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Wang Leehom ( zh, c=王力宏, poj=Ông Le̍k-hông; born May 17, 1976), sometimes credited as Leehom Wang, is an American singer-songwriter, actor, producer, and film director. His music is known for fusing hip-hop and R&B, with
traditional Chinese music ''Guoyue'' ( 國 樂; literally "national music"; also ''minyue'' (民乐), ''huayue'' (華樂) or ''zhongyue'' (中樂)), refers to the music composed for Chinese musical instruments, which is an extension of the Chinese traditional music. I ...
. Wang was born to a
Taiwanese American Taiwanese Americans (traditional Chinese, Chinese: 臺灣裔美國人; pinyin: ''Táiwān yì měiguó rén''; Pe̍h-ōe-jī: ''Tâi-Bí-jîn'') are Americans of Taiwanese people, Taiwanese ancestry, including American-born descendants of migrant ...
family and graduated from
Williams College Williams College is a Private college, private liberal arts colleges in the United States, liberal arts college in Williamstown, Massachusetts, United States. It was established as a men's college in 1793 with funds from the estate of Ephraim ...
. Since his 1995 debut, Wang has released 25 albums, that have sold over 60 million copies. He is a four-time winner and 19-time nominee of the
Golden Melody Awards The Golden Melody Awards (), commonly abbreviated as GMA, is an honor awarded by Taiwan's Ministry of Culture to recognize outstanding achievement in the Mandarin, Taiwanese Hokkien, Hakka, and Formosan-languages popular and traditional music ...
. His sold-out concert at the
Beijing National Stadium The National Stadium (), the Bird's Nest (), is a stadium at Olympic Green in Chaoyang, Beijing, Chaoyang, Beijing, China. The National Stadium, covering an area of 204,000 square meters with an 80,000 person capacity (91,000 with temporary ...
on April 14, 2012, was the first solo pop concert to be held at the venue. With over 72 million followers on social media, Wang is one of the most followed celebrities in China. In 2018,
CNN Cable News Network (CNN) is a multinational news organization operating, most notably, a website and a TV channel headquartered in Atlanta. Founded in 1980 by American media proprietor Ted Turner and Reese Schonfeld as a 24-hour cable ne ...
dubbed him "King of Chinese Pop" and the ''
Los Angeles Times The ''Los Angeles Times'' is an American Newspaper#Daily, daily newspaper that began publishing in Los Angeles, California, in 1881. Based in the Greater Los Angeles city of El Segundo, California, El Segundo since 2018, it is the List of new ...
'' called him "the biggest American star America has never heard of." Wang was listed as one of
Goldsea ''Goldsea'' is an American online magazine. The magazine was started in 1998. It is aimed at Asian American Asian Americans are Americans with ancestry from the continent of Asia (including naturalized Americans who are immigrants from sp ...
's 100 Most Inspiring Asian Americans of All Time. Wang holds honorary doctoral degrees from both
Williams College Williams College is a Private college, private liberal arts colleges in the United States, liberal arts college in Williamstown, Massachusetts, United States. It was established as a men's college in 1793 with funds from the estate of Ephraim ...
and
Berklee College of Music Berklee College of Music () is a Private university, private music college in Boston, Boston, Massachusetts. It is the largest independent college of contemporary music in the world. Known for the study of jazz and modern Music of the United ...
. In addition to his music, Wang has also acted in over twenty films, including
Ang Lee Ang Lee (; born October 23, 1954) is a Taiwanese filmmaker. His films are known for their emotional charge and exploration of repressed, hidden emotions. During his career, he has received international critical and popular acclaim and List o ...
's ''
Lust, Caution ''Lust, Caution'' ( zh, t=色,戒, p=Sè, Jiè, j=Sik1Gaai3) is a 2007 erotic film, erotic Spy film, spy romance film, romantic mystery film directed by Ang Lee, based on Lust, Caution (novella), the 1979 novella by Eileen Chang. ''Lust, Cau ...
'',
Jackie Chan Fang Shilong (born Chan Kong-sang; 7 April 1954), known professionally as Jackie Chan,; is a Hong Kong actor and filmmaker, known for his slapstick, acrobatic fighting style, comic timing, and innovative stunts, which he typically perf ...
's ''
Little Big Soldier ''Little Big Soldier'' (, lit. "Big Soldier, Little General") is a 2010 action comedy film directed by Ding Sheng and produced and written by Jackie Chan, also starring Chan and Leehom Wang. A Hong Kong-Chinese co-production, the film was produ ...
'' and
Michael Mann Michael Kenneth Mann (born February 5, 1943) is an American film director, screenwriter, author and producer, best known for his stylized crime dramas. He has received a BAFTA Award and two Primetime Emmy Awards as well as nominations for four ...
's ''
Blackhat A black hat (black hat hacker or blackhat) is a computer hacker who violates laws or ethical standards for nefarious purposes, such as cybercrime, cyberwarfare, or malice. These acts can range from piracy to identity theft. A black hat is often r ...
''. He won Best Actor at the 2018 Macau Film Festival.
Asia Society The Asia Society is a 501(c)(3) organization that focuses on educating the world about Asia. It has several centers in the United States (Manhattan, Washington, D.C., Houston, Los Angeles, San Francisco and Seattle) and around the world (Hong Ko ...
presented the 2019 Game Changer Award to Wang Leehom at the U.S.-Asia Entertainment Summit. Wang is an environmental activist, and his album '' Change Me'' was dedicated to raising eco-awareness among Chinese youth. Wang was one of the first torchbearers for the Beijing
2008 Summer Olympics The 2008 Summer Olympics (), officially the Games of the XXIX Olympiad () and officially branded as Beijing 2008 (), were an international multisport event held from 8 to 24 August 2008, in Beijing, China. A total of 10,942 athletes fro ...
, and performed in the
Olympics The modern Olympic Games (Olympics; ) are the world's preeminent international sporting events. They feature summer and winter sports competitions in which thousands of athletes from around the world participate in a variety of competit ...
' closing ceremony in
Beijing Beijing, Chinese postal romanization, previously romanized as Peking, is the capital city of China. With more than 22 million residents, it is the world's List of national capitals by population, most populous national capital city as well as ...
. He was again a torchbearer for the
2012 Summer Olympics The 2012 Summer Olympics, officially the Games of the XXX Olympiad and also known as London 2012, were an international multi-sport event held from 27 July to 12 August 2012 in London, England, United Kingdom. The first event, the ...
in London, making him the only person in the Mandarin pop circle to have taken part in the event twice. He is a longtime ambassador for World Vision Taiwan and Malaysia.


