SINGAPORE, JUNE 30, 2010 - SINGAPORE pop star JJ Lin hasn't had it easy these past few months.

Ever since the April release of his Youth Olympic Games (YOG) cheer, commissioned by the Singapore Sports Council (SSC), Lin has come under criticism for his "cheesy" cheer.

In an exclusive e-mail interview with my paper, Lin, who is based in Taiwan, says that he didn't write the words for the cheer - only its melody.

A spokesman for the SSC said that the lyrics were written by Mr Kelven Tan, SSC's chief of sports marketing, and composer Lucky Heng, from Touch Music.

Lin says that he wanted the cheer, the first of three official cheer songs for the YOG, to encourage all Singaporeans to support the young athletes of the Games.

The singer has decided to take the criticism in his stride.

"It's too bad, but I figure that anything on such a massive scale will usually receive contrasting opinions. I was prepared for it," he says.

The cheer, called You Are The One, Singapore, also sees Lin starring in a video.

He pulls Street Fighter-like hand movements, which he says he did not choreograph.

Some members of the public have even said that the cheer and its accompanying video are as annoying as the vuvuzelas' buzz at World Cup matches.

Of the inspiration for the music, Lin says he was "inspired by the march in Manchester United's anthem. Slow, steady, grand and proud".

Ultimately, he says, the cheer doesn't represent who he is. "This isn't a pop song by JJ Lin. This is a combined effort aimed at promoting the spirit of YOG through a cheer that is simple, memorable and fun," says Lin, who performed at last Saturday's Golden Melody Awards in Taipei, where he was nominated as best male singer.

He adds: "We have to remember the wide age group that this campaign targets. If you'd like to know who I really am and what my music is about, just go grab any of my seven albums and listen."

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