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Ellen Joyce Loo of At 17
Quitting school for music
Ellen Joyce Loo of At 17 says she misses school life. (Barry Wu)
By Barry Wu
Ellen Joyce Loo, 17, decided to quit school to concentrate on her singing career, despite her outstanding results in the Hong Kong Certificate of Education Examination.
Ellen is a member of the local pop group At 17. It was formed in 2002 when Ellen was in Form 4. She had a difficult time balancing schoolwork with her music career at that time.
“People in my school assumed I would put less effort into my studies because of my work, but that is not true. I wanted to show them I was not sacrificing school work for my music career.
“However tired I was, I made sure I did not fall asleep in class. I also had to give correct answers to my teachers’ questions and perform well in exams,” Ellen recalled.
Because of her music career and added responsibilities, Ellen matured before her time. Her thinking and outlook in life changed, and this caused her to drift apart from her classmates.
“While they were thinking about where to eat during lunch breaks, I might be thinking about how to do better in that night’s show.
“Sometimes I was thrown into embarrassing situations. For example, I did not know what to say when I heard my classmates criticizing the clothing of Cookies, because the group are my good friends.”
Some of Ellen’s teachers looked down on her because they thought it was inappropriate for her to enter show business at such a young age. They believed studying and going to university were sure paths to a good future.
“When I was in Form 4, I did not think there was a need to quit school. I always thought of entering university. However, in Form 5 I found myself unable to manage studying and working at the same time, because that made me feel psychologically imbalanced.
“Also, being a singer made me know more about society. I found it really attractive. Thus, I wanted to spend more time exploring it.
“Sometimes I feel that everything is planned for me by God, and all I have to do is follow his plan.”
Ellen said that deciding to quit school in Form 6 was difficult. She made her decision after considering advice both from people supporting and opposing her decision.
Her classmates and teachers opposed it. “They thought I was wasting a precious opportunity,” Ellen said.
“While I was giving up my place, one of my good friends who got one point lower than me could not get a place in our school. I felt so bad.”
On the other hand, Ellen’s father, as always, has been very supportive of her decision, partly because of his own unfulfilled dreams. Ellen’s father had always dreamed of being a pilot, but never got that chance to fly a plane. Now, he feels that he is too old to realize his childhood dream.
Eman Lam,
Ellen’s partner in At 17, was also a supporter during that time.
Eman believes that a person’s dream is the most important thing
in life. She feels sad that people nowadays seldom have dreams.
Ellen said,“ I absolutely agree with her. In fact some of my classmates do not know why they are studying. They have no ambitions.”
With youth on her side, Ellen is not afraid to take risks. “I am only 17. What I have is time. I may lose my fans in a few years, but it will still be okay for me to start another career, because I will be only 23 or 24,” she said.
Although Ellen gave up her studies for a music career, she misses school life a lot. She said, “I love the team spirit among my schoolmates most. I also love the commerce-free environment.
“I used to be the leader of a cheerleading squad. I could see that all my teammates were devoted to the squad without expecting a reward.
“I don’t see this kind of spirit outside school. Money is always the top concern.
“I often remind myself I am here to enjoy music and my performance.”
Though she loves music, her transformation from a schoolgirl to a full-time singer has not made her any happier.
“I love the past ‘me’ more. When I was a student, I did not need to worry as much, so I was happier,” she said.
Because of market considerations, she now has to add commercial elements to her songs, which, she claims, has greatly slowed her creative process.
“In Form 4, I composed 15 songs in 9 months. However, since I left school, I have only produced one or two new songs,” she said.
“Sometimes, I think I’m not relaxed enough when singing, both on the stage and in the studio.
“I suppose I’m putting myself under too much pressure.”
However, Ellen remains optimistic about her future. She believes she can overcome the pressure once she gets used to it.
“There are different stages in life. I’m now at the stage of adapting to my new environment.”
Despite the music industry becoming more commercialized, Ellen said she would continue to include elements she loves into her songs.
“I think there are no pure ‘commercial songs’. It is always possible to incorporate different musical elements into songs, however commercial they might be.
“For example, I can see lots of jazz and blues in Eason Chan’s and Cookies’ pop songs.”
She believes the only thing that can make her quit making music is herself.
“When I no longer enjoy producing music, I will stop.”
However, she added, “Although I might stop producing music, I would still listen to music.
“Because music has always been, and will always be part of my life.”
Eman
Lam (left) supports Ellen’s decision to quit school, while classmates
and teachers oppose the move. (Courtesy of Ellen Joyce Loo)