The Life List: Stories behind five songs on Boon Hui Lu's new album Reset

SINGAPORE - When the Covid-19 pandemic broke out following the release of her debut album Honestly Me (2019), singer-songwriter Boon Hui Lu found herself back to square one.

Many work activities could not go on as planned and the Taiwan-based Singaporean found it hard to visit her family back home. In this state of anxiety, the 28-year-old turned to songwriting, which led to her sophomore album Reset.

Speaking to Singapore media a day before its release on June 24, Boon shared that the work's 10 tracks were chosen from more than 100 of her creations to express some of her thoughts during the pandemic.

She says: "Resetting, or going back to zero, is a wonderful thing. While not everything in life can be restored, we can let go of the pain and anxiety we feel and return to a state of calm. I hope that after listening to the joys and sorrows expressed in my album, we can return to ourselves."

Boon has written hits for others, including Every Day Is A Miracle for Taiwanese singer Hebe Tien. She will also be the special guest at Taiwanese duo Power Station's Aug 20 concert at the Singapore Indoor Stadium.

Here are the stories behind five tracks on the album Reset.

Opening track Reset is about the desire to "reset" the regrets in one's life and is inspired partly by the singer's own experiences. For example, Boon shared that she is no longer in contact with some old friends whom she had experienced conflict with. She says: "This is a small regret of mine. A part of me does want to 'reset' it, so the music video's director decided to include this element in the video (with scenes of two schoolgirls quarrelling)."

Remember the heady excitement of love? Boon captures the sweetness of infatuation in this upbeat dance number. While not specified, its inspiration could have been her fiance, Singaporean music producer Cheong Waii Hoong. They met as undergraduates, have a shared love of music and announced their engagement in August 2021.

Boon and Singaporean singer Feng Ze had collaborated for rock duet Pride Of Love in 2018, and their new song Messed Up is largely in the same vein. It serves up clashing attitudes towards love and its music video shows the two artistes arguing in an interrogation room. Although both duets are rife with tension, Boon and Feng Ze are good friends in real life.

This theme song of Taiwanese action-comedy movie Cuillere (2021) features Taiwan-based musician Nauledge Huang rapping. The rousing number is about strength and courage in the face of the world's dangers, and it was fitting for Boon to perform it at her  in-person concert at the Capitol Theatre in January 2022, seemingly reminding the audience to stay strong during the pandemic.

A duet with Taiwanese singer Gboyswag, Losing Myself reflects the emptiness and helplessness one feels after a break-up. Boon had made a demo for the song and invited Gboyswag to co-write its melody and lyrics. The result combines the folksy melodies Boon is known for with Gboyswag's hip-hop stylings.

Reset is available on platforms such as KKBox, Spotify and Apple Music.