Cindy Yen

Cindy Yen (simplified Chinese: 袁咏琳; traditional Chinese: 袁詠琳; pinyin: Yuán Yǒnglín), born as Cindy Wu (simplified Chinese: 吴欣云; traditional Chinese: 吳欣雲; pinyin: Wú Xīnyún on November 14, 1986 is a Taiwanese-American singer, songwriter, actress, composer and producer. She was the first artist to be signed to JR Yang and Jay Chou's company, JVR Music, in 2009, when the company was already 10 years old. In October 2009 she released her first self-titled album: Cindy Yen 袁詠琳.[1] Her first single, "Sand Painting," a duet sung with Jay Chou and composed by Yen herself, became an instant success. Yen's music covers an array of styles ranging from R&B, soul, pop, and classical, to rock, acoustic folk, dance and hip-hop.

Cindy Yen
Cindy Yen in 2010.
Born
Cindy Wu (吳欣雲)

(1986-11-14) November 14, 1986
Houston, Texas, United States
OccupationSinger, songwriter, actress, Dancer, Producer, composer
Years active2009–present
AwardsSprite Music Awards
2010 Best New Artist
2010 Best Duet of the Year
Metro Radio Mandarin Hit Music Awards
2010 Best New Hit Force Singer
33rd Annual Chinese Gold Songs Award
Most Potential Newcomer
Sprite Music Awards
2011 Most Improved ArtistBeijing MTV Super Music Awards
2011 Best New Stylistic ArtistBeijing Music Awards
2012 Best Stylistic Breakthrough Artist of the Year
2012 Best Single of the Year
Chinese name
Traditional Chinese袁詠琳
Simplified Chinese袁咏琳
Musical career
Origin Republic of China (Taiwan)
GenresPop, R&B, Dance-pop
InstrumentsPiano, violin, guitar, drums, er-hu, cello
LabelsJVR Music, Sony BMG
WebsiteCindy Yen on Facebook

Background and early life

Cindy Yen[2] was born and raised in Houston, Texas, to a statistics lecturer father and a certified accountant mother. When she was 12 her parents divorced,[3] and since then Yen was brought up solely by her mother in USA as her father returned to his alma mater, National Cheng Kung University, as a Statistics professor. The piano become Yen's "best friend," and she once stated during an interview that "without piano, there is no me. Piano is my other half, what makes me complete. Everything I bury inside my heart I let out when I play."[4] Yen attended Bellaire High School near Houston, TX and in 2004, went on to study and graduated from The University of Texas at Austin where she double-majored in piano performance and broadcast journalism.[5][6]

In 2015, Yen revealed on Facebook that in 2008, she auditioned for American Idol in Dallas, but was eliminated by Randy Jackson's deciding vote. She then won the title of Miss Chinatown Houston 2008 and continued to win the national title of Miss Chinatown USA 2009.[7] In the fall of 2008, Yen moved to Taiwan with her self-made demo, aiming to become a recording artist.

During the first few days, Yen met many record companies but was repeatedly rejected by all. They told her that her music was too "Western" and not suitable for the Asian market. They also said her style of singing wasn't suitable for the Chinese language, because it was too R&B and soul.[8] Finally, she became the first artist ever to sign to JR Yang and the Taiwanese pop star Jay Chou's company, JVR Music, in February 2009.[9]

Music career

2009–2010 "Sand Painting"

Within eight months of signing, Yen released her debut single, "Sand Painting,"[10] a duet sung with Jay Chou and composed/produced by Yen. It was the first time Chou had ever sung a song not written by himself. "Sand Painting"[11] became the number one downloaded ringtone in Taiwan. It reached the top on many Asian billboards and at KTV. Yen's debut album was listed under Top 10 on the G-Music charts and Rose Records for 5 consecutive weeks, and was the number one listened to album on Taiwan's KKBox Charts for 4 consecutive weeks.[12] "Sand Painting" went on to place as one of China's most popular top ten hit songs of 2010, as ranked in China's 2010 Mandarin Web Original Composition Pop Music Charts.[13] She later re-wrote the lyrics for its English version – "Another One Like You"[14]

Yen became the featured girl in commercials for the Taiwan cell phone company, FarEasTone.[15] Yen composed and sang the theme song "Do you see me"[16] for FarEasTone advertisements, after Joanna Wang & Alisa Gao.

On October 30, 2009, Yen released her self-titled album "Cindy Yen".

Cindy Yen's guest performance at AsianMillionstar in Hong Kong April 2010 .

