S1E16: Musician Evan Low talks NDP songs, touring with Mandopop star A-mei

The Straits Times Podcasts

Hear from the home-grown composer and producer behind recent National Day Parade songs.

Synopsis (headphones recommended): Each month, The Straits Times invites music acts to its podcast studio.

In this special episode of Music Lab, ST’s music correspondent Eddino Abdul Hadi hosts award-winning Singaporean composer, producer, and music director Evan Low.

A recipient of the National Arts Council’s Young Artist Award in 2024, Low has worked on over 200 songs.

He is best known for being a co-composer and musician on recent National Day Parade songs The Road Ahead (2021) sung by artistes such as Linying, Not Alone (2024) by Benjamin Kheng and the 2018 remake of We Are Singapore.

The artiste also known as Evanturetime has also toured with international pop star and Taiwanese singer A-mei and has performed to massive crowds in venues such as the Beijing National Stadium in China.

Low, who first took piano lessons at the age of five, graduated from Singapore Polytechnic with a Diploma in Music and Audio Technology. He then honed his skills at famed American music school Berklee College of Music, thanks to scholarships from the school as well as the Media Development Authority.

This episode was recorded and filmed in front of a live audience of nearly 80 attendees on June 3 - at swish nightspot Rasa at Republic Plaza, as part of the ST Podcast Live! Sessions celebrating 180 years of The Straits Times in 2025.

Highlights (click/tap above):

1:43 Realising the impact of music: How Evan cried during piano practice when he was a kid

3:54 How he ended up choosing to further his studies in music instead of science

6:36 On developing his own set of ‘special skills’ while studying music in the US

10:56 The pressure of coming up with NDP songs

18:20 How he got singer Benjamin Kheng to venture outside his comfort zone on NDP song Not Alone

26:46 How he balances his finances as a full-time musician

29:25 On helping others achieve their dreams of pursuing music as a career

Discover Evan Low’s music at:

Spotify: https://str.sg/9ALG

Instagram: https://str.sg/oKkAJ

Read Eddino Hadi's articles: https://str.sg/wFVa

Host: Eddino Abdul Hadi ([email protected])

Produced by: ST Podcast Team & ST Outreach & Engagement Team

Edited by: Amirul Karim

Executive producers: Ernest Luis & Lynda Hong

Discover previous artistes' live performances featured on Music Lab Podcast:

Channel:

Apple Podcasts: https://str.sg/w9TB

Spotify: https://str.sg/w9T6

Feedback to: [email protected]

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Follow more ST podcast channels:

All-in-one ST Podcasts channel: https://str.sg/wvz7

ST Podcasts website: http://str.sg/stpodcasts

ST Podcasts YouTube: https://str.sg/4Vwsa

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Get The Straits Times app, which has a dedicated podcast player section:

The App Store: https://str.sg/icyB

Google Play: https://str.sg/icyX

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Chapters

1. Musician Evan Low talks NDP songs, touring with Mandopop star A-mei (00:00:00)

2. Crying during piano practice as a kid (00:01:43)

3. Choosing music over science in further studies (00:03:54)

4. Developing 'special skills' in the US (00:06:36)

5. The pressure of coming up with NDP songs (00:10:56)

6. Benjamin Keng, comfort zones, "Not Alone" (00:18:20)

7. Balancing finances as a fulltime musician (00:26:46)

8. Helping others pursue music career dreams (00:29:25)