Emma Wu Ying-chieh (; born 11 August 1989), also known as Gui Gui (), is a Taiwanese singer and actress.
Early life
Wu Ying-chieh, nicknamed ''Gui Gui'', was born in Keelung City,
Taiwan
Taiwan, officially the Republic of China (ROC), is a country in East Asia. The main geography of Taiwan, island of Taiwan, also known as ''Formosa'', lies between the East China Sea, East and South China Seas in the northwestern Pacific Ocea ...
on 11 August 1989, and is the only child of divorced parents. In her early childhood, the family moved frequently, and this resulted in her having to attend five different elementary schools. Wu briefly attended the Dao Jiang Senior High School of Nursing & Home Economics ( 臺北市私立稻江高級護理家事職業學校) before transferring to Zhuangjing Senior Vocational School in the
Xindian District
Xindian District () is an inner city District (Taiwan), district in the southern part of New Taipei City, Taiwan.
Name
Xindian's name originated during the Qing Dynasty close to 300 years ago. According to legend, a person named Lin and others ...
of
Taipei
, nickname = The City of Azaleas
, image_map =
, map_caption =
, pushpin_map = Taiwan#Asia#Pacific Ocean#Earth
, coordinates =
, subdivision_type = Country ...
Wang Zi
Prince Chiu (born 14 April 1989) is a Taiwanese singer, actor, model, and television host. He is a member of a trio boyband, JPM,
Career
2005–2009: Variety and musical debut
In November 2005, Wu debuted as one of the original members of ''Blackie's Teenage Club'' (), a variety show seeking talents for the television network, Channel After three rounds of casting, Wu was recruited to join ''Hei Se Hui Mei Mei'' (), a nine-member Taiwanese girl group established c. 2006. Though the group's name was a clever play on the words "Hei She Hui" () and "Mei Mei" (), it was renamed Hey Girl () after a label change and the launch of their first self-titled album in August 2008.
In April 2009, Channel V's director, Andy Chang, responded to rumors of Wu leaving his agency. He expressed that though she was unlikely to renew her contract, the singer would partake in group activities per usual since ''Hey Girls record contract did not belong to Channel V. Yet, despite Chang's statement, Wu was notably absent from their album promotions, and on 6 May 2009, he confirmed her departure from both ''Hey Girl'' and Channel V's management.
2007–2015: Transition into acting
In 2007, Wu announced her acting debut with the idol drama, ''
Brown Sugar Macchiato
''Brown Sugar Macchiato'' () is a Taiwanese drama starring members of Taiwanese bands Lollipop F and Hey Girl. It was first broadcast in Taiwan on free-to-air Formosa Television (FTV) from 15 July 2007 to 7 October 2007 and cable TV STAR Chinese ...
''. However, the drama was viewed more as an "introductory chapter" to the two groups, Hey Girl and
Lollipop F
Lollipop F () was a Taiwanese people, Taiwanese Mandopop boy band gaining popularity throughout Asia. The group started off with six members, all chosen from Channel V, Channel Taiwan's show ''Bang Bang Tang'' (), a show which sought to cre ...
, than a major production. After thirteen episodes, the series ended on 7 October 2007, and an official soundtrack was released with songs from ''Lollipop'' and ''Hey Girl''.
In 2008, Wu starred in ''
Mysterious Incredible Terminator
Mysterious Incredible Terminator (, aka ''The Clue Collector'') is a 2008 Taiwanese television series starring Aaron Yan, Gui Gui, Alien Huang and Christine Fan. It was produced by Three Giant Productions (三匠影視有限公司). Fahrenciti.co ...
'', opposite of
Aaron Yan
Aaron Yan (, born Wu Keng-lin on 20 November 1985) is a Taiwanese people, Taiwanese actor, singer, television host and businessman. He was also one of the members of Taiwanese boy band Fahrenheit (Taiwanese band), Fahrenheit.
Life and caree ...
from
Fahrenheit
The Fahrenheit scale () is a scale of temperature, temperature scale based on one proposed in 1724 by the German-Polish physicist Daniel Gabriel Fahrenheit (1686–1736). It uses the degree Fahrenheit (symbol: °F) as the unit. Several accou ...
and
Alien Huang
Alien Huang (28 November 1983 – 16 September 2020), also known as Xiao Gui (Little Ghost), was a Taiwanese singer, actor, television presenter, illustrator and fashion designer.
He was a member of Japanese TV Asahi's disbanded boy band HC ...
. After the completion of ''M.I.T.'', Wu and Aaron, both widely praised for their on-screen chemistry and closeness, were to co-star in
Taiwanese drama
Taiwanese drama (, also known as T.W. drama) refer to dramatic programming of television programming extended stories usually dramatizing relationships through the general range of ten to forty one-hour episodes. They are produced in Taiwan and ha ...
''
Momo Love
''Momo Love'' () is a 2009 Taiwanese television series starring Jiro Wang and Calvin Chen, Cyndi Wang, Wong Jinglun and Ken Chu. It was produced by Comic International Productions and Gala Television (GTV) and directed by Chu Yu-ning. It is ...
''. Yet, filming was halted due to Yan's scheduling conflicts, and once resumed, Wu and Aaron were replaced by
Cyndi Wang
Cyndi Wang Hsin-ling (; born 5 September 1982) is a Taiwanese singer and actress. Wang began her music career with the release of her debut album ''Begin…'' (2003), gaining popularity for her bubblegum, sugary style and “Sweetheart Princes ...
and
Jiro Wang
Jiro Wang (; born August 24, 1981) is a Taiwanese singer and actor, who started his career as a model. Wang is a member of Taiwanese Mandopop vocal quartet boy band Fahrenheit.