Her debut album is mainly built upon R&B, with popular elements such as rock, hip-hop, and folk. Yen composed and produced her album, with some help with the lyrics from Vincent Fang & Nan Quan Mama’s Lara Veronin. The album also includes genres such as pop rock, hard metal and Latin hip-hop dance beats. Songs included "Stupid Fish," "Very Traveling Love,"[17] "Singing a Song Because of Longing," and "Dancing With Threat", as well as piano ballads like "I'm Sorry" and "That Year We Made a Wish Together".

Since her debut, Yen has opened her own mini-concert in Hong Kong[18] and was on tour with Jay Chou's 2010 "The Era" Concert Tour as a regular guest performer.[19]

2011–2012 "2 Be Different"

Yen released her second album, '2 Be Different', on September 29, 2011.[20] Like the first album, Yen wrote and produced all ten songs on her album, which included a new electronic dance single "陷阱" ("Trap") instead. The music video prompted a blogger on CPopAccess to compare her with Jolin Tsai.[21]

Yen said in an interview with Singapore's Razor TV that her new album aimed to empower women.[22] Following the release of "2 Be Different", Yen received Best Stylistic New Artist at the Beijing MTV Super Awards 2011.[23] Yen also received Best Single of the Year for "Trap" and Best Stylistic Breakthrough Artist of the Year at the Beijing Music Awards 2012.[23]

2015–2016 "Fight For Love"

Yen released her third album 'Fight For Love' in 2015. In this album, she self-produced two of the music videos – "Come To Mami" & "Bad Boy".[23]

Television and film

Yen first made a special guest appearance in Jay Chou's television drama series Pandamen (熊貓人) in 2010 where she played herself as an international concert pianist champion.[24]

On July 5, 2011, Yen debut as a supporting actress in her first TV drama series in the network series 瑰寶1949 (Invaluable Treasure 1949) along with her good friend 賴雅妍 (Megan Lai) and 林佑威 (Yowei Lin). The TV series was nominated for 5 Golden Bell Awards including Best Male Actor, Best Female Actress, and Best Drama of the Year. Invaluable Treasure 1949 ended up winning Best Artistic Design and Best Sound Effects.[25]

In January 2012, Yen finished filming her first full-length feature film called First Time (第一次) alongside actor Mark Chao (趙又廷) and Hong Kong model Angelababy.[26] Yen also wrote two theme songs for the film, which can be found on the original soundtrack. The First Time premiered in China, Taiwan, and Hong Kong on June 8, 2012, and received top box office charts in China.

In the Summer of 2020, Yen participated in a Chinese reality show called Sisters Who Make Waves (乘风破浪的姐姐). At first, she didn't feel confident about her ability to compete against the other contestants who she deemed were "more famous than her".[27] However, she ended up receiving a lot of attention for her performances on the show. She played piano in the initial scoring stage,[28] rapped for the first time in Chinese during the first performance,[29] and playing the violin during the duet with New Pants[30] before being eliminated after the fourth performance.[31]

Philanthropy, voluntary work and community service

In January 2010, Yen became TVBS' spokesperson for their "Lotus" charity event aimed at raising money for children. She said she hopes to open a music school or a music camp of some sort that can provide "financial-free" education for children and give them a chance to creatively express themselves through music.[32]

In November 2010, Yen performed alongside Jay Chou and Will Pan at Soong Ching-ling's (also known as Madame Sun yat-sen) Charity Foundation event as part of the 2010 Deutsche Tourenwagen Masters season Shanghai Street Circuit in Pudong. Together, the three artists donated ¥1,500,000 (US$250,000) for families residing in the eastern part of China.[33][34]

In March 2011, Yen was a member of the "Fight and Smile" campaign dedicated to help fundraise money for Japan's tsunami crisis. Along with other Taiwanese artists, Yen sang in the song "Believe" (相信愛）[35] and also performed "Hero" during the "Fight and Smile" fundraising program.

Starting in March 2012, Yen has been involved in Taiwans's 336 Charity, an organization aiming to provide education and awareness for autistic children and their families.

Discography

Solo Albums:

  1. Cindy Yen 袁詠琳 (2009)
    • First self-title album【Cindy】, 10 self-composed tracks
  2. 2 be different (2011)
  3. Fight For Love (2015)
  4. The Moment EP (2018)

Other Released Singles:[23]