Life and music career


Childhood and early beginnings

Wang was born in
Rochester, New York Rochester is a city in and the county seat, seat of government of Monroe County, New York, United States. It is the List of municipalities in New York, fourth-most populous city and 10th most-populated municipality in New York, with a populati ...
, to a
Taiwanese American Taiwanese Americans (traditional Chinese, Chinese: 臺灣裔美國人; pinyin: ''Táiwān yì měiguó rén''; Pe̍h-ōe-jī: ''Tâi-Bí-jîn'') are Americans of Taiwanese people, Taiwanese ancestry, including American-born descendants of migrant ...
family. He is the second of three sons of immigrants from Taiwan. His father, Ta-chung, was a
pediatrician Pediatrics (American English) also spelled paediatrics (British English), is the branch of medicine that involves the medical care of infants, children, adolescents, and young adults. In the United Kingdom, pediatrics covers many of their youth ...
and elder cousin of Lee Chien-fu, the original singer of Descendants of the Dragon, and his mother, Lee Ming-shu, moved to the United States to further their college studies in the early 1960s. Influenced by his older brother, Leete, who had been taking violin lessons since he was seven, Wang began to develop a curious interest towards the violin and its musical counterparts when he was three. He begged his mother to put him in violin lessons with his brother but his mother was against it, reasoning that he was too young. When Wang turned six, his mother enrolled him in violin classes, performing along with his brother. As he became a teenager, he began taking piano lessons, also teaching himself the guitar. He also worked several jobs to earn money to buy a second hand drum kit. He attended Jefferson Road Elementary School, Pittsford Middle School, and
Pittsford Sutherland High School Pittsford Sutherland High School is a public high school in suburban Rochester, Monroe County in upstate New York. In 2021, the school was ranked in the top 2 percent (#319 nationwide; #36 in New York) in '' U.S. News & World Report''s annual ev ...
in
Pittsford, New York Pittsford is an incorporated town in Monroe County, New York. A suburb of Rochester, its population was 30,617 at the time of the 2020 census. Formerly part of the town of Northfield, Pittsford was settled in 1789 and incorporated in 1796. T ...
. He graduated from Pittsford Sutherland. Passionate for a career in music, he chose to attend
Williams College Williams College is a Private college, private liberal arts colleges in the United States, liberal arts college in Williamstown, Massachusetts, United States. It was established as a men's college in 1793 with funds from the estate of Ephraim ...
double majoring in music and
Asian studies Asian studies is the term used usually in North America and Australia for what in Europe is known as Oriental studies. The field is concerned with the Asian people, their cultures, languages, history and politics. Within the Asian sphere, Asian ...
. He joined an all-male
a cappella Music performed a cappella ( , , ; ), less commonly spelled acapella in English, is music performed by a singer or a singing group without instrumental accompaniment. The term ''a cappella'' was originally intended to differentiate between Rena ...
group, The Springstreeters, and the group recorded several demo tracks. In the summer of 1995, while Wang was visiting his grandparents in Taiwan, he was offered a professional recording contract by
Bertelsmann Music Group Bertelsmann Music Group (BMG) was a division of a German media company Bertelsmann before its completion of sale of the majority of its assets to Sony Corporation of America on 1 October 2008. Although it was established in 1987, the music c ...
(BMG) after he participated in a talent competition hosted by the label. Not wanting to lose the opportunity, he immediately began preparing for his debut, and released his debut album ''Love Rival, Beethoven'' (情敌贝多芬) that December. The record received little limelight, forcing him to leave the label. He signed with
Decca Records Decca Records is a British record label established in 1929 by Edward Lewis (Decca), Edward Lewis after his acquisition of a gramophone manufacturer, The Decca Gramophone Company. It set up an American subsidiary under the Decca name, which bec ...
the following year, a label then famous for producing "powerful singers" (實力派歌手) in Taiwan. Wanting to also have control in the idol market, the label initially planned to market Wang as the mainstream "romantic idol", like with their previous artist
Mavis Fan Mavis Fan (; born 27 February 1977) is a Taiwanese singer and actress. Life and career Fan began her singing career in the mid 90s as a pop idol, singing songs catered mostly towards children and young teenagers. Fan was raised only by her mot ...
. However, after discovering Wang's talent in music-making, Decca began promoting him as Taiwan's "quality idol" (優質偶像) instead. Wang released his second album ''If You Heard My Song'' in 1996, which included some of his own compositions. He co-wrote the album's eponymous title song, which earned positive responses from the audience. The album drew moderately successful sales, and he became a rising star in the idol market, also finding similar successes with his third and fourth albums. During this time, Wang was asked to leave his college studies to pursue a full-time singing career, but he insisted on finishing school first.


1998–2000: Rise to prominence

Wang's contract with Decca Records was terminated after the release of his fourth album ''White Paper'' in the summer of 1997. After graduating with honors at Williams College, he released his first award-winning album ''
Revolution In political science, a revolution (, 'a turn around') is a rapid, fundamental transformation of a society's class, state, ethnic or religious structures. According to sociologist Jack Goldstone, all revolutions contain "a common set of elements ...
'' under
Sony Music Entertainment Sony Music Entertainment (SME), commonly known as Sony Music, is an American multinational music company owned by Japanese conglomerate Sony Group Corporation. It is the recording division of Sony Music Group, with the other half being the ...
in August 1998. The album became his breakthrough album, immediately selling over 10,000 domestic units in the first week of release. Critics rated the album highly, and it won Wang two Golden Melody Awards—Best Producer and Best Mandarin Male Singer. He was the youngest artist to win in either of the two categories. Wang has been nominated the Best Mandarin Male Singer at the awards every year since the success of ''Revolution''. The singles of ''Revolution'' also achieved similar success–"Revolution" became Wang Leehom's first No. 1 single, becoming one of the top 20 songs of the year on Channel V Taiwan. He continued his studies by attending
Berklee College of Music Berklee College of Music () is a Private university, private music college in Boston, Boston, Massachusetts. It is the largest independent college of contemporary music in the world. Known for the study of jazz and modern Music of the United ...
's Professional Music program, with voice as his principal instrument. In 1999, Wang released his sixth album '' Impossible to Miss You'', which combined the catchy pop melodies of ''Revolution'' with a quirky style of new-found
dance-pop Dance-pop is a Music genre, genre of electronic dance music that originated in the late 1970s to early 1980s. It is generally uptempo music intended for nightclubs with the intention of being danceable but also suitable for contemporary hit ra ...
. It became his then best-selling album, selling over 1 million copies. All of the album's promotional singles topped KTV charts and yearly music charts, including the upbeat "Julia" and the ballad "Crying Palm". His album also attracted international attention–Wang won three Best Male Vocalist awards at three different award ceremonies and was also awarded for his musical merit in the album at the 1st annual Asia Chinese Music Awards. At the beginning of the millennium, Wang began filming for several Cantonese-language Hong Kong blockbusters, which inspired him to study the Cantonese language. He included a Cantonese track, "Love My Song", in the Hong Kong release of ''Forever's First Day'' (2000), his seventh album. Unlike his previous two albums, ''Forever's First Day'' consisted mainly of melodic R&B tunes. The album's eponymous single is a tragic romantic ballad, speaking of a separation of two individuals. Although raised in New York for most of his life, living in Taiwan made Wang realize the deep roots of his Chinese heritage. ''Forever's First Day'' yielded a cover of his uncle's signature song " Descendants of the Dragon"; Wang re-arranged the song with heavier rock and dance elements. The song also included a rap bridge that summarized experiences of his parents living as a Chinese American in New York.


