She nervously walked onto stage and began singing a Chinese ballad. A TV studio audience cheered her on, some of whom recognized her from her popular Douyin social media account. A panel of judges sat in signature swivel chairs facing away from her, listening carefully, with little to no idea that a young South African woman was belting out the Chinese heartbreak lyrics without skipping a beat. 

Motswedi Modiba, 26, who goes by the artist name Moe, is a contestant on a big reality TV singing competition in China, also the first South African on the show. Since the airing of her audition episode last week on TV, she has left audiences in both China and South Africa shocked and amazed at her language and vocal abilities. 

As she walked on to stage, questions of doubt swarmed through her head. 

"I just got so nervous. I was shaking. And I heard the people scream. And in my head, I was thinking, 'What did you do? Why did you think you could do this?' I pulled myself together and I started singing," she said of the experience. 

She began to sing the lyrics of the heartbreak ballad "Ai" by A-lin, a song that talks about a couple separating and lost love. As she sang, celebrity musician Wilber Pan rotated his judge's chair first to face her, seeing her face for the first time. The reaction was priceless. 

"They had no idea there was an African on the stage. Maybe you could tell by the way that I sing some notes, and the way that I approach music, that this person has some foreign influence, but if you didn't see me, you wouldn't be able to tell." 

Within the show's format, judges who turn to face the singer offer their coaching and mentorship to them. If more than one turn, the performer gets to choose who they want. 

"I don't remember the exact moment Wilber Pan turned, or how that felt, because I was running off adrenaline. When I finished singing, I was relieved that at least some judges turned. I was scared that no one would turn. The judge that I wanted, Wilber Pan, had turned, and I chose him. It made me happy that it worked out that way." 

Moe's journey with Chinese began when she was 5 years old and her parents sent her to a language school in South Africa's capital, Pretoria. Through entering the Chinese Bridge competition, she was later able to achieve a scholarship to study Chinese language and literature at Yunnan Normal University, a semester-long program she did in 2015 shortly after completing Grade 12 in South Africa. 

"The first three months when I moved to China, I struggled a bit, but I'm very stubborn, and I always want to do really well. I remember that I used to have flashcards to read for when I would travel on the bus, and I'd be practicing my characters. I bought character cards, and I'd take them around to practice with them. I was able to improve quite quickly. It's been a journey. I feel like I am still trying to improve my Mandarin; I am getting there." 

Thereafter, Moe pursued music studies: first at the University of the Witwatersrand in Johannesburg for a bachelor's degree in music, and more recently at the Manhattan School of Music in New York where she is completing a master's degree in music. To stay up to speed with life in China, she opened an account on Douyin, the short video social media platform. She posts short recordings of her singing in Chinese there, and one of these videos from April this year has clocked over 1.3 million views. 

"My friends and I had a joke about posting on Douyin and going viral and we all laughed about it. And we wondered about having a viral, famous account, and we thought it was impossible. I posted a video, and it went viral, and I posted another one, and it went viral, and many of the videos that I posted went viral. Within two or three weeks, I had millions of views on the page. From then on, there were a lot of messages and requests for me to do collaboration." 

Among these was a message from a director of the show. 

"I gave my friend my phone, because the messages were so many, that I felt that I wanted her to check if there were any important messages that I was missing… We thought it was a prank. They sent through all their verification and the rest is history. Everything came together quite quickly. They first messaged in April and by June I was in China." 

Since then, it's been a whirlwind of learning new songs every day, recording demos, and going through makeup and looks for the performances. 

"I am here as a visitor, and the Chinese audiences' reception has been heartwarming… Before the show aired, some people recognized me from my Douyin account. So, I would get stopped. Since the episode aired, more people are recognizing me; it's fun for me." 

Amid the glow of the spotlight and cheering crowds in China, representing her country and its spirit is of paramount importance to her. 

"I am a South African, proudly so. I love my country and I love my heritage. Apart from wanting to learn about Chinese culture, this is a great opportunity for cultural ambassadorship. 

"When the episode came out, and people started reacting, it was all positive. I was so humbled, and so happy. (On the show) I spoke about ubuntu (a South African philosophy of humanity to others). The presidency in South Africa reached out to me. I love the support from back home. Seeing how happy it makes people when one of their own does well overseas is really great." 

As for the rest of the competition, Moe plans to prioritize authenticity. 

"The most important thing for me is to be authentic. When you are in a competition, there are a lot of things that could sway you. Authenticity is my greatest weapon and being true to the music. I hope that that can take me as far as I can go. I am not worried too much about what other people are doing or saying. My biggest responsibility right now is to work as hard as I can to deliver the best that I can."