  • 2020 TV Drama【The Little Nyonya】, Ending Theme "Impenetrable"
  • 2019 TV Drama【Yong-jiu Grocery Store】, Interlude song "I Believe"
  • 2019 COTTON USA Theme Song, Digital Single "Brave"
  • 2017 COTTON USA Theme Song, Digital Single "Fighting For Love"
  • 2016 COTTON USA Theme Song, Digital Single "I Love Myself"
  • 2016 TV Drama【Ice Fantasy】, Ending theme song "Heart"
  • 2016 TV Drama【Ice Fantasy】, Interlude song "Li Luo"
  • 2015 Third album【Fight For Love】, 8 self-composed tracks
  • 2014 Taichung Teddy Carnival, Theme Song "Fly Tonight"
  • 2014 PTS TV Life Story【Smile in the Dark】, Interlude Song "Love is Black & White"
  • 2014 TTV Drama【CHOCOLAT】, Interlude song "Is This Love?"
  • 2013 Master Kong (Tingyi) 3+2 Cookie Series TV Commercial, Theme Song
  • 2012 Fubon Culture & Educational Foundation Young Voice, Theme song
  • 2012 TTV Drama【In Between】, Theme song "In Between"
  • 2012 Movie【First Time】, Theme Song "Cry Like a Baby"
  • 2012 Movie【First Time】, Interlude song "Arrangement"
  • 2011 Second album【2 BE DIFFERENT】, 10 self-composed tracks
  • 2011 Taichung Municipal Da-Dun Junior High School, Theme song "Forest of Hopes"
  • 2011 PTS Drama【The Invaluable Treasure, 1949】, End title song "Dust"
  • 2011 PTS Drama【The Invaluable Treasure, 1949】, Interlude song "After Pain"
  • 2011 PTS Drama【The Invaluable Treasure, 1949】, Theme song "Invaluable Treasure"

Songs written & produced for other artists:

  1. 痛了才懂 (Understanding After Pain), performed by 浪花兄弟 (The Drifters)
  2. 哭得像小孩 (Cry Like A Child), performed by 趙又庭 (Mark Chao)

Awards and nominations
Year Award Category Result
2010 Sprite Music Awards[36] Best New Artist Won
Duet of the Year Won
Metro Radio Mandarin Hit Music Awards[37] Best New Hit Force Singer Won
CCTV-MTV Awards Most Popular Potential Artist Nominated
Singapore Golden Melody Awards[38] Meritorious Newcomer Nominated
Most Popular Newcomer Nominated
Metro Radio Hits Music Award[39] Best New Hit Artist Nominated
33rd Annual Chinese Gold Songs Award[40] Most Potential Newcomer Won
Best Mandarin Pop Song Nominated
2011 Sprite Music Awards Most Improved Artist Won
Beijing MTV Super Awards Best New Stylistic Artist Won
2012 Beijing Music Awards Best Stylistic Breakthrough Artist of the Year Won
Best Single of the Year Won
Hito Pop Music Awards Most Potential Female Artist Won

TV and film
Year Title Chinese Title Role
2010Pandamen熊貓人"Cindy" – as herself
2011Invaluable Treasure 1949瑰寶1949"容星怡"
2012First Time第一次"彭微"
2015 Youth Power 哇！陳怡君 "Sophie" – guest appearance/supporting actress
2016 Swimming Battle! 飛魚高校生 "Fiona”
2017 Inference Notes 推理筆記 "庄妍" – supporting actress
2017 Memory Love 噗通噗通我愛你 "Jenny" – guest appearance
2018 Secret Lover 愛情教會我的事 – 秘密情人 "顏永曦" – lead
2018 Between 三明治女孩的逆袭 "陳樂妍" – supporting
2020 Sisters Who Make Waves 乘风破浪的姐姐 cast member