2001–2003: International success

Wang's next album, ''The One and Only'' (2001), received phenomenal international success. Selling over 1 million units in Asia, the rock-inspired album won him over seven different prestigious awards throughout 2001 and 2002. The album's title single "The One and Only" peaked No. 1 in almost all available music charts of Taiwan and was on the Ringback Tone No. 1 Download Charts for over a year, becoming his signature song. ''The One and Only'' also found success in Japan, opting him to release his first full-length Japanese album ''The Only One'' on May 9, 2003. The album only promoted one single, a Japanese version of "The One and Only", but it did not meet success on Japan's
Oricon Charts , established in 1999, is the holding company at the head of a Japanese corporate group that supplies statistics and information on music and the music industry in Japan and Western music. It started as , which was founded by Sōkō Koike in N ...
. Wang also began filming several Japanese films, establishing his rising star status in Japan. Eager to experience and perform different musical genres, Wang embarked on his first Asia-wide concert tour ''The Unbelievable Tour'' a few months before the release of his ninth album '' Unbelievable'' (2003). His concert tour received great reviews from both fans and music critics; they were impressed and shocked with his new-found
hip hop Hip-hop or hip hop (originally disco rap) is a popular music genre that emerged in the early 1970s from the African-American community of New York City. The style is characterized by its synthesis of a wide range of musical techniques. Hip- ...
image. His R&B/hip hop-inspired album ''Unbelievable'' involved new urban pop numbers, drawing hip hop influences from different styles of popular music, such as
Indipop Indian pop music, also known as I-pop or Indi-pop, refers to pop music produced in India that is independent from filmi soundtracks for Indian cinema. Indian pop is closely linked to Bollywood, Tollywood, Pollywood, Kollywood and the Asian U ...
and
urban pop Urban contemporary music, also known as urban music, urban pop, or just simply urban, is a music radio format. The term was coined by New York radio DJ Frankie Crocker in the early to mid-1970s as a synonym for Black music. Urban contemporary rad ...
. The album marked a milestone in his musical career; his new image received international critical acclaim and the album a chart-topping success, selling over 1.5 million units by 2004. A celebratory version of the album was released three months later, also becoming a chart-topping album. The album's ballad "You're Not Here" also experienced international success, ranking No. 1 on several music charts for over 10 weeks. ''Unbelievable'' yielded his second win for Best Producer of the Year at the Golden Melody Awards in 2004.


2004–2006: Career advancements

Since 2004, Wang became known for his brand of
China Wind music Zhongguo feng or Chinese style () music is a popular Chinese music genre considered to adopt a more traditional musical style in its instrumental than normal popular music, similar to Chinese traditional music but with a "Modern Twist" style wa ...
, known as "chinked-out". Having established himself as one of the most important, influential, and prolific artists in Chinese music, Wang continued to invent and experiment with new sounds and voices. For most of 2004, he traveled to remote villages in China, collecting often unheard tribal sounds of aboriginal Chinese music, Tibetan music, and Mongolian music. With his younger brother Leekai as his assistant, they carried 15 kg of music equipment as he recorded these sounds, recording and producing his album on the way. He incorporated these sounds into R&B and hip hop music, coining the style as "chinked-out". Despite the derogatory nature of the term "
chink ''Chink'' is an English-language List of ethnic slurs, ethnic slur usually referring to a person of Chinese people, Chinese descent, but also used to insult people with East Asian features. The use of the term describing eyes with epicanthic ...
", Wang had wanted to repossess the term and "make it cool." ''
Shangri-La Shangri-La is a fictional place in Tibet's Kunlun Mountains, Uses the spelling 'Kuen-Lun'. described in the 1933 novel '' Lost Horizon'' by the British author James Hilton. Hilton portrays Shangri-La as a mystical, harmonious valley, gently ...
'' was released on the last day of 2004, selling 40,000 copies within the first ten days of release. ''Shangri-La'' became an international music sensation, especially catching the attention of many youths in Asia. Within a month, the album sold over 300,000 copies, ultimately selling over 1.5 million units. Wang continued to infuse chinked-out elements into his next album ''
Heroes of Earth ''Heroes of Earth'' () is American- Taiwanese R&B Mandopop singer-songwriter Leehom Wang's eleventh Mandarin studio album. It was released on December 30, 2005, by Sony Music Taiwan. Since Wang's debut, this album is the most successful, shipp ...
'' (2005). Unlike the aboriginal tribal music heard in ''Shangri-La'', ''Heroes of Earth'' contained mixes of
Beijing opera Peking opera, or Beijing opera (), is the most dominant form of Chinese opera, which combines instrumental music, vocal performance, mime, martial arts, dance and acrobatics. It arose in Beijing in the mid-Qing dynasty (1644–1912) and became ...
and
Kunqu Kunqu (), also known as Kunju (), K'un-ch'ü, Kun opera or Kunqu Opera, is one of the oldest extant forms of Chinese opera. It evolved from a music style local to Kunshan, part of the Wu (region), Wu cultural area, and later came to dominate ...
. Following the concept of "heroes", he collaborated with
Ashin Chen Hsin-hung (), nicknamed Ashin () (born 6 December 1975), is a Taiwanese singer and songwriter. He is best known as the vocalist of the rock band Mayday. When Ashin majored in art in college, he began his musical career. He is also the fo ...
of
Mayday Mayday is an emergency procedure word used internationally as a distress signal in voice-procedure radio communications. It is used to signal a life-threatening emergency primarily by aviators and mariners, but in some countries local organiz ...
("Beside the Plum Blossoms"), Chinese American
rapper Rapping (also rhyming, flowing, spitting, emceeing, or MCing) is an artistic form of vocal delivery and emotive expression that incorporates "rhyme, rhythmic speech, and ommonlystreet vernacular". It is usually performed over a backing ...
Jin and opera master Li Yan ("Heroes of Earth"), and also
K-pop K-pop (; an abbreviation of "Korean popular music") is a form of popular music originating in South Korea. It emerged in the 1990s as a form of youth subculture, with Korean musicians taking influence from Western Electronic dance music, danc ...
artists
Rain Rain is a form of precipitation where water drop (liquid), droplets that have condensation, condensed from Water vapor#In Earth's atmosphere, atmospheric water vapor fall under gravity. Rain is a major component of the water cycle and is res ...
and
Lim Jeong-hee Lim Jeong-hee (; born May 17, 1981, in Seoul, South Korea), also known as J-Lim, is a South Korean singer who debuted in 2005 under JYP Entertainment. One of her notable performances in 2005 was the 5th Pattaya Music Festival in Thailand, which ...
("Perfect Interaction"). ''Heroes of Earth'' was the fastest-selling album of both 2005 and 2006, selling over 1 million copies ten days after its release. Subsequently, the album stayed as No. 1 in the charts for six weeks, and remained in the charts for 23 weeks, ultimately becoming 2006's third best-selling album. By 2007, about 3 million units were sold, and has since been Wang's most commercially and critically successful album. The album earned Wang a Golden Melody Award for Best Mandarin Male Singer for the second time. Three months after the release of ''Heroes of Earth'', he began the Heroes of Earth Tour, his first major world tour. The concert commenced with two shows per night in the
Taipei Dome Taipei Dome (), also known officially as Farglory Dome (), is a multi-purpose domed stadium located in Xinyi, Taipei, Taiwan, that opened in October 2023. It was originally scheduled to start construction in 2007 and be completed in 2011, ...
in March 2006, breaking Taiwan's concert attendance records.


