I have to give props to my friend Janice who has been singing for years, working her way up in the local music industry. As opposed to other local music performers, Janice has a real voice, and a love of music, and is not a manufactured idol (as is common in H.K.). Having played hundreds of gigs, Janice is a much more seasoned performer than other entertainers her age. Basically - she deserves all the attention and positive reviews that she is getting right now. I’m also excited because I know that this is just the beginning for her. I’m happy that her twin sister Jill is also going to get to perform with her. The two of them have been working together for years, and it’s great to see them take it to the next level.

In Hong Kong a large share of revenue from being an entertainer comes from product endorsements. The fact that Janice is now featured simultaneously in two major campaigns - one for McDonald’s and another for a haircare brand indicates that she is a rising star.

I was taking the shortcut between the Soho neighborhood and Lan Kwai Fong, Hong Kong’s most famous nightlife area, when I passed by Yumla. Yumla is one of the few clubs in H.K. that puts music first. They feature d.j.s that play less commercial music and focus on new types of dance music and digital artists. Yumla, for example, is one of the few places you can hear Drum N Bass music. It’s a small club / pub that gets completely packed. The crowd is a mixture of music fans, art scene locals, foreigners, and alternative celebrities. With a good d.j., Yumla rocks til 5am on the weekends.

One cool aspect of Yumla is that every few months their exterior wall is re-painted by different local artists. They have repainted about 6 times already - each with a totally diffent style. The image above is the latest change.

Hong Kong has an abundance of 5 star hotels. In the last few months there have been two new additions - the Four Seasons, located in the IFC complex, and the Landmark Mandarin Oriental attached to the Landmark shopping Center. Both are in Central on H.K. Island, close to major business and shopping hubs.

DHL, the delivery company has an interesting ad campaign in the Central MTR station (MTR is the subway). First there’s a huge board - the same as in an old airport - showing the daily arrival / departure schedule of flights. On the concourse near the platform they have a huge, life-size set of airplane landing gear and a design like a runway, illustrating their many flights throughout the Asia. During peak commuting time in the station they even had a man dressed up as a runway worker standing around!

Another hectic night! Started off at a dinner to celebrate the 3rd anniversary of Dragon-I, one of the top clubs in Hong Kong. I’m there at least 3 times a week, and I still dig the place. Of course my favorite night is Tuesday when you can talk with people, and the music is whatever the d.j. wants to play. Usually, I end up d.j.ing along with Drafus and Gilbert. Gilbert is usually the last to go on, and he plays classic House music. He’s one of the few d.j.s in H.K. with an extensive collection. On Tuesday’s he plays excellent stuff that is rarely heard anywhere else in the city. I’ve stayed at Dragon-I until 6am on a Tuesday night / Wednesday morning enjoying the music.

I’m always skeptical of clubs that have food, or restaurants that turn into clubs, but I have to say that the food at Dragon-I is excellent. Although they have an extensive menu with some complex choices, I actually love the simple home-style Chinese dishes. They are always prepared perfectly, and the ingredients are all high-quality.

After the dinner a friend was having a party for Belvedere vodka. I stopped by there and ran into a few friends. After about an hour, I went to Sugar, where there was a launch of Carat, the diamond brand. An hour later I headed over the Kee Club, and finally I was back at Dragon-I just in time to hear Little Louie Vega put on his first record of the night. Louie Vega is billed as “the Miles Davis” of House music - which is quite a title!

Although I don’t know too much about House music, I enjoyed listening to a master at work! He plays the type of House that I used to hear in clubs in N.Y., and not the soul-less background music that most d.j.s play (under the guise of “deep House”.) Gilbert is a huge fan of Louie Vega, and it was fun to see him fulfill the dream of having him d.j. at Dragon-I.

Two new high-profile luxury shops in Central have chosen to go with large lighted facades: the renovated LV shop, and the newest edition to the up-scale clothing market, Harvey Nichols. I suppose that this type of branding emphasizes the stregth of the name, as opposed to just having a large window display that shows off the merchandise inside.

Hong Kong’s modern architecture is impressive enough on its own to make other cities jealous, but during the holiday season - sometime between December and when Chinese New Year takes place - around early February - the city turns it up a notch. This time of year, the lights have already gone up and the tall buildings are adorned with colorful holiday displays. We’re talking lights that go up 50 floors and higher. It’s beautiful at night, and it makes up for the lack of snow!

There are two areas that get particularly tricked-out - Tsim Sha Tsui East on Kowloon side, and the tall waterfront buildings from Central to Wanchai on Hong Kong Island. The buildings in T.S.T. East are shorter, but the tradition has been going on there longer, and there are whole blocks covered in lights. It’s worth a visit. If you take Star Ferry, you’ll have a great view of the lights on the Hong Kong waterfront.

This time of year reminds me of a boat party that I d.j.ed for Royal Elastics on a huge commercial ferry. It cruised around the harbour for three hours and it had amazing views of both the T.S.T. East and the H.K. Island displays.

Below is a new edition to the Hong Kong Island waterfront. It’s called AIG Tower, and it sits on the site of the former Furama Hotel. I watched this building go up over the last few years, and it’s got an interesting set of lights on one side and a large video screen on another side. Still not as crazy as a few of the buildings I saw in Pudong, Shanghai, but cool enough! In the background of this photo you can see the Bank of China building designed by I.M. Pei. It’s still holding it’s own - updated with those white lights. The lights are made to look as if they’re moving at night. It’s cool - looks like a 72-storey tall game of Tetris!

On my way to Nadia’s art exhibit the other night I passed by the Rock Candy shop that was about to open a few hours later. I was planning on heading there after the art show. As I walked by they were still putting the final touches on the red carpet and a few of the other special features that accompany a gala opening night.

I saw what I thought was a pole for a dancer in the front window. It made sense - Rock Candy is a bad-boy, contemporary jewelery shop that specializes in diamonds. Sure enough, when I came back there was a dancer doing her thing! A few friends of mine teamed up to launch this shop and collection. I had a chance to check it out later in the night, and it was a fun party. They decorated the space well, and the branding is very solid. The collection was just right for a first outing.

My good friend Nadia just finished a collection of 100 cards titled - The Diary of Destiny. I guess it’s more like a ‘deck’ of Destiny. Each card has a drawing that has something to do with what is going on in the person’s life. The drawings are very interesting and complex. Nadia organized an exhibition of her cards, and of other recent work she’s been doing the last few months. I should mention that Nadia’s also famous in Hong Kong as a spiritual advisor - for being an empath.

Although I don’t normally believe in that stuff, on several occasions she’s mentioned things to me - matter of fact, that have been totally on my mind!

Nadia also has a cool private lounge in Central that is located in an old building from the 1930’s. It’s one of the few old buildings left. The great thing is that it has nearly all of its original fittings and has never had a total renovation - so much of its charm remains intact. The vibe is laid back, and it attracts more of an artistic crowd. It occupies two floors, and on the top floor there are musical instruments that people can pick up and play. It’s a fun spot to get away from the main party scene.

I D.J.ed an in-store event for Prada on Thursday. They were launching a new line of handbags for Spring / Summer 2006. It was an early event from 6pm to 9:30. I played a good set of old soul music, jazz, and some alternative or underground R&B. The response to the music - from both Prada and the audience - was good. You definitely need a more sophisticated d.j. for events like that. You can’t have some moron playing uptempo house or lame Pop music, it just doesn’t suit the occasion.

After d.j.ing for large fashion brands and attending many shows over the years, it amazes me how unsophisticated their taste can be when it comes to music. You spend so much time building a brand, and your image can be lowered by a lame event. I’ve been to some shows that played the worst, most banal music.