KUALA LUMPUR: A self-styled "Datuk" has emerged as a major voice of Malaysian Chinese hip-hop music.
He is 26-year-old Teh Jian Wei from Penang, who goes by Dato Maw as his stage name.
Dato Maw, whose name is a play on the similar-sounding Mandarin words for "tapir" and "devil", describes his brand of hip-hop as "Cina Music".
In a news report by entertainment portal AsiaOne today, Maw said: "Cina Music is about Malaysian Chinese identity and culture, and most importantly, our gratitude towards Malaysia."
Having released four mini-albums namely Myvi+Marlboro (2018), Planta (2018), Cari Makan (2019) and Ao Guo Lai (2020), his songs speak about the lifestyle, traditions and challenges faced by Malaysian Chinese.
He sings in Cantonese, Hokkien and Mandarin as well as Malay and English, and his lyrics contain words from all five.
"Writing hip-hop lyrics in one's mother tongue makes us true to ourselves. However it does create some commercial barriers because we are a multi-cultural and multi-lingual nation," said Maw.
"But look at China's hip-hop group Higher Brothers who have become globally popular rapping in their very own Chengdu dialect. If they can do it, there's always a chance that Cina Music can, too!"
Maw said that Cina Music had its roots in the work of Hong Kong hip-hop groups in the 1990s, such as LMF which came up with the Bruce Lee tribute anthem 1127.
"LMF encouraged young Chinese hip-hoppers to take pride in their rich cultural heritage and roots, instead of blindly copying Western hip-hop," he said.
"Likewise, Cina Music encourages Malaysian Chinese to celebrate their uniquely Malaysian Chinese culture."
Maw lamented that while Malaysia had a popular Cantonese hip-hop group ManHanD which was active between 2007 and 2012, no other hip-hop act has emerged as its successor.
"The harsh truth is that Malaysian Chinese have gravitated towards mainland China's and Hong Kong's hip-hop tunes. I'm working hard to win them back," he said.
Maw runs his own independent music label Ban Huat which promotes new Malaysian Chinese singers, both pop and hip-hop.
His label is also involved in the regional Levi's Music Project, a music mentoring programme aimed at unearthing fresh and original talents in Southeast Asia.
"My ultimate goal is to bring Cina Music overseas and make a name for it. It's my dream and hope that the younger generation will push the potential of Cina Music and do Malaysia proud."