[Photo: 6 Wing (left) and C Kwan (center) of Hip-hop duo FAMA say Edison Chen (right) is more like a friend than a boss.]

By Tan Kee Yun

HE MIGHT be the most scandal-ridden artiste in Asia at the moment, but to the guys of hip-hop duo FAMA, he is 'the best boss you'll ever get'.

They were referring to none other than Edison Chen, the main protagonist at the centre of Hong Kong's infamous sex photo scandal and founder of music label CLOT Media, which FAMA is under.

During a phone interview with The New Paper, the two rappers left all fodder for gossip by the sidelines and unabashedly heaped praised on Edison.

'Honestly, to have him as our boss, it's one of the best things that happened to us,' said C Kwan, 25.

'Edison's very open to new ideas and receptive to our suggestions; we absolutely have no pressure working with him.'

Fellow member 6 Wing echoed his sentiments, saying Edison is 'definitely more like a friend than a boss to them'.

'The great thing about him is that he gives us a lot of free will to pursue our desired musical directions,' said the 26-year-old.

'He even advises us to stand firm on our goals and not blindly follow the mainstream.'

It isn't hard to see why they effuse much admiration for the man.

After all, Edison, a huge supporter of urban culture himself, was the one who pioneered the hip-hop wave in Hong Kong back in 2001.

But for FAMA, its road to fame has not been smooth sailing.

Poverty

When the group members first started out in 2000, their careers were stuck in the doldrums and poverty was their middle name, C Kwan said.

'We were really poor making music then,' he said with a laugh. There were days when we were practically eating bread all the time.

'Visiting cha chaan tengs (referring to the Hong Kong-style tea restaurants) were a luxury for us; we could go only on special occasions like Chinese New Year and Christmas.'

Nevertheless, they managed to survive those tough times and, somehow, they were 'still happy', said 6Wing.

He said: 'Looking back, I think we were simply glad and grateful that we could do the one thing that we were passionate about - music.

'It's like the Chinese saying, xin zhong fu you (being rich in the heart) - we might not have money, but music fills our lives with meaning.'

Since signing on with CLOT Media in 2007, their fortunes have taken a turn for the better.

Their Cantonese album Feng Sheng Shui Hei, released in November 2007, received critical acclaim and nationwide popularity.

It proved to be their big break.

Several awards soon came their way, including the Gold Award at the 2007 Chik Chak Music Awards for Best Group and Most Popular Group at 2008's Jade Solid Gold Awards.

FAMA's latest release is Millionaire, the group's first full-length Mandarin album.

Rapping only in Cantonese before, the guys admitted that speaking in Mandarin was 'an ordeal for them'.

'Growing up in Hong Kong, we went to public schools and didn't have the chance to hone our Mandarin skills,' said C Kwan.

But they are definitely keen to brush up on the language, which will be beneficial to them - and we're not just talking about work.

'We aren't ruling out dating girls from other countries in the future; language shouldn't be a barrier when it comes to love,' he said cheekily.

This article was first published in The New Paper.