Humble Spirit
Vision MagazineENGLISH TEXT BY MARK MA CHINESE TEXT BY CAROLE LU
Asian superstar Jay Chou has been instrumental in the rise of Taiwanese band Nan Quan Mama, seeing something special in Devon Song, the only remaining member from the original line up and the man who is the soul of the band. Devon has won the hearts of millions of fans across the world, thrilling tens of thousands of Chinese admirers at the band’s recent shows. Nan Quan Mama touched down for the Australian leg of their tour in mid-april and Devon sat down with VISION for a chat about his latest passion: diving.黃金海岸海洋公園的門口，滴水的潛水蛙鞋插在肩上的背包裡， 剛剛潛完水的彈頭面露倦容，但仍以爽朗的笑感謝VISION雜誌的邀約。彈頭稱自己喜愛潛水，在拿到全球認可的潛水教練執照之前曾用掉了1500支氣瓶，到過帛琉、東帝汶等25個國家。
彈頭是臺灣藝人團體《南拳媽媽》的靈魂人物，該團體4月底在中國開完演唱會，讓數萬粉絲如癡如醉。亞洲巨星周杰倫對這個團體提攜有加，四月中來澳開演唱會時，彈頭被邀成為嘉賓。
VISION雜誌與周董在黃金海岸的交集，令熱愛大海的彈頭也成為本期的座上賓。
Devon Song met us at the entrance of Sea World on the Gold Coast, a pair of diving fins poking out of his backpack and his wet hair a clue to what he’d just been up to. Having just finished a dive, he was tired but still happy to do the interview. With a broad smile, he told us that he loves diving, visiting over 25 countries and going through 1,500 tanks of air in pursuit of his globally recognised diving instructor licence.
“I grew up by the seaside. As a child, I would go with my mum and auntie to catch fish and sell it at the market. I was captivated by the rich ocean life and I always knew it was something I wanted to explore.” As the sun set, Devon gestured at the water and said, “Once this crazy career exploded, the sea became my refuge and the only place where I could find peace.”
Many years of spending time among the mysteries of the oceans have given Devon a different perspective on life. “Over the past two years, I have been inspired by some amazing teachers. They’ve taken me to places where I’ve seen some incredible sights, such as the mass spawning aggregation of bump headed parrotfish and red snapper in Palau and the breathtaking biodiversity of the Komodo Islands. The highlight was swimming with the sand tiger shark, unique to the Ogasawara Islands near Tokyo. It’s a humbling experience when you understand how small and insignificant humans are in comparison to the majesty and vastness of the oceans.”
「我從小在海邊長大，時常跟著母親和阿姨到海中抓海鮮到市場變賣，那時，我認為海洋無邊無際的遼闊映射著生命無常，很值得探索」，夕陽西下，彈頭指著金燦斑斕的海平面，說道，「進入音樂圈之後，大海成了我沉澱心靈唯一的去處」。
多年的潛水，體驗了海洋的奧祕，彈頭對人生有著不同的見解，「近兩年，我認識了好幾位老師，跟著他們，我親眼見到了許多驚人的海洋生物，例如帛琉世界三大魚種紅鯛、海鯛、隆頭鸚哥的交配，科摩多群島的生物多樣性，日本東京小笠原群島的獨特鯊魚種類--- 沙虎鯊等。與壯闊的海洋相比人類是多麼渺小啊！」雖然身為藝人，彈頭相當謙遜，再三提起在潛水生涯中與多為老師結緣，在多位老師的帶領下，有了人生中許多寶貴的經驗，「希望有一天，我會跟著這些攝影老師一起拍一部富有教育性兼具娛樂性的電影」。
These experiences have kept Devon grounded and humble - he is always willing to learn more and is open to being taught by those with more experience of this amazing world. He once braved swimming with a giant hammerhead sharks to get some film for a movie and Devon wants to expand on this experience, saying, “I hope to one day follow these underwater photographers that I’ve worked with and to make an entertaining documentary about this beautiful world.”
Devon loves the diving opportunities that Australia has to offer. “Australia’s deep ocean is so beautiful! I’ve been diving all over the world and I’ve seen many beautiful places, but Australia is unique.” Let’s hope this love of our oceans means many more visits from this humble, soulful music star.
彈頭表示，潛水一是愛好，另一是增加人生經歷。他說他曾見過數百隻鯊魚集聚以及十萬隻紅鯛交配的場景，也因為電影需要到巴哈馬群島冒險拍攝巨型鎚頭鯊…….
「澳洲深海真的很美！」他眼神突然為之一亮，「我在世界各地潛水，美麗的地方很多，唯獨澳洲，真的很不一樣。」