2007–present: Professional breakthrough

Wang took a break in working on his music to film ''
Lust, Caution ''Lust, Caution'' ( zh, t=色,戒, p=Sè, Jiè, j=Sik1Gaai3) is a 2007 erotic film, erotic Spy film, spy romance film, romantic mystery film directed by Ang Lee, based on Lust, Caution (novella), the 1979 novella by Eileen Chang. ''Lust, Cau ...
'' (2007), an espionage
thriller film Thriller film, also known as suspense film or suspense thriller, is a broad film genre that evokes excitement and suspense in the audience. The suspense element found in most films' plots is particularly exploited by the filmmaker in this genre. ...
directed by
Ang Lee Ang Lee (; born October 23, 1954) is a Taiwanese filmmaker. His films are known for their emotional charge and exploration of repressed, hidden emotions. During his career, he has received international critical and popular acclaim and List o ...
. He released a promotional single "Falling Leaves Return to Roots" on June 20, 2007, through Hito Radio, a month before the release of his twelfth studio album, '' Change Me''. "Falling Leaves Return to Roots" incorporated Broadway-influenced musical elements, with classical instrumental accompaniments, such as the violin and piano. When asked about the sudden change of music style, Wang explained that the inspiration behind the song was due to the influence of his portrayal of Kuang Yumin in ''Lust, Caution''. "In the past, I have only been releasing mainstream pop and chinked-out related hip hop. ''Lust, Caution'' made me return to 1930's Shanghai, re-living the moment." ''Change Me'' was released on Friday, July 13, despite the superstition generally attached to
Friday the 13th Friday the 13th is considered an unlucky day in Western superstition. It occurs when the 13th day of the month in the Gregorian calendar falls on a Friday, which happens at least once every year but can occur up to three times in the same year ...
. Unlike his previous albums, ''Change Me'' mainly concentrates on
pop rock Pop rock (also typeset as pop/rock) is a fusion genre and form of rock music characterized by a strong commercial appeal, with more emphasis on professional songwriting and recording craft, and less emphasis on attitude than standard rock musi ...
, including influences of Broadway ("Falling Leaves Return to Roots") and old-school Taiwanese pop ("You Are a Song in My Heart"). Through this album, he promoted the issue of
global warming Present-day climate change includes both global warming—the ongoing increase in global average temperature—and its wider effects on Earth's climate system. Climate change in a broader sense also includes previous long-term changes ...
and raised environmental awareness. The packaging of the album used only recycled paper and contained no plastic. He believed that small changes by each person can change the world. "To change the world, you start with changing yourself." Reviews of the album were generally positive, defining the album as "mature". An online album poll organized by China's
Sohu Sohu, Inc. () is a Chinese Internet company headquartered in the Sohu Internet Plaza in Haidian District, Beijing. Sohu and its subsidiaries offer advertising, a search engine (Sogou.com), on-line multiplayer gaming (ChangYou.com) and other se ...
, however, suggested that Wang's album did not meet expectations.
Netizens The term ''netizen'' is a portmanteau of the English words ''internet'' and ''citizen'', as in a "citizen of the net" or "net citizen". It describes a person actively involved in online communities or the Internet in general.
remarked that his chinked-out productions were more impressive, although that genre itself has also been criticized. Nonetheless, over 1 million units were shipped on the first day of release. The album broke past 2 million sales, becoming one of Wang's best-selling albums. In August 2008, Wang sought US$320,000 in damages for plagiarism by
Pritam Pritam Chakraborty (born 14 June 1971), also popularly known mononymously as Pritam, is a National Award winning Indian composer, instrumentalist, music producer and singer. Graduating from FTII in Sound Engineering, he worked as an ad jin ...
, an Indian composer. The lead song for the movie '' Race'' (2008), composed by Pritam, was allegedly copied from "In the Depths of the Bamboo Forest", a single taken off from Wang Leehom's ''
Shangri-La Shangri-La is a fictional place in Tibet's Kunlun Mountains, Uses the spelling 'Kuen-Lun'. described in the 1933 novel '' Lost Horizon'' by the British author James Hilton. Hilton portrays Shangri-La as a mystical, harmonious valley, gently ...
'' album. In November 2008, Wang was selected to conduct the
Hong Kong Philharmonic Orchestra The Hong Kong Philharmonic Orchestra () is a symphony orchestra based in Hong Kong. Colloquially referred to as the HKPO or HKPhil (), the orchestra was first established in 1947 as an amateur orchestra under the name Sino-British Orchestra (), ...
for their 2008 annual grand finale, being the first Asian pop musician to conduct the orchestra. The concert ''Hong Kong Music, Leehom Wang'' (港樂‧王力宏) was held in the
Hong Kong Cultural Centre The Hong Kong Cultural Centre (HKCC, ) is a public multipurpose performance facility in Tsim Sha Tsui, Hong Kong. Located at Salisbury Road, it was built by the former Urban Council and, since 2000, has been administered by the Leisure a ...
for three nights, with four shows, receiving
CNN International Cable News Network International or CNN International (CNNi, simply branded on-air as CNN) is an international television channel and website, owned by CNN Worldwide. CNN International carries news-related programming worldwide; it cooperates ...
coverage throughout. Wang embarked on his second world tour, the MUSIC-MAN Tour, in the latter months of 2008. The tour commenced with two shows per night in the Taipei Dome in September 2008, three months before the release of Wang's thirteenth studio album, '' Heart Beat''. ''Heart Beat'' was released on December 26, debuting at No. 3 on the weekly G-Music charts. The album peaked at No. 1 on its seventh week of release, ultimately staying on the charts for 17 weeks. Like Wang's previous album, ''Heart Beat'' showed a similar emphasis of rock influences. The album largely focused on guitar and electric guitar solos, which Wang also used for performances in most of the album's
music videos A music video is a video that integrates a song or an album with imagery that is produced for promotion (marketing), promotional or musical artistic purposes. Modern music videos are primarily made and used as a music marketing device intended to ...
. Wanting to continue a similar "chinked-out" element, the album's first single, "What's Up with Rock?!" incorporated rock influences with Chinese flavor. For the track, he worked with
pipa The pipa, pípá, or p'i-p'a () is a traditional Chinese musical instrument belonging to the plucked category of instruments. Sometimes called the "Chinese lute", the instrument has a pear-shaped wooden body with a varying number of frets rangi ...
artist
Liu Fang Liu Fang  1974) is a Chinese Canadians, Chinese–Canadian musician who is one of the most prominent ''pipa'' players in the world. Described in the media as the "empress of pipa" (''L'actualité''), "divine mediator" (World), "the greates ...
, and the two concentrated on mixing both electric guitar elements and pipa strings into the song. On April 15, 2011, Wang Leehom took home the Best Male Singer (Hong Kong and Taiwan region), Best Album for ''The 18 Martial Arts'', and Best Newcomer Director Award for his directorial debut, Love in Disguise at the Global Chinese Music Awards. On September 7, 2011, it was announced that Wang hired
Wong Fu Productions Wong Fu Productions is an American filmmaking group founded by Wesley Chan (born April 27, 1984), Ted Fu (born October 26, 1981), and Philip Wang (born October 28, 1984). The trio met at the University of California, San Diego in 2004 and prod ...
to direct his upcoming music video. His concert at the
Beijing National Stadium The National Stadium (), the Bird's Nest (), is a stadium at Olympic Green in Chaoyang, Beijing, Chaoyang, Beijing, China. The National Stadium, covering an area of 204,000 square meters with an 80,000 person capacity (91,000 with temporary ...
on April 14, 2012, attracted up to 90,000 people. On November 30, 2012, Wang received the 2012 MAMA (
Mnet Asian Music Awards The MAMA Awards (, formerly Mnet Asian Music Awards) is a major Music award, music awards ceremony presented annually by entertainment company CJ ENM. First held in South Korea, the majority of prizes have been won by K-pop artists, although ...
) for "Best Asian Artist". On December 2, 2012, Wang Leehom surpassed actress Yao Chen to become the Chinese with most Weibo (the most popular micro-blog in China) fans. On April 21, 2013, Wang became the first Chinese singer invited to speak at
Oxford Union The Oxford Union Society, commonly referred to as the Oxford Union, is a debating society in the city of Oxford, England, whose membership is drawn primarily from the University of Oxford. Founded in 1823, it is one of Britain's oldest unive ...
at the
University of Oxford The University of Oxford is a collegiate university, collegiate research university in Oxford, England. There is evidence of teaching as early as 1096, making it the oldest university in the English-speaking world and the List of oldest un ...
. On February 27, 2017, Madame Toussauds revealed Wang's wax statue in their Beijing museum.


