你或許在上月的Clockenflap見過她，或許在各大串流媒體上聽過她的熱播金曲Crush，時尚的頭巾造型、鮮明的輪廓與治癒的嗓音叫人難忘，她剛剛完成了第一回亞洲巡迴演出，最近更是與Beyoncé、Rihanna、John Legend等登上Billboard 2016年十大R&B專輯榜。今期，Hf遇上來自馬來西亞的八十後唱作歌手Yuna，一位自信、美麗的現代穆斯林女性。

HOKK fabrica：Hf | Yuna：Y
中：中文翻譯

HF：Tell us more about your latest album, Chapters.
中：可以告訴我們更多關於你的最新專輯Chapters嗎？

Y：Chapters is based on my personal experiences. I wrote the album after I ended a really serious relationship but I didn’t want to make it a ‘breakup album’. I wanted it to be an empowering album – I went through the storm, I got out, I made it through. The album is about finding my strength as a woman, finding my womanhood and embracing it. I’m not 21 anymore, you know, I’m not young, I’m not like bright-eyed and innocent and fragile. I’m stronger, I’m wiser, I’m more mature now. The way I see love now is different from when I saw it back then. And I learnt so much about myself. I wanted people to be able to relate to that. A lot of girls who are going through heartbreaks or rough situations, I want them to know that they are not alone even in those times.

中：Chapters 源自我的個人經歷。我是在結束一段認真的關係之後寫的，但我不想它成為一張「分手專輯」。我想它是一張賦權的專輯──我遇上風浪，我從風浪中走出來。這張專輯是關於作為一個女人怎樣尋找力量，怎樣擁抱自己的處境。我不再是21歲的幼嫩和無知，現在的我變得更強、更聰明、更成熟。我今天的愛情觀已經跟昨天不同。我在過程中學到很多關於自己的事，我希望專輯能夠引起人們的共鳴，讓那些正在經歷分手或艱難時刻的女生知道，她們並不是孤獨的。

HF：Is there a specific time period where the stories in this album happened?
中：專輯中提到的故事大概是甚麼時候發生的？
Y：I wrote most of the songs within the last two years or so. The song, ‘Places to Go’, for example, is about being away from my family. I want to go to all these different places but at the end of the day I just wanted to come home.
中：大部分歌都是我在過去兩年寫的。以Places to Go為例，它就是一首關於離開家人的歌。我有很多地方想去，但到最後發現原來我最渴望的就是回家。

HF：You now live in L.A.. Do you miss home often?
中：你現在住在洛杉磯。你會經常想念家人嗎？
Y：I do! But that’s the thing, right? I try to come home as much as I can, like once every two months. Because I’m constantly working, I’m always away from my family. So when I’m not working, I just prefer to not do anything, stay at home and hang out with my family.
中：會！但現實就是這樣吧？我會盡量回家，每兩個月一次。因為工作的緣故，我不常與家人見面，所以當我不在工作時，我就會甚麼都不做，留在家中與家人相處。

HF：Chapters embodies your personal stories and experiences that happened since you first released music ten years ago. Looking back, how would you describe this journey? From a young law student playing her guitar to an international sensation, how has this journey transformed you as a modern woman, in particular a modern, Malaysian Muslim woman musician?
中：Chapters記載了你十年前出道到現在的心路歷程。回頭望，你會怎樣形容這個旅程？從法律系學生到國際歌手，作為一位現代女性，特別是一位來自馬來西亞的穆斯林女音樂人，這個旅程又是如何令你成長？

Y：Music has always been a part of me. I was raised Malaysian Muslim, so that’s part of me as well. I remember when I was 20, the age I started wearing the scarf and practicing modesty. That was the same year I discovered that I could write music. I love both. I discovered both things at once and I don’t want to sacrifice one thing for the other. I think that was when my journey began.
中：音樂一直都是我生命的一部分。我在一個馬來西亞穆斯林家庭成長，因此信仰也是我生命的一部分。20歲那年，我開始戴頭巾，開始學習穿得端莊，那年同時是我發現自己原來懂得寫歌的一年。我同一時間發現信仰和音樂，兩樣我都喜歡，不想為了得到其中一樣而放棄另一樣。我想，我的旅程就是在這個時候開始。

Y：Growing was just a natural thing. I know what I wanted, what I’m not comfortable with. I made it clear that I’m a Muslim and I’m not going to wear short dresses and stuff like that. Can you imagine if without that limit, probably there would be a lot of people from the music industry who would try to change me and turn me into something else, which is not something that I would want. The Muslim image itself helped me and shaped me into a better person – I don’t party, I stay away from the negative stuff because that’s who I am. When you talk about music, people are like sex, drugs and stuff like that. But that’s nothing like my life. I managed to lead a healthy lifestyle and also be a person that maybe kids can look up to – ‘Oh, maybe I don’t need to be all that. Maybe I can be just like Yuna, just do my music and still not get lost in the music industry.’
中：成長是一件自然的事情，我清楚我想要的是甚麼，清楚令我感到不舒服的又是甚麼。我講明我是穆斯林，不會穿短裙之類的衣服。若然沒有這樣的規範，樂壇裡面的人可能一早就想將我變成另一個樣子，一個不是我的「我」。穆斯林的形象將我塑造成一個更好的人──我不夜蒲，我會遠離負面的事情，因為這就是我。今天的音樂充斥著性愛、濫藥之類的事情，但這並不是我的生活。我建立了一個健康的生活，我希望能夠讓年輕人看見做人不用隨波逐流，追隨音樂夢、進入樂壇後也不一定會喪失自我。

