Jacky Cheung

See also

• Cinema of Hong Kong
• Music of Hong Kong

Career

Music

Cheung originally started working as a reservation officer for the Cathay Pacific airline.His music career started when he won the Amateur 18-Hong Kong district singing contest in 1984 with the songFatherland(大地恩情).He ousted more than 10,000 other contestants.After winning the contest, he was signed by the then Polygram Records , now Universal Music Group .Although encouraged by a bright start, he was not able to achieve immediate supremacy in Cantopop, then dominated by Leslie Cheung , Alan Tam , Anita Mui and Danny Chan . In 1985 he won his first two major awards together with the 1985 RTHK Top 10 Gold Songs Awards and the 1985 Jade Solid Gold Top 10 Awards .

	"Half moon (月半彎)" A transitional song from the golden age to the Four Heavenly Kings (四大天王) era by Jacky Cheung
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In 1991 he released the song "Loving You More Every Day" (每天愛你多一些), a translated version of the Japanese Southern All Stars hit,Midsummer's Fruit(真夏の果実). The albumTrue Love Expression(真情流露) in 1992, as well as the subsequent release,Love Sparks(愛火花) in 1992, achieved audited sales of over 400,000 copies in Hong Kong alone.

His subsequent albums included 1993"Me and You"(我與你) and 1994"Born to be wild"(餓狼傳說). In the 1994 Billboard Music Awards in the US, he was named the most popular singer in Asia.He received numerous music awards both in Hong Kong and elsewhere, including the best-selling Chinese singer in the World Music Awards for two consecutive years in 1995 and 1996 held at Monaco .Cheung was also elected as one of the world's Top Ten Outstanding Young Persons in 1999.

Amongst his hit songs, some of his most famous wereAmour, "Just want to spend my life with you" (只想一生跟你走) and "Goodbye Kiss" (吻别). The albumThe Goodbye Kiss(吻别) was one of the best-selling albums of all time, achieving more sales in Hong Kong, Taiwan and Southeast Asia than ever attained before, with an astounding 4 million copies sold in 1993 alone.The 4 million sold worldwide allowed him to be the first Asian artist to get on PolyGram's annual Top 10 roster.The album was also instrumental in helping Cheung break into the mandopop market. Due to these great songs and albums, Cheung is generally considered to be the pre-eminent member of theFour Heavenly Kings of Cantopop. He is regarded by some sources as the best singer of the four.

In 1995, Cheung staged his record-breaking 100-show world tour titled "Yau Hok Yau" (友學友), literally a pun of "friendship Jacky Cheung" reusing the same Chinese characters found in his name.The tour started with 34 shows from April 8 to June 9 at the Hong Kong Coliseum . Then the tour continued at Perth Brisbane Australia and returned back to Taipei and mainland China .It then expanded to Madison Square Garden in the US , different parts of Europe , Singapore , India , Malaysia and Japan .He was regarded as the new Michael Jackson by Business Week .

His successful music and acting career has made him one of Hong Kong's icons. Cheung was elected by Time Magazine as one of the "25 most influential people in the New Hong Kong" in 1996.

In 1999, he was named one of the 10 Outstanding Young Persons of the World by the Junior Chamber International, a worldwide federation of young professionals and entrepreneurs.In 2000 he was awarded by RTHK , the Golden Needle Award .This award, the equivalent of a lifetime achievement award, recognized outstanding contributions to the music industry.

Cheung won theBest Selling Cantonese Album Awardin the Hong Kong IFPI Awards of 2005 with his live album,Jacky Live Performance. In the fast-changing scene of canto-pop, Cheung has been able to maintain his popularity and sales power for more than 20 years after his debut, which is unparalleled in the history of Hong Kong pop music.

In 2007, Cheung staged his"Year of Jacky Cheung World Tour 2007". The tour started on 18 February 2007 at The Colosseum at Caesars Palace in Las Vegas . When the tour ended in Hong Kong on 3 February 2008 after touring 58 cities around the world, a total of 105 shows had been given, attracting more than 2 million fans. 105 became the highest number of shows in a tour by a Chinese artist, breaking the previous record of 100, which was also set by Cheung previously.

Duets

Cheung not only performs solo but often in duets . Hong Kong artists he has performed with in duet songs include:

• Priscilla Chan -"A Pair of Lonely Hearts"
• Faye Wong -"Love's Promise"
• Kelly Chen -"Waiting for Your Love"
• Anita Mui -"Love is Hard"（相愛很難）
• Anita Mui - 祝福 atClassic Moment Live, Anita Mui 's farewell concert

A duet with Filipino singer-actress Regine Velasquez on the song"In Love with You"was included in her multi-platinum album"Listen Without Prejudice". In 2008 Cheung and A-Mei , the popular Taiwanese singer, performedZhu Fu("Blessing") as a duet in a benefit concert for victims of the 2008 Sichuan earthquake . Other duet partners include:

• Sarah Brightman -"There for Me"
• Reba McEntire -"For My Broken Heart"