Musical style

Wang's music varies in style greatly from album to album. Although he is classified as an R&B artist, Wang Leehom demonstrates competence with many styles of music ranging from traditional
Mandopop Mandopop or Mandapop refers to Mandarin popular music. The genre has its origin in the jazz-influenced popular music of 1930s Shanghai known as Shidaiqu; later influences came from Japanese enka, Hong Kong's Cantopop, Taiwan's Hokkien pop ...
, Broadway, jazz, rock, R&B, gospel, acoustic,
Indipop Indian pop music, also known as I-pop or Indi-pop, refers to pop music produced in India that is independent from filmi soundtracks for Indian cinema. Indian pop is closely linked to Bollywood, Tollywood, Pollywood, Kollywood and the Asian U ...
, hip-hop, to rap. Many of the styles are infused with a Chinese flavor. When he debuted, he sang old school
pop Pop or POP may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media * Pop music, a musical genre Artists * POP, a Japanese idol group now known as Gang Parade * Pop! (British group), a UK pop group * Pop! featuring Angie Hart, an Australian band Album ...
and acoustic R&B ballads. Starting from ''Revolution'' (公轉自轉), Wang began to test out R&B pop music, but quickly jumped to a quirky style of
dance-pop Dance-pop is a Music genre, genre of electronic dance music that originated in the late 1970s to early 1980s. It is generally uptempo music intended for nightclubs with the intention of being danceable but also suitable for contemporary hit ra ...
for ''Impossible to Miss You'' (不可能錯過你). Starting from ''Forever's First Day'' (永遠的第一天), he began composing
rock Rock most often refers to: * Rock (geology), a naturally occurring solid aggregate of minerals or mineraloids * Rock music, a genre of popular music Rock or Rocks may also refer to: Places United Kingdom * Rock, Caerphilly, a location in Wale ...
songs with heavy electric guitar melodies and less emphasis on dance-pop. Nonetheless, he still concentrated in light R&B music. ''The One and Only'' (唯一) became his only fully produced
rock Rock most often refers to: * Rock (geology), a naturally occurring solid aggregate of minerals or mineraloids * Rock music, a genre of popular music Rock or Rocks may also refer to: Places United Kingdom * Rock, Caerphilly, a location in Wale ...
album. '' Unbelievable'' began a new road of music for Wang. Aside from the usual R&B grove, he contributed
hip hop Hip-hop or hip hop (originally disco rap) is a popular music genre that emerged in the early 1970s from the African-American community of New York City. The style is characterized by its synthesis of a wide range of musical techniques. Hip- ...
and
rap Rapping (also rhyming, flowing, spitting, emceeing, or MCing) is an artistic form of vocal delivery and emotive expression that incorporates " rhyme, rhythmic speech, and ommonlystreet vernacular". It is usually performed over a backin ...
that was not clearly emphasized in his past albums. "Not Your Average Thug" was a newly composed R&B style with a huge amount of American influence. "Can You Feel My World" was a different style of R&B, and the song contained great uses of the piano and violin as the accompaniment. Fast dance songs like "Ya Birthday" and "Girlfriend" ( zh, c=女朋友, p=nǚ péngyǒu) incorporated rapid rap and heavy drum rhythms. "Girlfriend" included a heavily emphasised
chinese flute Flutes made in China come in a variety of different types: Transverse flutes: * Dizi (and its varieties such as the qudi and bangdi; primary transverse flutes, usually made of bamboo and distinctively has a buzzing membrane) * Koudi (a small c ...
and a music style that is influenced by Indipop. ''
Heroes of Earth ''Heroes of Earth'' () is American- Taiwanese R&B Mandopop singer-songwriter Leehom Wang's eleventh Mandarin studio album. It was released on December 30, 2005, by Sony Music Taiwan. Since Wang's debut, this album is the most successful, shipp ...
'' displayed a different side to chinked out. Instead of ethnic minority music, Wang focused on
Beijing opera Peking opera, or Beijing opera (), is the most dominant form of Chinese opera, which combines instrumental music, vocal performance, mime, martial arts, dance and acrobatics. It arose in Beijing in the mid-Qing dynasty (1644–1912) and became ...
and
Kunqu Kunqu (), also known as Kunju (), K'un-ch'ü, Kun opera or Kunqu Opera, is one of the oldest extant forms of Chinese opera. It evolved from a music style local to Kunshan, part of the Wu (region), Wu cultural area, and later came to dominate ...
. He used instruments such as the
erhu The (; ) is a Chinese two-stringed bowed musical instrument, more specifically a spike fiddle, that is sometimes known in the Western world as the ''Chinese violin'' or a ''Chinese two-stringed fiddle''. It is used as a solo instrument as ...
,
guqin The ''guqin'' (; ) is a plucked seven-string Chinese musical instrument. It has been played since ancient times, and has traditionally been favoured by scholars and literati as an instrument of great subtlety and refinement, as highlighted b ...
, and
guzheng The zheng (), or guzheng (), is a Chinese List of Chinese musical instruments#Plucked, plucked zither. The modern guzheng commonly has 21, 25, or 26 strings, is long, and is tuned in a Major scale, major pentatonic scale. It has a large, reson ...
to infuse his new album with another side of traditional Chinese sound. "Beside the Plum Blossoms" ( zh, t=在梅邊, p=zài méi biān) dealt with fast kunqu melodies. In the last 50 seconds of the song, Wang rapped over 250 words, increasing in speed towards the middle and then slowed down. This was to emphasize the accelerating and descending beats of traditional Chinese opera. In addition to his chinked-out style of music, he is also noted for writing modern love ballads like "Forever Love", "Kiss Goodbye", "The One and Only" and most recently, "All the Things You Never Knew" (你不知道的事) which are sung with piano and
string instrument In musical instrument classification, string instruments, or chordophones, are musical instruments that produce sound from vibrating strings when a performer strums, plucks, strikes or sounds the strings in varying manners. Musicians play some ...
accompaniments. Wang collaborated with Swedish EDM DJ
Avicii Tim Bergling (8 September 1989 – 20 April 2018), known professionally as Avicii, was a Swedish DJ, remixer, and record producer. At age 16, he began posting his remixes on electronic music forums, which led to his first record deal. He rose ...
for his 2014 single ''Lose Myself'', which was the theme for the Storm Music Festival, China's biggest electronic music festival held on October 5 and 6, 2014 in Shanghai. The song is also the first single to be released from his 2015 album, ''Your Love''.


