Meet Lily Liu, an incredibly talented musician who plays a very unusual instrument, the Chinese zither, which is also called the guzheng. Lily's cover of the Wiz Khalifa/Charlie Puth hit See You Again has gone viral across the internet. After the tragic death of actor Paul Walker, See You Again was a massive hit worldwide.
So, it's hard to imagine any cover measuring up to the beauty and emotion of the original. Lily is so talented, though, and the guzheng has such expressive and unusual sound it truly is like you're hearing the song for the first time.
The location of the video helps too and provides a stunning backdrop. Filmed at dawn in the mountains, the time of day works perfectly with the song's sentiment. Losing a friend and suffering the darkness of loss, but then feeling hope and returning to the light in the belief they'll see each other again.
Lily looks beautiful in a blue and white floral dress that would not be out of place in a concert hall. Lily, the location, the instrument, and the song all meld together to create a performance so beautiful it will take your breath away. If you haven't already heard it, check it out now.
Naturally, this piece has swept across YouTube, acquiring hundreds of thousands of new fans for this highly talented young lady. Lily's YouTube channel has almost 100,000 subscribers, but this video has already been viewed nearly 14 million times! The comments show how deeply this beautiful rendition has touched listeners' hearts. One commenter said, "Utterly beautiful visually as well as musically! I LOVE IT!" Another agreed, saying, "Seriously, fantastic combination. Anyone will get the same way, goosebumps when listening to this."
As Lily's channel states that she is a sophomore in college, a heavy workload may explain why she hasn't posted more than 15 videos. Let's hope that she continues to play and that when she graduates, she posts lots more videos for us all to enjoy.
We must also give thanks to the internet, which opens up a new world of unusual instruments for us to hear and appreciate. It breathes new life into old songs and helps us see them in whole new ways. Bravo Lily!
If you want to see more from this brilliant traditional Chinese musician you can subscribe to her YouTube channel or you can follow her on her officialFacebook page.