Li Yuchun

Li Yuchun Chris Lee
Background information
Chinese name	李宇春
Pinyin	Lǐ Yǔchūn (Mandarin)
Origin	Chengdu, Sichuan, China
Born	(1984-03-10) March 10, 1984 Chengdu, Sichuan, China
Other name(s)	Chris Lee, Chun Chun
Occupation	Singer, songwriter, actress, director
Genre(s)	Mandopop
Instrument(s)	guitar, drum set, piano, Micro KORG, ukulele
Voice type(s)	mezzo-soprano
Label(s)	Record Label(s): Taihe Rye Music (2005-2009) EE-Media (2011–2015) Yellow Stone (2015-present) Manage Label(s): EE-Media (2005–2015) Li Yuchun studio/Yellow Stone (2015-present)
Years active	2005–present
Website	https://www.instagram.com/urnotchrislee/ https://www.instagram.com/liyuchun.official/ http://e.weibo.com/chrisleestudio

Li Yuchun (Chinese: 李宇春; pinyin: Lǐ Yǔchūn), also known as Chris Lee, is a Chinese singer, songwriter, actress, director, fashion icon and philanthropist, (born March 10, 1984, Chengdu, China), who became one of the country’s top pop stars after winning a nationally televised talent contest in 2005.^[1] She subsequently released 52 top singles.^[2]

Life and career

Li (who calls herself Chris Lee or Chris Li in English) was born and raised in Chengdu, capital of Sichuan province in southern China. The daughter of a railway policeman and a housewife, she received no formal musical training while growing up but put on stage performances for her schoolmates. Li’s parents did not encourage her singing ambition but supported her in a successful quest to enter the Sichuan Conservatory of Music in Chengdu, which she attended in 2002–06.^[3]

In 2005, while Li was still a student, she entered the Super Girl, a nationwide females-only competition similar to the show American Idol in the United States. She was one of some 150,000 aspirants initially. Li captivated and won over audiences with her iconoclastic boyish looks and passionate delivery. By the final night of the competition, an estimated 400 million viewers were tuned into the show as Li beat out her closest opponent by more than a quarter of a million votes.^[4][5]

Music

Li recorded and released her first studio album, Huang Hou Yu Meng Xiang (皇后与梦想/The Queen and the Dreams), in September 2006, and more discs followed, including her self-titled Li Yuchun (李宇春同名专辑/ Chris Lee) in 2009 and Hui Tiao Wu De Wen Yi Qing Nian (会跳舞的文艺青年/The Literary Youth Who Can Dance) in 2011. ^[6] Her 2006 first album The Queen and Dreams reached sales of 1.37 million. Since her debut, she has released 7 top-selling albums and 3 films. To date, she has had 52 hit singles on Chinese Music Billboard.

Her concerts were wildly popular and included several annual shows titled “Why Me” which were staged to thank her fans. Many of those fans referred to themselves as “corns,” a play on the Chinese Yumi, one set of characters meaning “Yu’s fans” and the other “corn” (i.e., maize).

Her popularity soon spread beyond China, as indicated by the nod MTV gave her at MTV Asia Awards 2008, where she was named favorite artist from China, and by the enthusiastic reception she received while performing at the 2009 Asia Song Festival in Seoul, South Korea. In 2013 Li won in the worldwide act category at the MTV European Music Awards (EMA), another indication of the extent of her international appeal. ^[7]

Film

In 2009 Li’s career took another turn when, in her first-ever acting experience, she landed a major role in the 2009 Hong Kong-produced film Bodyguards and Assassins (十月围城/Shiyue weicheng). In it she plays a young Kung fu expert who, in 1906, helps protect revolutionary leader Sun Yat-sen from would-be assassins sent by the Chinese imperial government. Li’s performance earned her two nominations (for Hong Kong Film Award for Best Supporting Actress and Hong Kong Film Award for Best New Performer) from the judges for the 2010 Hong Kong Film Award. In addition, the film’s theme song, “Fenmo” (“Dust”), which she had sung for the film, was nominated for Best Original Film Song. Although neither Li nor the song won, this recognition of her acting talent only further enhanced her position at the top of the Chinese pop music world. Li also had significant roles in the action films The Flying Swords of Dragon Gate (2011; 龙门飞甲/Longmen feija), The Guillotines (2012; 血滴子Xuedizi) and From Vegas to Macau III (2016；澳门风云3).^[8]