References
  1. Cindy Yen's album available on iTunes. Apple iTunes. 2010-04-13.
  2. "Cindy Yen artist profile on JVR Music". Archived from the original on June 26, 2017. Retrieved September 24, 2010.
  3. Cindy Yen thanks Mom and Dad for divorcing. 88 News. January 13th, 2010.
  4. Cindy Yen's in-depth interview with Amped Asia. Amped Asia. 2010-06-01.
  5. Cindy Yen love to play American Football. Oriental-news.blogspot.com. 2009-12-14.
  6. Cindy Yen featured as Texas Exes' February Asian Alumni Spotlight. Asian Texas Exes. 2010-02-10.
  7. 袁詠琳最怕選美泳裝照曝光 – 星島日報 Cindy Yen is scared to wear bikinis in beauty pageants – QingDao Daily News. 2010-03-08. Archived March 12, 2010, at the Wayback Machine
  8. Cindy Yen's Background and History. Hudong. 2009-10-30.
  9. "Cindy Yen, Jay Chou's first new artist. 022China.com. 2010-02-02". Archived from the original on February 7, 2010. Retrieved September 23, 2010.
  10. "Jay Chou's new duet with newcomer Cindy Yen "Sand Painting." Asian Fanatics. 2009-10-13". Archived from the original on December 12, 2010. Retrieved September 24, 2010.
  11. Cindy Yen and Jay Chou's music video for "Sand Painting" on YouTube. October 26, 2009.
  12. "Cindy's Album on KKBox. KKBox Taiwan. 2009-10-30". Archived from the original on January 11, 2010. Retrieved September 25, 2010.
  13. "China's 2010 Mandarin Web Original Composition Pop Music Charts. CNHan News. 2010-11-23". Archived from the original on July 22, 2011. Retrieved November 29, 2010.
  14. Cindy Yen - Another One Like You & Sand Painting
  15. 周杰倫師妹袁詠琳　看自己廣告又哭又笑. 今日傳媒股份有限公司. Jay Chou's new prodigy Cindy Yen – Cries as she watches her first commercial on TV. Now News. 2009-10-23.
  16. Cindy Yen FarEasTone Commercial on YouTube. October 19, 2009.
  17. Cindy Yen's debut solo MV "Very Traveling Love". GrooveAsia.com. 2009-11-15. Archived July 11, 2011, at the Wayback Machine
  18. Cindy Yen opens her first mini-concert in Hong Kong. Panda Kun Asia Celeb Blog. 2010-04-05. Archived March 5, 2012, at the Wayback Machine
  19. "Cindy Yen guest performer at Jay Chou's "The Era" concert tour, hopes to achieve her own dream: Have her concert in Hong Kong within 3 years. SingTao Daily. 2010-09-20". Archived from the original on March 22, 2012. Retrieved September 24, 2010.
  20. "Cindy Yen Talks About Her Second Album With 95 Magazine. 95magazine.com. 2011-10-01". Archived from the original on October 21, 2011. Retrieved October 31, 2011.
  21. Cindy Yen to be the next Jolin Tsai. CPopAccess.com. 2011-09-22
  22. Cindy Yen Discusses What it Means to Her "To Be Different." RazorTV.com. 2011-10-19. Archived April 19, 2012, at the Wayback Machine
  23. "杰威爾音樂 JVR Music". www.jvrmusic.com (in Chinese). Retrieved August 6, 2020.
  24. "Jay Chou creates superpandamen". Xinhua News Agency. December 18, 2009.
  25. The Invaluable Treasure 1949 nominated for 5 Golden Bell Awards. CPopAccess.com. 2011-09-19.
  26. Cindy Yen Writes Song for Mark Chao in Movie First Time. CpopAccess.com. 2012-01-04.
  27. "乘风破浪：袁咏琳因没自信大哭引热议". Sohu. June 26, 2020. Retrieved August 29, 2020.
  28. 湖南卫视芒果TV官方频道 China HunanTV Official Channel (June 14, 2020). "袁咏琳弹唱《爱是黑白》，是实力选手没错了！". YouTube. Retrieved August 29, 2020.
  29. 湖南卫视芒果TV官方频道 China HunanTV Official Channel (June 26, 2020). "【姐姐SHOWTIME】宁静阿朵袁咏琳起范儿了". YouTube. Retrieved August 29, 2020.
  30. Show Fever综艺风向标. "万茜团×新裤子乐队《别再问我什么是迪斯科+手扶拖拉机斯基》串烧嗨爆 袁咏琳小提琴惊艳全场". YouTube. Retrieved August 29, 2020.
  31. "吴昕袁咏琳张萌淘汰！". Sohu. August 7, 2020. Retrieved August 29, 2020.
  32. Cindy Yen Spokesperson for TVBS' Lotus charity event. Today News. 2010-01-04. Archived July 28, 2012, at the Wayback Machine
  33. Cindy Yen, Jay Chou, and Will Pan donate ¥1,500,000 for Soong Ching-Ling's charity foundation during Shanghai's 2010 DTM Street Race. Sina News. 2010-11-28.
  34. Cindy Yen is our next Asia Female Superstar. Sportscn.com. 2010-12-06.
  35. Cindy Yen sings with other Taiwanese artists for Japan Tsumani fundraising event "Believe" on YouTube. March 21, 2011.
  36. Jay Chou and Cindy Yen perform at Sprite Awards. CPopAccess. 2010-03-03.
  37. List of Winners for 2010 Metro Radio Hit Awards. Jpop Asia. 2010-08-09.
  38. Cindy Yen nominated for 2010 Singapore Golden Melody Awards. Groove Asia. 2010-09-14. Archived July 11, 2011, at the Wayback Machine
  39. "Cindy Yen nominated for Metro Radio hits Music Awards 2010. 21cn.com. 2010-11-29". Archived from the original on December 5, 2010. Retrieved November 29, 2010.
  40. Cindy Yen nominated for the 33rd Annual Chinese Gold Songs Award. Big5 China.com. 2010-11-29. Archived July 18, 2011, at the Wayback Machine
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