Li Yuchun
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- This is a Chinese name; the family name is Li (李).
| Li Yuchun | ||||||||||
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| Chinese name | 李宇春 | |||||||||
| Chinese name | 李宇春 (Simplified) | |||||||||
| Pinyin | Lǐ Yǔchūn (Mandarin) | |||||||||
| Birth name | 李宇春 | |||||||||
| Origin | Chengdu, Sichuan, China | |||||||||
| Born | March 10, 1984 Chengdu, Sichuan, China |
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| Other name(s) | Chris Lee. | |||||||||
| Occupation | Singer | |||||||||
| Genre(s) | Mandopop | |||||||||
| Label(s) | Taihe Rye Music | |||||||||
| Years active | 2005–present | |||||||||
| Official Website | lyc.trmusic.com.cn | |||||||||
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Li Yuchun (pinyin: Lǐ Yǔchūn) also known as Chris Lee is a Chinese pop singer and actress who achieved instant fame when she won the nationwide singing contest Super Girl in 2005. She is now working with Taihe Rye Music and released her first album The Queen and the Dream in September 2006. Her second album titled Mine was released in early November 2007, and her third album, Youth of China was released in May 2008. She made her film debut in the 2009 film Bodyguards and Assassins.[1]
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[edit] Early years
Born in a normal family in Chengdu, Li Yuchun was not encouraged to pursue a career in entertainment. Her father, a railway police officer, and her mother, a retired housewife, wanted her to be a doctor. At the age of 18, just before the national university entrance exam, she told her parents that she wanted to get into a music conservatory. Although shocked by her ambition, her parents found a music tutor for her. They thought she would give up because her chance of getting in was very small. To their surprise, after one month of intensive training she passed the artistic exam. Ecstatic with the admission offer, Li carried out her first live concert, "The Last Battle", which was performed in front of her high school before the graduation ceremony. After graduation, she went to study at Sichuan Music Conservatory.
[edit] Super Girl competition
While still a 21-year old student at the Conservatory, Li participated in the Super Girl singing contest (similar to the Idol series of contests around the world) in 2005. She won the qualifying competition in Chengdu, then went on to win the nationwide contest among 120,000 applicants. This competition drew the largest audiences in Chinese TV history. Her win came as a surprise to many people because she was so radically different from the usual stereotype of female singers, being somewhat androgynous-looking and sounding.
Li's national fame rose quickly and she quickly gathered a large fanbase across China in early episodes. Li usually wore loose jeans and a black button-down shirt, with no make-up and the haircut (and body) of David Bowie during his Space Oddity phase.
She received the most votes (352,8308) in the final contest. According to Chinese voters, her unorthodox style and aggressive singing captivated the audience.[2]
[edit] Music career
Her first single was "Sweetheart, I Love You" (Chinese: 甜蜜的, 我爱你), recorded during the time when she was on Super Girl. She joined Taihe Rye Music in October 2005 and released the single "Happy Winter" (Chinese: 冬天快乐) as a Christmas gift to her fans. In March 2006, she released "Give Me Five", a Latin-flavored dancing song. Another release, "Happy Wake Up", was the song used in her Crest toothpaste ad. All of these songs were released online by digital distribution, a new move in the Chinese music world. She also released an EP titled "Give Me Five".
Li Yuchun has held three unplugged concerts to date. The first was in her hometown of Chengdu on March 10, 2006 — her 22nd birthday. The second was in Beijing on March 24, 2007. The other being in Shanghai on May 22, 2006. These unplugged concerts, entitled "Why Me," have become an annual celebration, always held around Li's birthday. And so far two other "Why Me" concerts has been held. In Shanghai on March 9, 2008 and in Guangzhou on March 24, 2009 respectively.
Her debut album, titled The Queen and the Dreams (Chinese: 皇后与梦想), was released on September 15, 2006. It presold 100,000 copies and sold more than 430,000 copies in the first month. She held a promotional concert in Beijing Exhibition Center on September 20, 2006 with songs from the album.
Her second album, titled Mine (Chinese: 我的), was released in November 2007. In the meantime, her nationwide 2007 Live Tour began in October and had been held in Nanjing, Guangzhou, Chongqing, Chengdu and Hangzhou, attracting tens of thousand of music lovers.