Fashion

Li went on to gain worldwide recognition when she was announced as the winner of the MTV Europe Music Award for Best Worldwide Act. This award cemented Li’s role in the fashion industry. Li began attending fashion shows for luxury brands including Chanel and Balenciaga, following this award. Her success has drawn a significant amount of interest from the commercial world, signing deals with the likes of Coca-Cola and L'Oréal Paris.^[9][10]

International fashion designers have been gravitating toward the star since 2012, when the Chengdu native began inviting some of the biggest names to create the costumes for her annual ‘Why Me?’ concert tour.^[11] The wardrobe for "Crazy World Tour” in 2012 is a creation by French designer Jean Paul Gaultier.^[12] Li wears custom made outfits by Givenchy Creative Director Riccardo Tisci for her tour in 2013.^[13] Tisci created a set of five looks for the various sections of her show.^[14][15] Fendi Creative Director Karl Lagerfeld leading his team, Givenchy Creative Director Riccardo Tisci, Moschino Creative Director Jeremy Scott, Gareth Pugh designs for Chris Lee her costumes for 10 Year Anniversary Why Me Concert in 2015.^[16]

In 2016, at the 69th annual Cannes Film Festival, Li made a sensation on the red carpet wearing a huge black vinyl dress by French couturier Julien Fournié. In the previous edition, she was pictured at the same event in a complete look by Jean Paul Gaultier ’s Spring 2015 Couture collection.^[17] Karl Lagerfeld has shot her for “The Little Black Jacket” book in 2013.^[18]

She stars in Givenchy’s Autumn/Winter 2015 campaign by Riccardo Tisci^[19] and picked as One of Business of Fashion's 500 Global Fashion Leaders in 2015.^[20]

Li was announced the ambassador for Gucci Timepieces and Jewelry in Asia in Jun 2016.^[21]

Discography

Albums

• The Special Greeting for Chris' Birthday (2006)
• The Queen and the Dreams (2006)
• Mine (2007)
• Mine 2008 Version Spring Festival (2008)
• Youth of China (2008)
• N+1 Evolution (2008)
• Chris Lee (2009)
• The Literary Youth Who Can Dance (2011)
• Old if Not Wild (2012)
• A Magical Encounter 1987 (2014)
• Growing Wild (2016)

Singles

List of Li Yuchun Singles

Concert Tours

^[22]

• Why Me (2006-2015)
• The Queen and Dreams (2006)
• Unplugged Shanghai Concert(2006)
• Mine Tour (2007)
• AMo (2009)
• Crazy World Tour (2012)
• Growing Wild Tour (2016)

Filmography

Movies

Chinese names in the notes field

^{[26] [27]}

Theater

Chinese names in the notes field

^[30]

Philanthropy

Yùmǐ Love Fund

Yùmǐ Love Fund,also translated as "LIYUCHUN Fans Charity Fund " is a special purpose fund of the China Red Cross Foundation (CRCF).^[31] CRCF invited Li Yuchun to become the ambassador of its “Little Angel Fund” on December 29, 2005.^[32] By March 2006, CRCF had already received over $62,000 donation from “Yùmǐ”, fans of Li Yuchun, into the Little Angel Fund. Proposed by “Yùmǐ ” and supported by Li Yuchun, a new “Yùmǐ Love Fund” (the “Fund”) was established under CRCF. It was China’s first special purpose fund named after and donated by a fans group. In 2006 the songstress was appointed ambassador of the Yùmǐ Love Fund by the CRCF and her public support of the cause has helped its donations rocket. By March 2016, the total amount of donations received had exceeded $1.86 million.^[33] All donations from “Yùmǐ ” in China would go to the “Yùmǐ Love Fund” starting from March 19, 2006, earmarked for purposes set by the Fund. CRCF publishes the Fund’s current status of donation and funds deployment through media from time to time, accepts annual audit, and is subject to public scrutiny from media and “Yumi.”^[34] By September 2015, the Fund had received over 58,000 donations. The Fund has paid for the rehabilitation training for 131 hearing-impaired children and funded treatment for 33 children with severe diseases and financial difficulty. It has helped build five community clinics in Anhui, Sichuan, Gansu and Henan Provinces and one community health center. It funded the reconstruction of a village and a school after earthquakes.^[35]The Fund has also responded to natural disasters, including the Lushan Earthquake, Ludian Earthquake and Sichuan Flood, with 4,000 family emergency kits to those in the affected areas.^{[36] [37]} Fans of singer Li Yuchun have donated 1 million yuan ($146,500) through their Yumi Love Fund to the county.^[38][39]

