“Dust My Shoulders Off,” a collaboration between Chinese singer Jane Zhang and Timbaland, an American Grammy Award singer, reached the top 10 on the U.S. iTunes song chart.
The message of the song, recorded in 2016, is to keep moving push forward in spite of what life throws at you, according to Singers Room. An additive, beat-driven pop song, “Dust My Shoulders Off” is different from the sound that the Chinese singer has been known for. Because of her whispery high vocals, the 32-year-old singer is called “The Dolphin Princess” in China.
Singing Competition Product
She rose to fame in 2005 by winning the “Super Girl” singing competition in China which got 400 million viewers weekly. When Jane Zhang went on a solo career after the show, her star further soared although in 2016, her wedding to Michael Feng, CEO of Show City Times and her manager, created controversy when her mother, Zhang Guiying, published an open letter to Jane expressing anger at learning she married Michael Feng against Zhang Guiying’s wishes.
English Lessons from Mariah Carey
Jane Zhang met the manager of Timbaland in a recording studio. Two weeks after, the two recorded “Dust My Shoulder Off.” Singer Mariah Carey helped Jane Zhang with her English, Salon reported.
Because she comes from a different culture, Jane Zhang believes there are a lot of different ways to convey feelings. “But there must be some similarities in our lives because we are all humans dealing with real life problems,” she said. For her hit song with Timbaland, Jane Zhang said she just wants it to reflect real life. “I hope when you listen to the song, it feels like a close friend who’s chatting with you about how your day is going,” she said.