Acting career

Wang had displayed interest in acting when he starred in several musical plays when he was in high school and college. In 2000, he made his feature film debut in the Hong Kong action crime thriller, ''
China Strike Force ''China Strike Force'' is a 2000 Hong Kong action film starring Aaron Kwok, Norika Fujiwara, Leehom Wang and Ruby Lin alongside American stars Mark Dacascos and Coolio. It was directed by Stanley Tong and written by Tong and Steven Whitney. Sy ...
'', starring alongside
Aaron Kwok Aaron Kwok Fu-shing (born 26 October 1965) is a Hong Kong singer, dancer, and actor, known as one of Hong Kong's "Four Heavenly Kings". Active since the 1980s, he has released over 30 studio albums in Cantonese and Mandarin, mostly in the danc ...
,
Norika Fujiwara is a Japanese actress, model and beauty pageant titleholder. She became Miss Nippon in 1992 and was an exclusive model for CanCam fashion magazine. She has appeared in various commercials and TV series and a number of films in Japan. Biography ...
, and
Ruby Lin Ruby Lin Xin-ru ( zh, c=林心如, p=Lín Xīnrú; born January 27, 1976) is a Taiwanese actress, television and film producer, and singer. Lin began her career as a commercial model in 1993 and gained pan-Asian prominence for her role as Xia Ziw ...
. Hong Kong critics had remarked Wang for giving a well-toned performance as his first film. His next starring role was the 2001 Hong Kong science fiction film ''The Avenging Fist'' as the main character Nova. He then starred in two Japanese films '' Moon Child'' (2003) and ''Starlit High Noon'' (2005). The major breakthrough in his film career was in ''
Lust, Caution ''Lust, Caution'' ( zh, t=色,戒, p=Sè, Jiè, j=Sik1Gaai3) is a 2007 erotic film, erotic Spy film, spy romance film, romantic mystery film directed by Ang Lee, based on Lust, Caution (novella), the 1979 novella by Eileen Chang. ''Lust, Cau ...
'', directed and produced by
Academy Award The Academy Awards, commonly known as the Oscars, are awards for artistic and technical merit in film. They are presented annually by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS) in the United States in recognition of excellence ...
-winner
Ang Lee Ang Lee (; born October 23, 1954) is a Taiwanese filmmaker. His films are known for their emotional charge and exploration of repressed, hidden emotions. During his career, he has received international critical and popular acclaim and List o ...
. The film is based on a
novella A novella is a narrative prose fiction whose length is shorter than most novels, but longer than most novelettes and short stories. The English word ''novella'' derives from the Italian meaning a short story related to true (or apparently so) ...
written by
Eileen Chang Eileen Chang ( zh, t=張愛玲, s=张爱玲, first=t, w=Chang1 Ai4-ling2, p=Zhāng Àilíng;September 30, 1920 – September 8, 1995), also known as Chang Ai-ling or Zhang Ailing, or by her pen name Liang Jing (梁京), was a Chinese-born Am ...
and revolves around a plot to assassinate a high-ranking
Chinese Chinese may refer to: * Something related to China * Chinese people, people identified with China, through nationality, citizenship, and/or ethnicity **Han Chinese, East Asian ethnic group native to China. **'' Zhonghua minzu'', the supra-ethnic ...
official in the
Wang Jingwei Government The Reorganized National Government of the Republic of China, commonly described as the Wang Jingwei regime, was a puppet state of the Empire of Japan in eastern China. It existed coterminous with the Nationalist government of the Republic of ...
using a beautiful young woman as bait. Wang plays Kuang Yumin, a patriotic college student who persuades Wong Chia-chi (
Tang Wei Tang Wei (; ; born 7 October 1979) is a Chinese actress. She rose to international fame for her role in Golden Lion-winning ''Lust, Caution'' (2007) by Ang Lee, for which she was banned by the Chinese government until her comeback in ''Crossing ...
) to seduce Mr. Yee ( Tony Leung). The film was released in the US cinemas on September 28, 2007. ''Lust, Caution'' was produced on a budget of approximately $15 million and grossed $64,574,876 worldwide. In 2009, Wang was selected to star with
Jackie Chan Fang Shilong (born Chan Kong-sang; 7 April 1954), known professionally as Jackie Chan,; is a Hong Kong actor and filmmaker, known for his slapstick, acrobatic fighting style, comic timing, and innovative stunts, which he typically perf ...
in ''
Little Big Soldier ''Little Big Soldier'' (, lit. "Big Soldier, Little General") is a 2010 action comedy film directed by Ding Sheng and produced and written by Jackie Chan, also starring Chan and Leehom Wang. A Hong Kong-Chinese co-production, the film was produ ...
''. In 2010, Wang stepped behind the camera to direct and star in, ''Love in Disguise'' ( zh, c=戀愛通告, p=Liàn ài tōng gào), also starring
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 ...
and
Joan Chen Joan Chen (simplified Chinese; 陈冲; born April 26, 1961) is an American actress and film director. She made her film debut in the Chinese film ''Youth'' (1977) before starring in the film (1979). She came to the attention of American audien ...
. ''Love in Disguise'' went on to become the highest-grossing film for a first-time director in Chinese history grossing over 60,000,000 RMB domestically. In July 2013, Wang was announced to be starring in an adaptation of
Stan Lee Stan Lee (born Stanley Martin Lieber ; December 28, 1922 – November 12, 2018) was an American comic book author, writer, editor, publisher, and producer. He rose through the ranks of a family-run business called Timely Comics which later bec ...
's '' Annihilator''. The film is a co-production between Magic Storm Entertainment, who partners with Stan Lee's
POW! Entertainment POW! Entertainment Inc. is an American media production company formed in 2001 by Gill Champion, Arthur Lieberman and former Marvel Comics editor and publisher Stan Lee. POW! is made up of two companies: POW! Entertainment, Inc. (POW! Inc.), a ...
banner and the Chinese state-run National Film Capital. Wang co-starred with
Chris Hemsworth Christopher Hemsworth (born 11 August 1983) is an Australian actor. Born and raised in Melbourne, Victoria, and Bulman, Northern Territory, he rose to prominence playing Kim Hyde in the Australian television series ''Home and Away'' (2004� ...
and
Tang Wei Tang Wei (; ; born 7 October 1979) is a Chinese actress. She rose to international fame for her role in Golden Lion-winning ''Lust, Caution'' (2007) by Ang Lee, for which she was banned by the Chinese government until her comeback in ''Crossing ...
in ''
Blackhat A black hat (black hat hacker or blackhat) is a computer hacker who violates laws or ethical standards for nefarious purposes, such as cybercrime, cyberwarfare, or malice. These acts can range from piracy to identity theft. A black hat is often r ...
'' (2015), an action thriller film on
cybercrime Cybercrime encompasses a wide range of criminal activities that are carried out using digital devices and/or Computer network, networks. It has been variously defined as "a crime committed on a computer network, especially the Internet"; Cyberc ...
which was written, directed and produced by
Michael Mann Michael Kenneth Mann (born February 5, 1943) is an American film director, screenwriter, author and producer, best known for his stylized crime dramas. He has received a BAFTA Award and two Primetime Emmy Awards as well as nominations for four ...
. Wang's performance in ''Forever Young'' (2018) won Best Actor at the 2018 Golden Lotus Awards.


