Make way for the modern day Hannah Montana as Toronto-born PENG PENG is a gymnast by day and influential pop star by night. The Canadian all-rounder is bringing her refreshing pop music to the forefront as she aims to inspire and empower the next generation with her musical debut. Her latest release, ‘Money On Me,’ is a bass-heavy, feel-it-in-your-bones, sassy production that everyone can strut their stuff to.
Thomas Melia: Please introduce yourself to those who may not know you!
PENG PENG: I am a former Olympic gymnast and now I’m entering into the world of music. A lot of what I write is to empower the younger generation and also boost one’s confidence. As a former athlete I’ve had a long journey of ups and downs and had to come back from lots of hurdles that came my way so my music reflects this, but also my post-athletic journey rediscovering myself too.
Melia: How does the music industry compare with the gymnastics field?
PENG PENG: There’s differences and similarities. I think I’ve definitely translated my work ethic into the studio, it reminds me of when I first started gymnastics, there’s the beginning level you’re learning everything, and it’s kind of painful, you’re going to fall down seven times and get up eight.
The one thing that’s very different, in athletics, you’re taught that you make everything happen. In music, you work hard but there’s also a sprinkle of luck on whether your song is going to do well or not.
I’ve had to really work through being judged. I felt this way, even in the studio, because I was going through all these mental blocks which all came from gymnastics. I’ve definitely tried to flip my mindset, because my athletic mindset is great, but it definitely sometimes puts me in a weird funk creatively.
Melia: You recently finished the ‘Gold Over America’ tour that featured Simone Biles, what was it like working with a living legend?
PENG PENG: Awesome! There were a lot of living legends on the tour and Simone is obviously the GOAT herself. She’s earned her title and it was really cool just to watch her manoeuvre through her natural habitat of being in the gym.
It was also so cool to be around so many legends, Ellie Black, the most decorated Canadian gymnast, Mélanie (Johanna de Jesus dos Santos), who’s a two time Olympian, Katelyn Ohashi, my former teammate who’s floor routine went viral, but was also the last one to beat Simone on all around I’m pretty sure.
Melia: What was it like previewing your new single ‘Money On Me’ at the ‘Gold Over America’ tour?
PENG PENG: I played the song pre and post show, I actually was very nervous at first,I had talked to the producers of the show to add ‘Money On Me’. And I’ve told them a lot of the music I’ve been writing was about my gymnastics career, and ‘Money on Me’ was just one of those ones that I wrote about a year and a half ago with my friend Zev, who’s amazing, and it was just perfect for the tour, it fit the vibe.
Playing that song was nerve-wracking at first, you’re getting real life feedback. As a gymnast, I wasn’t allowed to put myself out there in the art and entertainment space. It’s insane to play the song and little kids from the crowd are coming up to me during the show as I would high five them saying “I love your song”. I wanted to tell them (‘Money On Me’) is my little token to them , when you listen to track and it brings you back to the feeling of what the show was like.
Melia: ‘Money On Me’, is a bombastic, fun filled, bass-heavy number. Are there any fun facts about the song that you want to share, maybe while you were maybe recording it or since its release?
PENG PENG: What’s funny is at first we were really trying to figure out how we were going to write it and what it was going to be about. We were playing around in the studio, and I was like, I kind of want to write a song like, ‘Bang Bang’, I wanted something just really upbeat.
We wrote it when I was having a hard time believing in myself especially in the industry and I liked the idea of “Okay, why don’t you place your bets, put money on me”. I loved that concept of anything is possible I sing, “Dream so big I’m walking on water”, it’s fun and very uplifting. It was such a great song to write, we wrote it really fast too, an overall good day to be in the studio.
Melia: In the song you sing “Place your bets, put money on me…” — talk me through a time when you’ve had to ‘place your bets’ on something important in your life?
PENG PENG: That’s a really good question! What a way to turn that one on the artist!
The last time I’ve placed bets honestly, would be every time I’ve graduated and retired from gymnastics, even in school when I was a gymnast, you’re always proving yourself, so it’s one of those things where your coaches want to hear you say “No I got this, don’t worry, you don’t have to coach me anymore”.
I think that’s where the concept came from, especially now when I’m meeting a lot new people, and I’m telling them “No, I can do music, I want to be here”. It’s almost like, if you place your bets on me, I will work hard and do the best that I can, so I think it’s more anytime really, I feel like I’m constantly placing bets on myself.
Melia: So with the two tracks ‘Pretty Please’ and ‘Money On Me’, the lyrics are empowering. As an artist, is this is what you want to be known for?
PENG PENG: It’s funny because I’ve been writing music for the past two years now and I went into it blindly. I was more Taylor Swift-ing it in my in my bedroom with a guitar, I had no idea how on how to produce but I feel like I’ve definitely reflected with being on tour, I have so many little cousins, I know a lot of them look up to me and I just want them to feel empowered.
When I was younger, I got bullied, I was really the odd one out. I was nerdy, I liked video games, Pokemon and while the other girls were getting into nails and makeup, I was delayed in that sense.
I’ve always found it hard to be myself, so with my music, I really want people to sing it for themselves like a mantra, I want them to feel confident, beautiful and I think I’ve really reflected on what I want as an artist which is to make a difference for the younger generation.
Melia: You’re already a well-established and talented gymnast, not many musical acts can say they’ve qualified for an Olympics. You’re like the modern day Hannah Montana in a way, how do you think this will help you in your musical career?
PENG PENG: My athletic background I like to think of as my secret weapon. I have the work ethic, you can count on me. I’ve also carried through celebrating the little wins, something I did in gymnastics, I’ve learned to be proud of myself along the way, because it can be discouraging sometimes when you go to the studio and we didn’t finish a song one time, and I was totally distraught, and had no idea what I was doing just because I was new I was so lost.
But I’m proud of myself for going in there, I’m proud of myself for going out there and being able to kind of flip the perspective, which I’m constantly doing, it helps me to be unique. I want to put in the work, I would love to go into rehearsals and do all that, when that time comes, I’ll embrace it wholeheartedly.
Melia: A lot of singers talk about how their lyrics are very personal when they write them, but with you also make vlogs too so would you say that music is naturally a more open experience as you share a lot of your life online with your fans and viewers?
PENG PENG: It doesn’t. Songwriting is such a fun and creative thing to do, you embellish it a little bit, it’s a little bit dramatic.
The reason why I started vlogging was because I had a hard time expressing my emotions. I would always get judged, and I ended up bottling everything up and bringing it home with me, so I really wanted to be able to creatively express myself, because I was just holding on to stress, and that’s where the songwriting came.
The vlogging is on a more day to day level, I love taking people behind the scenes, I want to showcase to people that you can do it too. I like sharing the hard parts, the bad and the good. I think with songwriting, it shares a totally different side of me, because I can get really vulnerable, the vlogs take people through my day, but the studio gets pretty deep.
Melia: What can we expect from you in general for 2025, and the next year?
PENG PENG: The cool thing about music as an independent artist is that you do it all yourself!
In gymnastics you have meets that are already set dates so in 2025 I’m setting myself some goals. I want to release an EP and showcase myself as an artist. I think ‘Pretty Please’ was kind of a taste of what my project is like and I think it’s going to be really fun to release more and see people’s reactions. I’m excited to take everyone on my journey and go through everything together!
