Li Guyi (; born 4 November 1944) is a Chinese singer and dancer. Li rose to fame after singing ''Homeland Love'' (), a mellow love ballad written by Ma Jinghua and Zhang Peiji, in 1980 shortly after China began its " Reform and Opening".

Biography

Li was born in 1944 in

Kunming Kunming is the capital and largest city of the province of Yunnan in China. The political, economic, communications and cultural centre of the province, Kunming is also the seat of the provincial government. During World War II, Kunming was a Ch ...

Yunnan Yunnan; is an inland Provinces of China, province in Southwestern China. The province spans approximately and has a population of 47.2 million (as of 2020). The capital of the province is Kunming. The province borders the Chinese provinces ...

, at Huidian Hospital (), she graduated from Hunan Art College (now part of Hunan Normal University) in 1961. From 1961 to 1974, Li worked in Hunan Opera Theatre. In 1970, Li performed ''Tinker a Pan'' (). Chinese officials thought she was a revisionist black talent. Officials searched her house, confiscated her property, and she was sentenced to hard labor. From 1974 to 1984, Li was transferred to Central Philharmonic Orchestra as a solo. Then she has toured with the Central Philharmonic Orchestra to perform in China and abroad, including in

France France, officially the French Republic, is a country located primarily in Western Europe. Overseas France, Its overseas regions and territories include French Guiana in South America, Saint Pierre and Miquelon in the Atlantic Ocean#North Atlan ...

Japan Japan is an island country in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean off the northeast coast of the Asia, Asian mainland, it is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan and extends from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea ...

and the

United States The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...

. In 1980, the Chinese officials criticized Li as "

mainland China "Mainland China", also referred to as "the Chinese mainland", is a Geopolitics, geopolitical term defined as the territory under direct administration of the People's Republic of China (PRC) in the aftermath of the Chinese Civil War. In addit ...

Teresa Teng Teng Li-Chun ( zh, t=鄧麗君, s=, p=Dèng Lìjūn; 29 January 1953 – 8 May 1995), commonly known as Teresa Teng, was a Taiwanese singer, television personality, musician, and philanthropist. Referred to by some as the "Honorific nicknames i ...

" for singing ''Homeland Love'' (), considered the first pop song in mainland China. The song was prohibited for several years. In 1986, Li worked in Chinese Light Music Group as the head. In 1996, Li transferred to Central Oriental Song and Dance Troupe as the CPC Party Secretary. Li is actively involved in politics, and was a member of the 6th, 7th, 8th, and 9th National Committee of the

Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference The Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference (CPPCC) is a political advisory body in the People's Republic of China and a central part of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP)'s United front (China), united front system. Its members adv ...

. On January 6, 2020, she was hired as a member of the Hunan Literature and History Institute.

Family

Li was twice married. Originally wed to musician Jin Tielin. After a turbulent divorce, she remarried in 1976. Xiao Zhuoneng (), her second husband, the son of Xiao Jinguang, who was one of the ten senior commanders of the

People's Liberation Army The People's Liberation Army (PLA) is the military of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) and the People's Republic of China (PRC). It consists of four Military branch, services—People's Liberation Army Ground Force, Ground Force, People's ...

. The couple has a daughter, Xiao Yi (). Xiao Zhuoneng died on May 29, 2020.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Li, Guyi 1944 births Living people People from Kunming Hunan Normal University alumni Singers from Yunnan 20th-century Chinese actresses Actresses of Chinese opera 20th-century Chinese women singers 21st-century Chinese women singers Actresses from Yunnan