Endorsements

Wang is one of the most highly visible celebrities in Asia due in no small part to his many product endorsements including:
Coca-Cola Coca-Cola, or Coke, is a cola soft drink manufactured by the Coca-Cola Company. In 2013, Coke products were sold in over 200 countries and territories worldwide, with consumers drinking more than 1.8 billion company beverage servings ...
,
McDonald's McDonald's Corporation, doing business as McDonald's, is an American Multinational corporation, multinational fast food chain store, chain. As of 2024, it is the second largest by number of locations in the world, behind only the Chinese ch ...
,
Sony Ericsson Sony Mobile Communications Inc., originally Sony Ericsson Mobile Communications AB, was a Multinational corporation, multinational consumer electronics and telecommunications company, best known for its Mobile phones, mobile phone products. The ...
,
Bausch & Lomb Bausch & Lomb (since 2010 stylized as Bausch + Lomb) is an American-Canadian eye health products company based in Vaughan, Ontario, Canada. It is one of the world's largest suppliers of contact lenses, lens care products, pharmaceuticals, intra ...
, Bosideng MAN,
Garnier Garnier () is a mass market cosmetics brand owned by the French company L'Oréal. Garnier produces hair care and skin care products. Launch ''Laboratoires Garnier'' was founded in France in 1904 by Alfred Amour Garnier. The company's first pr ...
, Lay's Chips,
Nikon (, ; ) is a Japanese optics and photographic equipment manufacturer. Nikon's products include cameras, camera lenses, binoculars, microscopes, ophthalmic lenses, measurement instruments, rifle scopes, spotting scopes, and equipment related to S ...
, Brand's,
Hyundai Hyundai is a former South Korean industrial conglomerate ("''chaebol''"), which was restructured into the following groups: * Hyundai Group, parts of the former conglomerate which have not been divested ** Hyundai Asan, a real estate construction ...
, and also Wahaha purified drinking water, which he has endorsed since 1999. Wang's Bausch & Lomb print advertisements and TV commercials featured prominently in the popular 2008–2010 TV series ''Chou Nu Wu Di''. The series, which took place at an advertising agency, was an adaptation of the 1999 Colombian telenovela ''
Yo soy Betty, la fea ''Yo soy Betty, la fea'' (English: I am Betty, the Ugly one), often referred to simply as ''Betty, la fea'', is a Colombian telenovela created by Fernando Gaitán. It aired from 25 October 1999 to 8 May 2001 on RCN. Ana María Orozco stars as ...
''. In December 2021, in the aftermath of infidelity scandals, several brands including Infiniti and Chow Tai Seng, terminated their endorsement deals with Wang. Infiniti had just signed an endorsement deal with Wang 2 days earlier. On January 2, 2024, after two years of investigation into his ex-wife's accusations against Wang, Beijing courts unfroze Wang's company assets, and stated that no evidence was found to support those allegations, and that it was possible that Wang was the victim of a fabricated defamatory smear campaign.


Charitable events and free shows

Wang is also recognized for his effort and financial contributions to charity. He is active with Worldvision and has visited Laos and Sierra Leone in the last couple of years to raise awareness about the state of poverty in those countries. He personally sponsors over 20 underprivileged children throughout the world with NGO World Vision and frequently participates in the much needed fund-raising campaigns for disaster relief such as the massive earthquake at Sichuan (2008) and
Typhoon Morakot Typhoon Morakot, known in the Philippines as Typhoon Kiko, was the wettest and deadliest typhoon to impact Taiwan in recorded history. The eighth named storm and fourth typhoon of the 2009 Pacific typhoon season, Morakot wrought catastrophic d ...
in Taiwan (2009). In 2003, he and
David Tao use both this parameter and , birth_date to display the person's date of birth, date of death, and age at death) --> , death_place = , death_cause = , body_discovered = , resting_place = , resting_place_coordinates ...
composed a song titled Hand in Hand (sung by over 80 celebrities in Taiwan) to promote support and courage to those affected by
SARS Severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS) is a viral respiratory disease of zoonotic origin caused by the virus SARS-CoV-1, the first identified strain of the SARS-related coronavirus. The first known cases occurred in November 2002, and the ...
. In 2012, on World Vision Malaysia's 15th Anniversary, Wang was named as the 30-Hour Famine Ambassador. In 2019, he is once again named Ambassador Of World Vision Malaysia. Since 2012, Wang has been starting almost every year by holding a free show for his fans. The shows are usually held in an intimate setting with him and a small band in different cities every year, and tickets are given away free-of-charge on a first-come-first-served basis. In 2020, Wang joined the "Stand Against Racism in the Time of COVID" forum held by
Asia Society The Asia Society is a 501(c)(3) organization that focuses on educating the world about Asia. It has several centers in the United States (Manhattan, Washington, D.C., Houston, Los Angeles, San Francisco and Seattle) and around the world (Hong Ko ...
, alongside guests such as Los Angeles Mayor
Eric Garcetti Eric Michael Garcetti (born February 4, 1971) is an American politician and diplomat who served as the List of ambassadors of the United States to India, United States ambassador to India from 2023 to 2025. He was the 42nd mayor of Los Angeles f ...
and Representative
Ted Lieu Ted Win-Ping Lieu ( ; born March 29, 1969) is an American lawyer and politician. He is a member of the Democratic Party and has represented California's 36th congressional district in the United States House of Representatives since 2023. He re ...
.


Participation in 2008 Beijing Olympic Games

Wang was chosen as one of the torchbearers to run in Greece. He was torchbearer number 17 on March 24, the first day of the torch relay. He also attended the torch lighting ceremony before his run. Wang took the torch from Liu Hongliang, son of the first Chinese to attend the Olympic games, Liu Changchun. He represented the newest generation of singers from Taiwan and China. He was chosen mainly because he is devoted to helping save the environment, as shown in his latest album '' Change Me''. Another reason he was chosen is due to Wang's enthusiasm in the 2008 Olympic Games Theme Songs Competition. His single " One World One Dream" was chosen as an Olympic Games participation song. The single was written, sung, produced, and scored entirely by himself. He sang along with Jackie Chan, Stephanie Sun, and Han Hong in the song for "The One Man Olympics" which was about the first Chinese to be in the Olympics. He also sang in the 100 days countdown theme song "
Beijing Welcomes You ''Beijing Welcomes You'' () is a feature song for the 100-day countdown to the 2008 Summer Olympics held in Beijing, Beijing, China. The song comprises one hundred famous artists and entertainers from mainland China, Hong Kong, Taiwan, Singapore ...
". He also sang alongside
Stefanie Sun Stefanie Sun Yanzi (; born Sng Ee Tze; 23 July 1978) is a Singaporean singer and songwriter. Known for her Ballad, ballads and girl next door image, Sun made her debut with the album ''Yan Zi (album), Yan Zi'' in 2000. Featuring the single "Cl ...
, Wang Feng, and Jane Zhang in the Beijing 2008 Olympic Games Torch Relay theme song "Light the Passion, Share the Dream". He is also one of the candidates on vote for performer of the Beijing 2008 Olympic Games theme song. In the closing ceremony, he sang " Beijing Beijing, I Love Beijing" alongside
Hong Kong Hong Kong)., Legally Hong Kong, China in international treaties and organizations. is a special administrative region of China. With 7.5 million residents in a territory, Hong Kong is the fourth most densely populated region in the wor ...
singer
Kelly Chen Kelly Chen Wai-lam (born Vivian Chen Wai-man on 13 September 1972) is a Hong Kong singer and actress. She has been referred to as a " Diva of Asia" (). Chen has great success in the East Asian entertainment industry with nearly 20 million rec ...
and
Korean Korean may refer to: People and culture * Koreans, people from the Korean peninsula or of Korean descent * Korean culture * Korean language **Korean alphabet, known as Hangul or Korean **Korean dialects **See also: North–South differences in t ...
singer
Rain Rain is a form of precipitation where water drop (liquid), droplets that have condensation, condensed from Water vapor#In Earth's atmosphere, atmospheric water vapor fall under gravity. Rain is a major component of the water cycle and is res ...
.


