Mandopop () is a colloquial abbreviation for ''"Mandarin popular music."'' It is categorized as a subgenre of commercial Chinese-language music within C-pop. Mandopop was the first variety of popular music in Chinese to establish itself as a viable industry. As the name implies, Mandopop features songs performed mainly in Mandarin Chinese. Consumers of the music include fans, especially Mandarin speakers, in China, Malaysia, Singapore, Taiwan, Japan and other countries.

History

Origin

The origin of commercial Chinese-language music began with the gramophone, a technological innovation brought to Tibet Road in Shanghai by a Frenchman named Labansat. Baak Doi () was the first record company to serve as the backbone for the young industry.

1920s: Birth of shidaiqu

Mandarin pop songs in the 1920s were called shidaiqu (時代曲 - meaning music of the time, thus popular music). They are considered the prototype of any Chinese pop song. Location-wise, Shanghai was the center and quintessential hub for mandopop. Li Jinhui is generally regarded as the "Father of Chinese Popular Music", having established the genre in the 1920s. Buck Clayton, the American jazz musician, also worked alongside Li. Some music enthusiasts suggest that Shidaiqu is the basic form of all Mandarin pop songs up until the transition to Cantopop. The Bright Moonlight Song and Dance Troupe (明月歌舞团), established by Li, is also the first modern musical division to be integrated into the Lianhua Film Company in 1931, making it the first pop music division to enter any Chinese film industry.

1930s–1940s: The Seven Great Singing Stars era

The original "Seven Great Singing Stars" in the Republic of China period secured the place of the genre in Asian society. The singers' style was unlike any Chinese-language music that had come before it. The young film industry took advantage and engaged singers for acting and soundtrack roles. Zhou Xuan (）is generally considered the most remarkable Chinese pop star of the era due to her successful singing and film career. This generation saw female singers rise in popularity from "song girls" to "stars". The era came to an abrupt end when Japanese armies occupied Shanghai during the Second Sino-Japanese War and World War II.

1950s: The split

In 1949, the People's Republic of China was established by the communist party. One of the first actions taken by the government was to denounce popular music as pornography. In the mainland, the communist regime would begin suppressing pop music in order to promote revolutionary songs.

The Chinese Nationalists' retreat to Taiwan following the Chinese Civil War had established the Republic of China on Taiwan with its capital city Taipei as the new center of Mandopop. Taiwanese youth were drawn to popular styles from abroad in part because the Japanese, who had governed Taiwan since the end of the nineteenth century through World War II, were themselves keen consumers of international entertainment. Popular songs necessarily employed Mandarin after the war though, because Taiwan's new rulers, the KMT, mandated its use, forbidding Japanese and restricting the use of Taiwanese, the actual mother tongue of most of the island's residents. Where Taiwanese pop had existed in the shadow of Japanese pop during Japanese rule, it now operated in the shadow of Mandopop during KMT rule.

1960s: Political era

The 1960s was a highly politically tense era. Some songs in Taiwan such as "Not Going Home Today" (今天不回家) by Yao Surong (姚蘇蓉) were prohibited.

1970s–1980s: Rise of the industry

Mandopop became more popular within mainland China after Deng Xiaoping opened China's doors to the world. As a result, more young people in China started to enjoy pop music.

In 1979, Singapore launched the Speak Mandarin Campaign to promote the use of Mandarin over the range of Chinese dialects spoken by various segments of the ethnic-Chinese population. Mandarin songs therefore began to replace Hokkien and Cantonese songs on the radio stations and on television.

Teresa Teng () made Mandopop a true mainstay by crossing over to mainland China. Even in the height of censorship, the mainland lifted the ban on Teng in 1986 and proclaimed that "By day, Deng Xiaoping rules China. But by night, Deng Lijun (Teresa Teng) rules". Her songs were considered "Bourgeois Music" by mainland officials.

The popularity of Lo Ta-yu () drove demand for the music to new heights. One of the most successful songs of the era was Lo Ta-yu's "Tomorrow will be Better" (明天會更好/明天会更好). The song was originally performed in 1985 by 60 singers. It quickly became a hit throughout Asia and established itself as a standard. Another song soon followed in 1986 in mainland China called "Let the World be filled with Love" (讓世界充滿愛). At the time, these songs were inspired by the American song "We Are the World".