Y：So the journey has been very interesting for me. I learnt a lot about myself and other people. Going to different places in the world, I met so many different kinds of people and I learnt how to handle and talk to them, when to say no, and when to say yes. It’s good, you know, it’s a career path I did not expect to take. It’s also like a path I did not expect that taught me so much about myself.
中：這個旅程對我而言很有趣，我學到很多關於自己和別人的事情。我去過世界上很多地方，認識了不同種類的人，並且學習怎樣跟他們溝通，甚麼時候說不，甚麼時候是。這是很好的經驗。我從來沒想過自己會踏上這條事業路，亦從沒想過這條路竟然會教曉我這麼多關於自己的事。

HF：When you first entered the industry, was it very difficult to be yourself? Or was it the opposite, since you’d already know what you’re doing?
中：剛剛入行時覺得很難做自己嗎？還是剛巧相反，因為你已經十分清楚自己想要的是甚麼？
Y：Yeah, exactly. There was no crazy pressure because people already know they are not going to be able to change me into their ways. I was not shy about stating my opinion. I was not shy about saying no if I didn’t wanted to do it. Maybe I would get looks – for example, if a magazine reach out to me and say, ‘We’re going to restyle you, can you wear this dress, can you not wear this turtle neck?’ I’m like, ‘No I’m not going to do it’. People are like, ‘Wait, are you saying no to me?’ Because I have my own thing going on. I’m not desperate for attention. Yes, I think it’s been an easy journey so far. I’ve always been comfortable with who I am, and what I say, and who I work with.
中：正是如此。我並沒有經歷太多壓力，因為人們已經知道他們無法改變我。我不會對表達自己的想法感到害羞，遇上不想做的事情我也不會對拒絕他人而感到害怕。如果有雜誌找我做訪問，但想我脫去高領穿令我不舒服的裙子，我會拒絕，別人可能會給我難看的臉色，但這就是我，我有自己的原則，我並不急著要得到所有人的注意。是的，一路以來的旅程總算是容易，我對於自己和自己所說的話，還有跟我合作的人都感到舒服。

HF：Muslims women has long been stereotyped by the media as very conservative females. From your perspective as a modern Malaysian Muslim women, is there a lot of prejudice against Muslim women today?
中：穆斯林女性長久以來被媒體描繪成十分保守的女性。作為一位現代穆斯林女性，你認同今天的穆斯林女性面對很多來自外界的偏見嗎？
Y：Yea definitely. It’s really weird because people see Muslim women as this kind of ‘oppressed women’. In Southeast Asia, women in Malaysia, Indonesia, we go to school, we wear colours. People who hear this are just blown away, which is interesting to see how a lot of people are so ignorant and they don’t know what’s going on with the world. People think that we are forced to be modest but it’s solely our choice – we just want to wear modest clothes. Maybe for some girls, we are not comfortable with showing too much skin and that’s okay! I’m just so done with people telling us what to wear. Muslim women in Malaysia are not oppressed but that’s how the media portray us. They take an extremely Islamic country and set that as an example of a Muslim country, which is not true.
中：是的。我覺得很奇怪，因為外界經常以為穆斯林女性是「被壓迫的一群」。在馬來西亞、印尼、東南亞等地，女性是會上學的，她們是會穿色彩繽紛的衣裳的。聽見這消息的人經常大感驚愕，這種對世界的無知有時候也令人覺得挺有趣的。人們往往以為穆斯林女性是被迫要穿得端莊，但事實上這是我們的自由選擇——我們就是想穿得端莊。對於某些女生而言，她們對露出太多肌膚感到不太舒服，而這點是沒有問題的呢！我厭倦了人們不斷對女性說她們應該穿甚麼，馬來西亞的穆斯林女性並不是被壓迫的，但傳媒往往將我們描繪成這個樣子，他們喜歡用一個極端伊斯蘭國家的例子以偏概全，但事實上不是所有穆斯林國家都是如此。