Personal life

During a Q&A session at Oxford University, Wang identified as a
Christian A Christian () is a person who follows or adheres to Christianity, a Monotheism, monotheistic Abrahamic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus in Christianity, Jesus Christ. Christians form the largest religious community in the wo ...
. He did not specify if he adheres to any particular denomination. On November 27, 2013, Wang married Taiwanese girlfriend, Lee Jinglei (李靚蕾). Lee came from a Japanese-Taiwanese family and was known by the name Michiko Nishimura when she attended
Dominican International School Dominican International School (), formerly Dominican School, is a private Catholic international school, located in Dazhi, Zhongshan District, Taipei City, Taiwan. The Sisters of the Congregation of the Religious Missionaries of St. Dominic own ...
in
Taipei , nickname = The City of Azaleas , image_map = , map_caption = , pushpin_map = Taiwan#Asia#Pacific Ocean#Earth , coordinates = , subdivision_type = Country ...
. Lee is her mother's surname. The couple has three children: two daughters, Wang Jiali, born July 2014 and Wang Jiana, born October 2016, and a son, Wang Jiayao, born August 2018. On December 16, 2021, Wang announced they are separated and filing for divorce. On December 17, Lee began posting a series of accusations on Instagram and
Sina Weibo Weibo (), or Sina Weibo (), is a Chinese microblogging ( weibo) website. Launched by Sina Corporation on 14 August 2009, it is one of the biggest social media platforms in China, with over 582 million monthly active users (252 million daily ...
against Wang, claiming serial infidelity, and having sex with her when she was 16 years old and he was 26. Lee's posts shocked the internet, especially Wang's fanbase, and were viewed over 3.3 billion times on Weibo. Following the post, various brands dropped Wang as a spokesperson. Wang claimed he was being falsely smeared by Lee, and rebutted all allegations of infidelity and sex with a minor. He posted evidence including a screenshot which claimed to be the couple's first e-mail correspondence dated 2011, when Lee was 24 years old, which he suggested was evidence that they were not intimate when Lee was a minor. Singers
Vivian Hsu Vivian Hsu (; ; born March 19, 1975) is a Taiwanese actress, model, and singer. In 1990, at 15, she won first place in a talent show in Taiwan and formed Girl's Team (1991–1993). At 19, she moved her career to Japan, where she became active ...
and By2 member Yumi Bai, who Lee accused of being Wang's mistresses during her marriage to Wang, both took legal action against Lee. Hsu's lawyers released several official statements denying the allegations. Yumi Bai sued Lee for defamation. Lee also responded, rebutting some of Wang's points. Wang later made a general apology for not managing his marriage well as a public figure, adding that he would transfer the house to Lee and announced he will temporarily quit the entertainment business. After Wang's general apology for not handling his marriage well, Lee rejected the house offer and explained her reasons for making the matter public, saying that she did not receive a sincere apology, adding that children needed honest and trustworthy parents who can face their issues and change instead of perfect parents and that she was not out for the money. Lee ended with a general apology to "innocent parties dragged into the saga". Wang Leehom and Jinglei Lee are now suing each other for custody of their three children after Lee failed to comply with several orders from the
Supreme Court of the State of New York The Supreme Court of the State of New York is the superior court in the Judiciary of New York. It is vested with unlimited civil and criminal jurisdiction, although in many counties outside New York City it acts primarily as a court of civil ju ...
to allow Wang to see his children, ending in an OSC for
Contempt of Court Contempt of court, often referred to simply as "contempt", is the crime of being disobedient to or disrespectful toward a court of law and its officers in the form of behavior that opposes or defies the authority, justice, and dignity of the co ...
, which was later denied on account of jurisdiction. The ex-couple's custody battle has since moved to Taiwan.


Discography

*''Love Rival Beethoven'' (1995) *''If You Heard My Song'' (1996) *''Missing You'' (1996) *''White Paper'' (1997) *''Revolution'' (1998) *'' Impossible to Miss You'' (1999) *''Forever's First Day'' (2000) *''The One and Only'' (2001) *'' Unbelievable'' (2003) *''
Shangri-La Shangri-La is a fictional place in Tibet's Kunlun Mountains, Uses the spelling 'Kuen-Lun'. described in the 1933 novel '' Lost Horizon'' by the British author James Hilton. Hilton portrays Shangri-La as a mystical, harmonious valley, gently ...
'' (2004) *''
Heroes of Earth ''Heroes of Earth'' () is American- Taiwanese R&B Mandopop singer-songwriter Leehom Wang's eleventh Mandarin studio album. It was released on December 30, 2005, by Sony Music Taiwan. Since Wang's debut, this album is the most successful, shipp ...
'' (2005) *'' Change Me'' (2007) *'' Heart Beat'' (2008) *'' The 18 Martial Arts'' (2010) *'' Your Love'' (2015) *''A.I. Love'' (2017)


Filmography


Awards and nominations


Bibliography

* December 18, 2001: ''The One and Only – The Official Piano and Vocal Score'' (唯一樂譜書) (Piano and Vocal Score) * March 20, 2003: ''Accidental Biography'' (純屬意外) (Biography; Piano and Vocal Score) * October 15, 2003: ''Portrait of a Love Song'' (Photobook; Prose and Biography) apan Release* November 15, 2005: ''Shangri-La – The Official Piano and Vocal Score'' (心中的日月樂譜書) (Piano and Vocal Score) * June 9, 2006: "Heroes of
TOKYO Tokyo, officially the Tokyo Metropolis, is the capital of Japan, capital and List of cities in Japan, most populous city in Japan. With a population of over 14 million in the city proper in 2023, it is List of largest cities, one of the most ...
" (Photobook) apan Release* July 21, 2010: "Love in Disguise: photo collection" (Photobook) * July 21, 2010: "Wang Leehom, the practice of first-time director"


References


Further reading

* Boxi Chen
The Expression of Chineseness and Americanness in Chinese Popular Music: A Comparison of ABC Pop St ars Wang Leehom and Banness Wu
Asian Music, Volume 43, Number 2, Summer/Fall 2012, pp 71–87. * *


External links

*
Wang Leehom official website
* * *
Wang Leehom on WeiboTeam Leehom on Twitter
{{DEFAULTSORT:Wang, Leehom 1976 births Living people American expatriates in Taiwan American Protestants Film producers from New York (state) American male film actors American male singer-songwriters American music arrangers American musicians of Taiwanese descent Philanthropists from New York (state) American harmonica players American hip-hop record producers American pop guitarists American rock songwriters American rock singers American rhythm and blues singer-songwriters American rock guitarists American male guitarists American rock violinists American male violinists Berklee College of Music alumni Film directors from New York (state) Japanese-language singers of the United States Mandarin-language singers of the United States Mandopop singer-songwriters Musicians from Rochester, New York Singer-songwriters from New York (state) Williams College alumni People from Pittsford, New York American male pop singers 21st-century American male actors 20th-century American male actors Taiwanese idols American male actors of Taiwanese descent Guitarists from New York (state) Male actors from Rochester, New York 21st-century American singer-songwriters Record producers from New York (state) 21st-century American violinists 21st-century American male singers