Wakin Chau

Last updated

Emil Wakin Chau
WakinChau2007.jpg
Wakin Chau in concert 2007
Born (1960-12-22) 22 December 1960 (age 63)
Occupation(s)Singer, actor
Years active1985–present
SpouseConstance Woods (American) [1]
Children2 [1]
Awards Golden Melody AwardsBest Male Mandarin Artist
1993

Chinese name
Traditional Chinese 周華健
Simplified Chinese 周华健
Musical career
Also known asEmil Chau, Wakin Chau, Zhou Huajian, Chow Wah-Kin
Origin Hong Kong
Genres Mandopop, Cantopop
Labels Rock Records
Website Wakin.com

Wakin Chau (born 22 December 1960), better known by his stage name Emil Chau during the 1980s and 1990s, is a Hong Kong-born Taiwanese singer and actor, popular throughout Taiwan, Hong Kong, Mainland China, and parts of Southeast Asia (Singapore, Malaysia, Indonesia and Vietnam). As of 2007, he has released more than 40 albums.

Contents

Early life

Wakin Chau was born in a rice store owned by his family at Sai Ying Pun in Hong Kong, the fourth son of seven children. [1] He began learning the guitar when he was about 13 years old. In 1979, he left for Taipei to major in mathematics at National Taiwan University. While at college he sang and played folk songs in local coffee shops, learning to sing in Mandarin. [1]

Music career

Hoping to establish a career as a recording artist, Chau sought contacts in the music industry, but after a lack of success, eventually signed on as an assistant producer at Rock Records, where he wrote pop songs for other artists. He was later encouraged by Chyi Yu to perform jingles for commercial advertisements. One of his jingles for a car commercial was heard by his boss at Rock, who recognised his voice and gave him a chance to record a Mandarin album, released on Rock Records in 1987.

From 1985, under the name Emil Chau, he has released more than 40 albums in Mandarin, Cantonese and English. His platinum albums, including You Make Me Happy and Sad (讓我歡喜讓我憂), The Flowery Heart (花·心), Music Brings Us Together (有弦相聚) and Emil & Friends (朋友) have won awards in Taiwan, Mainland China, Hong Kong and Singapore.[ which? ][ citation needed ] Chau reverted to using his given name Wakin in 1999.

Chau formed the four-member supergroup Superband, along with Jonathan Lee, Chang Chen-yue and Lo Ta-yu. They disbanded and resumed their solo careers in 2010.

Other activities

Chau has also appeared in some films, and on TV and radio programs in China, Hong Kong, Taiwan, Malaysia, Singapore and Japan. Alongside his singing career, he is a restaurateur and is active in international charitable causes, such as kidney dialysis charities in Singapore, the January 2002 "Take a Deep Breath" concert in Taipei to raise money for local health-care organisations, Beijing's 4th Grand Charity Drive for Children in 2005, and Jackie Chan's all-star concerts in Las Vegas.

Discography

Mandarin albums

Cantonese albums

English albums

Collaborations

Filmography

[2] [3]

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References

  1. 1 2 3 4 Faith Wong (May 9, 2017) Music business is not for my daughter, says Wakin Chau. todayonline.com
  2. "Wakin Chau". imdb.com. Retrieved 17 April 2010.
  3. "Wakin Chau". chinesemov.com. Retrieved 17 April 2010.