Y：On the other hand, there’s this other side of stereotyping coming from a very conservative point of view where they see me as very ‘liberal’. So this is kinda weird. In the Western world, I’m seen as ‘oppressed’ and ‘conservative’, which is not true. From the Eastern point of view, they see me as she’s ‘very liberal’ – she’s out there singing, she wears this style of hijabs. But this does not represent what I’m all about. I’m more than that. For ten years or so, I have to find this weird balance. If I don’t fit in anywhere, I’ll just be in my little space, and just keep on doing what I’m doing. So yeah, I think I’ve found that comfortable zone to live in and still be able to do my work.中：另一方面，我們會面對來自保守派的偏見，他們認為我很「開方」，這讓我感到奇怪。在西方國家眼中，我是「保守」、「被壓迫」的；在東方國家眼中，會唱歌、穿這種風格的頭巾的我屬於十分「開放」。但這並不完全代表我，我是超越這一切的呢。十多年來，我在這兩者之中尋找平衡。當我在兩者之間都找不到自己的位置，我唯有繼續在自己建立的細小空間發展，繼續做我相信的事情。是的，我想我現在發現了一個令我生活得舒服，能夠繼續做我喜歡的事情的空間。

HF：‘Crush’, featuring Usher, is definitely your greatest hit so far but is it your favourite song?
中：Crush是你跟美國R&B歌手Usher合作的一首歌，而且是你目前其中一首最受歡迎的歌曲，它又是你專輯中最喜歡的歌嗎？
Y：It is! I think the reason why it’s working so well is because it’s very simple and beautiful, and people can remember and relate to it immediately. It’s that moment of you having a crush on someone from having a conversation, not entirely knowing what they’re all about. With me and Usher, we managed to turn that into a really positive thing in the music video. We sent out a really positive message about getting to know people, regardless of their skin-colour and their background.
中：是的！這首歌為甚麼這麼受歡迎，大概是因為它夠簡單、美麗。它琅琅上口，能夠引起共鳴，是因為每個人都經歷過那種對別人的好感。這種好感令人心動，我和Usher在MV中將歌曲的訊息延伸，不管對方的膚色和背景如何，他們都值得我們去認識。

HF：You’re also a fashion designer. Has fashion always been your interest? How do you find time to manage your fashion business while pursuing your music career?
中：我知道你也是一名時裝設計師，你一直對時尚都很感興趣嗎？你又是如何找到時間一邊發展時裝生意，一邊發展音樂事業呢？
Y：Haha, there is no time! That’s the thing. It’s so difficult to do everything on your own. Now that I’m getting busier, it’s easier for me to collaborate with people. If designers want to collaborate with me, let’s do it. I did my first collaboration with a local Malaysian designer, Hatta Dolmat, and the line is called HattaYuna, a beautiful floral printed collection. Two days ago, I launched a printed scarf line, YunaForLosraVelda, with another local scarf designer called LosraVelda. This was also a very interesting collaboration.
中：哈哈，時間是不夠用的呢！這就是我現在面對的處境，現在很難自己一個完成所有事情。當我越來越忙碌，與設計師合作便是其中一個較為可行的方法。我十分歡迎設計師找我合作。早前我與馬來西亞本地設計師 Hatta Dolmat合作推出第一個主打漂亮印花的聯乘系列HattaYuna。兩天之前，我與另一個本地頭巾品牌LosraVelda推出印花頭巾系列YunaForLosraVelda，這又是一個十分有趣的合作。

Y：So yeah, I love fashion. I love collaborating with other people because I can learn a lot from them and from trying something new and exciting. 2016 is just the year I decided to do a bunch of collaborations with people and see what happens.
中：是的，我喜愛時尚，我喜愛跟別人合作，因為我能夠從他們身上以及透過嘗試新事物而學到很多事情。2016年是我抱著即管試試的態度，豁出去跟不同人合作的一年。

HF：It’s great that you’re also bringing these labels to the world, too.
中：能夠將這些本地品牌帶到國際舞台也是一件美好的事情呢。
Y：Yeah! They’re excited as well. These are the people I love working with. They are so passionate.
中：對！設計師們也為此感到高興呢，他們都是一些我十分喜歡一起合作的人，他們很有熱誠。

HF：Do you have any mottos or quotes that you live by?
中：有喜歡的座右銘嗎？
Y：‘Undersell and overperform’. For me this is a good attitude to have. You’re not just out there being loud. Quality can only been seen if you’re actually doing the work. I’m not perfect but I try to give people the best thing they’ve ever seen. That’s my motto in work and life.
中：「Undersell and overperform」，這是一個我很喜歡的態度。你不只是在外面大吵大鬧。唯有真正下苦功，你才能看得見質素。我並不完美，但我會盡力做到最好，令人們另眼相看。這就是我工作和生活的座右銘。

後記

跟Yuna的相遇，是短短的半小時。一整天接受訪問的她無暇吃飯，桌子上的Nasi Goreng早已放涼了。她大概習慣了這樣的生活，沒有絲毫抱怨，毫無明星架子，有的只是說不盡的經歷。每當談到音樂和家鄉馬來西亞她都會特別起勁，雙眼發亮，Yuna告訴我完了這趟亞洲之旅她終於可以回家休息一段短時間。之後，還有很多地方等著她去，還有很多事情等著她做，還有很多故事等著她去寫。

TEXT & INTERVIEW: FLORIELLE/ HOKK FABRICA
PHOTOGRAPHY: MII N/ HOKK FABRICA
VENUE: LANDMARK MANDARIN ORIENTAL
SPECIAL THANKS TO UNIVERSAL MUSIC