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Katara, a beautiful blonde New Yorker, fell in love with Chinese culture and language
She studied Chinese and started singing Chinese songs in America for two years before moving to China to pursue her dreams
Both a singer and a guitarist, Katara is known for her acoustic renditions of Jay Chou songs
Her Mandarin pronunciation is more standard than Jay's
Her voice is incredibly sweet, a lot of her online fans comment on how wonderful it is to listen to
Today, we've invited Katara to 56.com's studio to sit and chat with us
to talk about this American girl's Chinese story
Hello to my friends on 56.com, I'm Katara
I'm a singer-songwriter and actress from New York currently living in Beijing
I moved to Beijing last year on March 1st
So, I haven't been in China for a full year yet
But I really love it
My life in China is really happy and fulfilling
I really love Chinese culture, you all already know I love Chinese music, but I also really love Chinese food
Beijing is a really special city because you can find so many different kinds of food here
For example, Sichuan food is really spicy, Northern food is a bit salty, and dumplings are especially tasty
I started learning Chinese three years ago
In New York, I was already a singer-songwriter
But I couldn't speak Chinese
So I only sang professionally in English
writing my own original English songs
As a musician, I had the opportunity to travel
and perform concerts
I already knew I wanted to come to China to travel
Because China has special things like The Great Wall and Forbidden City
But I was a little worried.
Because I couldn't speak Chinese.
And I knew Chinese is really difficult to learn.
So, in New York, I found a Chinese teacher who was originally from China.
Him and his wife really changed my life.
Online I have already sang a lot of Chinese covers
For example, Teresa Teng's "The Moon Represents My Heart" and "Sweet Honey"
And Jay Chou's songs "Promised Happiness" and "Tornado"
Also "Long Time No See", "I'll love you Endlessly"
Also, a lot of other famous songs
While I was in New York, I had already started writing my own original Chinese songs
How many, I'm not sure
Because I have a lot I've started writing but haven't finished yet
But my favorite is my new song I just released, it's an electronic Mandopop song
It's my original song called "True Love" (Zhen Ai)
That one's my favorite
I have two methods to write songs, the first is using guitar
I'll play the guitar and think of a melody
and also what the lyrics will be
But the second method is my newest method
I use my computer to produce music
So I will write the music and lyrics while simultaneously producing it using my computer
So this is electronic music
I really love both of these styles.
So I feel I'm really excited because it's got a very fresh feeling
So, I'm really happy to have these two methods to write my original songs
I've participated in a few television programs
For example: TTV's "Super Star" Zhejiang TV's "China Dream Show"
CCTV's "Echo"
Henan TV's "Beautiful Girl"
And a show with Beijing TV
So, I'm really lucky to have had these opportunities
The day I knew I was moving to China, I was a little nervous to tell my Mom
Because I didn't know what she would think about it
And I knew she was really going to miss me
So that day I said to my Mom
"Mom, I'm going to have the opportunity to move to Beijing to pursue my dreams
What do you think?
She said, "This is your life! I personally feel you should definitely go after your dreams."
My Mom and Dad really support me.
They believe in me.
Wen I was really little, they told me I could do anything if I worked hard
My parents, sister, and grandma all use wechat
So I often use WeChat to keep in touch with them
I'm a singer songwriter and I write a lot of love songs
if my fans want to know the details of my love life, they only need to listen to my songs.
I'm so grateful to my fans every single day
They are so very important to me
They are the reason I have this opportunity to live in China
I hope I'll have the opportunity to continue living here
Without the support from my fans, I won't have that opportunity.
I wish all my friends at 56.com a Happy New Year
Katara's gentle music and sweet smile has reached in to your heart
We hope Katara's musical journey is smooth and that she'll keep giving us more great songs to listen to
We thank her for adding her works to 56 Network