This article needs additional citations for verification. Please help improve this article by adding citations to reliable sources. Unsourced material may be challenged and removed. (September 2011)

PolyGram

Fate	Sold to Seagram and merged into Universal Music Group
Successor(s)	Universal Music Group
Founded	1962
Founder(s)	Philips Records
Defunct	1999
Parent	Philips

PolyGram was the name of the major label recording company started by Philips as a holding company for its music interests in 1945. In 1999 it was sold to Seagram and merged into Universal Music Group.

Hollandsche Decca Distributie (HDD), 1929-1950[link]

In 1929, Decca Records (London) licensed record shop owner H.W. van Zoelen as a distributor in the Netherlands. By 1931, his company Hollandsche Decca Distributie (HDD) had become exclusive Decca distributor for all of the Netherlands and its colonies. Over the course of the 1930s, HDD put together its own facilities for A&R, recording and manufacture.

HDD was commercially successful during World War II because of the absence of American and British competition. Van Zoelen wanted to sell to Philips so that HDD would have sufficient financial backing when their major competitors returned after the war. This led Philips to buy HDD in 1942.

In the mid-twentieth century, the majority of large recording companies manufactured both gramophones and records; Philips CEO Anton Philips noted the risk in creating gramophones without an interest in music recording and record manufacture, and that Radio Corporation of America (RCA) had merged with the Victor Talking Machine Company in 1929 for this reason. Philips' labs were developing magnetic tape and LPs, and that record companies could support eventual new formats, although other record companies were notably unenthusiastic about experimenting with new formats.

After the war, Philips built a large factory in Doetinchem to produce 78 rpm records.

Philips Phonografische Industrie (PPI), 1950-1962[link]

In the 1940s, the record business was spread out within Philips — research in the Eindhoven labs, development elsewhere in Eindhoven, recording in Hilversum, manufacturing in Doetinchem, distribution from Amsterdam and exports from Eindhoven. During the late 1940s, Philips combined its various music businesses into Philips Phonografische Industrie (PPI), a wholly owned subsidiary.

PPI's early growth was based on alliances. A merger was first proposed with Decca of London in late 1945, but was rejected by Edward Lewis, Decca's owner. (PolyGram finally acquired Decca in 1979.)

In the early 1950s, Philips set itself the goal of making PPI the largest record company in Europe.

PPI's second attempt at a merger was with Deutsche Grammophon Gesellschaft (DGG). DGG, owned by Siemens AG and well known for its classical repertoire, had been the German licensee for Decca from 1935. DGG also owned Polydor Records. Shortly after PPI was founded it had made a formal alliance with DGG to manufacture each others' records, coordinate releases and not to poach each others' artists or bid against each other for new talent. PPI and DGG finally merged in 1962.

The alliance with DGG still left PPI without repertoire in Britain or the US. But in 1951, after Columbia had failed to renew its international distribution agreement with EMI, PPI agreed to distribute Columbia recordings outside the US and have Columbia distribute its recordings inside the US. This agreement ran until 1961, when Columbia set up its own European network, PPI signed a worldwide distribution deal with Mercury Records in 1961. Ironically, PPI's parent company Philips, through its U.S. affiliate Consolidated Electronics Industries Corp (a.k.a. Conelco), acquired Mercury in 1962.

PPI built or bought factories in smaller countries. In 1962, PPI had a large factory in Baarn and factories in France, Britain, Denmark, Norway, Spain, Italy, Egypt, Nigeria and Brazil.

PPI played an important role in the introduction of the long-playing vinyl record to Europe. Columbia introduced their LP record in 1948 and Philips presented its first LP at a record retailers' convention in 1949. Philips' commitment to LP technology was an important factor in its 1951-1961 deal with Columbia.^{[citation needed]}

GPG and PolyGram, 1962-1980[link]

In 1962, PPI and DGG formed the Grammophon-Philips Group (GPG), with Philips taking a 50% share in DGG and Siemens a 50% share in PPI. In 1972 the companies formally merged to form PolyGram, of which Philips and Siemens each owned 50%. In 1977 both organizations merged operationally, integrating the recording, manufacturing, distribution and marketing into a single organization.

The various record labels within PolyGram continued to operate separately. PolyGram gave its labels, as A&R organizations, great autonomy.

GPG needed to move into the US and UK markets, and did so by a process of both formation and acquisition: Polydor Records established its American operations in 1969, Mercury Record Productions (US) was acquired in 1972 from sister company North American Philips Corp., RSO (UK) in 1967, MGM Records and Verve (US) in 1972, Casablanca (US) in 1977, Pickwick in 1978, and Decca (UK) in 1980 (the latter acquisition basically brought PolyGram full circle, see the HDD section above). PolyGram acquired United Distribution Corporation (UDC) in 1973 and signed distribution deals with MCA and 20th Century Records in 1976.

In the late 1950s and early 1960s, Philips had been at work on a new consumer magnetic tape format for music. The Philips Compact Cassette came out in 1963. It was small, played longer than an LP and was robust. In 1965 the cassette accounted for 3% of revenues, growing in 1968 to 8% and in 1970 to 10.6%.

In the late 1960s and through the 1970s, GPG/PolyGram diversified into film and television production and home video. RSO's successes included Saturday Night Fever and Grease. PolyGram's highly successful marketing during the disco craze included the Casablanca film Thank God It's Friday and its associated soundtrack. During the boom in disco, PolyGram's US market share had gone from 5% to 20%. This can also be attributed to multi-million selling LPs & 45s by The Bee Gees, Donna Summer, The Village People, Andy Gibb, Kool and The Gang and rock act Kiss. For a short while,^[quantify] it was the world's largest record company.^{[citation needed]}

Reorganization, 1980-1999[link]

Before 1978, with the acquisition of UDC, the distribution organization was too large and PolyGram was losing money. When US operations were running at full capacity, PolyGram expanded aggressively, and would press large quantities of records without knowing the demand. In late 1979, PolyGram was caught offguard by the sudden end of the popularity of disco music, leaving it with an underutilized distribution network, profligate labels, and overoptimistic product orders. PolyGram's Casablanca label was infamous for management spending on luxury cars and cocaine. After 1980, PolyGram's losses had spiraled upwards of US$220 million.

