Kay Tse
Template:ChineseText Template:Infobox Chinese-language singer and actor Kay Tse (born March 13, 1977) is a Hong Kong Cantopop songwriter, recording-artist and entertainer. Raised In Hong Kong, China. Tse made her debut to the music industry and was signed with Ban Ban Music in 2005 and released her debut album. She became a prominent figure in the Cantopop culture. She is known for her versatile vocal range and expertise in various music genres, especially in jazz.
She first achieved mainstream success in 2008 with the song Wedding Invitation Street, topping in the four major charts of Hong Kong. Due to the hugely successful and the critically acclaimed album Binary, Tse won many awards in January 2009 including the "Media Award - Performer", which is considered to be the most prestigious award. In early 2009, she embarked on her first headlining concert, Yelling LIVE 2009. Media praised her as "Grass-Root Queen", increasing her influence in the Hong Kong music industry. Along with Joey Yung, Miriam Yeung, Denise Ho, Tse is currently considered as the four premier female Cantopop performers. She is married to a fellow Hong Kong recording-artist Louis Cheung.
Life and Musical Career
Early Life and Discovery
Kay Tse was born on March 13, 1977 in Hong Kong. She first started to learn to play the piano by the age of six, which she eventually obtained an eighth grade.[1] In addition, she also learned to play the guitar. At the age of 11, Tse attended the Valtorta College, a state funded Catholic school located on Hong Kong's New Territories. In 2002, when Tse was a university student majoring in American Studies at the University of Hong Kong, she entered a university singing competition and won the first place. She then entered an inter-schools singing competition in 2003 and made the final five, impressing one of the judges Adrian Chow (周博賢) very much that he offered her a professional contract with his small music label called "Ban Ban Music". At that time Tse was working as a piano teacher.
2005 - 2006: Career beginnings, Kay One and K sus2
Tse's Cantonese debut album, Kay One, was released on May 6, 2005. The album combines various genres together, most prominently canto-pop and jazz. Kay One spawned four singles altogether, with her debut single Beauties <<姿色份子>> being a fast, up-tempo tune, lyrically, it talks about the Asian dieting trend. Another notable single is The One and Only <<我歌...故我在>>, which is a slow ballad, showcasing Tse's versatile vocal range. On December 23, 2005, the album received a re-release edition titled Kay One Plus, this edition includes a bonus track called Follow Me <<跟我走>>, which was released as the fifth single of the album. The song is rock influenced, which Tse talks about her music and her fans. The single managed to reach number 1 on the TVB Billboard chart, becoming her first number one song. In addition, the album contains two non-Cantonese songs, with The One and Only being the English cover of second single of the same name, and Plastic Rose <<塑膠玫瑰>> being the mandarin version of Beauties <<姿色份子>>.
By June 2, 2006, Tse released her first extended play. K sus2 was expected to be released on March, 2009, but it was later postponed. The EP is largely more rock-influenced than her previous album. It includes six new songs along with three music videos. The first single Gloomy Festival <<愁人節>> impacted radio stations on January, 2006. It received positive reception from critics for raising public concerns about the disadvantaged groups in the society. The song received many airplays on various stations and it became her first single to peak within the top 10 in all four major charts, while reaching the summit of TVB billboard chart and the 903 Top 20.[2]. In late April, another track named "A Deadly Journey" <<亡命之途>> was introduced on Hong Kong Sina and impacted the radio station. It reached a peak of number-three on "903 Top 20". In July, "Foreign Maids' Love Song" <<菲情歌>> from the EP has started to be broadcasted in various media. On June 19, Sammy Ha, manager of Kay Tse, announced that K sus2 will be reprinted for the high demand.[3]
2007: Marriage, First child and Compilation albums
The First Day is the third album and first compilation album of Kay Tse. Released in January 18, 2007, the album contains 12 songs, including 3 new songs which are The First Day <<第一天>>, Soul behind the Window <<後窗知己>> and Obstacles <<節外生枝>>. The song Obstacles <<節外生枝>> was released as the first single of the album and it climbed to the peak of number 1 on "903 Top 20", "TVB Billboard", and "RTHK Chinese-pop Billboard" becoming Tse's most successful single since her debut. The remaining 9 songs are Tse's greatest hits which re-arranged by several arrangers, such as Ted Lo, Adrian Chou. And the songs which are re-arranged have given new names, for example, Beauties <<姿色份子>> is the remastered version of Beauties <<姿色份子>>. In March, Cinepoly released the second version which included a bonus DVD of her farewell concert on January 2007. In late January, Tse married fellow Hong Kong songwriter and recording-artist Louis Cheung who also debuted in 2005. The ceremony took place in Regal Airport Hotel near Hong Kong International Airport.[4]
3/8 was the first album released after giving birth to her son on 11 December 2007. 3/8 was Tse's second Greatest Hits album containing 15 of Tse's singles along with 3 new songs which are 3/8, Zhong Wu Yan <<鍾無艷>> and The retired life of Wonder Woman <<神奇女俠的退休生活>>. All fo which was released as singles to promote the new album. She explained that the album title is called "3/8" because she believes she has only finished 3/8 of her life, especially her music life, and it helps to summarize what she had done in past 2-year music journey.