1990s

Faye Wong (王菲) became the first Chinese singer to perform in Budokan, Japan. For this reason she is also called the Diva of Asia.

During this period, singers from Hong Kong such as the Four Heavenly Kings - Aaron Kwok, Leon Lai, Andy Lau and Jacky Cheung - also began to dominate Mandopop. Nonetheless, Taiwan has their own popular singers such as Stella Chang, Sky Wu, Wakin Chau (formerly Emil Chau) and Jeff Chang. Rock Records began to emerge in this period as the most influential of the independent labels.

2000s

The 2000s began with an explosion of pop idols, mainly from Taiwan. The growing Mainland film industry also increased demand for Mandopop after decades of suppression. Jay Chou led the popularity of rhythm and blues and rap music in the scene. Other successful singers include Stefanie Sun, David Tao, Jolin Tsai and Leehom Wang. Recent years also saw the rise in crossover appeal of Taiwanese bubblegum pop boybands and girlbands to the Mainland Chinese scene, such as commercially successful acts like S.H.E and Fahrenheit (Taiwanese band). Nationwide singing competitions in the People's Republic of China, such as the ''Super Girl'', have greatly boosted Mandopop's influence. Mainland China has a large number of Mandopop singers as pop music becomes increasingly mainstream. Several new boybands have emerged in Mainland China during 2008-2009 like Top Combine and HIT-5. Cantopop stars are now also crossing over into the Mandopop industry in order to increase their fan base. After the introduction of S.H.E and Fahrenheit, others have followed such as Channel V's Lollipop F and Hey Girl. They are backed by celebrity shows of their own.

Since the 2000s, the emergence of indie rock in Taiwan had exploded into a flourishing indie music scene in Taiwan, adding various new diversities into Mandopop. Entry of popular Taiwan-based rock bands such as Mayday and Sodagreen had brought a new phase of rock fusion into Mandopop.

In recent years, the burgeoning number of contests have brought an idol concept (偶像, ''ǒuxiàng'') to the Mandopop industry. In Taiwan, the term "quality idol" (優質偶像, ''yōuzhì ǒuxiàng'') has entered the popular lexicon, referring to Mandopop singers who are good-looking, talented and highly educated, among them Wang Leehom and Wei Li-an.

Characteristics

Instruments and setups

The guqin and pipa are some of the first instruments used during shidaiqu's early mandopop era. Today's mandopop arrangements are quite westernized, covering many musical styles, including rhythm and blues, ballads, Pop. A few Chinese pop musicians, most notably Jay Chou, Lin Jun Jie, and Leehom Wang, have experimented with fusing traditional Chinese instruments with western influences.

Influential artists like Leehom Wang and David Tao, who use both traditional Chinese instruments and mainstream western hip hop melodies, have influenced many Asian singers worldwide.

Industry

Mandopop stars

While China has the largest Mandarin-speaking population, Taiwan is the most significant hub of the genre. The trend is that most artists are branded by where they come from regardless of where they were actually marketed. Mandopop stars come mainly from Taiwan, Hong Kong, China, Singapore and Malaysia.

Labels

Mandopop record labels includes independent labels such as JVR Music, Linfair Records, B'In Music and subsidiaries of major labels such as Sony Music Taiwan, Universal Music Taiwan, Warner Music Taiwan. In the past few years, mainland labels such as EE-Media, Huayi Brothers, Taihe Rye Music, Show City Times, Idol Entertainment, and Tian Hao Entertainment have also emerged.

Mainland China: EE-Media, Huayi Brothers, Taihe Rye Music, Show City Times, Idol Entertainment, TH Entertainment

Taiwan/Hong Kong: Rock Records, HIM International Music, Avex Taiwan, Gold Typhoon

Overseas

Mandopop titles are also available outside of Asia. Chinese communities established in North America have made Mandopop music accessible through local businesses. In the United States, Canada and Australia they are easily found in many major urban areas, such as San Francisco, Los Angeles, San Diego, New York, Seattle, Houston, Dallas, Vancouver, Toronto, Sydney, Brisbane, Perth and Melbourne.

