JJ LIN has done it again.

 From his 'killer' video to his on-stage kiss with A-do, the 27-year-old Singaporean singer is no stranger to drawing a backlash.

Now, he has set tongues wagging again with the album cover for his latest album, Sixology.

It shows him dressed in a shirt, waistcoat and hat - all in colourful plaid.

A fashion stylist was quoted in The Straits Times last month as saying that the singer looked like a clown.

Well, nothing wrong with that perhaps, except that he did not intend to look like one. And he was, therefore, a little miffed.

In an interview with The New Paper on Thursday, JJ said: 'I was hurt, especially because the article came from Singapore, my homeland.'

Earlier, in a long entry on his blog, the Taiwan-based artiste had written: 'If the article had been anywhere else, I would not have been that hurt or disappointed.'

He wrote: 'Fashion, like music, is an intricate form of art. No one is ever right or wrong. I guess depending on where you were born and raised, your sense for art and appreciation differs accordingly.

 'As a Singaporean myself, I have noticed over the years that somehow, we are 'trained' to act by the book. When something unconventional comes along, we are so careful that we usually take too much time to assess the situation.'

'In art, you have to experiment...'

He said he felt compelled to pen his thoughts on his blog as a way of explaining himself to his fans.

'Everyone has different views. I just wanted my fans to know that I have a very different view from that of the writer (of the article).'

So why does he think that Singaporeans are unable to accept his brand of creativity?

JJ said: 'I think Singaporeans are very open-minded people. But we have been taught to be very careful, no mistakes.

'However in art... you have to experiment before you can succeed.

'If you always go by the book you'll never find out the true beauty of art.'

Be yourself

Despite facing such a backlash, JJ insisted he would never change or play safe.

'Everyone has the right to write whatever they want. But fashion and style... I as an artist have to create.

'To me, style is not about following whatever is in. It's most important to try and experiment with different things.'

Still, surely he knew that the multi-coloured plaid get-up had fashion suicide written all over it?

'I've loved checkered shirts since secondary school,' confessed the boyish singer.

'And I wanted to challenge myself. My stylists who did their shopping in Japan found out that this was something interesting.

'We decided to do it (my new image) in a Western, old school style.'

In contrast, JJ pointed out that the reception in Taiwan and China was more open.

'In Taiwan and China, I didn't have anyone calling me a clown! I think that's something crucial to note.'

He felt that regional media and critics, 'most of the time, are more open-minded in terms of style'.

He added: 'They are not as restrictive or go by the book when they see fashion or music.'

Fashion stylist Jasmin Lim, 29, from Ritz Salon who was among those quoted in The Straits Times article, said 'the only problem is that there are too many plaid patterns'.

She was full of praise for the singer, saying: 'I think it's very good that he's willing to take risks for art. Singaporeans should be more daring with their fashion choices, like him.

'All I meant was that he could have mixed and matched the plaid with bold colours for a more separate look.'

Of course, JJ is probably used to having to defend himself.

Over the past few years, several of his antics have drawn flak.

In March 2006, he released a pictorial book which had a photo of him sitting on a toilet bowl with his pants down.

Then, in December that year, he kissed fellow Singaporean singer A-do on the mouth at a Taiwan concert.

Last year, he released a music video for his single The Killa which depicted him as an obsessed murderer who cuts up a girl.

But the singer, who has six albums to his name, claims he does not set out to be controversial.

'For The Killa video, the challenge was to realistically portray a murder scene. We had to bring out the gruesomeness of the killer to be true to the song.

'The pictorial book was a series of photographs that were done in my home. And everyone goes to the toilet! It was meant to be humorous.

'And kissing A-do was a sign of brotherhood. I didn't mean it to be offensive in any way.'

But didn't he realise that it could have been a turn-off for some of his fans?

'I had to challenge myself,' he said. 'To be creative, we as artistes have to take constant risks.'

Backlash or not, JJ will be back to perform here in March as part of his JJ World Tour 2009.

And yes, watch out, fashionistas, he might turn up in plaid.

'A lot of vibrant colour,' he teased, about his wardrobe choices.

Any concerns about being labelled a clown all over again?

'No way! In fact I'm glad that people are wearing checks now,' he joked pointing to his minder who happened to be in a blue-green checkered shirt.

• The JJ World Tour 2009 concert will be at the Singapore Indoor Stadium on 28 Mar. Tickets at $148, $128, $108, $78 are available from Sistic (6348 5555).

This article was first published in The New Paper on Nov 22, 2008.