Liu Yifei
Template:Chinese-name Template:Infobox Chinese-language singer and actor
Crystal Liu Yifei (simplified Chinese: 刘亦菲; traditional Chinese: 劉亦菲) (born August 25, 1987) is a Chinese actress and singer. Her legal name is Liu Ximeizi (simplified Chinese: 刘茜美子; traditional Chinese: 劉茜美子). The "茜" (Xi) is from the German film Sissi (Chinese translation 茜茜公主—hence the pronunciation of xi not qian; her mother calls her Xixi).[1]
Early life
Born in Tongji Hospital in Hubei Province, she was originally named An Feng (simplified Chinese: 安风; traditional Chinese: 安風).[2] She is the only child of An Shaokang (安少康), a 1st Secretary in the Chinese Embassy in France and French Language university professor, and Liu Xiaoli (刘晓莉), a dancer and a stage performer. Her parents divorced when she was 7 years old. She was raised solely by her mother and changed her name to Liu Ximeizi. She began modelling in 1995 and was trained in singing, dancing and playing the piano.
In 1997, Liu and her mother moved to United States. She attended Louis Pasteur Middle School 67.[3] Returning to China in 2002 to pursue an acting career, she began to be known as Liu Yifei. Several weeks later, she was accepted into the Performance Institute of Beijing Film Academy at the age of 15. She graduated from the Beijing Film Academy in 2006.
Career
Immediately following her admittance into Beijing Film Academy, Liu received offers to star in various television drama serials. Her first role on television was in The Story of a Noble Family. Shortly after, she was chosen to play the role of Wang Yuyan in Demi-Gods and Semi-Devils, an adaptation of Louis Cha's Wuxia novel of the same name. Initially, Liu Tao was selected for the role of Wang Yuyan but it went to Liu Yifei eventually and Liu Tao was cast as A'Zhu instead.
In 2006, Liu starred in another TV series adaptation of Louis Cha's Wuxia novel The Return of the Condor Heroes. After intense speculation on who would play Xiaolongnü, the role was finally offered to her. She was backed by Cha, who felt that she had all the necessary qualities to play the role of the young and innocent Xiaolongnü.[4] Although the drama serials she has acted in were well-received, the films she starred in did poorly in terms of box office earnings with the exception of The Forbidden Kingdom.
She appeared in Jimmy Lin's music video of the song "I Am Still Waiting For You" (我还在等你) from his 2006 album Can't Stop Me (挡不住我). She has also previously co-starred with him in Demi-Gods and Semi-Devils and The Love Winner.
In conjunction with her acting career, Liu obtained a recording contract with Sony Music Entertainment Japan in August 2005. She has started studying singing and dancing in Japan since then.[5] She released her first single "Mayonaka no Door" with Sony Music on July 19, 2006. Her song "Mayonaka no Doa" as recorded by Sony Music appeared on television as one of the ending themes to "Demashita! Powerpuff Girls Z".
In 2008, she co-starred with martial arts film superstars Jet Li and Jackie Chan in The Forbidden Kingdom, a martial arts-adventure film, in which she played Golden Sparrow, an orphan seeking revenge against her parents' killer.
Filmography
Films
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2002 | Love of May | Zhao Xuan | |
| The Love Winner | Jin Qiaoli | aka I Love How You Love Me | |
| 2006 | Abao De Gushi | ||
| 2008 | The Forbidden Kingdom | Golden Sparrow | |
| 2010 | Lian Ai Tong Gao |
TV series
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2002 | The Story of a Noble Family | Bai Xiuzhu | |
| 2003 | Demi-Gods and Semi-Devils | Wang Yuyan | |
| 2004 | Chinese Paladin | Zhao Ling'er | |
| 2005 | Doukou Nianhua | ||
| 2006 | The Return of the Condor Heroes | Xiaolongnü |
Discography
Albums
| Album information | Track list | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Title: Liu Yifei Label: Sony BMG Music Entertainment (Hong Kong) Limited Release date: 5 September 2006 |
|
Chinese album |
| Title: All My Words Label: Sony Music Entertainment Japan Release date: 8 September 2006 |
|
Japanese album |
Singles
| Information | Track list | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Title: Mayonaka no door Label: Sony Music Entertainment Japan Release date: 19 July 2006 |
|
Japanese album |
References
- ^ Template:Zh icon "神仙姐姐" 劉亦菲 Xinhua online. July 29, 2004. Retrieved on August 21, 2006.
- ^ Template:Zh icon 劉亦菲成長照片曝光 跳新疆舞美若天仙 People's Daily. November 30, 2005. Retrieved on August 21, 2006.
- ^ Template:Zh icon 芳邻刘亦菲. October 22, 2006. Retrieved on June 24, 2008.
- ^ Template:Zh icon 張紀中定"新俠侶" 金庸贊"小龍女" People's Daily. July 13, 2006. Retrieved on August 21, 2006.
- ^ Liu Yifei eyes international singing circle Xinhua online. May 28, 2005. Retrieved on July 17, 2006.