When we last spoke with David Yong earlier this year in April, he had just dropped his single &ldquo;Maybe Love&rdquo; with Mamamoo&rsquo;s Moonbyul. That was a big moment for the aspiring K-pop artiste.

When we last spoke with David Yong earlier this year in April, he had just dropped his single &ldquo;Maybe Love&rdquo; with Mamamoo&rsquo;s Moonbyul. That was a big moment for the aspiring K-pop artiste. Not only because of the clout of his idol collaborator, but also because the song went on to climb into several Top Ten charts across Asia, including Singapore, Malaysia and Hong Kong. Since then, he has released a new summer dance bop with another South Korean heavyweight, while also keeping himself ridiculously busy with his CEO duties and investments in K-content. We figure it&rsquo;s time for a catch-up.
&ldquo;Shall we try?&rdquo; says David Yong. We&rsquo;re in the studio shooting the series for this cover story, and the Singaporean K-pop artiste is up for anything. Clearly his artistic inclinations are on fire today, as he spontaneously entertains different poses. He&rsquo;s even taken the initiative to request accessories from Vihari Jewels on his own, thinking to give his outfits an optimistic twist. A veritable go-getter.
Yong is a dynamic figure who always has something going on. Here on set, he has a crew with him documenting footage for a new reality series. Then there&rsquo;s his colourful resume: a multinational businessman and CEO, venture capitalist, lawyer and most recently K-pop artiste. That last role probably raises a lot of eyebrows, but in a world where the boundaries between industries are increasingly blurred, Yong understands the power of being a multi-hyphenate talent. He combines his entrepreneurial acumen with his diverse passions to push into new spaces, simply unafraid to try. We&rsquo;re amazed.

Hi David, what have you been up to recently? 
There&rsquo;s been a lot going on! When I was a guest on the popular KBS TV program Ask Us Anything, I sought investment advice from the emcees, who were both veterans in K entertainment, in order to expand my connections in the industry. That episode surpassed a million views on YouTube, with a barrage of comments from the South Korean public calling on me to consider investing in Attrakt, the agency that created the girl group Fifty Fifty and their hit song &ldquo;Cupid&rdquo;. We finalised that investment opportunity a couple of months ago. I&rsquo;m also in the midst of filming a new reality series for a global OTT slated to be released early next year, as well as preparing for my comeback album.
 Congratulations on your latest summer single &ldquo;Dripping&rdquo; with DJ Soda. What was the collaboration like? 
DJ Soda and I have been friends even before we worked together [on &ldquo;Dripping&rdquo;], but it took us a while to complete the entire collaboration from music production to filming as we were both busy with overseas projects. This was one of the few times that Soda actually requested to sing on a track, so it was a very meaningful project for both of us. Working with Korean stars is never easy due to high expectations and demands, but I believe our good chemistry made the process a whole lot smoother.
&ldquo;Dripping&rdquo; builds on the success of your first single &ldquo;Maybe Love&rdquo; with Mamamoo&rsquo;s Moonbyul. Would you say you&rsquo;ve found your footing as a K-pop artiste? 
After releasing a couple of songs, and especially with &ldquo;Maybe Love&rdquo; making onto Apple Music&rsquo;s Top Ten charts across multiple countries in Asia, I&rsquo;ve been honoured and blessed by the positive response and have found a much clearer direction for my future music projects. There&rsquo;s certainly a lot more to look forward to from me as a K-pop artiste, and I hope to bring more hit songs to my listeners.
It&rsquo;s common for new artistes to explore different music styles. How is that going for you?
The K-pop genre has definitely evolved into mainstream music that is widely accepted not only in Asia but also North America and Europe. When you listen to songs from upcoming girl groups like NewJeans or Fifty Fifty, it&rsquo;s really radio-friendly and made for all age groups to enjoy. In that same sense, I want to make my music enjoyable for everyone.

&ldquo;MY GOAL FROM THE BEGINNING WAS TO NOT JUST BE A K-POP ARTISTE, BUT A CULTURAL BRIDGE BETWEEN SOUTHEAST ASIA AND KOREA.&rdquo;