Another contributing factor to PolyGram's financial woes was the massive failure of the big budget 1978 musical Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Heart's Club Band. The film starred the Bee Gees and Peter Frampton at the height of popularity, and featured Beatle covers by them as well as Aerosmith, Billy Preston, and Earth, Wind, and Fire. The film was highly anticipated to surpass the box office success of both the Saturday Night Fever and Grease, mostly due to the film's popular music stars. The soundtrack LP, based on only advance orders, was released triple platinum.^{[citation needed]} However, the movie was released to poor reviews and died a quick death at the box office. Despite its triple platinum start, the soundtrack LP's sales bombed after the film's release. In turn, record dealers flooded PolyGram with returned LPs. The resulting losses nearly wiped out the profits the company had made on both the Saturday Night Fever and Grease soundtracks. When the disco craze ended in 1979 and record sales for both The Bee Gees and Casablanca's Village People plummeted, the company's fate was sealed. PolyGram also experienced losses with the defection of Casablanca's Donna Summer to newly formed Geffen as well as the dropping of Andy Gibb (from RSO), whose personal problems with cocaine and alcohol began to affect his recording career. Summer and The Bee Gees also had legal disputes with their labels, which further complicated matters.

In 1983, Philips manager Jan Timmer was appointed CEO. He cut the workforce from 13,000 to 7,000, reduced PolyGram's LP and cassette plants from eighteen to five and decreased the company's dependence on superstars by spreading the repertoire across different genres and nurturing national and regional talent. By 1985, PolyGram was profitable once more. Its roster of labels by this time included: Polydor, Mercury Records, London/FFRR, Casablanca (until 1986, later to be reincarnated in 1994), RSO, De-Lite, Riva, Threshold (owned by The Moody Blues), Tin Pan Alley (under Polydor), and Atlanta Artists (founded by Cameo lead singer Larry Blackmon) all consolidated into PolyGram Records, Inc.

Total Experience Records (founded by Lonnie Simmons) was taken to RCA for distribution in 1984. Wing Records was reincarnated in 1987 and became a very popular label over the following years, spawning the careers of Tony! Toni! Tone! and former Miss America, Vanessa Williams; the label was discontinued in the mid-1990s. Fontana was revived in the U.S. in 1989, but only for a short while. Today, Fontana Distribution is an independent label distribution unit of Universal Music Group. Vertigo Records still remained a rare U.S. PolyGram label, as most of the music on Vertigo Records were from Europe.

In 1982, PolyGram purchased 20th Century Fox Records from 20th Century Fox, which was just recently brought out by oil magnate Marvin Davis, who was not interested in keeping the record company. The assets of the former 20th Century Fox Records were consolidated with the company's Casablanca label.

After an attempted 1983 merger with Warner Music failed, Philips bought 40% of PolyGram from Siemens, acquiring the remaining 10% in 1987.

The compact disc, invented by Philips and Sony, helped greatly in boosting the company's sales and market share. PolyGram's strength in classical music helped greatly, as many of the CD's early adopters were classical music lovers. Total US sales of CDs were 1 million in 1983, 334 million in 1990 and 943 million in 2000. Total UK sales were 300,000 in 1983, 51 million in 1990 and 202 million in 2000. The CD increased PolyGram's profit margin from 4-6% in the mid-1980s to 7-9% by the early 1990s. As well, videos were distributed by PolyGram Video.

In 1989, Philips floated 16% of PolyGram on the Amsterdam stock exchange, valuing the whole company at $5.6 billion. PolyGram embarked on a new program of acquisitions, including A&M and Island Records in 1989, Swedish company Polar Music which held the rights to the ABBA catalogue, Motown in 1993, Def Jam in 1994 and Rodven (Venezuela) in 1995.

In 1999, Philips sold PolyGram to Seagram and it was merged into Universal Music Group. The name survives via reissue of music under the Polydor Records label.

See also[link]

• List of record labels
• Working Title Films
• PolyGram Filmed Entertainment
• Chocolate City Records

References[link]

• The Making of a Music Multinational: The International Strategy of PolyGram, 1945-1988 by Dr Gerben Bakker, Dept. of Accounting, Finance and Management, University of Essex.

External links[link]

• PolyGram at last.fm.

v t e Philips Divisions and subsidiaries Current Philips Consumer Lifestyle Gaggia Saeco Philips Healthcare Philips AVENT Respironics Shenzhen Goldway Industrial Philips Lighting Philips Lumileds Lighting Company Corporate Technologies Former and defunct Liquavista Magnavox NXP Semiconductors Philips Analytical Philips Natuurkundig Laboratorium PolyGram (Fontana Records Mercury Records Philips Classics Records Philips Records PolyGram Filmed Entertainment Vertigo Records) Joint ventures and shareholdings Current NXP Semiconductors (19.9%) Philips-Neusoft Medical Systems (51%) TCL Corporation (6.3%) Former and defunct ASML Holding Broadcast Television Systems Inc. LG Philips Display NEC Philips Unified Systems Philips Consumer Communications Brands, products and standards Current Ambilight Norelco Philips Cinema 21:9 TV Philips Entertaible Philips GoGear Philips Intimate Massagers Senseo ShoqBox Sonicare Streamium Trimension Video Content Protection System Defunct Philips Nino Philips Velo Philips :YES Philishave SpeechMagic Video 2000 People Cor Boonstra President and Chief Executive Officer Gerard Kleisterlee Co-founders Anton Philips and Gerard Philips Frits Philips Places High Tech Campus Eindhoven Philips Arena Philips Stadion Other Carousel HDMI Licensing Philips Sports Manager of the Year Phoebus cartel Category Commons

This article contains Chinese text. Without proper rendering support, you may see question marks, boxes, or other symbols instead of Chinese characters.

Sammi Cheng Sau-Man is a Hong Kong Cantopop singer and actress. Having enjoyed much success in the Hong Kong music industry, Sammi has been known as a diva and has been one of the most successful female singer in Hong Kong since the 1990s. Her albums have sold more than 25 million copies through Asia-pacific.^[3] Most notably in the 1990s, she was dubbed by the media as the " Cantopop Queen".