On stage musical

In 1997 his work on the groundbreaking Cantonese broadway-style musicalSnow.Wolf.Lakewas enthusiastically received by both audiences and critics.Cheung not only played the male lead, but was also the artistic director for this production. The first female lead was played by Sandy Lam in Hong Kong and Nnadia Chan in Singapore . Kit Chan played the second female lead. They achieved 43 consecutive full-house performances at the gigantic Hung Hom Hong Kong Coliseum which remains the record today.In November 2004, Cheung and his concert manager, Florence Chan Suk-fan, worked on a revised Mandarin version ofSnow, Wolf, Lakeso as to bring it to a wider audience. The female leads this time were Evonne Hsu and Nnadia Chan respectively. The market budget alone exceeded HK$ 15 million.The estimated budget for this revised production was HK$100 million and the show premiered on 24 December 2004 in Beijing .

Acting

While Cheung is known for his singing, he has also acted in many films. He received the Best Supporting Actor award in the 8th Hong Kong Film Awards for his work inAs Tears Go By(1988) as well as the Best Supporting Actor Golden Horse Award for his work inSwordsman(1990).That same year he also collaborated with John Woo and Tony Leung in the filmBullet in the Head. For his work in July Rhapsody , he also received the Best Actor Award at the New Delhi Film Festival for his portrayal of the protagonist role. His songPerhaps Love, which serves as the theme song for the multi-award-winning filmPerhaps Love, also won theBest Song Awardat the 2005 Hong Kong Film Award and theCASH Best Song Awardat the 2005/2006 CASH Gold Sail Music Awards. He also starred in Taiwanese mini-series calledLove Scarwith F4 member Jerry Yan and Karen Mok , where he acted as Jerry Yan's older brother.

In the 2004 released and Wong Ching-po directed triads drama film,Jiang Hu, Cheung played the role ofLefty, the best friend and right hand man of a crime boss,Hung Yan Chau, who is played by Andy Lau . The film includes several actors from the cast ofInfernal Affairs.

Ceremonies and spokesperson

Cheung was named the spokesperson for Hong Kong Disneyland in 2004. He took part in a number of large-scale marketing events organized by The Walt Disney Company and Walt Disney Parks and Resorts , beginning with the hosting of a TV program,Magical World of Disneyland.He recorded a multi-lingual song for Hong Kong Disneyland, entitledOne.The music video forOnewas filmed at Hong Kong Disneyland. He also recorded for the Hong Kong Disneyland: The Grand Opening Celebration Album .

In December 2006, Cheung performed live the theme song"Together Now"at the Opening Ceremony of the 15th Asian Games in Doha , Qatar .He was introduced as "the most popular Asian performer in the world".

In 2010, Cheung, Jane Zhang , and K'naan sang a Mandarin version of " Wavin' Flag (The Celebration Mix)" for the 2010 Fifa World Cup.

Community

In March 2009 he became the first Cantopop / Mandopop artist to contribute items to the Hard Rock franchise memorabilia collection.Items are to be exhibited at the Hard Rock hotel in Macau .A joint donation is also made to donate HK$ 600,000 to the Children's Cancer Foundation and ORBIS Macau .In Sept 2009, Cheung, as one of the super ambassadors of End Child Sexual Abuse Foundation (ECSAF) founded by Josephine Siao , attended the charity fund raising event for celebrating ECSAF’s 10th anniversary in Hong Kong.

Foreign domestic helper incident

Cheung's maid was arrested for taking images of Cheung's children, in a case sparked controversy among some domestic servants in Hong Kong, arguing that Cheung overreacted and the sentence was disproportionate and regarded the case as racial discrimination.The Philippines consulate soon announced that Cheung's family had employed 21 different maids in a three-year period and placed Jacky Cheung on a 'blacklist' that would prevent him from employing any Filipino maids in the future.

IFPI Awards (partial list)

IFPI Gold Disc Award

• 1989 87'演唱會 Polygram
• 1990 絲絲記憶精選 Polygram

IFPI Platinum Disc Award

• 1985 Smile Polygram
• 1986 遙遠的她 Polygram
• 1987 相愛 Polygram
• 1987 Jacky Polygram
• 1988 昨夜夢魂中 Polygram
• 1990 給我親愛的 Polygram
• 1990 祇願一生愛一人 Polygram

IFPI Top 10 Sales Album

• 2003 Where is he 他在那裡 What's Music
• 2004 Black & White What's Music
• 2005 活出生命 Live 演唱會 What's Music

IFPI Top 10 Sales Artist

• 2005

IFPI Top Sales Album

• 2005 活出生命 Live 演唱會 What's Music

Biography

Cheung is a baritone .He is one of the performers that the Chinese media refers to as Four Heavenly Kings (四大天王).Cheung is also nicknamed "God of Songs" (歌神), but he is the second person to hold this title, after former Cantopop singer Sam Hui .In an interview with Ray Cordeiro , Cheung stated that the title was more appropriate for Hui than him, since he actually wrote and popularized songs.

Cheung married Hong Kong actress May Lo Mei-mei on February 15, 1996 in London, with whom he has two daughters.

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