Notable Artists

Male

{| |valign=top|

A-do

Ah Niu

Alan Ke

Alec Su

Alex To

Alien Huang

Allen Su Xing

Amguulan

Anson Hu

Anthony Neely

Aska Yang

Blue J

Bii

Chen Chusheng

Chang Chen-yue

Chang Yu-Sheng

Chen Kun

Chyi Chin

|valign=top|

Danson Tang

David Tao

Evan Yo

Fei Yu-ching

Gary Chaw

Han Geng

Harlem Yu

Hsie He-hsian

Huang Xiaoming

Jacky Cheung

Jackie Chan

Jason Zhang Jie

Jam Hsiao

Jay Chou

Jaycee Chan

Jeff Chang

Jimmy Lin

JJ Lin

|valign=top|

Joe Cheng

Khalil Fong

Leehom Wang

Liu Huan

Michael Wong

Ming Dow

Nicholas Teo

Nicky Wu

Peter Ho

Phil Chang

Richie Ren

Roger Yang

Show Luo

Sky Wu

Stanley Huang

Sun Nan

Tank

Vision Wei Chen

|valign=top|

Wilber Pan

Wong JingLun

Wu Bai

Yen-J

Yoga Lin

Yu Haoming

Z-Chen

|}

Female

{| |valign=top|

A-mei

Ah Sang

Alan Dawa Dolma

A-Lin

Amber Kuo

Angela An Youqi

Angela Chang

Angelica He Jie

Angelica Lee

Ariel Lin

Baby Zhang

Barbie Hsu

Bibi Zhou Bichang

Chen Lin

Cheer Chen

Chris Lee (Li Yuchun)

Christine Fan

|valign=top|

Cindy Yen

Claire Kuo

Coco Lee

Cyndi Wang

Cynthia Wang

Dai Ai Ling

Dee Hsu

Della Ding Dang

Bai Guang

Bai Hong

Deserts Chang

Elva Hsiao

Evonne Hsu

Faith Yang

Fan Bingbing

Faye Wong

Fish Leong

|valign=top|

Genie Chuo

Gong Qiuxia

Han Hong

Huang Ying

Isabelle Huang

Jane Zhang

Jeno Liu Liyang

Jessie Chiang

Ji Minjia

Jing Chang

Joanna Wang

Jocie Kok

Joey Yung

Jolin Tsai

Kaira Gong

Kym Jin Sha

Landy Wen

|valign=top|

Laure Shang Wenjie

Liu Yifei

Na Ying

Michelle Li Xiaoyun

Pan Chen

Peggy Hsu

Penny Tai

Queen Wei

Rachel Liang

Rainie Yang

Ruby Lin

Sa Dingding

Sara Liu Xijun

Saya Chang

Sitar Tan Weiwei

Shunza

Stefanie Sun

|valign=top|

Tanya Chua

Teresa Teng

Valen Hsu

Xian Zi

Vicky Zhao Wei

Victoria Song

Vivi Jiang Yingrong

Vivian Hsu

Wei Wei

Yao Lee

Yoshiko Ōtaka

Yico Zeng Yike

Yisa Yu Kewei

Yuki Hsu

Zhang Liyin

Zhou Xuan

|}

Groups/Bands

{| |valign=top|

183 Club

2moro

4 in Love

5566

7 Flowers

8090

A-One

ASOS

Blue Bird Flying Fish

BOBO

BY2

Da Mouth

Dong Cheng Wei

|valign=top|

Dream Girls

Energy

Fahrenheit

F.I.R.

Feng Yun Bang

HIT-5

iMe

Idol Girls

F4

GIA

G.I.P

Hey Girl

K One

|valign=top|

Lollipop

Lotte Girls

Lucille the Lovely Rabbit

Mayday

Milk@Coffee

M.I.C

miss A

Nan Quan Mama

Power Station

Phoenix Legend

Seventeen

S.H.E

SIGMA

|valign=top|

Sisters

Sodagreen

S.P.Y

SuperVC

Super Junior-M

Sweety

Tension

The Flowers

Top Combine

Twins

UP Girls

Y2J

Yu Quan

|}

Awards

Beijing Popular Music Awards (Mainland China)

CCTV-MTV Music Awards (Mainland China)

Chinese Music Awards (Mainland China)

Four Stations Joint Music Awards (Hong Kong)

Golden Melody Awards (Taiwan)

Jade Solid Gold Best Ten Music Awards (Hong Kong)

M Music Awards (Mainland China)

Metro Radio Mandarin Music Awards (Hong Kong)

RTHK Top 10 Gold Songs Awards (Hong Kong)