Sammi Cheng breaks the record of having the most best sales albums and The Best Sales Local Female Vocalist awards in the Hong Kong Cantonpop industry since her debut. From 1993 to 2010, Sammi Cheng won a total of 12 Top Female Vocalist awards,^[4] 14 The Best Sales Local Female Vocalist Awards and has 7 albums that are The Best Sales Cantonese Release of year.

She had produced over 80 studio albums, 9 live concert albums, 97 singles (songs) with 27 cover songs, had received around 200 total awards from acting to singing, performed in over 20 films which many received box-office hit, starred in 7 TV dramas in early years, had held over 100 concerts up to date with over 12 concert tours. She is also being recognized as the leading Asian female singer brought in unique fashion to singing performance especially in her concerts.

Early life[link]

Sammi Cheng was previously named Twinnie Cheng.^[5] Contrary to popular belief, "Twinnie" is not her birth name. The name came about when Sammi was still in school and her English Language teacher wanted everyone in class to have an English name. When Sammi turned to her sister for help, her sister came up with the name "Twinnie". The name was later changed to "Sammi" as "Sammi" sounds a little like "Sau Man". Cheng received her education at SKH St. Peter's Primary School and Tang Shiu Kin Victoria Government Secondary School.^[1]

She has three sisters and one brother. Two of her sisters are twins.

Career[link]

	Beware of women (小心女人) noicon A 1990s cantopop instrument arrangement by Sammi Cheng.
Problems listening to this file? See media help.

Music[link]

Sammi Cheng entered the entertainment industry at the age of 16 through a high profile, annual TV singing contest, the New Talent Singing Awards in 1988.^[6][7] Although she came in third in the competition, the sponsoring record company, Capital Artists, saw her potential and offered her a recording contract. Cheng at the time was still in school, and had to balance her studies with her rising singing career. Before finishing school, Sammi had managed to release 3 full-length studio albums: "Sammi", "Holiday" and "Never Too Late".^[8] One of her first major award was the 1990 RTHK Top 10 Gold Songs Awards, where she was recognized as a best new prospect.^[9]

In 1993, Cheng realized that in order to rise from a top B-list artist to an A-list artist, she had to create a unique image for herself. She capitalized on the attention received from her duet with artist Andy Hui, "Do you really have me in your heart?" (其實你心裡有沒有我), winning the 1993 Jade Solid Gold Top 10 Awards with that song.^[10] Cheng then went through a complete 180-degree transformation, dying her hair orange, changing her style.^[8] Her 4th studio album "Sammi's Happy Maze" (鄭秀文的快樂迷宮) was also released, which include the hit single "Chotto Matte" (Chotto 等等).^[8] Her new image fitted well with the new single, which was a remake of a very upbeat Japanese song by Maki Ohguro. The success helped Sammi and boosted her singing career.^[8] In 1994 she continued to capitalize on her wild, new image. Her first album of that year was "Big Revenge" (大報復). The album included the mega hit "Ding Dong" (叮噹), which became one of Sammi's all-time signature songs. But with her new fame also came a lot of backlash from the media. Critics pointed out that Sammi purposely westernized her Cantonese. Instead of saying "Ding Dong", Sammi pronounced it as "Deen Dong".^[8] Despite the criticism, the song was one of most popular dance songs of that year. In 1994 the racy and controversial cut of "Ten Commandments" (十誡) was banned from the radio for a few days after its initial airplay of the track including tiny bits of what can be recognized as pornography soundtrack.^[8] In 1995 Cheng disappeared from the public eye for nearly half a year.^[8] Later that year, it was revealed that Warner Music company had signed her. She let her hair color return to black and temporarily abandoned the wild image she used to have.^[8]

In 1995 she released her first album "Missing you" (捨不得你). In 1996, the company decided it was time for Sammi to expand her market and fan base beyond Hong Kong. They released her first Mandarin album, "Worth It" (值得). The album was number one on the Taiwan IFPI chart for six consecutive weeks.^[1] She won a number of awards, most notably she was voted back-to-back as the most popular female artist by TVB from 1995 to 1996.^[11] She would finish that year with her first concert titled "Sammi's X-Dimension Concert" (鄭秀文X空間演唱會). In 1998 she was also a featured star in a Heineken sponsored Music Horizons concert along with international singers such as Boyz II Men and Julian Lennon.^[12] By the time Cheng was 24 years old, she had already released four greatest hits albums.^[13]

In the 1990s, another female star, Faye Wong was one of her main rivals.^[14] When they were on stage together, they would be cold to one another. The rivalry was confirmed in the 1999 TVB music award night. Both Wong and Cheng were arranged to sit next to each other backstage.^[14] Cheng avoided Wong by repeatedly going off stage to fix her make-up. In addition, her fans were angry and hissed at Faye Wong when she went on stage to receive an award.^[14] Wong herself has insisted that the rivalry wasn't true, and that she was friendly toward Cheng.^[15]

In July 2004, she held 7 nights of "Sammi Vs Sammi" concerts in Hong Kong. She also broke the record as being the youngest female singer to hold more than 50 accumulated concert nights in the city.^[1]

Concert Tours/Specials[link]

Cheng performing at "Love Mi Sammi Cheng 2009 Concert" on December 31, 2009.

Tour Setlists[link]

Acting[link]

Cheng's acting career began with the TVB series Life of His Own in 1991.^[16] A year later she would begin her film career with the movie Best of the Best (飛虎精英之人間有情) in 1992 with fellow cantopop star Jacky Cheung.^[17] She would follow with another comedy film Feel 100% (百分百感覺) with Ekin Cheng and Gigi Leung.

