Markcus
Leon Markcus | |
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| Birth name | Chua Jun Rong, Leon |
| Born | 2 February 1996 Singapore |
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| Years active | 2015–present |
| Labels | Independent |
Chua Jun Rong, Leon (born 02 February 1996), known professionally as Leon Markcus, is a Singapore singer and songwriter. Markcus has described himself as a "emotionally driven songwriter" and often documents his own personal ordeals in his music.[1] Markcus' debut extended play, Mannequin (2016), entered the Singapore Itunes Album Chart at number 1. In 2017, Markcus came to prominence upon releasing a reworked version of his debut single 'Circles' featuring local musicians, Veronica and Thievves. His follow up single, Alive feat. Jeff Hue (2017) later that year, rallied the support of the National Arts Council Singapore for its themes on self harm and mental health awareness as well as a departure from his musical stylings from his previous extended play, Mannequin (2016). "I wrote 'Alive' at a time when I was struggling with suicidal thoughts. I wanted it to be a catchy song where people don't realise how meaningful the lyrics are till they listen closely." Markcus opened up about his inspiration behind the genre change. [2]
Apart from music, Markcus has publicly spoken about his support for queer rights in Asia. Most notably, through his music videos as well as lending his support by performing and speaking over at Pink dot Hong Kong in 2017.[3]
Personal life
Markcus was born in Singapore and spend most of his life there. Though Markcus' surname is "Chua", when it came down to deciding his stage name, he adopted 'Markcus' as it rolled off the tongue better when spoken together with his birth name. Markcus suffered from depression, an eating disorder as well as self-harm. "I was around 14 or 15 when I wrote Alive, a time when I was engulfed in self-harm and thought I didn’t belong on this planet. I used to bruise and cut myself intentionally"
He identifies as bisexual. Having publicly spoken about his support for queer youths in Asia. ‘I truly believe that they deserve to have the freedom to appreciate and love their partners in the light instead of hiding in the shadows. It is a cold world here for for these youths,’ he said. ‘And I though, I love my home, I also want my friends to be able feel at ease as well as to appreciate a place that accepts them for who they are without being denying their basic rights to love. ‘Everyone deserves equal opportunities for happiness. No one, should ever be made to feel like they don’t belong or they are undeserving of the life they are given.’ [4] In 2017, Markcus has also been awarded the title of CLEO Magazine's Most Eligible Bachelor (The Freshest Face Award by The Face Shop).
Musical career
Beginnings
Markcus began working as a freelance songwriter during most of his secondary school education. He also dabbled with acting. Occasionally making cameos on OKTO (then Kids Central) on shows such as, Sketch 2. Markcus then started gigging around bars and one off events all around Singapore. During this time, Markcus often participated in talent shows held around Singapore, his most notable achievements were winning his first school talent show at the age of 11 and subsequently, a talent competition held by Ngee Ann Polytechnic (HMS Got Talent) covering Jessie J's Mama Knows Best. [5] It was also during this time that Markcus would meet his former songwriting mentor.
2015 – 2016: Mannequin
Markcus began working independently on original material, and claims to written over 200 songs over the span of two years. He eventually narrowed the album down to five songs and began working with local music producer Edric Hwang who has previously worked with talents such as, Pentatonix and Derrick Hoh. He released his debut single, "Circles", on November 5, 2015. [6] The single gathered little reviews but managed to catch the attention of Singapore's Chinese Newspaper Agency, Lianhe Zaobao, who ran an article on the life of Markcus and his journey as a student-singer/songwriter. [7] Markcus also released a music video for the track, which was self directed and filmed by his friends.
On April 19, 2016, Markcus announced that his extended play would be titled, Mannequin, through his socials, along with a music video of the title track of the same name. The music video reached minimal success. Then after, in June, later that year, Markcus would release his debut extended play, Mannequin (2016), which find itself at number 1 on the Singapore Itunes Chart. Followed by his music video 'Killer Clown' in August. The Straits Times would give the Extended Play a rating of 3 out of 5 stars.
2017: Circles feat. Veronica & Thievves [Reworked] & Alive
On 27 April 2017, Markcus released a reworked version of his 2015 single, Circles, which features local independent musicians Veronica & Thievves from Disco Hue along with an accompanying music video. He confirmed in an interview that, Veronica was supposedly set to appear on the music video playing the role of Markcus' lover. But due to scheduling conflicts, Veronica was unable to attend the shoot. He decided to pay homage to the local music group by holding on to a plastic balloon heart in reference to the band's then newly released single, Plastic Hearts. With that, the reworked version of Circles, became Markcus' first music video to feature a queer couple.
Following the success of the reworked single, Markcus announced that he would be leaving his pop rock genre roots behind as heard from his previous works and would devote his time on exploring his infinity with electronic music. On 29 June 2017, Markcus released Alive feat. Jeff Hue, on all digital music streaming platforms and a music video on the 29 of July 2017. This would spawn a large amount of support from the queer community as well as the arts scene here in Singapore for its positive, empowering and bold message. Alive feat. Jeff Hue would its way into the Apple International Playlist for Singapore Music remaining on the playlist for 24 weeks. With that, Markcus embarked on his Dead or Alive Regional Tour, which started in Singapore and ending over in Hong Kong.
Artistry
Markcus' favourite artists include Katy Perry, Jessie J and Lily Allen. During an interview with Asian Pop Radio, Markcus briefly mentioned local acts such as Nat Ho and Joshua Simon citing them as the driving force behind Singapore's bold and booming pop music scene. "Without these musicians doing what they do, I would never be able to do the things I do, cause they really paved the way for mainstream pop music."
Markcus' music has been described as "theatrical".[8] as well as "commendable, refreshing and a deeply personal collection of flamboyant, dramatic pop music that sets him apart from his other budding home-grown talents."[9]
Discography
- Circles - Single (2015)
- Mannequin Extended Play (2016)
- Mannequin Extended Play - Korea Ed. (2017)
- Circles feat. Veronica & Thievves [Reworked Single] (2017)
- Alive feat. Jeff Hue (2017)
Tours
- Headlining
The Dead or Alive Tour (2017)
References
- ↑ "Meet Leon Markcus, the Singapore pop star taking a stand for LGBTI youth". Gay Star News. 2017-10-26. Retrieved 2018-04-30.
- ↑ "Staying 'Alive' with Leon Markcus". Youth.SG. Retrieved 2018-04-30.
- ↑ "Singapore Singer Leon Markcus's Standing Up For LGBTQ Kids". Instinct. 2017-10-26. Archived from the original on 2018-04-29. Retrieved 2018-04-30.
- ↑ "Meet Leon Markcus, the Singapore pop star taking a stand for LGBTI youth". Gay Star News. 2017-10-26. Retrieved 2018-04-30.
- ↑ "You're Gonna Hear Li-Onn Roar | npTribune". nptribune.com. Retrieved 2018-04-30.
- ↑ Leon Markcus (2015-11-05), Leon Markcus - Circles (Official Video), retrieved 2018-04-30
- ↑ "Student Musician Leon Markcus". Lianhe Zaobao. 16 December 2015.
- ↑ "Leon Markcus recruits THIEVVES and VERONICA for future bass remix of "Circles" | JUICE Singapore". JUICE Singapore. 2017-05-02. Retrieved 2018-04-30.
- ↑ hermes (2016-07-06). "Music reviews: Local singer-songwriters Nicholas Chim and Leon Markcus get personal in new works". The Straits Times. Retrieved 2018-04-30.
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