Yu-Ching Ni from the Department of Pop Music Industry, Southern Taiwan University of Science and Technology, participated in the first A-LINE Star Challenge and won
the third prize and the Popularity Award.

Yu-Ching Ni from the Department of Pop Music Industry, Southern Taiwan University of Science and Technology, participated in the first A-LINE Star Challenge, sponsored by the Ministry of Culture, Film and Pop Music Industry Bureau, Taichung Municipal Government, Taichung Municipal Government Information Bureau, and Shanbao Communication Co., Ltd. He won the Popularity Award and went all the way through the preliminary, semi-finals, semi-finals of the professional assessment to the final. It was not easy. Eventually Ni won the third place in the final, and with the strong support of friends and relatives and the audience, he also won the Popularity Award, a total of NT$ 20,000 prize money from Mayor Lin of Taichung City.

【Yu-Ching Ni from the Department of Pop Music Industry, Southern Taiwan University of Science and Technolog, in the contest.】

Yu-Ching Ni is a sophomore students of the Department of Popular Music Industry. He performed the songs "Never Lost" and "Still Loving You," accompanied by his classmates who formed a band called "Emotional Influenza." His singing was mature in nature, sometimes gentle with low keys and sometimes passionate with high-pitches, full of tension. As Mayor Jia-Long Li said, "10 minutes on the stage stems from 10 years of hard work." He entered the finals with other five singers from more than 500 challengers. Whether or not winning, he has successfully made the first important move of his musical career.

【Yu-Ching Ni (third from right) was receiving his prize money from Mayor Jia-Long Lin (second from right).】

In his award-winning speech, Yu-Ching Ni said that the final song was dedicated to all the people behind him for their support and that because of them, he dared to stand on such a big stage. Ranking was not the focus of singing; he was singing to those who gave me the power. Zi-Guang Chen, Head of the Department of Popular Music Industry, said that Ni has been learning from two classical and popular vocalists in the department. Thanks to the individual teaching of professional teachers and Ni’s own diligent practice, within only a short span of three semesters, his singing strength has had great leaps and bounds. Winning the prize can be described as his successful first step as a singer in her life. It is expected that Ni can redouble their efforts and become a popular pop star in the future.