In the late 1990s during the slump of the HK film industry she staged a box office revolution by starring in the film Needing You by acclaimed director Johnny To, co-starring Andy Lau and the movie Summer Holidiay in 2000. The films were hits at the box office hit in all South East Asia regions, and Hong Kong has cumulated nearly HK$60 million at the box office. The Needing You VCD received a sold out record of more than 200,000 copies.^[1] From this film, she was also a nominee for "Best Actress" as well as taking part in singing the "Best original film song" in the 2001 Hong Kong Film Award.^[18] Following the success of those movies she starred in a few more including Wu Yen, Love on a Diet, Marry a Rich Man, My Left Eye Sees Ghosts and many more. At the 62nd Venice International Film Festival Cheng was one of the front runner for the "Best actress" award for the film Everlasting Regret in 2005. Other contenders for the award included Monica Bellucci, Gwyneth Paltrow, Lee Young-ae and Isabelle Huppert.^[19]

Advertisements[link]

Cheng changes her look and image for every album, which enables her to gain extensive attention and appreciation from the music professional and the public. Sammi is a trendsetter of hair-coloring and has been chosen to be one of the Top Ten fashionable celebrities in Hong Kong. She has been signed and endorsed by many companies. Some of the bigger endorsements include SK-II skin care and Mona Lisa bridal service.^[20] Her first album with Warner Music, "Can't Give You Up" (捨不得你) released 3 hit singles, "Gentlemen, you are so fine today" (男仕今天你很好), "Can't Give You Up" (捨不得你) and "The Mourning Song for Love" (愛的輓歌). She was selected as the prominent celebrity for the endorsement of Panasonic using "Can't Give You Up" (捨不得你) as the theme song.^[1]

Post-break career[link]

Break (2005-2007)[link]

In 2005, Cheng had only one feature film release and no music projects. She became a representative for Veeko and Titus, a fashion and watch brand in Hong Kong, respectively. She also began writing Saturday columns for Mingpao magazine.^[13] In 2006, she released another greatest hits album, but there were no new tracks. The break was taken to recoup her energy from the entertainment industry.^[13]

During a break lasting more than a 1,000 days, she reflected upon her life, and became a born-again Christian.^[21]

Show Mi Tour[link]

After taking a break for about 2 years, she re-invented herself again, and held her 6th concert in HK from 18 to 25 May 2007 titled "Show Mi"(Mi being the nickname of SamMI given by her fans). Due to the huge demand for tickets, the four performances was expanded to eight. She returned to entertain at the age of 34, and invited fellow star Andy Lau and Denise Ho to perform with her.^[22] At the end of the first show, audience members continued to shout 'encore' for 15 minutes until Sammi came back out and sang "Our Theme Song" (我們的主題曲). The concert was expanded to the Show Mi Tour.

Community work[link]

In 2003 Cheng performed at the 1:99 Concert to raise funds for SARS affected families.^[23] She had participated in the 2008 Chinese winter storm support effort where many artists including Andy Lau, Alan Tam, Kelly Chen, etc. recorded a song called "Warmth in the Snow" in support of those effected by the storm. She was also a participant of the Artistes 512 Fund Raising Campaign.^[24] In April 2008, she participated in the activities of World Vision. She traveled to Laos with fellow singer Gigi Leung, also a World Vision volunteer, to experience for themselves the struggles of the local people and children.^[25] They also visited the local children there to find out more on their situation where food and supplies are lacking. When Sammi returned to Hong Kong, she and Leung were invited to a radio program 903 to talk about the experience; she responded by announcing she had "adopted" 24 children.

Filmography[link]

• Best of the Best (飛虎精英之人間有情) (1992) with Jacky Cheung - as Heidi
• Feel 100% (百分百感覺) (1996) with Ekin Cheng - as Cherrie
• Feel 100%....Once More (百分百o岩Feel) (1996) with Ekin Cheng - as Yen
• Killing Me Tenderly (愛您愛到殺死您) (1997) with Leon Lai - as Cindy (朱金梅)
• The Lucky Guy (行運一條龍) (1998) with Stephen Chow - as Candy (葉玉芬)
• Needing You (孤男寡女) (2000) with Andy Lau - as Kinki
• Summer Holiday (夏日的麼麼茶) (2000) with Richie Ren - as Summer
• Wu yen (鍾無艷) (2001) with Anita Mui, Cecilia Cheung - as Wu Yen (鍾無艷)
• Fighting for Love (同居蜜友) (2001) with Tony Leung Chiu Wai - as Deborah (霍少棠)
• Love on a Diet (瘦身男女) (2001) with Andy Lau - as Mini Mo
• Marry a Rich Man (嫁個有錢人) (2002) with Richie Ren - as Ah Me (阿 me)
• My Left Eye Sees Ghosts (我左眼見到鬼) (2002) with Lau Ching-Wan - as May (何麗珠)
• Infernal Affairs (無間道) (2002) with Andy Lau - as Mary
• Love For All Seasons (百年好合) (2003) with Louis Koo - as Midget (滅絕)
• Good Times, Bed Times (戀上你的床) (2003) with Lau Ching-Wan, Louis Koo - as Carrie (屈小喬)
• Infernal Affairs III (無間道III：終極無間) (2003) with Andy Lau - as Mary
• Enter the Phoenix (大佬愛美麗) (2004) - (cameo appearance) as the head waitress in a Chinese restaurant
• Magic Kitchen (魔幻廚房) (2004) with F4's Jerry Yan, Andy Lau - as Yau (慕容優)
• Yesterday Once More (龍鳳鬥) (2004) with Andy Lau - as Mrs. To (盜太)
• Everlasting Regret (長恨歌) (2005) with Daniel Wu, Tony Leung Ka-Fai - as Wang Qi Yao (王琦瑤)
• Lady Cop & Papa Crook (大搜查之女) (2008) with Eason Chan, Richie Ren- as Molline Szeto
• Romancing in Thin Air (高海拔之戀II) (2012) with Louis Koo

TV drama[link]

• Life of His Own 浪族闊少爺(1991) : as 施敏
• File of Justice I 壹號皇庭 I (1992): as Fong Ga Kay (方家琪)
• Return of the Vampire 大頭綠衣鬥疆屍 (1993): as 飄雪/飄紅/Kitty
• Journey of Love 親恩情未了 (1994) : as 張家慧
• Detective Investigation Files II 刑事偵緝檔案 II(1995) : as Ivy
• Man's Best Friend 寵物情緣 (1999) : as Susan (歐子珊)
• The Monkey King: Quest for the Sutra 齊天大聖孫悟空 (2002) :as (觀音大士)

External links[link]

• Samm's facebook fanpage
• [3]

References[link]

v t e Cinema of Hong Kong Actors Directors Cinematographers Ocean Shores Producers Shaw Brothers Studio Films A–Z Action films Writers Films by year: 1909–1929 1930s 1940s 1950 1951 1952 1953 1954 1955 1956 1957 1958 1959 1960 1961 1962 1963 1964 1965 1966 1967 1968 1969 1970 1971 1972 1973 1974 1975 1976 1977 1978 1979 1980 1981 1982 1983 1984 1985 1986 1987 1988 1989 1990 1991 1992 1993 1994 1995 1996 1997 1998 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012

This article contains Chinese text. Without proper rendering support, you may see question marks, boxes, or other symbols instead of Chinese characters.

