Janet Lee

Janet Lee, a consummate singer, performer, and style icon from Taiping, Malaysia, celebrates two decades on stage in 2025. Her career spans jazz, cabaret, opera, musical theatre, and concert stages, bringing equal ease to grand productions and intimate live performances alike.

Widely acclaimed as Malaysia’s Queen of Shanghai Jazz, Janet is known for her distinctive repertoire that blends mid-century Mandarin pop, classic American songbook standards, and old-Malaya melodies. Classically trained under baritone Cha Seng Tiang and sopranos Cecilia Yap and Wong Kooi Lan, she brings both technical finesse and emotional nuance to her performances.

Since 2008, Janet has collaborated closely with renowned jazz pianist and composer Tay Cher Siang across numerous performances and recordings. She is also the founding member of The Shang Sisters, a multilingual vocal trio dedicated to championing Nanyang jazz traditions through contemporary performance.

Her discography includes three solo albums—Restless Heart (2015), Cinnabar Rouge (2017), and Tea for Two (2023)—as well as The Shang Sisters EP (2019) and the trio’s self-titled album (2022). The first two solo albums were launched with sold-out concerts at Damansara Performing Arts Centre. Cinnabar Rouge was nominated for Best Popular Evergreen Album and won Best Album Cover Design at the 2018 Malaysia PWH Music Awards, while Tea for Two continues to tour locally and internationally.

Janet has appeared in productions including I Have a Date with Spring, Butterfly Lovers, Hansel & Gretel, and M! The Opera, and has performed with the Malaysian Philharmonic Orchestra in The Best of Rodgers & Hammerstein (2017). In August 2025, she marked a major milestone with Lucky Lee: The 20-Year Journey On Stage with Janet Lee, a self-produced, sold-out three-night concert production, before returning to the MPO stage in 2026 for A Journey Through Mandarin Classics. She will also star in the title role of The Merry Widow in 2026.