Wakin Chau

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

Emil Wakin Chau
Wakin Chau in concert 2007
Born (1960-12-22) 22 December 1960
Sai Ying Pun, British Hong Kong
OccupationSinger, songwriter, actor
Years active1986–present
Spouse(s)Constance Woods (American)
ChildrenAndrew (周厚安), Anya (周厚恩)
AwardsGolden Melody Awards – Best Male Mandarin Artist
1993

Chinese name
Traditional Chinese周華健
Simplified Chinese周华健
Musical career
Also known asEmil Chau, Wakin Chau, Zhou Huajian, Chow Wah-Kin
OriginHong Kong
GenresMandopop, Cantopop
InstrumentsVocals, guitar, piano
LabelsRock Records
Associated actsEasy Band, Superband
WebsiteWakin.com

Early life

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

Music career

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

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

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

Other activities

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

Personal life

Shortly before his music career began, Chau met his future wife, American Constance Woods, whose father was in Taiwan as a Fulbright scholar. They married in Taipei on 16 November 1986, with another ceremony four months later in the United States, on 14 March 1987. They have one son and one daughter.

Discography

Mandarin albums
  • 最後圓舞曲 The Last Waltz (Feb 1985)
  • 心的方向 Direction of the Heart (Jul 1987)
  • 我付出我的真愛 我實現我的夢 I Gave My Love I Realized My Dream (Aug 1988)
  • 期待更多 付出更多 The More You Give the More You Expect (Jan 1989)
  • 最真的夢 The Truest Dream (Nov 1989)
  • 不願一個人 I Don't Want to Be Alone (Dec 1990)
  • 讓我歡喜讓我憂 You Make Me Happy and Sad (Nov 1991)
  • 花·心 The Flowery Heart (Apr 1993)
  • 今夜陽光燦爛 Asia Tour'93 Emil Alive! (Jan 1994)
  • 風雨無阻 Nothing Will Stop Me From Loving You (Jun 1994)
  • 我願意去等 I Am Willing to Go Soon (Feb 1995)
  • 愛相隨 Love Follows Us (Jul 1995)
  • 愛的光 Light of Love (Feb 1996)
  • 小天堂 My Little Paradise (Sep 1996)
  • 朋友 Emil & Friends (Apr 1997)
  • 有故事的人 Story Teller (Aug 1998)
  • 現在 Now (Nov 1999)
  • 忘憂草 Day Lilies (Otc 2001)
  • 329最完整周華健 All Out (2003)
  • 一起吃苦的幸福 Love Hotel (Jul 2003)
  • 周而復始 Keep Wakin 1987-2002 (Sep 2003)
  • 雨人 Wakin in the Rain (Mar 2006)
  • 花旦 Diva (May 2011)
  • 江湖 Jiang Hu (Dec 2013)
  • 賽貂蟬 My Farewell Lady (Mar 2019)
  • 少年 The Younger Me (Dec 2019)
  • 我把人生唱成一首給你的歌 A Song for You (Feb 2020)

Cantonese albums
  • 有弦相聚(真的周华健) Music Brings Us Together (Otc 1994)
  • 弦途有你(真的周华健 Ⅱ) (Apr 1995)
  • 弦弦全全(真的周华健·完满篇) (Dec 1995)
  • 弦猶在耳 Emil's Live Moments (Jun 1996)
  • 生·生活 Living With Emil Chau (Dec 1996)
  • 世界由你我開始 (Otc 1997)
  • 聽健 (Feb 1998)

English albums
  • Sad Without You (Sep 1988)
  • Blue Bird (Feb 1991)
  • I Remember (May 1992)
  • Songs of Birds (Aug 1993)
  • Forever Young (Best Collection) (Jun 1996)
  • My Oh My (Feb 2001)
  • My Favorite Songs (May 2002)

Filmography

[1] [2]

References
  1. "Wakin Chau". imdb.com. Retrieved 17 April 2010.
  2. "Wakin Chau". chinesemov.com. Retrieved 17 April 2010.
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