Singapore Hit Awards (Singapore)

Top Chinese Music Awards (Mainland China)

Ultimate Song Chart Awards (Hong Kong)

Mandopop radio stations

{|class="wikitable" ! width=20% | Station ! width=20% | Location ! width=50% | Frequencies and Platform |- | All Chinese Hits Internet Radio || Silicon Valley, USA || Internet radio station: live365.com/stations/bluemonty |- | Kiss Radio Taiwan || Kaohsiung, Taiwan || 99.9 FM, 99.7 FM, 97.1 FM, 98.3 FM and Internet live streaming |- | Hit Fm || Taipei, Taiwan || 90.1 FM, 91.5 FM, 101.7 FM and Internet live streaming |- | Beijing Radio Stations || Beijing, China || 97.4 FM and Internet live streaming |- | Shenzhen Radio Station || Shenzhen, China || 97.1 FM and Internet live streaming |- | Shanghai Media Group || Shanghai, China || 101.7 FM and Internet live streaming |- | KAZN || Los Angeles, USA || Sometimes |- | KSQQ || San Francisco, USA || 96.1 FM |- | Yes 93.3 || Singapore || 93.3 FM and Internet live streaming |- | 883 JIA FM || Singapore || 88.3 FM and Internet live streaming |- | MY FM || Malaysia || Frequencies vary according to location |- | MandarinRadio.com || || Internet live streaming (also available on iTunes Radio) |- |}

See also

Music of China

Music of Taiwan

C-pop

Chinese R&B;

J-pop

K-pop

Taiwanese pop

List of best-selling albums in Taiwan

References

External links

Videos about Taiwan's Mandopop Music Empire

Category:C-pop Category:Pop music genres Category:Fusion music genres

de:Mandopop fr:Mandopop id:Pop Mandarin it:Mandopop hu:Mandopop no:Mandopop pt:Mandopop ru:Mandopop zh:華語流行音樂

name	Henry Lau
englishname	Henry
tradchinesename	劉憲華
simpchinesename	刘宪华
pinyinchinesename	Liú Xiànhuá
jyutpingchinesename	Lau4 Hin3 Wa4
birth name	Henry Lau
alias	Henry
birth date	October 11, 1989
birth place	Toronto, Ontario, Canada
occupation	Singer, Songwriter, Dancer
genre	Pop, dance, R&B;, electropop, ethereal
instrument	Singing, Rapping, Violin, Piano
voicetype	Tenor
label	SM Entertainment
yearsactive	2008–present
associatedact	SM Town, Super Junior-M
website
notable instruments	Violin, Piano
awards	}}

Henry Lau (born October 11, 1989), better known mononymously as Henry, is a Chinese-Canadian singer songwriter (His father is from Hong Kong, and his mother is from Pingtung, Taiwan.). He is one of the two new additional members to the Super Junior sub-unit Super Junior-M, the other being Zhou Mi.

Henry's primary language is English, Mandarin Chinese, and Cantonese, though he can speak conversational Korean and Japanese. He also learned French in Canada.

Biography

Henry's areas of expertise lie in violin, piano, popping, guitar playing and singing. Henry started to learn to play the piano from his mother at the age of 5, and also learned to play the violin at the age of 6. He also learned a unique form of dancing called boogaloo popping while in high school. After only one year of dancing, Henry was competing in dance (popping) competitions and shows. Henry has gained many performance awards, such as the Canadian Royal Conservatory of Music (RCM) Silver Medal for Level 10 Violin. Henry said he had planned to become a professional violinist, but never expected to become an idol star before being selected by S.M. Entertainment in 2006. and also said that he chose to join S.M. because if he turned to be a classical musician, he wouldn't be able to sing, dance, play the piano, and play the violin all together (Source:ilikeradio).

He was born and raised in Willowdale, Toronto where is one of the most affluent areas of the city of Toronto, Ontario, Canada, located in the district of North York. He attended Steelesview Public School, Zion Heights Junior High School, then North Toronto Collegiate Institute in grade 9, and attended A.Y. Jackson Secondary School (Toronto) for the rest of his high school years before being chosen at the 2006 S.M. Entertainment Global Audition in Toronto, Ontario. He briefly attended University of Toronto (Music Performance Major) in 2007. He also attended Berklee College of Music in Boston From May 2010 to August 2010.