Others

As World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF)’s Earth Hour Ambassadors in 2012, Li Yuchun made her own environmental promises and called on her fans to make their own changes for the planet.^[40]

Since witnessing the majestic elephants on a safari trip to Africa, Li Yuchun has made it her personal mission to speak up against elephant poaching and the ivory trade—the root cause of the slaughter in a public Service Announcement (PSA) by the International Fund for Animal Welfare (IFAW). ^[41]

Li Yuchun is the M.A.C AIDS Fund China Ambassador. M.A.C has been supporting UNICEF China's Youth Ambassadors Programme which aims to empower youth to learn the facts on AIDS, share knowledge with friends and family, and care for children affected by AIDS.^[42]Li Yuchun attended amfAR’s 22nd Cinema Against AIDS Gala in 2015.^[43]

Original Works

Song Writer

Chinese song titles in the notes field ^[44]

Director

Chinese song titles in the notes field ^[45]

Awards and achievements

International Music Awards

Public image

Focus of fashion

1. World’s Outstanding Women^[63]
2. Top 50 most beautiful people in China ^[64]
3. "Most Influential Female Award" in the Celebration of China's 60th Anniversary^[65]
4. Most Stylish Singer of the Year 2010^[66]
5. Fashionable glamorous female model of the year 2013^[67]

Endorsements

Status

Lee's "success has drawn a significant amount of interest from the commercial world, signing deals with the likes of Coca-Cola and L'Oréal Paris.^[68]" She has also appeared in a campaign for Tiffany & Co.^[69] – the video advertisement garnered roughly 500,000 views upon its debut on Chinese video site, Youku. The Chinese style also served as a brand ambassador for Italian design house, Versace, some time ago. Her appeal to these brands is not surprising, since the hottest accessory for brands right now is a celebrity with massive selling power. Moreover, her androgynous look has also been a source of appeal for many fashion houses, including Givenchy.^[70] Today, in Asia, anything the Chinese singer, actress and fashion muse Li Yuchun wears sells out immediately.^[71]

Product Endorsements

Fans

Yùmǐ (玉米) means corn in Chinese. But ever since the year 2005, it is also the nickname for the fans of the legendary Chinese singer Li Yuchun, as “Yù” (“玉”) in Chinese is pronounced the same as “Yǔ” (“宇”) in Li’s name, and “mǐ ”(“米”) is the homonym for fans (“mí”, “迷”). Yùmǐ is known in China for their large population that covers people of all ages from all walks of life. In the 2005 finals of Super Girls talent show where the 21-year-old Li took off her career as a singer, she was crowned as champion with a vote count of 3.52 million. ^[81]

In 2013 MTV Europe Music Awards, Li gathered a vote count of over 100 million in a three-round poll, winning the Best Worldwide Act.^[82]

Yùmǐ as a group are also adamant supporters for Li’s music. Every single one of Li’s seven albums so far has been a best-seller of the year, literally, the best, seller. It is a known phenomenon in China that it is extremely hard to get a ticket for Li’s concert, as the supply always falls short of demands. On Sep.26 2015,over 33,000 audience on site with 4,980,000 online and 21,500 in 10 cinemas watched her tenth WhyMe Concert.^[83][84]

Ever since her debut,there has been no official fan club for Yùmǐ, and all their conducts are voluntary.

References

External links

• Li Yuchun Instagram
• 李宇春 CHRIS LEE on Facebook
• CHRIS LEE on YouTube
• Official Weibo (Chinese)
• Li Yuchun Official Weibo (Chinese)
• Li Yuchun at IMDb
• Li Yuchun at BoF500
• Chinese Red Cross Foundation (Chinese)
• Yumi Love Fund (Chinese)