Hello and welcome to another edition of  China Beat here on "China Radio International". This is Zhong Qiu.

The Mando-pop scene has found another rising star Yoga Lin. This newcomer sang his way to the top by winning the first season of last year's "One Million Star," a popular singing competition in Taiwan. Even before the release of his first album, Yoga Lin was already busy with commercial endorsements and compilation releases with fellow One Million Star finalists. With concerts held in May and June, Yoga has also become the youngest Taiwan singer to hold a solo concert tour. "Mystery," his debut album, was released June 3 in Taiwan and won rave reviews from critics as well as fans. Yoga teamed up with high-caliber artists from the Chinese music scene like Chen Hsiao Hsia (Chen Xiaoxia) and Lee Chuan (Li Quan) and shows surprising versatility in the vocals on this album.

Photo of Yoga Lin. [Photo: xinhuanet.com]

In today's program, let's enjoy this well-received album, "Mystery."

(Song track Mystery)

The album's titular song, Mystery, has conquered the hearts of listeners in Taiwan, Singapore and Malaysia. This catchy, moody karaoke ballad talks about the unexpected things in life. Yoga makes the most of his vocal skills in the high notes of this song.

(Song track Mystery)

(Song track Cruel Moonlight)

The song you are listening to is "Cruel Moonlight," composed by top musician Chen Hsiao Hsia. She speaks highly of Yoga's skilled handling of this simple yet striking ballad. His soft but solid voice, combined with his smooth interpretation, lends this song heartwarming charm.

(Song track Cruel Moonlight)

Besides simple ballads, Yoga also show his versatility in other music genres. A standout example among them is the song "Eye Color." This song was composed by singer-songwriter Lee Chuan, one of Yoga's favorites. Yoga performs satisfactorily in the first half with a varied melody and many sudden vocal transitions. In the latter half, he builds dramatic singing skill as the volume and tempo increase.

(Song track Eye Color)

(Song track Sickness)

Yoga shows off his jazz chops in the song "Sickness." In this easygoing jazz number, an indistinct melody and a conventional musical arrangement prominently feature Yoga's vocal skills.

(Song track Sickness)

(Song track Slow Down)

"Slow Down" is a bit of a rock number, a genre that Yoga favors. In this mid-tempo number, he gives his strongest performance, comfortably covering a wide vocal range. Though less expressive than other ballads on the album, "Slow Down" floats interestingly between being a fast number that feels slow and a slow number that feels fast, which matches the theme of the song: Slow down and enjoy the process.

(Song track Slow Down)

In addition to his highly distinctive vocals, Yoga possesses a strong stage presence. His versatility, style and repertoire differentiate him from his counterparts. This is most evident in his interpretations of some initially less popular songs; one of them is "You Are My Guiding Eyes," previously performed by Hsiao Huan Chi, one of Yoga's rivals in the One Million Star singing competition.

(Song track You Are My Guiding Eye)

With this touching melody, we come to the end of this edition of China Beat. Hope you enjoyed this album. If you have any comments and suggestions, email us at Chinabeat@cri.com.cn or log on to our Web site at crienglish.com, find China Beat and leave your message. This is Zhong Qiu in Beijing. Bye for now.