His first appearance was in Super Junior's "Don't Don" music video in September 2007. A few months later, Don't Don became a number one hit in Korea. In 2008, Henry was added to Super Junior-M and the group debuted in China on April 8, 2008, releasing their "U" remake music video and an album entitled "迷 [Me]" soon after that incorporated Henry's violin.

Henry returned to the music industry after a year-long break when Super Junior-M and their first mini-album: Super Girl (EP) was released in China on September 25, 2009. In the mini-album, Henry does not display his violin playing. Henry did mixes and beats, such as for other members' (Donghae, Hangeng and Heechul) solo performances for their fan parties and Super Show 3 (Heechul) in 2009-2010.

In 2010, Henry composed a song called '진심(All My Heart)' for Super Junior's 4th repackage album, with Leeteuk. And for Super Show 2, he solely produced and wrote a song titled "Sick Of Love" which was written in English and hasn't been officially recorded yet. He was also featured in a Jonghyun and Jino R&B; duet "Don't Lie" by SM The Ballad in which he raps in the song. Also, Henry rearranged Justin Bieber's "Baby" and used the song to perform for the Super Show 3 Tour.

In February 2011, Henry's new solo song called '表白(Off My Mind)' was released. The song is included in Super Junior-M's second EP, 'Perfection (EP)'. The song showcases Henry's talent in composing, arranging and producing as most of the work on the song was done solely by him.

His fans are known as "Strings".

Filmography

Television series

! Year	! Broadcast	! Title	! Role	! Language
		''Star King''	Henry (Guest star)	Korean
		''Stage Of Youth'' (青春舞台)	Henry (Guest star)	Mandarin Chinese
		''Star King''	Henry (Guest star)	Korean
		''勇往直前''	Henry (Guest star)	Mandarin Chinese & Korean
		''Strong Heart''	Henry (Guest star)	Korean
		''Strong Heart''	Henry (Guest star)	Korean
		''开心歌迷汇''	Henry (Guest star)	Mandarin Chinese

Controversy

Before debuting as a member of Super Junior-M, Henry appeared as a violinist in Super Junior's 2007 single "Don't Don" which caused a controversy among the fans after SM Entertainment officially announced Henry to be a member of a new Super Junior sub-unit. Previously, there were rumors stating that Henry was to be the fourteenth member of Super Junior, stemming from SM's statement regarding the controversy, which led fans to the form an "Only 13" campaign.

References

External links

SM Entertainment Official Site

Super Junior-M Official Website

Category:1989 births Category:Canadian people of Hong Kong descent Category:Canadian people of Taiwanese descent Category:Canadian pop singers Category:Korean-language singers Category:Living people Category:Mandopop singers Category:Musicians from Toronto Category:Super Junior-M members

ko:헨리 (1989년) it:Henry Lau tl:Henry Lau zh:Henry (藝人)

Name	Wei Chen
Background	solo_singer
Birth name	Wèi Chén (pinyin)魏晨
Othername	Vision (English)
Alias	Vision (English name)Little Orange, Chen Chen
Nickname	小乖，魏总，龙王，魏十六，魏导，魏三少，魏春风，魏倾城
Birth date	February 22, 1986
Birth place	Lanzhou, Gansu, China
Occupation	Singer, Actor
Genre	Mandopop, K-pop
Label	EE-Media (management)(2007-present) ---- EE-Media (record)(2007-present)CJ E&M; (record)(2011-present)
Website	}}

Wei Chen () (born February 22, 1986) is a Chinese pop singer and actor, who rose to fame through Super Boy a televised singing competitions. He is best known through his album "Disparate" and his role as Ye Shuo on Meteor Shower.

Biography

Wei was born on February 22, 1986. He grew up in Lanzhou, Gansu Province, China. In high school, he started having vocal music and piano lessons and later attended the Sichuan Conservatory of Music. As a professional musician, he is also good at piano, guitar, hulusi, guxun.

Wei Chen participated in the 2007 season of ''Super Boy'' (快乐男声), a famous national televised singing competition in China, and placed third. In the competition, Wei's contagious performances and sunny image had won him much attention.

In 2007, after ''Super Boy'' (快乐男声), Wei participated in ''Just the Two of Us'' (名声大震) with Rujjana Utaiwan from Thailand, and the duo finished in second place.

