Part of becoming an adult and earning your own money is finally being able to see in person the stars who have been part of your life's soundtrack for a very long time.

Stefanie Sun is this for me and after 12 years, I finally got to see her perform live on Sunday (April 6).

I first stumbled onto the Singaporean singer in 2013 as a 15-year-old student through the book What I Want, Is Only A Hug by Taiwanese novelist Juzi. Inside was an apt lyric from Stefanie's signature song Cloudy Days off her self-titled debut album. And with a discography of over 100 songs and a raspy voice like no other, it wasn't hard to fall for the singer who had beaten Jay Chou to take home Best New Artist at the 2001 Golden Melody Awards.

But shortly after her Kepler tour in 2015, which I didn't have enough money to buy a ticket for, the new releases slowed and the tours stopped. Still, I continued purchasing her CDs in the decade after and through her years of relative inactivity where she was referred to as an "obscure singer".

The deafening cheers from the full house at the Singapore Indoor Stadium on Sunday proved otherwise.

The show began with the melancholic song Ji Mei (2017), followed by the fast-paced and energetic Turbo (2000).

As one would expect, many of her "essential hits" from the early 2000s made the setlist, such as Encounter, I Am Fine, Kite and Cloudy Day, with spontaneous song requests bringing about others like Begin to Understand and Someone Like Me.

The night was full of sing-alongs, which the mature crowd was eager to join in on, as Stefanie quipped that the energy levels were much higher than her first show the night before. While she was quick to jest about feeling older and getting out of breath quicker, her condition was spectacular, belting out song after song that felt cathartic to the kid in me who had only listened to her albums and watched her 2020 digital concert on Douyin.

Amid the ballads and the pop bops were little glimpses of Stefanie's personal life, as a mother, a wife and a friend, as tributes from her husband Nadim van der Ros, local singer Kit Chan and her secondary school friends flowed in towards the end of the concert.

Closing with her latest release Afterwards, it truly felt like she never lost a beat, and in that moment, a true reminder that she still is a queen of Mandopop.

The concert was magical, and Stefanie felt familiar despite it being the first time I've seen her in the flesh. Though I entered the show all hyped with excitement, as it progressed, it became a healing experience.

When I felt melancholic, my go-to Stefanie songs were What I Miss, Make Peace and A State of Bliss.

Songs such as Begin to Understand, Nothing You Want and I Am Fine nursed me through heartbreak while The Pursuit of Contentment, Daybreak and A Day; A Year played continuously in my journey to selfhood.

That night, the dreams of 15-year-old me were fulfilled. The boy who listened to her music with no comprehension of what love is, is now a 27-year-old who cried to her live performance of Begin to Understand with appreciation and realisation. To have Stefanie in the soundtrack of my life is truly serendipitous.

The Singapore leg of Aut Nihilo continues with shows on April 12 and 13 before it lands in Shanghai.

bingchenghu@asiaone.com

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