There’s much cause for celebration today. For starters, it’s Kit Chan’s belated birthday. The singer turned 46 some two weeks ago and she tells us, in her trademark purr-y tone, that she spent the day “with her family.” “Actually, I hardly get to celebrate with them ’cos I always tend to be working on that day, so it was a nice quiet affair,” she adds. Well, the same can’t be said for today ’cos two members of her Singapore fan club have specially baked a lavender Earl Grey cake for the occasion and their surprise arrival, bearing said cake, sends Kit into a flurry of giggles. “Yay! I’m 25!” she squeals as she looks at the number 25 cake topper in amusement.
It’s the other reason 8 DAYS is at Chun Tsubaki, an event space in Tai Seng, on this toasty Thursday (Sep 27) afternoon. Kit is holding a casual press luncheon to celebrate her 25th anniversary in showbiz and she’s looking regal and glamourous as always. She’s also extremely chipper, which is kind of a new look for the star, who’s known for being one of the coolest cats around. Then again, wouldn’t you be if you have survived 25 years of showbusiness and, in the process, achieved national icon status?
Here, Kit, whose new album A Time For Everything is set for release on Oct 9 and who will be holding two concerts to celebrate her 25 years in showbiz at the Esplanade on Nov 9 and 10, sits down with us for a chat where of course we have to ask her about…

What was the first moment that you realised you were famous?
(Laughs) It’s not something I think about but now that you ask me, an image is triggered in my mind. It would have to be the Singapore Hit Awards, which was the very the first awards show I attended. And I remember that I received the Media Recommendation Award for Best Newcomer. Back then I was younger and the styling I had was very approachable so having to wear a very glam outfit to the show was like, whoa. And the entire idea of being at an awards show and being celebrated. But I’m not someone who is very in tune with these things. I’m very self-aware but not very self-conscious. Like even now, when I see my album in stores, I get embarrassed. Or if I enter a store and they’re playing my music, I’ll walk out (laughs).
But isn’t that what you want to achieve as an artiste?
So it’s a beautiful irony.
And if you enter a store and there’s giant poster of you?
I would (covers her head and acts like she’s ducking out of a room)… I think it’s the inability to confront my public self.
Were there times that you actually enjoyed the fame? Like getting into restaurants when there’s a long queue?
Or people sending me flowers (laughs). I’m always grateful. So I would never use the word ‘hate’ when it comes to fame. I think that’s being very ungrateful and ungracious. We are so blessed by so many perks and people are so nice to us so I think we need to be grateful. One thing I insist on is that I do not expect any special treatment. But if it comes, then I be grateful. There have been times when someone doesn’t recgonise me but when they do, they start apologising.
What do you mean?
Like maybe they were talking to me at a party, and at one point, they realise it or maybe someone told them, or in the course of our conversation I had to tell them my name and when they ask what I do, and I say, “Oh, I sing”. And suddenly they are like, “Oh My God, you are Kit Chan?” and they start apologising [for not recognising me]. And I always tell them, “Please don’t. I don’t expect you to know me.” And you don’t need to know me.
But is it easier for you to get into restaurants, like people allow you to cut the queue?
It has happened. But again, I don’t expect it. You know, if I really want to get in, I would do it on the side.
Like call someone who knows someone?
Yeah. I would never… I hear horror stories of people who go, “Do you know who I am?” (Laughs) I would never do that. If can’t get in, don’t get in lor. If there’s a queue, then don’t queue lor.

Do you queue at hawker centres?
It’s usually da pao but when I do go to hawker centres, it’s always with friends, who are very kind and they help me to buy (laughs).
What do you usually eat at hawker centres?
Anything, man. I like xiao wan mian, but it’s not around anymore…
What do you mean?
Oh ’cos this particular store that sells the xiao wan mian that I like is no longer around. I also like wanton mee, carrot cake, fish soup…
Which is your favourite hawker centre?
Whampoa. The ones at Bukit Timah and Adam Road are also good. But my favourite is really Whampoa. The vegetarian beehoon there is the best in the world! (Laughs)
So you’re not the kind of star who rejects hawker food ’cos it’s unhealthy.
Hello! You are talking to not the slimmest person in the industry. (Guffaws)
So you don’t watch what you eat?
No… the only times I do is when I don’t want to fall sick. Or if there is an important show coming up. And when you don’t eat oily or fried or heaty stuff, you will naturally lose weight. So like I think in a couple of weeks, I will have to start eating clean [‘cos of my concerts] but not yet (laughs)!

