Monday, January 12, 2004



WHEN the Sun shines, it's adulation time.

Last Saturday night, in a poignant and perhaps thinly veiled retort to critics, singer Ho Yeow Sun performed a telling rendition of Christina Aguilera's Beautiful.

During the chorus - 'I am beautiful, no matter what they say, words can't bring me down' - more than 10,000 zealous fans, waving a sea of glow-sticks, backed her up.

Some fans even spelt out the words 'U Shine' in red lights.

True, her critics could have had a field day with her three sexy barebacks, but that was as far as she went as she stuck safely to pants and long skirts. Not a single plunging neckline was in sight.

Ever the paragon of goodwill and positivity, Ho, 32, told the audience, comprising toddlers, clean-cut youths, grandparents and entire families: 'Cherish your life. It's short and it only happens once. I don't want to live with a whole lot of 'what if's'. I hope all your dreams come through.'

Her parents, parents-in-law and husband, Reverend Kong Hee from City Harvest Church, were in the audience.

Through more than 25 songs in a 2 1/2-hour event, the smile never left her face. Never mind that the sound system cut her off three times in mid-song.

With her songs delivering vaguely benign but reassuring lyrics such as 'What's the use in getting sad on such a sunny day.../Step it up, give all you got to the sky' (A Little Bit Of Love), she was nevertheless a beacon of goodwill.

If one was expecting religious overtones at the concert, there was none.

The gig was packaged for family entertainment, with a group of breakdancers and four fire-eaters prancing around on stage.

I'm going for my badminton now, tired but must make the effort to do some excercise.

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