Inch Chua facts for kids

Inch Chua (born Chua Yun Juan; 22 December 1988), also known as iNCH, is a talented singer, songwriter, musician, and actress from Singapore. She used to live in Los Angeles and New York. Inch became well-known in Singapore's independent music scene as the lead singer of the rock band Allura. Later, she started making her own music. Her style mixes acoustic folk with alternative rock, electronic music, jazz, and pop. When she performs live, Inch Chua is often joined by her band, The Metric System.

About Inch Chua's Life

Her Nickname and Childhood

When Inch Chua was a child, she got the nickname "Inch." This happened because her given name, Yun Juan, sounded like "Inch" when spoken quickly.

At 10 years old, a dog bit Inch on her face. She needed 135 stitches and had some scars. This made her feel a bit lonely at her all-girls' school, where everyone tried to fit in.

Inch described herself as different from other kids. She liked to dig for worms and get dirty. While others used tools to draw perfect circles, she would draw them freehand. She believed that "not everything has to be perfect."

Inch Chua's Music Journey

Starting in Music

Inch Chua did not have any formal music lessons when she was young. She got into the rock music scene in Singapore during a time when new artists were starting to become popular. Before this, the music scene in Singapore was mostly known for pop music.

Inch became very interested in this small alternative music scene. She started going to concerts and working at music events when she was 14. Her first band formed online. Inch answered a call for a singer and became the lead singer for Auburn's Epiphany at age 16.

From Auburn's Epiphany to Allura

In 2007, Inch's band, Auburn's Epiphany, was chosen to play at the Baybeats Festival. This was a big music event in Singapore. Before their show, the band's founder left and fired the other members, including Inch.

Inch and her bandmates tried to cancel their performance, but it was too late. They quickly wrote new songs and formed a new band called Allura. They still performed at the festival. Singapore's Allura became very popular in the local rock scene. Fans loved their energetic shows and Inch's powerful singing. The band released their first collection of songs, called Wake Up and Smell the Seaweed, in 2008.

Allura broke up when the male members had to join Singapore's National Service. This is a required military service. The band members remained friends and played their last show in 2010.

Inch's Solo Career Begins

While still with Allura, Inch studied at La Salle College of the Arts in Singapore. She started recording music in her bedroom using an acoustic guitar. She taught herself how to use music software like Garageband and Reason.

Inch was one of the first artists in Singapore to share her music online herself. She posted her own songs and many cover songs on YouTube. When the Bandcamp website started, she shared her studio recordings there. Her first solo collection, The Bedroom EP (2009), was offered for free or "pay what you want."

This way of sharing her music helped Inch get noticed in Singapore. When songs from The Bedroom were featured on international music blogs, she became even more famous. She was the first solo artist from Singapore invited to play at a major US festival, South by Southwest (SXSW), in Austin, Texas. Inch also represented Singapore at the Shanghai Expo in China that same year.

Her First Album: Wallflower

In 2010, after playing at international shows, Inch released her first full album, Wallflower. People described her music as a mix of thoughtful acoustic songs and cheerful electronic sounds.

Inch said that the title song, "Wallflower," was inspired by feeling lonely as a child. She used to create art privately before sharing it with others. The song "Hurt" from the album was a tribute to a friend she had lost.

After Wallflower gained international attention, Inch worked with other artists. These included singer Nathan Hartono and rapper Shigga Shay. She also collaborated with David Choi, a popular artist from YouTube. Even though she had many fans in Asia, Inch chose not to sign with a big music label. She preferred to talk directly to her fans through social media. She focused on performing live concerts instead of just selling albums in stores.

MasterChef Singapore

In 2021, Inch Chua was a contestant on the second season of MasterChef Singapore. This is a cooking reality show. She was eliminated from the competition during the second week.

Moving to Los Angeles

In late 2011, Inch decided to move to the United States for a while. She wanted to challenge herself in a new place, away from Singapore's familiar music scene. In December 2012, she was invited to perform at the global TEDxWomen Conference in Washington D.C.

Around this time, Inch also went through a breakup. This led her to write more raw songs with a stronger rock sound. This was different from the softer style of her first solo album.

Inch wrote many songs for her second album, Bumfuzzle, while living in Los Angeles. She played small shows across North America. Her fans helped fund this album through a service called Indiegogo. This allowed Inch to release her music on CDs and vinyl records for the first time. She also included her visual artwork in the physical copies. The album was released on August 26, 2013. A single from the album, "The Artful Dodger," came out on March 5.

Inch Chua's Music Releases

With Allura

• Wake Up and Smell the Seaweed EP (2008)
• 1832 EP (2015)

Solo Albums

• The Bedroom EP (2009)
• Peace, Love & Mistletoe EP (2009)
• Wallflower (2010)
• Bumfuzzle (2013)
• Letters To Ubin EP (2015)

Solo Singles

• "Aqueous Oblivion" (2009)
• "Rule The World" (2010)
• "The More We Get Together" (2011)
• "The Artful Dodger" (2013)
• "MouseDeer" (2015)
• "Dust That Moves" (2016)
• "Sun & Moon" (2019)
• "Flags" Ft. Shigga Shay (2020)

Music Videos

Cover Songs

Inch Chua has recorded many cover versions of songs by other artists. She has covered songs by Shiina Ringo, Britney Spears, Radiohead, Bruno Mars, David Bowie, Nat King Cole, Ming Bridges, Death Cab for Cutie, Foo Fighters, Alicia Keys, Paul McCartney, Air, Beck, David Choi, Bright Eyes, and Leonard Cohen. She even covered the song "Rubber Duckie" from Sesame Street!

See also

In Spanish: Inch Chua para niños