Xu Weis sentimental and sensitive nature is reflected in his songs.

When Xu Wei first came to Beijing to pursue his rock dream 20 years ago， he felt the pressure of becoming as famous as rock star Cui Jian. For the 25-year-old man， it was a tall order. So he immersed himself in his lonely， dark corner， pouring out his heart through songwriting.

Life was tough.

Just when he was about to give up， suddenly he was sweeping up nearly all the music awards in the mainland and becoming one of the countrys most popular rock singer-song writers.

Fans say Xus songs have blurred the lines of genres and age groups—something everyone can relate to and appreciate， both lyrically and musically.

But， at the height of his fame， Xu suddenly slowed down and withdrew from the public.

He emerged again in late 2012 when he released his new album， The Moment， and announced a national tour， which was scheduled to kick off from Beijing on May 17.

“I dont want to repeat myself. I want to move on and keep on finding possibilities in music，” says 45-year-old Xu.

Most of his new songs were written during his trip to Yunnan Province from 2008 to 2012. He also shot a documentary when he recorded his new album in Xishuangbanna.

Xu says he was influenced by one of his idols， Sting， who made documentaries to record his life with music.

“For some， music is entertainment， such as karaoke. But for some， they listen to music to seek sparkles in life. I belong to the latter.”

“Ive been documenting my life through music， good or bad. My songs present myself to the outside world. They reflect how I feel inside，” he says.

Xu first visited Yunnan in 1998 and fell in love with the place. He says he finds inner peace and feels comfortable in the province. The place inspires him to write light and easy songs like The Moment and Orchid in Empty Valley.

“One of my friends told me that when he compared Two Days with my new songs， he couldnt believe I wrote it，” he giggles.

Two Days was one of Xus earliest songs， which was released in 1994. In the music video of the song， Xu covered his face with his waist-length hair and murmured： “I have only two days， one day for hope and the other day for hopelessness.”

Xu was singing out the struggles he was experiencing then. He was torn between his ambition and his disappointment in life.

The song was written following his bands separation， which made Xu distressed and hopeless.

Armed with the song， he came to Beijing， and won a contract with indie label， Red Star. After releasing his debut album Elsewhere， Xus lonely and painful lyrics， and moody voice helped him stand out from the crowd then.

He was hopeful of a break. But， the music market， which was dominated by Canto-pop and pretty faces then， categorized Xu as a minority taste.

He was so poor then that he had to sleep in parks. To survive， he performed on streets and wrote songs for other singers. He went into depression while producing his second album That Day.

“People often asked me， ‘how did you write those songs， which sounded in despair？” says Xu in neat short hair. He shares that his songs were a result of solitude， sleepless nights and even starvation. “I am a very sentimental and emotional person.”

Perhaps thanks to his sensitive nature， he has managed to last this long in the cruel music industry.

His music career has now spanned nearly 30 years since he picked up guitar at 16. He has released five albums， obtained numerous rock music awards， and written some of the most memorable songs in Chinas music scene since the 1990s.

Ever since his award-winning album in 2003， Walking in Time， his fans noticed a change in his music. Replacing the desperate lyrics and impetuous rock beats are warmth， peace and contentment.

In 2005， Xu held his first concert in Beijing. Facing more than 10，000 fans， Xu says it felt like a dream.

“Its been such a long wait for this moment. When it really happened， I just had no time to react，” he says.

Now， as one of the best-known rock musicians in the country， Xu has a strong fan base. His music and his life situation have also changed.

Nowadays， a typical day for Xu starts with reading books of Chinese calligraphy， followed by a simple lunch， working out in the gym， rehearsing with his band in the studio in the afternoon and ending with watching talk shows by songwriter Gao Xiaosong or having dinner with friends.

“I also quit smoking eight months ago and put on some weight，” Xu laughs.

He says the age of 40 marked a new starting point for his life. He used to listen to rock music only， but has since started listening to various genres， such as jazz and traditional Chinese music.

He also likes Chinese painting and calligraphy， from which he gains inspiration.

“I never suffered from middle-age crisis. I am curious about everything and I believe life in the future will be interesting.”

許巍的多情敏感都體現(xiàn)在他的歌里。

20年前許巍初到北京追求他的搖滾夢想時(shí)，就意識(shí)到要想成為崔健那樣的搖滾巨星，需要承受巨大的壓力。對(duì)于當(dāng)時(shí)25歲的許巍來說，那是一個(gè)太過艱巨的任務(wù)。因此他把自己隱藏在孤獨(dú)黑暗的角落里，通過寫歌來抒發(fā)內(nèi)心的苦悶。