Yong&rsquo;s pursuit of K-pop stardom comprises several releases since 2021. Following his team-ups with R&amp;B group 4Men and rapper Kid Milli, he signed with South Korean record label and entertainment agency Rainbowbridge World, which facilitated arguably his highest profile partnership with fellow labelmate Moonbyul. The success of &ldquo;Maybe Love&rdquo; marks a turning point in Yong&rsquo;s music career, providing a glimpse of the catalogue he can conceivably build for himself. It&rsquo;s been a surprising and unconventional path for the 36-year-old timber scion, but the man&rsquo;s a fearless pioneer who&rsquo;s undaunted by what it takes to achieve his dreams.
What is it about K-pop that inspires such a passion in you?
When Big Bang and TWICE first came to Singapore, I saw first-hand the impact idols can have on our next generation. That ability and power to positively shape youth culture and trends really inspired me. And when I started to learn and understand more about the industry, I realised that K-pop is just one segment in a broad spectrum of K-content, which includes movies, dramas and variety shows. That pushed me from solely being a K-pop artiste to a multi-hyphenate that&rsquo;s also a TV personality and K-content investor.
Not many people are willing to pursue their dreams. What gave you the push to become a K-pop artiste? 
Until now, I don&rsquo;t believe there&rsquo;s been a Singaporean or Malaysian who successfully made a career as a K-pop artiste. I&rsquo;m always up for new challenges. My goal from the beginning was to not just be a K-pop artiste, but a cultural bridge between Southeast Asia and Korea. And as a K-content investor, being a K-pop artiste and TV personality puts me in the best position to do this as I&rsquo;ll be privy to both the business and entertainment aspects, which can often be the hardest to balance.
What was the journey of becoming a music artiste like for you? 
In the beginning, it was intimidating to step into a new industry in a foreign country that speaks a foreign language. Especially at my age, when most other artistes start out in their early 20s or younger. It was definitely a challenge. People also had their preconceptions about me, even before meeting me or knowing what I was trying to achieve. I learned that having a steel mentality is everything. Despite naysayers, I pushed through and endured hours of training, all the while managing my other different businesses.

Tell us more about your creative side. What have you discovered about yourself on your K-pop journey? 
That I&rsquo;m more than just a musically-inclined artiste! Venturing into K-pop has given me opportunities like appearing as a guest on popular YouTube and TV variety shows, and despite the language barrier, I found that I&rsquo;m able to keep up and have natural comedic reactions, which is important for such programs.
What is the ultimate goal of your music career? 
As an artiste, I hope that my music is widely appreciated by listeners of all ages and from all countries. Beyond that, I hope to be a multi-hyphenate personality &mdash; not only an artiste but also a successful entrepreneur and investor.
The life of a K-pop artiste who also runs a multinational company and is a managing partner of a boutique law firm is bound to be busy. Whenever we speak, there seems to be new projects on the horizon, or new investment opportunities to uncover. Yong styles himself as an &ldquo;Influencer CEO&rdquo;, with the hopes of inspiring others not to limit themselves to only one path in life. There are many opportunities which can lead to many more doors. That&rsquo;s how you live to the fullest.
You&rsquo;re self-styled as a &ldquo;Influencer CEO&rdquo;. What does that mean to you? 
My background is that of a lawyer and CEO of an investment holding company. Adding on my artiste profile brings the &ldquo;influencer&rdquo; aspect to my already multifaceted role. All of this goes back to my original goal of bridging Korea and Southeast Asia, while simultaneously inspiring others to become multi-hyphenates themselves and take on new challenges without fear.

What important business lessons have you brought over to your music career? 
Everything is more structured in the business world, with a strong focus on profits and expansion. However, in entertainment, success takes a lot more time and effort. The amount of investment does not necessarily guarantee returns, because no one can predict what the public will like or what the next trend will be. However, corporate structures and how business is being conducted are still important, especially in entertainment where such knowledge is lacking, which often leads to mismanagement and other problems. My strong business background ensures that my endeavours in entertainment are not only sustainable but also profitable.
Besides your corporate responsibilities and K-pop career, what else are you focusing your time and effort on? 
For now, I&rsquo;m finishing up the filming for a new reality show on a global OTT, while also preparing to film a couple of Korean varieties and documentaries across the region. We&rsquo;ve also newly opened our Evergreen Group offices in Korea, Japan and Malaysia, so I&rsquo;ll be spending more time in those regions to build our presence. Additionally, we are working closely with the Malaysian government to finance the construction of affordable housing. This huge project is extremely meaningful, creating new homes for the working class and those in need.
From your socials, we saw that you recently met with artist Edgar Plans. Are you into the arts scene? Any other hobbies or interests that people might not expect? 
Yes, I&rsquo;m cultivating my growing passion for the arts. I&rsquo;m still a beginner in that scene, but I&rsquo;m learning. I&rsquo;m also an avid watch lover and collector &mdash; my favourites include Patek Philippe and Audemars Piguet. I am extremely keen on fashion, and hope to one day be invited to the top shows in Paris and Milan. I love motorsports too and dream to compete in the amateur races!
Lastly, what does the rest of the year hold for you? 
We are in the last two months of 2023, so there&rsquo;s not much more I can do. Nevertheless, I intend to make it count! I aim to finish filming three more variety and talk shows by year-end. I&rsquo;m also exploring the fashion scene by attending more events. And of course, I&rsquo;ll be working hard to ensure that our businesses in Korea, Japan and Malaysia continue to flourish.

Photography WEE KHIM Styling FELIX WOEI Grooming MARC TENG using BOY DE CHANEL and GOLDWELL Photography assistant IVAN TEO Fashion assistant SHANNAHLETTE JENN LIM

Cover Story: David Yong is a Man of Many From CEO to K-pop Artist

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