• The term “Xinyao” is believed to have first appeared in a seminar titled “The Songs We Sang”, organised by Nanyang Siang Pau on 4 September 1982. A group of young Singaporean singers and songwriters were seeking to create an identity for the songs that they wrote and suggested naming their songs “Xinyao”.
• Xinyao’s popularity grew thanks to support from radio stations, as well as the concurrent trends in Taiwanese campus folk songs and “诗乐” (poetry-music, an artform combining poetry and music). Many junior college and polytechnic students started forming singing groups. Xinyao songs, which are usually performed with piano or guitar accompaniment, spread among the schools via school exchange
  programmes and concerts. The first Xinyao concert took place in 1983 at the Singapore Conference Hall.
• “Xinyao” refers specifically to Mandarin songs created by Singaporean songwriters in the 1980s to 1990s. In recent years, young Singaporean songwriters have developed their own style of music that differs considerably from Xinyao.

At the “Xin Kong Xia” Xinyao music festival opening in Guangyang Secondary School, TCR New Generation will share their beautiful songs with the students. (Lianhe Zaobao, 28/2/2018)