生活多艱。

就在許巍打算放棄時(shí)，突然之間他幾乎橫掃了中國大陸的所有音樂獎(jiǎng)項(xiàng)，成為中國最知名的創(chuàng)作型搖滾歌手之一。

歌迷們說許巍的歌模糊了體裁和年齡的界限，每個(gè)人都能夠從中找到共鳴，每個(gè)人都可以欣賞，不論是歌詞還是旋律。

然而就在身負(fù)盛譽(yù)之時(shí)，許巍的腳步卻突然慢了下來，并淡出了公眾的視線。

2012年末，許巍帶著他的新專輯《此時(shí)此刻》復(fù)出，并宣布從5月17日起開始舉辦全國巡回演唱會(huì)，北京成為第一站。

“我不想重復(fù)自己做過的事情。我想繼續(xù)前進(jìn)，堅(jiān)持發(fā)現(xiàn)音樂中的可能性。”45歲的許巍說。

他的大部分新歌都是在2008年到2012年在云南旅行期間創(chuàng)作的，在西雙版納錄制新專輯時(shí)他還拍攝了一部紀(jì)錄片。

許巍說這是受到他的偶像之一——英國歌手Sting的影響，Sting就通過紀(jì)錄片來記錄自己的音樂生活。

“對(duì)于一些人來說，音樂就是一種娛樂，就像卡拉OK；但對(duì)于有些人來說，他們通過傾聽音樂來尋找生活中的閃光點(diǎn)。我屬于后者?！?/p>

“我一直通過音樂來記錄生活，不管是好事還是壞事。我的歌將我自己呈現(xiàn)給外界，它們體現(xiàn)了我的內(nèi)心?！痹S巍說。

許巍第一次去云南是在1998年，他一下子就愛上了那個(gè)地方。他說在那里他覺得很舒服，能夠找到內(nèi)心的平靜。這也給予了他靈感，去創(chuàng)作一些放松自如的音樂，比如《此時(shí)此刻》和《空谷幽蘭》。

“一個(gè)朋友告訴我他把《兩天》和我的新歌相比時(shí)，都不敢相信那是我寫的。”許巍笑著說。

《兩天》是許巍最早的歌曲之一，發(fā)行于1994年。在這首歌的MV里，許巍齊腰的長發(fā)遮住了臉龐，喃喃自語著：“我只有兩天，一天用來希望，一天用來絕望?！?/p>

那唱出了許巍當(dāng)時(shí)內(nèi)心經(jīng)受的折磨，他在自己的夢想與對(duì)生活的失望之間苦苦掙扎。

帶著這首歌，他來到了北京，簽約紅星生產(chǎn)社。首張專輯《在別處》發(fā)行后，許巍彌漫著孤獨(dú)痛苦的歌詞和憂郁的嗓音使他從眾多歌手中脫穎而出。

許巍本有希望實(shí)現(xiàn)突破的。但當(dāng)時(shí)崇尚粵語歌曲和靚麗外表的音樂市場決定了他只能是一個(gè)小眾歌手。

他淪落到只能在公園里睡覺的境況。為了生存，他必須到街頭表演、為別的歌手寫歌。在制作第二張專輯《那一天》時(shí)，他變得十分抑郁。

“人們經(jīng)常問我怎么寫出這些歌的，它們聽起來那么絕望?！痹S巍說，此時(shí)的他留著整潔的短發(fā)。他說他的歌都是經(jīng)歷了孤獨(dú)和無數(shù)失眠的夜晚甚至食不果腹的日子才創(chuàng)作出來的，“我是一個(gè)非常多愁善感和情緒化的人?！?/p>

也許正是由于敏感的個(gè)性，許巍才得以在殘酷的音樂產(chǎn)業(yè)中長青。

從16歲學(xué)習(xí)吉他開始，許巍的音樂生涯跨越了將近30年。他一共發(fā)行了5張專輯，贏得了無數(shù)搖滾樂獎(jiǎng)項(xiàng)，創(chuàng)作了多首華語樂壇自20世紀(jì)90年代以來最膾炙人口的歌曲。

2003年，許巍發(fā)行了榮獲多個(gè)獎(jiǎng)項(xiàng)的專輯《時(shí)光·漫步》，歌迷們注意到了許巍音樂中的一些變化。歌曲中不再滿是充滿絕望的歌詞和強(qiáng)烈的搖滾節(jié)奏，取而代之的是溫暖、平和與滿足。

2005年，許巍在北京舉辦了他的第一場個(gè)人演唱會(huì)，面對(duì)一萬多名歌迷，許巍說這就像是一個(gè)夢。

“這一刻，我等了太久。當(dāng)它真的來臨時(shí)，我都來不及做出反應(yīng)?！彼f。

如今，作為中國最知名的搖滾歌手之一，許巍擁有著眾多粉絲，他的音樂和生活狀況也發(fā)生了改變。

現(xiàn)在，許巍的一天通常由研究書法書開始，然后吃一頓簡單的午餐，接著到體育館鍛煉，下午和樂隊(duì)在工作室排練，晚上睡覺前看高曉松主持的脫口秀節(jié)目或者和朋友一起吃晚飯。

“8個(gè)月前我還戒了煙，增加了些體重。”許巍笑著說。

他說40歲標(biāo)志著他生命中的一個(gè)新起點(diǎn)。以前他只聽搖滾樂，現(xiàn)在開始欣賞各種體裁的音樂，比如爵士和中國傳統(tǒng)音樂。

另外，他還喜歡中國國畫和書法，他能從中獲得靈感。

“我從來沒有遭遇過中年危機(jī)，我對(duì)于一切都很好奇，我相信未來的生活一定會(huì)充滿樂趣?！?