2008: Binary, Wedding Invitation Street, Pneumothorax and Rise to Prominence
Binary is the second album released in mid 2008. Binary implies that songs could be viewed at two different angles. For instance, the lead single, 17 degrees《十七度》 could refer to temperature or angle. As a result, all the songs on the album could be viewed at least two different ways. The album was well-received by critics, and along with its second single, Wedding Invitation Street <<囍帖街>>, which peaked at the summit of all four major charts. Thus giving Tse her first four chart number one song and received overwhelming positive reaction. Wedding Invitation Street also won many awards in the award ceremony at the end of 2008 and beginning of 2009, these includes "Song of the Year" and "Media Award - Single". With a total of 16 awards won, Tse secured her first "Media Award - Performer", which is an award presented to the artist scoring the most award of the year.[5] The album was very successful with sales exceeding thirty-thousand copies sold within the first year of release, and it was rewarded Platinum record. This album marks Tse's rise to prominence as one of the most popular female recording-artist of Hong Kong.
In November, Tse was admitted to hospital for suffering Pneumothorax, and it was reported this is the fourth time the condition have occurred. Tse subsequently stayed in hospital for a week.[6]
2009-Present: Yelling, Yelling LIVE 2009, Slowness and breakthrough to Mainland China
Yelling was released on March 19, 2009. It contains 10 songs, one of which is Mandarin. This Mandarin song is called Farewell Party and is the Mandarin version of Wedding Invitation Street. The album has yielded 5 singles. The first two singles released from this album have peaked at Number 1 in the four major singles charts, further establishing Kay's popularity (such a feat is rare nowadays). Tse also released a second edition of this album which includes a bonus CD. The bonus CD includes MVs of 3 songs from the current album and 9 past hits. Her first stadium concert, Kay Tse's Yelling LIVE 2009, was announced in support of Yelling and begin in March 2009. The concert was later extended to include a date in Macau and Guangzhou in December, 2009, becoming her first concert held outside of Hong Kong. In fall 2009, HMV Hong Kong announced Yelling was the 9th biggest selling album of the year and sold excess of fifteen-thousand copies, seeing off competition from well established female acts such as Joey Yung and Miriam Yeung.[7]
Tse's 7th studio album Slowness was released on December 21, 2009. The album received positive critical reception. The lead single released during November is called Living <<活著>> and has reached the summit of 3 of the 4 major charts. Three more subsequent singles was then released between the time to May 2010, which achieved moderate success. All of the singles was not able to chart on the weekly 'TVB Billboard' chart as a disagreement between Tse's record label, Cinepoly and TVB meaning all artists belonging to the Universal Music Group will not receive any airplay until an agreement is reached. Due to the same reason, Tse was not awarded any awards during the TVB Annual Music Awards. As of August 2010, no agreements has been made. In promotion of the new album, Tse began a series of university mini concerts which spanned from January to March, 2010.[8] In late May 2010, Tse released her first mandarin song Ten Years <<拾年>>, the song was selected as the title song for "The Tenth Chinese Music Media Awards". Tse confirmed that she is in the studio recording her first mandarin album, and confirmed that the lead single have been completed. In addition, she announced that her eighth Cantonese studio album will be due late 2010.