Exclusive! Bai Jingting on Cartier, The First Frost, and Surprise Stage with MAYDAY

Singapore turned up the heat last weekend as Chinese actor and Cartier House Ambassador Bai Jingting stepped into the spotlight at the Maison’s Nature Sauvage Gala Dinner — a high-glamour celebration marking the final chapter of Cartier’s latest high jewellery collection.

Fresh off the global buzz of The First Frost — now streaming on Netflix — Bai is riding high. Starring alongside Zhang Ruonan, the series follows two former classmates who reconnect years later as unlikely roommates. As Wen Yifan (Zhang) unpacks the weight of a traumatic past, Sang Yan (Bai) becomes her quiet anchor — steady, selfless, and fiercely loyal. It’s a story about emotional survival, healing, and the kind of unspoken bond that stays with you. The series has struck a chord with audiences, and Bai’s grounded, deeply felt performance is a big reason why.

Since joining Cartier as a House Ambassador in 2024, Bai has brought his signature blend of calm confidence and understated elegance to the Maison — qualities that resonate with Cartier’s own codes of timeless refinement.

We caught up with him at the gala to talk all things The First Frost, his thoughts on the final Nature Sauvage collection, and what it was like stepping on stage with rock icons Mayday in a surprise performance no one saw coming.

You were there for the unveiling of Chapter 2 in Shanghai and now the final chapter of this collection in Singapore. What has been the experience of Chapter 3 like and what have been your highlights?

The biggest difference that I experienced this time round is that there is an increase in nature elements. Especially when I’m touring the exhibition, I realised there are more animal motifs. Previously, they focused more on the Panthère series, but now I saw there are elephants and tigers. All these different kinds of animals in their natural states, and all integrated into the jewellery.

How was your experience at the Nature Sauvage Exhibition at Former Command House? 

First of all, I think that this exhibition exposed me to a different local culture. From the moment I got off the plane—The climate changes, the way we speak, the way of life are very different. Hence, the way I feel is also very different from the previous experiences. Since it is my first full day here, I hope to spend more days in Singapore to experience the different cultures and food options.

The Nature Sauvage high jewellery collection takes inspiration from flora and fauna, with plenty of unexpected animal motifs. If you could create a dream high jewellery piece with Cartier, what animal motif would you go for and why?

After visiting the exhibition today, I really like the new tiger design they introduced. What is amazing to me is that the appearance of Panther and Tiger is actually very similar but I feel that the designer must have their own unique artistic understanding to be able to design it differently. In fact, when I saw the Tiger, I felt that it had a completely different design than the Panther which amazed me.

You’ve worked together with Cartier for many years and have made many memories with the brand since. What has been your strongest memory with Cartier?

This is because we were at the stage to establish a connection with Cartier and get to know each other better. The first shoot, in particularly, was quite memorable to me and I was also very nervous. I started preparing my poses, appearancesand so on from about a month before. This is so that I can be in a perfect state on the day of the shoot.

You’ve captured everyone’s hearts as Sang Yan in The First Frost this year. What was your reaction to the character’s huge international popularity?

First of all, I am very happy that everyone supports The First Frost and likes the character Sang Yan. When I learned that it was also very popular overseas, and many people liked it in Singapore, it is still something that I’m proud of. 

Beyond your acting in the show, fans also loved hearing your voice in the OST. You recently performed ‘Willful’ with MAYDAY at their concert. Tell us about that moment and are you planning to explore more music projects in the near future?

Actually, being able to sing at MAYDAY’s concert has always been a very bold dream of mine. And it is a wild imagination and I have never actively approached them. This time, it was because my idols sang the OST of the drama I acted in that got me such an opportunity. When I knew that Mayday would sing our OST, I was very excited.

But after the drama ended, I received this invitation out of the sudden, and I felt very excited and nervous. I highly value such opportunities and I don’t want to leave a bad performance at other people’s concerts. I respect their concert very much, so I also made preparations for a long time. From the end of filming to the time I learned about this news, I have been practicing hard at home. I was very nervous before going on stage. Previously, I bought an in-ear monitor and have never used it. It wasn't until the concert that I used it for the first time. I was very excited and happy.