Andy Hui 許志安
Chinese name	許志安 (Traditional)
Chinese name	许志安 (Simplified)
Pinyin	xu3 zhi4 an1 (Mandarin)
Jyutping	heoi2 zi3 on1 (Cantonese)
Birth name	Andy Hui Chi-On (許志安)
Ancestry	Hong Kong
Origin	Hong Kong
Born	(1967-08-12) 12 August 1967 (age 44) Hong Kong
Occupation	Singer, songwriter, actor
Genre(s)	Cantopop
Instrument(s)	Singing
Label(s)	Amusic
Years active	1986-present
Associated acts	Big Four
Partner(s)	Sammi Cheng
Official Website	Amusic web
Awards New Talent Singing Awards 1986 First Runner-up

Andy Hui Chi-On (born 12 August 1967) is a Hong Kong singer and film actor. Hui was the First Runner-up in the 5th Annual New Talent Singing Awards in 1986. Hui has appeared in about 25 films.

Hui is considered one of the most successful Chinese music celebrities, with an extensive list of Cantonese and Mandarin hits to his credit. His first music contract came in 1986, and his singing career reached stellar status in 2001 as he won awards of the most favourite male singer.

In 2004, Hui was named as one of the 'New Four Heavenly Kings' along with Hacken Lee, Leo Ku and Edmond Leung which would be replacing the once lustrous title awarded to Jacky Cheung, Andy Lau, Aaron Kwok and Leon Lai.

In October 2005, Andy was declared one of Ten Outstanding Young Persons where his hard work on his music and film career, and his excellence in commitment to the community was recognised.

Discography [link]

• 1991: Break and Reform Collection
• 1992: Loving You
•          Alive!
• 1993: Sunshine After The Rain
•          Never Love Like This
• 1994: Unique
•          Heart
•          Unless You Tell Me
• 1995: Paradise Lost
• 1998: Good Andy Hui 98 Concert
• 1999: Faith With Heart
•          Andy Hui 99 Live In Concert
•          Faith in Love
•          The End Of 20th Century Collection
•          We Want Happiness
•          Sound And Vision 46 Collection
• January 2000: Believe in Love
• December 2002: On Hits (New + Best Selections)
• August 2003: My Story
• January 2004: Life in Music (New + Best Selections)
• February 2004: Couldn't Be Better
• October 2004: Back Up
• February 2005: Encore Concert (安哥對唱音樂會)
• May 2005: First Round Concert (第一回合演唱會)
• November 2005: Cantonese New + Best Collection (大風吹 - 廣東新歌+精選三十首)
• September 2006: In The Name of...
• May 2011: On and On

Filmography (as actor) [link]

• Girls Without Tomorrow 1992 (1992)
• First Shot (1993)
• Future Cops (1993)
• Tequila (1993)
• Cop Image (1994)
• Wonder Seven (1994)
• Dr. Mack (1995)
• Happy Hour (1995)
• Who's the Woman, Who's the Man (1996) [cameo]
• Mystery Files (1996)
• Swallowtail Butterfly (1996)
• Feel 100%...Once More (1996)
• Love Amoeba Style (1997)
• Ah Fai the Dumb (1997)
• Love is not a game, but a joke (1997)
• A Love Story (1998)
• Marooned (2000)
• Nightmares in Precinct 7 (2001)
• Killing End (2001)
• Interactive Murders (2002)
• The Monkey King: Quest for the Sutra (2002)
• Give Them a Chance (2002)
• Sex and the Beauties (2004)
• Koma (2004)
• Six Strong Guys (2004)
• To Grow With Love (Lush Field Happy Event) (2006)
• Silence (2006)
• Dressage to Win (2008)
• ICAC Investigators 2009 (2009)
• Claustrophobia (2009)
• Split Second Murders (2009)
• 72 Tenants of Prosperity (2010)
• Summer Love Love (2011)
• A Big Deal (2011)

^{[1] [2]}

References[link]

External links [link]

• Andy Hui blog (www.andyhui.asia)
• Andy Hui at the Internet Movie Database

This article contains Chinese text. Without proper rendering support, you may see question marks, boxes, or other symbols instead of Chinese characters.

Jacky Cheung 張學友
Jacky Cheung, January 2007
Chinese name	張學友 (Traditional)
Chinese name	张学友 (Simplified)
Pinyin	Zhāng Xúeyǒu (Mandarin)
Jyutping	Zoeng1 Hok6-jau5 (Cantonese)
Ancestry	Tianjin, China[1]
Origin	Hong Kong
Born	(1961-07-10) 10 July 1961 (age 50)[2] Hong Kong
Other name(s)	God of songs[3]
Occupation	Singer Very occasional Songwriter Actor
Genre(s)	Cantopop, Mandopop, Operatic pop, Jazz, R&B
Instrument(s)	Vocals, guitar
Voice type(s)	Baritone,[4] Tenor,[5] occasional falsetto[6]
Years active	1985 – present
Spouse(s)	May Lo Mei-mei (羅美薇)
Official Website	www.jackycheung.hk
Awards Hong Kong Film Awards Best Supporting Actor 1989 As Tears Go By Best Original Film Song 2006 Perhaps Love Golden Horse Awards Best Supporting Actor 1990 The Swordsman Other awards World Music Awards Best-Selling Asian Artist 1995, 1996

Jacky Cheung (born 10 July 1961) is a Hong Kong singer-songwriter and actor. The Chinese language media refers to him, Aaron Kwok, Andy Lau and Leon Lai as the Cantopop Four Heavenly Kings (四大天王),^[7] with more than 60 million records sold as of 2000.^[8]

Biography[link]

Cheung is known for his baritone voice.^[9] On 15 February 1996 in London, he married Hong Kong actress May Lo Mei-mei, with whom he has two daughters.^[10] Cheung is also nicknamed "god of Songs" (歌神), but he is the second person to hold this title, after former Cantopop singer Sam Hui.^[3][11] In an interview with Ray Cordeiro (Uncle Ray), Cheung stated that the title was more appropriate for Hui than for him, since he actually wrote and popularized songs.^[12]

Career[link]

Music[link]

Jacky Cheung in concert, January 2008.

