Her national tour will kick off in Shanghai on Sept 15 and will take her to other cities like Beijing, Hong Kong and Guangzhou.

"I've been hoping to be recognized by others and kept on trying to improve my music. The process might be tortuous, but when you want something badly and make great efforts for it, you'll be magically rewarded," Qu says.

Born in Harbin, capital of Heilongjiang province, Qu started to sing before she could even talk. Her mother recalls: "You would know when she was awake because she'd be singing the theme song from the Chinese TV series Undercover Cop, loudly in bed, to the ceiling, every morning."

Due to her good sense of music, her mother bought her a piano when she was 6. But music was never considered a career for Qu.

At 16, Qu's mother sent her to study international business in Canada. The loneliness of a strange environment and adolescent rebellion made her unhappy. It didn't take long, however, before she realized her true passion and dream was to become an influential recording artist.

She taught herself to play the guitar and tried to write her first song, To Markus, which was dedicated to her then-boyfriend.