A Beauty And Her Beast

A meeting with singer Bebe Rexha convinces zaneta cheng that in spite of the challenges of the 21st century, the American Dream is alive and well

- Zaneta Cheng

CONSIDER BEBE REXHA. Born Bleta Rexha to Albanian parents in Brooklyn, New York, Rexha grew up consuming the brash, unapologetic glitz and glamour that typify America’s music industry, watching her favourite artistes belt out chart topper after chart-topper at award ceremonies like the VMAs.

Many of them — Mariah Carey, Kanye West — came from humble backgrounds and worked hard to rise through the ranks to global stardom. For Rexha, for whom creating and performing music was therapy throughout high school, this was something she wanted to be a part of.

When I meet Rexha, it’s in The Landmark, Mandarin Oriental, Hong Kong, before her performance at the Landmark Boutique Boulevard extravaganza. In the suite, reclining against the velvet sofa, her bottle blonde wig is perfectly in place. Her arched eyebrows, painted beige lips and flawless foundation are impeccable, plucked from current stateside beauty trends, such as matte lip kits and contouring.

All this immaculate grooming is topped off by a tight-bodice tropical number with velvet platform sandals — a 21st-century manicured package of youth, familiarity and sex appeal. If I squint, Rexha is a dead ringer for a Kardashian sister.