Look at her now

AT THE TIME that Jacqueline Tiang joined the 2016 Miss Astro Chinese International competition and won first-runner-up, she had a full-time job at a bank. Tiang found herself standing at a crossroads, and she had to pick between staying at her ‘stable’ job or leaving it to pursue a new career path.

“It took me half a year to actually decide which career path was for me, and after careful consideration, I chose to be in the entertainment industry,” the 27-year-old shared.

At first, Tiang was actually reluctant to join the Miss Astro competition. The age limit for participants of the competition is 25.

“When I was 21 years old, many of my friends told me to join the competition. At that time, I didn’t think I suited the competition. Then I turned 24, and I had this urge to join the competition because I would be ‘over-age’ if I joined later.”

Would Tiang ever go back to her old job? Most probably not, as she is happy where she is today.

“Not everyone gets the opportunity to be part of the entertainment industry, so why not make the best out of this opportunity that I have been given? I like to challenge myself at times.”

However, her parents were not supportive of her career at first. “They feared that I would struggle in this industry because it is not as simple as it seems, or that I would be exposed to harm. But I chose to challenge myself,” Tiang added.

Fun fact, Michelle Yeoh is her role model. “I remember seeing a poster of Michelle Yeoh, and I thought to myself: ‘How did she debut internationally even though she is Malaysian? I want to be like her!’”

Tiang is a singer and an actress, and she enjoys doing both equally. Recently, Tiang released a single about the devastating phase we are going through due to Covid-19, for which she wrote the lyrics. It was challenging, but at the same time she found joy in doing so.

She said: “I produced a song called Angels, and this song is dedicated to all the doctors and nurses who are on the frontline combating the pandemic. I did that because I feel that they’re like angels in saving human lives, as they run the risk of being infected [themselves]!

“In supporting all doctors and nurses, I propose to do a [music] video for them, and I will collaborate with a few artistes. The video will be shared on social media platforms.

“As an artiste, I would like to use my platform to do whatever I can to contribute to society and the nation during these trying times.”

Angels is Tiang’s second single. Her first is Look at Me Now, which was released last December, and marked a turning point for her career.

Tiang composed the song with her team. “The song means a lot to me because the lyrics are about my journey. It is about me coming out of my comfort zone that I had been in for quite a while, because my family was very protective of me.

“The moment I decided to break out of that comfort zone was when I changed my career path.”

Tiang was also supposed to be the lead actress for an upcoming local drama, but unfortunately, filming had to be postponed due to the movement control order (MCO).

Although things might not be going as planned at the moment, she is refusing to stay idle, and is utilising her time at home to brush up on her acting by watching more movies and shows to prepare for her role.

“Previously, I was more involved in the acting industry in China, so this upcoming drama would be my first local production and I am very excited,” Tiang added.

She admited that it took some time for her to get used to the entertainment industry when she first joined. “When I first started, I was not used to it.

“The things that helped me most were reading articles or watching inspirational videos to mentally prepare myself for my job. It is very important to challenge yourself, keep improving yourself, and ignore what other people think of you. That is what keeps me going!”

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