Cheung originally started working as a reservation officer for the Cathay Pacific airline.^[13] His music career started when he won the Amateur 18-Hong Kong district singing contest in 1984 with the song Fatherland (大地恩情).^[14] He ousted more than 10,000 other contestants.^[13] After winning the contest, he was signed by the then Polygram Records, now Universal Music Group.^[13] Although encouraged by a bright start, he was not able to achieve immediate supremacy in Cantopop, then dominated by Leslie Cheung, Alan Tam, Anita Mui and Danny Chan. In 1985 he won his first two major awards together with the 1985 RTHK Top 10 Gold Songs Awards and the 1985 Jade Solid Gold Top 10 Awards.^[15][16]

	"Half moon (月半彎)" noicon A transitional song from the golden age to the Four Heavenly Kings (四大天王) era by Jacky Cheung
Problems listening to this file? See media help.

In 1991 he released the song "Loving You More Every Day" (每天愛你多一些), a translated version of the Japanese Southern All Stars hit, Midsummer's Fruit (真夏の果実). The album True Love Expression (真情流露) in 1992, as well as the subsequent release, Love Sparks (愛火花) in 1992, achieved audited sales of over 400,000 copies in Hong Kong alone.^[17]

His subsequent albums included 1993 "Me and You" (我與你) and 1994 "Born to be wild" (餓狼傳說). In the 1994 Billboard Music Awards in the US, he was named the most popular singer in Asia.^[18] He received numerous music awards both in Hong Kong and elsewhere, including the best-selling Chinese singer in the World Music Awards for two consecutive years in 1995 and 1996 held at Monaco.^[19] Cheung was also elected as one of the world's Top Ten Outstanding Young Persons in 1999.^[18]

Amongst his hit songs, some of his most famous were Amour, "Just want to spend my life with you" (只想一生跟你走) and "Goodbye Kiss" (吻别). The album The Goodbye Kiss (吻别) was one of the best-selling albums of all time, achieving more sales in Hong Kong, Taiwan and Southeast Asia than ever attained before, with an astounding 4 million copies sold in 1993 alone.^[20] The 4 million sold worldwide allowed him to be the first Asian artist to get on PolyGram's annual Top 10 roster.^[21] The album was also instrumental in helping Cheung break into the mandopop market. Due to these great songs and albums, Cheung is generally considered to be the pre-eminent member of the Four Heavenly Kings of Cantopop. He is regarded by some sources as the best singer of the four.^[22]

In 1995, Cheung staged his record-breaking 100-show world tour titled "Yau Hok Yau" (友學友), literally a pun of "friendship Jacky Cheung" reusing the same Chinese characters found in his name.^[23] The tour started with 34 shows from 8 April to 9 June at the Hong Kong Coliseum. Then the tour continued at Perth Brisbane Australia and returned to Taipei and mainland China.^[24] It then expanded to Madison Square Garden^[25] in the US, different parts of Europe, Singapore, India, Malaysia and Japan.^[24] He was regarded as the new Michael Jackson by Business Week.

His successful music and acting career has made him one of Hong Kong's icons. Cheung was elected by Time Magazine as one of the "25 most influential people in the New Hong Kong" in 1996.^[13][14]

In 1999, he was named one of the 10 Outstanding Young Persons of the World by the Junior Chamber International, a worldwide federation of young professionals and entrepreneurs.^[18] In 2000 he was awarded by RTHK, the Golden Needle Award.^[26] This award, the equivalent of a lifetime achievement award, recognized outstanding contributions to the music industry.

Cheung won the Best Selling Cantonese Album Award in the Hong Kong IFPI Awards of 2005 with his live album, Jacky Live Performance. In the fast-changing scene of canto-pop, Cheung has been able to maintain his popularity and sales power for more than 20 years after his debut, which is unparalleled in the history of Hong Kong pop music.

In 2007, Cheung staged his "Year of Jacky Cheung World Tour 2007". The tour started on 18 February 2007 at The Colosseum at Caesars Palace in Las Vegas. When the tour ended in Hong Kong on 3 February 2008 after touring 58 cities around the world, a total of 105 shows had been given, attracting more than 2 million fans. 105 became the highest number of shows in a tour by a Chinese artist, breaking the previous record of 100, which was also set by Cheung previously.^[27]

Duets[link]

	"In Love With You" (1994) noicon Cheung's collaboration with Regine Velasquez is one of Cheung's best duets.
Problems listening to this file? See media help.

Cheung not only performs solo but often in duets with female singers. A duet with fellow Asian Superstar Regine Velasquez on the song "In Love with You" was included in her multi-platinum album "Listen Without Prejudice". In 2008 Cheung and A-Mei, the popular Taiwanese singer, performed Zhu Fu ("Blessing") as a duet in a benefit concert for victims of the 2008 Sichuan earthquake. Other duet partners include:

• Priscilla Chan - "A Pair of Lonely Hearts" (一對寂寞的心)
• Faye Wong - "Love's Promise"
• Kelly Chen - "Waiting for Your Love"
• Anita Mui - "Love is Hard" （相愛很難）, (祝福)
• Shirley Kwan - ""Youngster No Love"" (年少無情)
• Coco Lee - (從頭到尾)
• Priscilla Chan - (愛和承諾), (接近)
• Sandy Lam - (日與夜)
• Vivian Chow - (留住秋色)
• Sarah Brightman - "There for Me"
• Reba McEntire - "For My Broken Heart"
• Regine Velasquez - "In Love With You"
• Cally Kwong - "Only Love Persists" (祇有情永在)
• Karen Tong - "Miss Each Other In the Wind & Rain" (相思風雨中)
• Vivian Lai - "Long Flow, Never Rests" (長流不息)
• He Ruhui - (似曾相識)
• Francesca Gao (高慧君) - (你最珍貴)
• Karen Tong - (情濃半生)
• Chen Jia Lu - (花與琴的流星(雪狼湖)) , (愛狼說(雪狼湖))

