"Don't Say" is a song recorded by Taiwanese Mandopop singer-songwriter William Wei. The song was written by Wei for television seriesTo the Dearest Intruder as the opening theme song. It is released as a single by :zh:福茂唱片|Linfair Records on September 1, 2015. "Don't Say" received positive reviews and was a commercial success. The single peaked at number 2 on KKBOXDigital Music Chart. At the 2015 KKBOX Year-end chart, "Don't Say" was the 11th most streamed song in Taiwan. It also topped the radio charts in China and Malaysia. Due to the popularity of the song, :zh:福茂唱片|Linfair Records decided to shoot a music video. The music video was directed by :zh:小豪艾倫|Howard Kuo and Allan Shen. It was released on November 3, 2015.
Background and composition
Written by Wei, "Don't Say" is a pop ballad that talks about an ending relationship. In a radio interview, Wei shared that the inspiration of the song came from the movie, Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind. The couple in the movie undergone a procedure to have each other erased from their memories when their relationship turned sour. In the process of erasing the unhappy memories, the couple also revisited the happier times of love. Wei believed that one should never relinquish the memories of the other half, no matter how unbearably painful they are. Without the bad ones, we would never be able to appreciate the good one.
Music video
The accompanying music video for "Don't Say" was directed by :zh:小豪艾倫|Howard Kuo and Allan Shen. The music video premiered on YouTube and QQ Music on November 4, 2015. The video begins with Wei boarding a bus. He sits at the back and starts observing a girl who appears to be upset. The girl later receives a text message from her boyfriend, confronting to find out if she loves him. Inspired by the scene he saw, Wei starts writing lyrics on his notebook. After much struggles, the girl decides to reply to her boyfriend that she does not love him at all. As the bus reaches the terminal, Wei stands up and prepares to get off. Before the video ends, Wei takes one last look at the girl and decides to change a line of the lyrics that he has written.
Live performances
Wei performed "Don't Say" on a number of shows. Wei performed the song for the first time at his "Free That Girl" concert, held at Taipei Arena. Wei also performed the song at the :zh:KKBOX數位音樂風雲榜|KKBOX Music Awards and QQ Music Awards. The song was also included on Wei's set list for his 2016 New Year Countdown performances at Taipei, :zh:劍湖山世界|Janfusun Fancyworld and Fulong Beach.
