Candy Lo concert aside, not everyone gets a chance to meet their past and present selves again, and Candy Lo (盧巧音) says she is grateful she had that opportunity to grow and learn to cherish what matters.
In Hong Kong pop, certain moments linger as sweet memories and other moments leave you quietly reflective. Candy Lo came up through the underground rock scene before signing with a record company three years later and releasing her first solo album, No Need… Perfection Is Terrible, which launched her as an artist and won early industry recognition. Her career rose quickly, with the 2002 hit “好心分手” and 2003’s “三角誌” becoming widely sung pop classics. She later moved into arranging, producing, and album production, and her creative work won steady praise.
At the height of her career, Candy began to feel intense mental pressure and abruptly announced a public retreat from performing in 2011. Stepping away from the stage did not feel like a loss to her. Over the years she has taken up running, built a family, and learned gratitude. A quieter life helped her relearn how to be with herself and with loved ones. Most important, she said, was reclaiming and learning to love herself again.
Candy Lo concert, “I have been so thirsty to perform”
Open Candy Lo’s Instagram and you will see record after record of trail runs and sea runs, small moments with fruit and flowers, and brief reflections. When a photo of a guitar or microphone appears, fans wonder what state her music life is in. On November 29 last year, she satisfied that curiosity when she announced a long awaited live show.
After planning, Candy settled on a simple concept for the show: a timeline that traces her career and recent work. “At first the director and I were greedy, we wanted to try everything and made things complicated,” she said. “Then we calmed down and thought, why not simply use a timeline as the concept.” She said she wanted to take the audience on a shared journey, one warm, straightforward evening from her debut to her latest songs.
The concert, originally scheduled for early January, was postponed because of the wave of COVID cases. “I had not done a show in two or three years, and I was really thirsty to perform,” she said. The delay, she added, deepened her appreciation for the unconditional support from her team and fans who insisted they would not ask for refunds and would wait no matter what.
She praised her production team. “Everyone, from the musicians to the backstage crew, said yes, we will do it even if it has to wait until June. That loyalty moved me. It strengthened my belief that my heart wants to share a good evening with my fans.”
Music, running, and a new rhythm for life
Outside of music, Candy has built a running life. “I get up around five or six, do some housework, then go running with the person who wakes up next to me,” she said. Running has become essential since she stepped back from the public eye and now includes marathons in different locations.
Did leaving at a career peak feel like a regret? “Not at all,” Candy said. She watched a strong new generation of artists emerge and did not feel the need to insist on the role of elder statesperson. She left in part because her mental health made it impossible to continue and because she did not want her parents to see her unwell. She said she had hurt them during that period and wanted to show them she was okay.
Candy said she first struggled publicly in 2002 when she cried while accepting several awards for the song “好心分手“, and she later disclosed that by 2007 she had been diagnosed with clinical depression. The experience, she said, once made her think about giving up life rather than music, until she realized there were still songs to write, fans to meet, and people and places she had not seen.
Running taught her resilience. “It is all round, it changes everything around you. On a marathon’s 40 kilometer stretch, when your body is exhausted, that voice telling you you can still do it keeps coming back. That belief gives me strong will.”
Over two decades of music changed how Candy sees songwriting. She used to treat music as a tool for performance. Now she calls it a close friend. “When you know someone well, you rely on them when you are unwell. Music comforts or shares your anger in its own way,” she said.
She now writes with attention to small human details, like shoes or laughter, and believes fewer but more sincere songs will resonate more deeply with listeners.
Cherishing the present and family
Candy said that after surviving a near breaking point, she learned to review herself more calmly. She now faces weaknesses, accepts them, and works to improve. That calm shows in her voice and in the way she plans her return.
She said she lost time but gained friends, and that she now uses small daily windows spare time after a run to cook or read so she feels fulfilled. She reflected on the quiet damage her illness caused her family when she was younger and said she now values those visits from her parents in a new way.
In 2013 Candy married Sammy, lead singer of the band Kolor, and she says marriage taught her more about her deeper faults because a partner sees what family alone can reveal. She described her husband as the person who understands her most, sometimes even more than she understands herself.
She credited him for gently pointing out things she needs to change. “Sometimes I push back, but inside I digest what he says and it is helpful,” she said.
Asked what she treasures most now, Candy answered simply, “everything that is present.” She explained that valuing both good and bad parts of life makes a person whole because shortcomings can make someone better.
She described her recent approach as practical. “Face it, open your heart, solve it, and after solving there is a clear sky. If you avoid it, the problem grows and may become unsolvable. This is what I have learned in recent years.”
At the end of the interview we asked which song from her catalog she loves most. She chose “垃圾” and called it eternal, praising its lyrics, melody, and arrangement. She said she plans to perform it at the concert to ease fans’ longing.
For the upcoming show Candy wants a direct, simple, friendlike evening that moves people with music. She and her team hope the June performance goes ahead as planned and that fans come ready to travel along the timeline with her.
Executive Producer: Angus Mok
Producer: Vicky Wai
Photography: Phoebe Wong
Videography: Andy Lee, Angus Chau
Styling: Vicky Wai
Makeup: Vinci Tsang
Hair: Matt Chiu @Xenter
Video Editor: Andy Lee
Editor: Carson Lin
Designer: Edwina Chan
Wardrobe: SHIATZY CHEN, Iris & Ink, The OUTNET, Tiffany & Co., SWANK