Life
Jiro Wang was born August 24, 1981, in Taiwan. He graduat ...
, respectively.
Following a two-year hiatus, Wu signed with Polyface Entertainment Media Group in 2011 and returned to the small screen with ''I, My Brother'' ( 我和我的兄弟·恩). Later that year, Wu was cast in the television version of
Painted Skin (TV series)
''Painted Skin'' is a Chinese television series adapted from the Painted Skin (2008 film), 2008 film of the same title, which, in turn, is loosely based on a classic short story in Pu Songling's ''Strange Stories from a Chinese Studio''. It was fir ...
, in collaboration with
Fiona Sit
Fiona Sit (; born 11 August 1981) is a Hong Kong singer and actress.
Early life
In an interview with Hong Kong newspaper '' Apple Daily'' in 2006, Fiona Sit revealed that she has always been interested in singing in front of an audience since ...
, Chen Yi Rong, and Li Zhong Han. It was also this opportunity that allowed Wu to shift her focus to the Chinese market.
In 2012, Wu debuted on the big screen with a three part-film series, The Four, starring
Ronald Cheng
Ronald Cheng Chung-kei (born 9 March 1972) is a Hong Kong actor, singer and songwriter.
Life and career
Ronald Cheng was born in Hong Kong. Originally intending to work behind the scenes as a songwriter and a producer, Cheng did odd jobs at his ...
Deng Chao
Deng Chao ( zh, s=邓超, t=鄧超, p=Dèng Chāo, born 8 February 1979) is a Chinese actor and director. Deng received recognition for the television series ''The Young Emperor'' (2003) and ''Happiness as Flowers'' (2005). He later shifted his ...
, and
Liu Yifei
Liu Yifei (; born August 25, 1987) is a Chinese-born American actress. She has appeared multiple times on ''Forbes'' China Celebrity 100 list and was named one of the New Four Dan actresses of China by Tencent Entertainment in 2009. She is k ...
. In February 2013, she was cast in the Korean reality show, ''
We Got Married
''We Got Married'' () was a South Korean reality variety show that aired on MBC from 2008 to 2017. The show paired up celebrities who pretended to be married couples and completed various challenges together. The show ran for four seasons and i ...
'' with
Ok Taecyeon
Ok Taec-yeon (; born December 27, 1988), known mononymously as Taecyeon, is a South Korean rapper, singer, songwriter, actor, and entrepreneur. He is the rapper of the South Korean boy band 2PM.
In 2010, Ok debuted as an actor in the Korean ...
, of South Korean boy band 2PM, as her virtual husband. Regarding this experience, she has commented, "I feel thankful that you found me. I think the fact that I was able to do this show was a gift from the up above."
In the consecutive years, Wu has starred in Chinese TV dramas:
Legend of Lu Zhen
''Legend of Lu Zhen'' () is a 2013 Chinese television historical drama series based on the novel ''Female Prime Minister'' (女相) by Zhang Wei. Directed by Li Huizhu, Zheng Wei'en and Liang Guoguan and produced by Yu Zheng and Mu Xiaohui, the ser ...
, ''Incisive Great Teacher'' ( 犀利仁師), ''A Different Kind of Pretty Man'' ( 不一樣的美男子), ''Roommate Diaries'' ( 一男三女合租記),
The Four (2015 TV series)
''The Four'' () is a 2015 Chinese television series starring Hans Zhang, Yang Yang, William Chan and Mao Zijun. It is the latest adaption of Woon Swee Oan's novel ''Si Da Ming Bu'' (四大名捕; The Four Great Constables). The series aired on ...
, ''The Girl Wearing Tassel Earrings'' ( 戴流蘇耳環的少女) and ''The Legend of the Flying Daggers'' ( 飛刀又見飛刀 (2016年電視劇)).
2016–present: Musical comeback
On 7 March 2016, Wu signed with
CJ E&M
CJ ENM Entertainment Division (), formerly known as CJ E&M, is a South Korean entertainment and mass media division (formerly company) of CJ ENM. In July 2018, the company merged with the parent company's subsidiary CJ O Shopping, with the latte ...
and returned to the music scene. In preparation for her Korean debut, she underwent a rigorous 3-month training that included vocal, choreography and Korean lessons. On 26 September, Wu released her first official music video, ''Sugar Rush'', and on 7 October, she launched her first self-titled EP, ''GEMMA''. Introducing the extended play, Wu stated that ''GEMMA'' represented a new identity. "G" was derived from her nickname, Ghost (), while Emma is her proclaimed English name.
In June 2017, Wu parted ways with CJ E&M, and established her personal agency ''Gemma Wu Studio''. In October of the same year, she released the single "Knock Knock Knock" after investing NT$8 million in production works herself.
In August 2019, Wu joined
Avex Taiwan
Avex Taiwan Inc (, formerly 艾迴唱片公司 or 艾迴股份有限公司) is an entertainment and record label based in Taiwan. It was founded in July 1998 and is a foreign consolidated subsidiary of parent company Avex Group, based in Japan. A ...
and released the single "Love Me Love Me" in celebration of her thirtieth birthday. On 22 September 2020, she released her first studio album ''GX'' to commemorate her 15th debut anniversary.