[9] On August 23, 2010, Tse along with her management held a press conference to announce she have renewed her contract with her current record lable, Cinepoly, a subsidary of the Universial Music Group. During the conference, it was revealed the seven-figure deal is a 5 years long contract, it is also revealed that her debut mandarin album will be titled My Second Home <<第二個家>>, which is aiming for a October release. She is set to promote the album in Taiwan for the upcoming month. The first single of the album Weak <<脆弱>> was released to radio on the August 23.[10]
Discography
Albums
| Album # | Album Information |
|---|---|
| 1st | Kay One
|
| 2nd | K sus2
|
| 3rd | The First Day
|
| 4th | 3/8
|
| 5th | Binary
|
| 6th | Yelling
|
| 7th | Slowness
|
| 8th | My Second Home (Mandarin)
|
Singles
| Year | Album | Single | 903 | TVB | 997 | RTHK | MOOV |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2005 | Kay One | 姿色份子 | 10 | 7 | - | 16 | - |
| 我歌…故我在 | 12 | - | - | - | - | ||
| 臭男人 | 4 | - | 16 | 18 | - | ||
| 開卷快樂 | 16 | - | - | - | - | ||
| 一人之夏 | 17 | - | - | - | - | ||
| Ksus2 | 跟我走 | 11 | 1 | - | 6 | - | |
| 2006 | 愁人節 | 1 | 1 | 7 | 5 | - | |
| 亡命之途 | 3 | - | - | 5 | - | ||
| 菲情歌 | 14 | 3 | 5 | 4 | - | ||
| All The Best（2nd Edition） | 滄海遺珠（Featuring. 劉浩龍） | - | 4 | 5 | - | 2 | |
| The First Day | 後窗知己 | 20 | 5 | 2 | 5 | 8 | |
| 節外生枝 | 1 | 1 | - | 1 | - | ||
| 2007 | 第一天 | 4 | - | 2 | 10 | - | |
| 3/8 | 3/8 | 2 | - | - | 8 | 8 | |
| 鍾無艷 | 1 | 5 | 2 | 1 | 1 (6 wks) | ||
| 2008 | 神奇女俠的退休生活 | 3 | 1 | 2 | 1 | 4 | |
| Binary | 17度 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 3 | 1 | |
| - | 心火相傳（Featuring. 吳雨霏、林峯, 農夫 and 方大同） | - | - | - | 1 | - | |
| Hello...My Name Is | 四面楚歌（Featuring. 關楚耀） | 1 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 7 | |
| Binary | 囍帖街 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 (6 wks) | |
| - | 同心同路（Featuring. 關楚耀、張敬軒、孫耀威 and 譚詠麟） | - | - | - | 1 | 48 | |
| Binary | 十字架 | 5 | - | 3 | 2 | 8 | |
| 私隱線 | 13 | - | - | - | 14 | ||
| 2009 | Yelling | 祝英台 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 (3 wks) |
| 年度之歌 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | ||
| 吶喊 | 15 | - | 4 | 8 | 5 | ||
| 字裡行奸 | - | - | 6 | - | 15 | ||
| 我最喜愛的歌 | - | - | 3 | 9 | 29 | ||
| Slowness | 活著 | 1 | 3 | 1 | 1 | 2 | |
| 2010 | 藝妓回憶錄 | 1 | ^ | 2 | 5 | 11 | |
| 雨過天陰 | 7 | ^ | 2 | 1 | 12 | ||
| 載我走 | - | ^ | - | 13 | - | ||
| My Second Home (Mandarin) | 脆弱 | 14* | ^ | 6A* | 19* |
- (^) Single was unable to chart due to disagreement between Universal Music Group and TVB
- (*) Single is currently charting
- (A) Single's chart position on Mandarin equivalent of the chart
Appearances in other albums
| Album Information | Tracks Contributed |
|---|---|
Avex Asia 10th Anniversary Super Star Collection
|
Disc 2 - Track 2. "Beauties" (姿色分子) |
2007 Love Songs Collection
|
Disc 1 - Track 9. "Lonesome Festival" (愁人節)
|
2008 Love Songs Collection
|
Disc 1 - Track 1. "Wedding Invitation Street" (囍帖街)
|
Uni-Power
|
Track 2. "青春無晦 ft.Eason Chan" |
Tour
Yelling LIVE 2009
During 2009, Tse announced her first individual tour "Yelling LIVE 2009" to support the album Yelling. The tour was held during 5th-10 May with 5 dates. The location selected was Hong Kong Coliseum. Tickets for these dates sold out quickly. As a result from high demand of tickets, two additional dates were added to a total of 7 dates. At December 2009, an extra date was added to extend the tour to Macau, marking her first concert outside of Hong Kong.
