Music has been a lifelong companion for Prime Minister and Minister for Finance Lawrence Wong, beginning with a birthday present from his late father when he was young.
Speaking at the JASS Benefit Gala 2026 on 26 September, Wong reflected on his early experiences with music, his fascination with jazz, and how playing music has helped him connect with people from different backgrounds.
“Music has always been a big part of my life,” Wong said, sharing that he did not grow up with formal music training.
Instead, his introduction to playing came after his late father gave him a guitar as a birthday present. A friend of his father, whom Wong described as a skilled player, subsequently taught him informally.
The guitar would later follow Wong halfway around the world when he left Singapore to attend university in the United States in the early ‘90s.
There, he met his American roommate, who grew up on a farm in rural Wisconsin. Wong recalled wondering how they would get along given their vastly different backgrounds — until he discovered they had something important in common.
His roommate had brought a guitar with him, and Wong had brought his own from Singapore.
“We clicked immediately,” Wong recalled. The pair began jamming together on their first night and were busking together just days later.
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For Wong, the encounter demonstrated music’s ability to bridge differences.
“You don't need to come from the same place or have very much in common,” he said. “Once you start playing together, you find a common language.”
On jazz and listening to one another
Wong also spoke about his interest in jazz, sharing that he enjoys classic standards and has tried playing the genre himself.
He admitted that jazz can sometimes feel intimidating without formal training because of its technical demands. But beyond its complexity, Wong said what appealed to him was the way musicians listened and responded to one another.
He described jazz as giving musicians the freedom to improvise within a structure — picking up on each other’s ideas and collectively taking the music somewhere new.
To Wong, that spirit extends beyond jazz.
He drew parallels with Singapore’s Chinese, Malay, and Indian musical traditions, describing the country as a natural meeting point for different cultures and influences.
“Our multiculturalism is not about making everything the same,” Wong said, pointing instead to how different strands can be mixed and adapted to create something distinctive.
He highlighted the work of Jazz Association (Singapore) (JASS) in bringing jazz together with Asian musical traditions and instruments, as the organisation celebrated its 10th anniversary at the gala.
Looking to the future, Wong encouraged JASS to keep jazz accessible, continue experimenting with different cultural influences, and bring musicians from different backgrounds together.
He also called for more opportunities for young musicians in Singapore to “create, explore and innovate”.
“Importantly, let's continue to bring people together through music,” he said.
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