Do more of what you love.
23.11.2019 — That was one of the best days I’ve had in 2019. With my train ticket in one hand, Citymapper (public transport and navigation app used by local New Yorkers) in the other hand; and my Bose headphones plugged in at close to maximum volume (listening to Post Malone on repeat mode to kickstart the day), I tapped into the subway gantry and began my 30-minute commute from New Jersey into New York City.
I was en route to Jacob K. Javits Convention Center, right at the heart of New York City.
Before I continue on, I just want to say THANK YOU for stopping by! If you are wondering why I decided to share my writing today, let me satiate your curiosity. Recently, I’ve been reading a ton of Medium articles -mostly on product design as I pivot into UI UX as my career path. The articles that I’ve read were educational, insightful and inspiring — especially for aspiring product designers like myself.
Moving forward, I will be writing more often — to share my learnings (be it UI UX or life), experiences and insights on issues that I feel for or simply put, am passionate about. If you have learnt a thing or two from my articles, I’m so very glad to hear that! So, here I am, trying my hand at writing my first Medium article (with a celebratory drink — my favourite Grapefruit Tiger beer) after months of contemplation! :)
Alright, rewinding back to the first paragraph — after commuting for an hour and fifteen minutes, I tapped out of Penn Station and made my way to the audition venue, excited albeit nervous. From afar, the banners with bright stripes of red and blue caught my attention. Weeks of excitement all culminating for that day. 8 hours later, I did it!
I auditioned for America’s Got Talent!
I shall not bore you with any more of my rambles (of 100% excitement as I vividly recall this crazy amazing day in 2019). So if you are curious about the audition process or able to spare just six minutes of your precious time, do check out the vlog that I did about my AGT audition :)
Walt Disney once said, “All our dreams can come true, if we have the courage to pursue it”.
Though my dream of meeting Simon Cowell and singing in front of a 10,000 strong audience has not (yet) been fulfilled, the experience of auditioning for AGT simply felt like a dream come true! :)
Since I was a kid, I have always loved singing.
As I journeyed through primary, secondary and junior college (JC) days, most of my time was spent between studies and swimming (and water-polo in JC days). Besides singing in the shower, in my bedroom or at karaoke sessions, I never had much time to pursue my passion for singing.
2016 marked the beginning of a new adventure. After I completed JC, I decided it was time to explore my passion in greater depth and to step out of my comfort zone. I signed up for vocal lessons and created a singing account on Instagram @madyqueksings (check it out and follow for acoustic covers + originals coming soon! means a lot hehe) where I would post covers and performance videos.
If you scroll all the way to the bottom of my singing account, you might notice my videos progressed from — super shy no face to less shy half-face, to stepping out of my comfort zone in today’s videos (after mustering enough courage over the years). All of which wouldn’t have been possible without the support from my family, friends and of course lao shi, so thank you for always being there for me! :)
Here is a visual rewind to my journey in the past few years. Let’s go!
Fast forward 5 years later, I am so thankful — to have found and sustained my passion for music and performing, to have had singing lessons to hone my craft (shoutout to Coach Relyne for your guidance and patience all this while and for always believing in me), to have stepped out of my comfort zone and performed on stages, to have such supportive friends and family who have always been alongside me throughout this journey.
Music has gotten me through the ups and downs for the past 23 years — be it calming myself down before a swimming race, accompanying me through the wee hours of the night burning the midnight oil, breaking the ice and transcending cultural boundaries during my study abroad days (indeed, music is a universal language, and to me, that is the beauty of music :”) or for simply being my emotional outlet.
In retrospect, music and singing has and will continue to be my creative outlet and stress reliever amidst the hustle and bustle of adulthood.
Thank you for reading and remember, do more of what you love, do more of what makes you happy.
Feel free to say hi and join the fam :)