Her third album, titled Youth of China (Chinese:少年中国), was released in May 2008 as a gift blessing the 2008 Beijing Olympic Games. This album was developed and designed by her. It includes one documentary DVD of her 2007 national live tour concert and one CD with 6 songs.
Her forth album,titled Chris Lee(Chinese:李宇春），was first digitally released in August,31st 2009.The songs of it were mainly created by herself,which had received wide praise.The official album was released in December 2009.On December 26th,Lee gave her AMO Chris Lee Beijing Live Show at Wukesong Arena,which gained great success.The tickets had been sold out in three hours.
[edit] Charity work
Li Yuchun triggered a donation craze after she was chosen in March 2006 as the ambassador for the " LIYUCHUN Fans Charity Fund " of the Chinese Red Cross Foundation (CRCF) to help children with leukemia. The CRCF has reported several website crashes after Li Yuchun spoke about the charity during recent public appearances. She gave her costumes worn in the Super Girl finale to charity auctions and donating the entire income of her second concert in Shanghai. So far the foundation has received more than 7,700 donations from Li Yuchun fans throughout the world, amounting to over 1,000,000 RMB and helping 21 children. Recently, this fund has raised more than 5,000,000 RMB.
In her mission as Hewlett-Packard Ambassador from August to December 2006 to promote genuine printing supplies and accessories, HP donated part of its sales incomes to the " LIYUCHUN Fans Charity Fund " helping 30 children in poverty with leukemia.
In December 2006, Li Yuchun became the ambassador for Viva Glam Lipstick M.A.C. Aids Fund in China.[1]
[edit] Current life
Li Yuchun's success has drawn a lot of attention from the commercial world. She has signed deals with many notable companies, including Amoi Electronics, Swatch, Coca-Cola, Crest, and Hewlett Packard.
Despite her fame, Li Yuchun still leads the simple life she did before becoming a national icon. Non-brand-name T-shirts and jeans are her usual outfits, and unlike other celebrities, she does not mind wearing the same outfits many times in front of the media.
[edit] Trivia
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Lists of miscellaneous information should be avoided. Please relocate any relevant information into appropriate sections or articles. (September 2007) |
- Li Yuchun made the cover of Time Magazine Asia special issue, October 2005, named as one of "Asia's Heroes".[3]
- The China National Philatelic Corporation issued a postage stamp bearing her image in January 2006—a first for a mainland Chinese pop star.
- Li Yuchun's fans have an interesting name - "corns"(pinyin: yu mi). The two Chinese characters that make up "corn" are "yu" and "mi". "Yu" stands for Yuchun while "mi"(Chinese: 米) is a homophone for (Chinese: 迷) which is the Chinese words for "fan".
- In 2006 she headlined a concert in Beijing with British pop group Girls Aloud promoting China and Britain's relations.
[edit] Discography
[edit] Albums
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[edit] Singles
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[edit] Awards
The 6th Global Chinese Music Awards - Singapore, 2006
- Top 5 most popular female artists
- Media Recommendation
- Top 20 Hits of the Year: "Happy Winter"(冬天快乐)
The 7th Global Chinese Music Awards - Hongkong, 2007
- Top 5 most popular female artists
- Media Recommendation
- Top 20 Hits of the Year: "Happy Wake Up"
MTV Asia Awards 2008 - Malaysia
- Favourite Artist of Mainland China
Asia Song Festival 2009 - Korea
- Best Asian Artist
The 9th Global Chinese Music Awards - Beijing, 2009
- Most Popular Female Artist
- Top 5 most popular female artists
- Best Stage Performer
- Top 20 Hits of the Year: "Why Me"
[edit] References
- ^ "IMDB: Shi yue wei cheng (2009)". http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1403130/. Retrieved November 29, 2009.
- ^ Joffe-Walt, Benjamin (2005-10-07). "Mad about the girl: a pop idol for China". The Guardian. http://www.guardian.co.uk/china/story/0,7369,1586968,00.html. Retrieved 2007-07-30.
- ^ Jakes, Susan (2005-10-03). "Li Yuchun Loved for Being Herself". Time Asia. http://www.time.com/time/asia/2005/heroes/li_yuchun.html. Retrieved 2007-01-01.
[edit] External links
- Official blog (Chinese)
- Chinese Red Cross Foundation (Chinese)
- Yumi Love Fund (Chinese)
- [2] (Chinese)
