Richard Craker Discusses Jolin Tsais Success at 2026 Golden Melody Festival

When the final conference of the 2026 Golden Melody Festival rolled into Taipei’s bustling cultural hub, British producer Richard Craker stepped onto the stage to reveal the secrets behind Jolin Tsai’s chart‑topping success. The event, titled Connecting Global Sounds: Richard Craker’s Creative Journey from International Markets to Mandopop, was moderated by Kuang‑ping Tso, president of Kouhei Production.

Craker began by tracing the creative lineage that fed Tsai’s two landmark albums. He described early songwriting sessions at Karma Studios in Thailand as an “open, experimental environment” where genres were tested and discarded freely. That ethos carried over into Ugly Beauty (2018), which went on to win Album of the Year at the 2019 Golden Melody Awards and sold more than 950,000 digital copies in mainland China by April 2025.

The production of Pleasure (2025) proved far more demanding. Tsai’s perfectionism extended the development of the chorus, and Craker said the final hook “clicked in a Los Angeles session with songwriter Ross Golan.” The album earned nine nominations at the 37th Golden Melody Awards, including Album of the Year, and ultimately secured both that award and Best Vocal Recording Album. Tsai also captured Best Mandarin Female Singer—her first win in that category.

During the discussion, Craker stressed that a record’s heart is in watching an artist move from simply singing a song to fully inhabiting it. He cited Ed Sheeran’s mantra—“write badly, write often, and trust that good ideas will emerge from imperfect work”—as a principle that aligns with Taiwanese singer‑songwriter WeiBird’s “fast, bad, wrong” approach.

When asked about artificial intelligence, Craker was unequivocal: AI cannot replicate the human connection, emotion, or genuine artistic expression that underpin music. He added that these qualities are what music ultimately serves.

On the broader question of how Mandopop can expand internationally, Craker noted that there is no single formula. He pointed to the global success of K‑pop and Latin music as examples of artists who broke through by embracing their cultural identities rather than imitating Western sounds.

The conference also highlighted Tsai’s commercial impact. She has sold over 25 million records worldwide, making her the highest‑selling Taiwanese female artist since 2000. Her albums Ugly Beauty and Pleasure were the highest‑selling album by a female artist in Taiwan for their respective release years, with Pleasure topping the 2025 charts.

The 2026 Golden Melody Awards, often described as the Grammys of the Chinese‑speaking world, recognized Tsai’s continued influence. In addition to her personal accolades, her work has spurred discussions about the role of international collaboration in Mandopop’s evolution.

The conference concluded with a reminder that while technology can support production, the core of successful music remains rooted in human creativity, collaboration, and cultural authenticity.

In short, Richard Craker’s insights at the Golden Melody Festival underscored the importance of trust, experimentation, and cultural identity in producing award‑winning Mandopop, while reaffirming the limits of AI in capturing the essence of human artistry.