In 2008, he co-starred in the movie ''Shiqi'' (十七), starring Joan Chen and Sam Chow. In the film, he acts as Tian Yi(Chinese:天翊) who is a sunny boy and the friend of the leading man Shiqi.

In 2009, he filmed the television series Meteor Shower. In the TV series, Wei acts as Ye Shuo, a computer genius with dreams of becoming the next Bill Gates. Ye is somewhat brooding and introverted, and he is clear about whom to love and whom to hate. Ye hates and opposes his older brother, who owns a gaming company, because of his carelessness to their family, blaming him for the death of their father. In his university, Elliston Business School, a series of romances befall Ye and his three closest friends. Ye falls in love with a slightly older woman, Yunhai's sister, but she is not comfortable with the idea of being with a younger man. Eventually, Ye's persistence comes through and the two share a kiss, but the future of their relationship is left ambiguous. Also, Ye and his brother make peace in the end of the series, and both gain more understanding on the importance of family.

On July 21, 2010, he released his first album ''千方百计 (Disparate)''. The same titled first single 千方百计 was received with great commercial success, reaching number 1 on numerous Chinese music charts. Songs from the album were used for the TV series Meteor Shower, including 向日葵的微笑 and the self composed single "''Meteor Shower Has Come'' (流星雨又来临)". 流星雨又来临 received huge success. The album itself was one of the best selling albums in China in year 2010.

On August 25, 2011, Wei Chen's track "Run Away" featuring Lee Joon and Thunder of MBLAQ was digitally released through various music sites. The track was a co-production between CJ E&M;, EE-Media, and M Plus Entertainment. That same day he performed "Po Xiao" (破晓) and "Run Away" on the Korean program M! Countdown.

Filmography

Television

Ye Shuo ''Meteor Shower (TV series)#Season_II>Meteor Shower 2''

Year
2009	Meteor Shower (TV series) > Meteor Shower''	|	Hunan TV	aka Let’s Go Watch Meteor Shower
2010	|	Ye Shuo	Hunan TV	aka Let's Watch The Meteor Shower Together Again

Film

''Fire Boy''

Year !! Title !! Role !! Notes
2008	''Seventeen''	Tian Yi
2009	|	Ou Xiaolang	aka Le Huo Nan Hai

Stage

"''Struggle''", 2008-2009, aka Fen Dou

Discography

Albums and EPs

Album Type	Album Information	Tracklisting
		*Released: 2 January 2008	*Label: EE-Media
		*Released: 21 July 2010	*Label: EE-Media

Singles

Release	Albums and EPs Title	China Pop Song Charts
		Peak Weekly Position	Song
		—
		1	Shàonián Yóu 少年游
		1	Yīgè Rén Shuì 一个人睡
	align="left" valign="top"	7	Jiayou! Ni You ME! 加油！你有ME！
		—	Yǒu Nǐ De Xìngfú 有你的幸福
		1	Qiānfāngbǎijì 千方百计
1	Wǒ Xiǎng Ài 我想爱
1	Liúxīngyǔ Yòu Láilín 流星雨又来临
	align="left" valign="top"	—	Run Away

External links

Official Blog (in Chinese)

Official Weibo (twitter)

魏晨百度百科

Sina Entertainment

Music Asia

References

Category:1986 births Category:Living people Category:People from Gansu Category:People's Republic of China singers

es:Wei Chen zh:魏晨

name	Chen Chu陳菊
order	1st
office	Mayor of Kaohsiung
term start	25 December 2010
predecessor	Chen Chu as Mayor of Kaohsiung
order2	27th
office2	Mayor of Kaohsiung
term start2	25 December 2006
term end2	25 December 2010
predecessor2	Yeh Chu-lan
successor2	Chen Chu as Mayor of Kaohsiung (Greater Kaohsiung)
birth date	June 10, 1950
birth place	Yilan County, Taiwan
party
alma mater	Shih Hsin UniversityNational Sun Yat-sen University
profession	Politician
nationality	}}

Chen Chu (; born 10 June 1950 in Yilan County, Taiwan) is a Taiwanese politician who is the current mayor of Kaohsiung. She was one of the "Kaohsiung Eight," prominent dissidents arrested after the Kaohsiung Incident in 1979. She spent six years in jail during the martial law period in Taiwan.

