bjork, Cocteau Twins’ Elizabeth Fraser, FKA Twigs, ANOHNI and Massive Attack as she displays contemporary ballads with atmospheric production.
‘Dream On’ embarks on the sensual journey of the sonorously alluring artist Fifi Rong. As the tempo rises, scatterings of pan flutes, breathy vocals and a building rhythm develop themselves into the singer’s magical ode to her lover, crescending at the confession and gently making their way back into a slumberous landscape of delicately murmuring sounds. Inspired by a dreamscape of what Fifi Rong’s mythical heroine character desired in her heart, ‘Dream On’ is about a potential relationship that is unfortunately dead before it even has a chance to start.
Speaking of the single, Fifi Rong tells us: “The purity of love to me, usually happens in a dream and expires in the morning sun, unless I capture these dreams into my songs. My lyrics are subtle and subliminal but ‘Dream On’ has the most direct and emotionally brutal words. My kind of ‘direct’, though, still multi-layered metaphors. Like every song on this album, I have just finished a Chinese version of this song too. Being able to glide through musical elements and deliveries between the two languages and cultures really allow me to fully express what I want to say with my work.”