Around a decade ago, Shao entered a songwriting competition with a demo he made at London Camden's Roundhouse, where he spent two years as a resident artist. Shao's original composition won the entire contest, which secured him a publishing deal in Taiwan. Following industry advice to make his name as a songwriter before launching his own artist project, Shao went on to craft hits for massive artists including Stefanie Sun (No.1 across four countries), Taiwanese rock duo Power Station (2025 Hito Music Awards – Top 10 Mandarin Songs of the Year), Mandopop main pop girl Angela Zhang (No.1 album) and Japanese major virtual girl band V.W.P. Songs written by Shao have hit number one in China, Malaysia, Singapore and Taiwan.

Along the way, he has become a go-to songwriter for East Asian TV shows and No.1 Netflix series. Most recently, he wrote the ending song of the major Japanese anime series Kamitsubaki City Under Construction, which just finished airing weekly on Japan's TBS Television. Back in 2020, he released his first mainstream single 'White Horse', a beautiful ballad partly inspired by his own experience of neurodivergency, which was selected as the ending song for Taiwanese Netflix series The Victims' Game. Shao wrote 'White Horse' believing that another artist would record it, but the show's producer was so moved by his vocal on the demo – and personal connection to the lyrics – that he insisted Shao's version made the soundtrack.

Shao's songwriting career continues to flourish. Last year, he was nominated for the best original song prize at the Golden Bell Awards – Taiwan's equivalent to the Emmys. Another career highlight came earlier last year when he wrote for Mandarin-pop superstar Stefanie Sun. Fast forward to 2025, and Stefanie Sun made Shao's song the theme for her latest Asia tour with already half million audiences so far.

In January, Shao asked a promoter friend to plot an extensive school tour where he could hone his live skills while previewing new material from his artist project. Performing in schools has been incredibly inspiring for Shao, not least because he receives so much positive feedback – both in person and online. "I get so many messages from kids saying thank you for making it feel cool to be different," he says. As he plots future shows in schools and adult music venues, he's never felt more certain of his purpose as a performer. "It's so important for young people to know it's OK to be a boy who's attracted to other boys, it's OK to feel as though you have a different gender inside of you, it's OK to be autistic, it's OK to have a disability," he says. "I hope that when Gen Z fans hear my music, they realise we're the people who can work together to build a better, kinder community for everyone."