On stage musical[link]

In 1997 his work on the groundbreaking Cantonese broadway-style musical Snow.Wolf.Lake was enthusiastically received by both audiences and critics.^[7] Cheung not only played the male lead, but was also the artistic director for this production. The first female lead was played by Sandy Lam in Hong Kong and Nnadia Chan in Singapore. Kit Chan played the second female lead. They achieved 43 consecutive full-house performances at the gigantic Hung Hom Hong Kong Coliseum which remains the record today.^[28] In November 2004, Cheung and his concert manager, Florence Chan Suk-fan, worked on a revised Mandarin version of Snow, Wolf, Lake so as to bring it to a wider audience. The female leads this time were Evonne Hsu and Nnadia Chan respectively. The market budget alone exceeded HK$15 million.^[28] The estimated budget for this revised production was HK$100 million and the show premiered on 24 December 2004 in Beijing.^[29]

Acting[link]

Cheung's hand print an autograph at the Avenue of Stars in Hong Kong.

While Cheung is known for his singing, he has also acted in many films. He received the Best Supporting Actor award in the 8th Hong Kong Film Awards for his work in As Tears Go By (1988) as well as the Best Supporting Actor Golden Horse Award for his work in Swordsman (1990).^[30][31] That same year he also collaborated with John Woo and Tony Leung in the film Bullet in the Head. For his work in July Rhapsody, he also received the Best Actor Award at the New Delhi Film Festival for his portrayal of the protagonist role. His song Perhaps Love, which serves as the theme song for the multi-award-winning film Perhaps Love, also won the Best Song Award at the 2005 Hong Kong Film Award and the CASH Best Song Award at the 2005/2006 CASH Gold Sail Music Awards. He also starred in Taiwanese mini-series called Love Scar with F4 member Jerry Yan and Karen Mok, where he acted as Jerry Yan's older brother.^[32]

In the 2004 released and Wong Ching-po directed triads drama film, Jiang Hu, Cheung played the role of Lefty, the best friend and right hand man of a crime boss, Hung Yan Chau, who is played by Andy Lau. The film includes several actors from the cast of Infernal Affairs.^[33]

Ceremonies and spokesperson[link]

Cheung was named the spokesperson for Hong Kong Disneyland in 2004. He took part in a number of large-scale marketing events organized by The Walt Disney Company and Walt Disney Parks and Resorts, beginning with the hosting of a TV program, Magical World of Disneyland.^[34] He recorded a multi-lingual song for Hong Kong Disneyland, entitled One. The music video for One was filmed at Hong Kong Disneyland. He also recorded for the Hong Kong Disneyland: The Grand Opening Celebration Album.

In December 2006, Cheung performed live the theme song "Together Now" at the Opening Ceremony of the 15th Asian Games in Doha, Qatar.^[35] He was introduced as "the most popular Asian performer in the world".

In 2010, Cheung, Jane Zhang, and K'naan sang a Mandarin version of "Wavin' Flag (The Celebration Mix)" for the 2010 Fifa World Cup.

Community[link]

In March 2009 he became the first Cantopop / Mandopop artist to contribute items to the Hard Rock franchise memorabilia collection.^[36] Items are to be exhibited at the Hard Rock hotel in Macau.^[36] A joint donation is also made to donate HK$600,000 to the Children's Cancer Foundation and ORBIS Macau.^[27] In September 2009, Cheung, as one of the super ambassadors of End Child Sexual Abuse Foundation (ECSAF) founded by Josephine Siao, attended the charity fund raising event for celebrating ECSAF’s 10th anniversary in Hong Kong.^[37]

Foreign domestic helper incident[link]

Cheung's maid was arrested for taking images of Cheung's children, in a case that sparked controversy among some domestic servants in Hong Kong. It was argued that Cheung overreacted and the sentence was disproportionate and the case was regarded by some as racial discrimination.^[38] The Philippines consulate soon announced that Cheung's family had employed 21 different maids in a three-year period and placed Cheung on a 'blacklist' that would prevent him from employing any Filipino maids in the future.^[39]

IFPI Awards (partial list)[link]

IFPI Gold Disc Award^[40]

• 1989 87'演唱會 Polygram
• 1990 絲絲記憶精選 Polygram

IFPI Platinum Disc Award

• 1985 Smile Polygram
• 1986 遙遠的她 Polygram
• 1987 相愛 Polygram
• 1987 Jacky Polygram
• 1988 昨夜夢魂中 Polygram
• 1990 給我親愛的 Polygram
• 1990 祇願一生愛一人 Polygram

IFPI Top 10 Sales Album

• 2003 Where is he 他在那裡 What's Music
• 2004 Black & White What's Music
• 2005 活出生命 Live 演唱會 What's Music

IFPI Top 10 Sales Artist

• 2005

IFPI Top Sales Album

• 2005 活出生命 Live 演唱會 What's Music

See also[link]

• Cinema of Hong Kong
• Music of Hong Kong

References[link]

External links[link]

Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Jacky Cheung

• Jacky Cheung - Official website
• Jacky Cheung at the Internet Movie Database

This biographical article needs additional citations for verification. Please help by adding reliable sources. Contentious material about living persons that is unsourced or poorly sourced must be removed immediately, especially if potentially libelous or harmful. (May 2008)

Vivian Chow
Chinese name	周慧敏 (Traditional)
Chinese name	周慧敏 (Simplified)
Pinyin	Zhōu Huìmǐn (Mandarin)
Jyutping	Zau1 Wai3-man5 (Cantonese)
Ancestry	Zhongshan, Guangdong
Origin	Hong Kong
Born	(1967-11-10) November 10, 1967 (age 44) Hong Kong
Occupation	Singer, actor, songwriter, Master of Ceremonies
Genre(s)	Cantopop, Mandopop
Instrument(s)	pianoforte
Label(s)	PolyGram
Years active	1989–present
Spouse(s)	Joe Nieh
Awards New Talent Singing Awards 1985 Semifinalist

Vivian Chow (Chinese: 周慧敏; traditional Chinese: 周慧敏; pinyin: Zhōu Huìmǐn) is a Hong Kong based Cantopop singer and actress. She is well known for her ladylike stage image as well as her charity works for animal rights and breast cancer awareness.