SLOWNESS University Mini Tour 2010
With the release of Tse's 7th album Slowness, Tse embarked on a mini concert tour in support of the new album. The tour started from January 2010 to March of the same year. The tour consist of nine stops, visiting the eight universities of Hong Kong, with the final concert as part of the charity show for Lions Clubs International held in Hong Kong Convention and Exhibition Centre.
Filmography
- A Lover's Discourse (2010)
Awards
2006
Tse won the Bronze Award for "CRHK 2005 Best New Artist", along with Ivana Wong and Janice Vidal who won the Silver and Gold Award respectively.
2007
In the CRHK annual award, Tse's single "Gloomy Festival" <<愁人節>> scored number 10 of the CRHK Top Ten Recommendation, becoming her first end-of-year top 10 single.
2008
In the CRHK annual award, Tse won the Bronze Award for "Best Female Singer".
2009
In the Metro Hit Music Awards, Tse won 4 awards including "Favourite Female Singer", "Best Female Singer". Her single "Wedding Invitation Street" <<囍帖街>> also won "Favourite Single of the Year" and "Single of the Year". In the Ultimate Song Chart Awards, Tse won 5 awards. With the single "Wedding Invitation Street" becoming "Single of the Year" and "Favourite Single of the Year". The album "Binary" also won the "Album of the Year" award. Tse herself won the Silver Award for "Best Female Singer" and "Favourite Female Singer of the Year". In the Jade Solid Gold Top 10 Awards, Tse scored her first Top 10 with "Wedding Invitation Street", the single also won the "Single of the Year" award. In the CRHK annual award, Tse acored again "Single of the Year" for "Wedding Invitation Street" and "Album of the Year" for "Binary". In the Most prestigious ceremony of the year, the Four Station Joint Music Awards, Tse won 3 of the 4 available categories, including "Media Award - Single" for "Wedding Invitation Street", "Media Award - Album" for "Binary" and the most prestigious award of all "Media Award - Performer", which is awarded to the artist that have won the most award in the 4 main awarding ceremonies.
References
- ^ [1]
- ^ [2]
- ^ [3]
- ^ http://bbs.ent.163.com/bbs/jiepai/75237,3.html
- ^ http://www.kui.name/event/2009-01-20/%E8%AC%9D%E5%AE%89%E7%90%AA%E6%94%B6%E7%A6%AE%E8%B8%A9%E5%9B%8D%E5%B8%96%E8%A1%97.htm
- ^ 東方日報2008年11月09日 00:28 Last accessed 4/07/2010
- ^ http://group.mtime.com/LeslieCheung/discussion/803337/
- ^ http://www.elle.com.hk/celebrity/news/Kay-Tse-Slowness-Mini-Live-at-Baptist-University
- ^ http://www.darzz.com/forum/viewthread.php?tid=3032
- ^ http://ericlow-momentsoflifesblog.blogspot.com/2010/08/7.html
- ^ "Kay Tse". imdb.com. Retrieved April 16, 2010.
- ^ "Kay Tse". chinesemov.com. Retrieved April 16, 2010.