What’s your view on love these days?
Love is so important. It is the most important thing. I really think that there are two kinds of people in the world. People who believe that money makes the world go round and people who believe that love makes the world go round. Obviously, I am the latter. Totally. It is extremely important.
You revealed in an interview in February that you had split from your husband of five years in 2017.
Yes.
Is falling in love again something you’re looking forward to?
Yeah, of course. If you listen to my new album, love is still a big part of what I feel for, and aspire to having, and sing about really well. Except the attitude towards love is a bit different now. In the past, [my] love songs were only about “you love me, I love you” but this time round, we told the songwriters that yes, I do want to sing about love, but from the perspective of a 45-year-old. There is room for other things. Love is a bigger thing now.
So if you can find love, good. But if you can’t, that’s okay too?
Well, you cannot force it, that’s for sure. You can certainly live in anticipation of it. I think you need to. I think if you go around with a deadened heart, it won’t be very good for you, you know. (Laughs)
So are you back in the dating game?
Um, I think I am ready to date. So it’s exciting, isn’t it? You just have to be open. And I’m still excited by the prospect of it and yeah, romance. It’s so funny, like today when I was doing my hair and make-up at Passion (Hair Salon) and this bouquet of flowers arrived and I was like (excitedly), “Who gave me flowers? No card right?” And in my heart, I was like could it be a secret admirer? It wasn’t but it was better, it was from my stylist [Jeremy Tan]. So sweet of him. (Laughs) It was so funny though.

You're celebrating your 25th anniversary in showbiz this year. But how would you feel if someone describes you as just the singer who sang ‘Home’?
I think that is amazing (smiles). Yeah! You must know that I am a Chinese artiste and a lot of my songs… I would never have been able to touch an Indian audience or a Malay audience if not for ‘Home’. And let’s not forget that there is such a thing as different eras. So if you’re a 10-year-old, I don’t expect you to know my songs. But if you know ‘Home’, that’s pretty cool. I think it’s silly for people to think, I want a 10-year-old to know my songs. ’Cos I’m not singing for that 10-year-old. So ‘Home’ is probably the biggest legacy I could hope for ’cos it is... I was doing this interview about ‘Home’ ’cos this year is its 20th anniversary, and I talked about how I am a pop singer and pop songs all have expiry dates. Let’s face it. There are some songs where you listen and you go, “Oh, yeah that’s from the ’80s. But when people talk about ‘Home’, they don’t put a date on it and I think that’s a huge thing. So how can I be not happy about it? (Laughs)
You’re close to JJ Lin and Stefanie Sun. Do you guys have a WhatsApp group chat?
(Laughs) No, we don’t. But we do WhatsApp each other.
You guys totally should have one and you can name the group 'Icons of Singapore'.
Hey look, there’s something really wrong if we look at ourselves and go, “We are a group of icons!” (Guffaws)
Well, I think it’s okay for you guys to think it...
No, no, no... We don’t. We don’t do that. I think that’s the nice thing about Singaporean singers. I think we are all pretty down to earth and I really like that.
At his concert in August, JJ mentioned that he was your back-up singer many years ago. What do you remember of that?
That he was very young. Like who is that young boy? Isn’t he still in school? (Laughs) But I knew that at that time that [his record label] was grooming him and I remember them telling me about it. He was very talented. He’s always been very talented. Which night were you at?
The first night. The same night that you were there.
(Smiles) Did you know what was going on? I was shocked that he mentioned on stage that I was there. And then he was trying to blame me for him being uptight (guffaws) That was when I told him to take off all his clothes. (Laughs)
Wait, what?
’Cos he was like, “Oh, today I’m very controlled ’cos Kit Chan is here tonight. And she is very fierce!” That was when I was like, “Take it off! Take everything off!” And all the fans were happy and he was very shocked. So he said, “Take off all my clothes? If you come up [on stage], I would do it!” But then I think he saw the look in my eyes and realised that I might probably do it and so he quickly said, “I was kidding lah!” (Laughs)
Would you have?
He knows that I would never go up but I was thinking, if me going up means he has to take off all his clothes, I would, you know. And he saw it in my eyes. (Guffaws)

PHOTOS: KELVIN CHIA