She retired from the Chinese entertainment scene in the late 1990s when Chow and her longtime partner, Joe Ngai, emigrated to Vancouver, Canada. However, she still makes frequent trips to Hong Kong to visit her family and to support animal-rights charities.

Early life[link]

Chow was born in Hong Kong and brought up by her mother. Her father died the same year she was born due to heart problems. As a child, Chow studied at St. Stephen's Church College, passing A-levels (thirteenth grade) in high school.

Career[link]

Radio years[link]

After high school, Chow entered the Fourth Annual New Talent Singing Awards in 1985 with Yoshie Kashiwabara's song Saiai (最愛). The same contest also saw the rise of William So (蘇永康) and Hacken Lee. Although Chow did not receive any prizes in the contest, this failure did not diminish her hopes of becoming a singer, instead, Chow entered the entertainment business by becoming a DJ in Radio Television Hong Kong in 1987.

As a DJ for RTHK, Chow was the main character in three of the radio dramas, they are "Love in the Summer" (夏之戀) as 'Tung Tung' "The Teenage Period" (青蔥歲月) as 'Fong Ka Yiu', and "Life in Paris" (在巴黎的日子) as 'Joyce'.

Acting[link]

In 1988, Chow made her movie debut in the smash-hit comedy "Heart to Hearts" (三人世界). She played the role of the daughter of Carol Cheng, a single mother who is quite protective of her. They then meet a man played by George Lam. For her role in the series, Chow won the 'Best New Performer' award of 1989.

Music[link]

In the same year that Chow won the 'Best New Performer' award, she also released her first album, titled by her Chinese name, 周慧敏. This album contained only 4 songs, and its main purpose was to test the response of the people of Hong Kong for the rising star. Sales did not disappoint, and Chow started to develop her own fan-base by releasing two new albums, Vivian and Qing Mi (情迷), in 1990; 5 new albums (see Discography) in 1991, and 6 new albums in 1992-1993. Chow had to take Mandarin lessons in order to perfect her pronunciation prior to the release of the Mandarin album, Liu Yan (流言). In view of her elegance the media^[who?] dubbed her "玉女掌門人", a colloquial term that can be loosely translated as the "eternal maiden queen".^{[citation needed]}

Discography[link]

• Zhou Hui Min 周慧敏 (1989)
• Vivian (1990)
• Qing Mi 情迷 (1990)
• A Long & Lasting Love (1991)
• Endless Dream (1992)
• Zhou Hui Min Zhen Qin Jing Xuan 周慧敏真情經選 (1992)
• Dong Ri Lang Man 冬日浪漫 (1992)
• Liu Yan 流言 (1992)
• Jin Zai Bu Yan Zhong 盡在不言中 (1993)
• Zui Ai 最愛 (1993)
• Xinshi Chong Chong 心事重重 (1993)
• Xin Qu + Jing Xuan 新曲+經選 (1993)
• Likai You lv De Xi Guan 離開憂鬱的習慣 (1994)
• Zhiji Zhi Bi 知己知彼對唱精選輯 (1994)
• Gan Qing De Fen Li 感情的分禮 (1994)
• Cheng Zheng 成長 (1994)
• Hongye Luo Sou De Shi Hou 紅葉落索的時候 (1994)
• Zhou Hui Min 1994 Mei De Hua Shen Concert 周慧敏'94美的化身演唱會 (1995)
• Duo Yi Dian Ai Lian 多一點愛戀 (1995)
• Chu Chu Liu Qing 處處留情 (1995)
• Qing Mi Xin Qiao 情迷心竅 (1995)
• Shi Jian 時間 (1996)
• Re Min 熱敏 (1996)
• Zhou Hui Min De Min Gan Di Dai 周慧敏的敏感地帶 (1997)
• Hui Yi Cong Jin Tian Kai Shi 回憶從今天開始 (1997)
• Wan Qian Chong Ai San Shi Shou 萬千寵愛30首 (1998)

Filmography[link]

• Heart to Hearts (三人世界) (1988)
• Path of Glory (1989)
• The Romancing Star III (精裝追女仔(三)) (1989)
• Happy Together (相見好) (1989)
• Xiao nan ren zhou xian (小男人周記/Yuppie Fantasy) (1989)
• The Unmatchable Match (風雨同路) (1990)
• Goodbye Hero (玩命雙雄) (1990)
• Heart Into Hearts (三人新世界) (1990)
• The Perfect Match (1991)
• Devil's Vindata (妖魔道) (1991)
• Fruit Bowl (Yes!一族) (1991)
• Fun and Fury (1992)
• Heart Against Hearts (三人做世界) (1992)
• Stone Man (石頭記) (1992)
• Fire On Ice (血染黎明) (1992)
• Tulips in August (八月鬱金香) (1992)
• Arrest the Restless (藍江傳之反飛組風雲) (1992)
• Girls Without Tomorrow 1992 (現代應召女郎) (1992)
• Summer Lover (夏日情人) (1992)
• Angel Hunter (女校風雲之邪教入侵) (1992)
• Rage and Passion (中神通王重陽) (1992)
• The Kung Fu Scholar (倫文敘老點柳先開) (1993)
• Tom, Dick, and Hairy (風塵三俠) (1993)
• No Regret, No Return (走上不歸路) (1993)
• Family Affairs (清官難審) (1994)
• To Love Ferrari (我愛法拉利) (1994)
• A Stage of Turbulence (刀马旦) (1995)
• Top Banana Club (金裝香蕉俱樂部) (1996)
• All About Love (得閒炒飯) (2010)

Written works[link]

• Bengal Cat- 我的貓兒子周慧豹 (2004)

References[link]

External links [link]

• Vivian Chow at the Internet Movie Database
• Vivian Chow Board http://www.vivian-chow.com/
• Vivian Chow's Place http://vivianchow.info/
• Vivian Chow Back For Love Concert 2006 http://www.fotop.net/slideshow/henryfok/VivianChow2006
• Vivian Chow's Lyrics and Video http://www.geniv.com/ako888/list.php?id=887
• HK cinemagic entry
• Vivian's music