Chen, who holds a master's degree from National Sun Yat-sen University, held senior appointed posts in Taipei City and Kaohsiung City governments between 1995 and 2000. She then served as minister of the Council of Labor Affairs between 2000 and 2005. In 2006, Chen Chu won the Kaohsiung mayoral elections and became the city's first elected female mayor. She was re-elected in 2010 with 52% of the vote in a three-way race.

On August 30, 2009, The 14th Dalai Lama accepted an invitation from Chen Chu to visit Taiwan.

Chen is single, and has never married.

Kaohsiung mayoralty

Chen narrowly won the 2006 Kaohsiung mayoral elections over Kuomintang (KMT) candidate Huang Jun-ying (黃俊英) by just 1,120 votes. Huang filed two lawsuits against Chen's camp, asking the court to annul Chen's victory. He argued that the airing of a video on the eve of the election resulted in his loss. The Kaohsiung District Court ruled in favor of Huang Jun-ying in one of the cases, thereby nullifying the elections.

Soon after hearing the news, Chen expressed that she would appeal the case. She said that if she accepted the ruling, it would be political suicide. While her DPP colleague and legislator Kuan Bi-ling advised Chen to give up the appeal and allow a by-election, Chen nonetheless appealed the case. Some wondered if Kuan, who lost to Chen in the primaries, made the remark out of personal interest.

The High Court overturned the earlier decision and validated Chen's election victory on 17 November 2007. In December 2007, after her mayoralty was proven indisputable, she announced that her new goal is to focus on improving the city's transportation, public construction, and environmental protection.

In April 2009, mayor Chen promised to improve the water quality of Chienchen River, a river that the locals called "Heilungchiang" (; lit. "Black dragon river"). She said that NT$120 million (approximately US$3.6 million) will be spent to complete the task. She vowed to make Kaohsiung a city that is not just notable for the cleanliness of its Love River.

World Games 2009

Kaohsiung was the host city of World Games 2009. Chen Chu visited the People's Republic of China (commonly known as "China") to promote the Games. During a meeting with Beijing mayor Guo Jinlong, Chen addressed President Ma Ying-jeou with his formal title, which garnered much support from the DPP and the Kaohsiung City legislature. Chen's trip to China was criticized by several localization activist groups including the Taiwan Solidarity Union. However, Chen said that the trip was intended to benefit Kaohsiung. During her trip, she met with not only the mayor of Beijing, but also Shanghai mayor Han Zheng and Chinese Olympic Committee chairman Liu Pong.

The main venue for the Games, the World Games Stadium, was designed by Japanese architect Toyo Ito. The groundbreaking and completion of the stadium both occurred during Chen's term as mayor.

The closing ceremony was held at the sold-out World Games Stadium, where International World Games Association President Ron Froehlich called it a "fantastic success" and declared it the "best ever." Kaohsiung's tourism bureau announced that the Games generated almost US$61 million in revenue for the city. The city's department stores reported a 15 percent growth in sales. Mayor Chen said that Kaohsiung would no longer be known only as the second largest city in Taiwan, but also as the city that hosted the best World Games ever.

Typhoon Fanapi

Chen Chu was criticized for napping in her residence while parts of Kaohsiung flooded when Typhoon Fanapi ripped through Taiwan on September 19, 2010.

Chen tearfully admitted to napping and to feeling guilty for taking a rest. She also stressed that she returned home to change her wet clothes and was also keeping a close eye on the storm. Critics called for Chen to resign from her post, and compared Chen's napping to former Premier Liu Chao-Shiuan's getting a haircut and former Executive Yuan Secretary-General Hsieh Hsiang-chuan's attending a Father's Day dinner during August 2009's Typhoon Morakot.

Chen Chu and the City Government were sued by Benhe borough (本和里) chief Lin Chi-mei (林紀美), a fellow DPP member, in the aftermath of the flooding, alleging that the city government did not maintain proper facilities that might have prevented flooding.

References

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Category:1950 births Category:Living people Category:Democratic Progressive Party (Taiwan) politicians Category:Mayors of Kaohsiung Category:National Sun Yat-sen University alumni Category:Taiwan independence activists Category:Taiwanese prisoners and detainees

Category:Politicians of the Republic of China on Taiwan from Yilan County Category:Prisoners and detainees of Taiwan Category:Taiwanese women in politics

zh-min-nan:Tân Kiok fr:Chen Chu ja:陳菊 vi:Trần Cúc zh:陳菊