Fei Xiang
Encyclopedia
Fei Xiang is a Chinese-American pop icon and musical singer.
in 1978. After moving to New York and attending the Neighborhood Playhouse School of The Theatre, he returned to Taiwan in 1981 to pursue an acting career.
and released his debut album, Lingering in May of 1982. The title track of the album was an instant hit that spent four weeks at number one. The album was certified gold and Fei Xiang won the award for Best New Artist of the year.
Seven subsequent albums produced during the early 1980s for EMI
and PolyGram
launched hit singles in Taiwan and Southeast Asia.
, an action that was met with great protest by the Taiwan government. The two songs he performed on the Gala, A Fire in Winter and Cloud in My Hometown became two smash hits.
A Voice on The Ocean sold over 20 million copies in mainland China and, combined with four subsequent albums, made Fei Xiang China's all-time best-selling male recording artist. His 1989 Concert Tour of 63 consecutive sold-out stadium concerts in 12 major cities set a record in China that stands unsurpassed to this day.
. Under his English name Kris Phillips, he won a role in the Original Broadway Cast of the musical Miss Saigon
(1991). Later that same year, he was seen in the Original Broadway Cast of yet another musical, the short-lived Nick and Nora.
As Kris Phillips, Fei Xiang subsequently performed as a featured soloist with Sarah Brightman
in The Music of Andrew Lloyd Webber, a concert with full orchestra that was presented in over 40 American cities, including two performances at New York's Radio City Music Hall. In this concert, Fei Xiang performed highlights from The Phantom of the Opera
, Jesus Christ Superstar
, and Sunset Boulevard
.
In 2001, Andrew Lloyd Webber
produced and personally supervised a major production of The Music of Andrew Lloyd Webber starring Elaine Paige
and Fei Xiang. Andrew Lloyd Webber attended the Beijing performance of this Concert, which was staged in The Great Hall of The People and was filmed for DVD release and worldwide telecast. Through repeated broadcasts on China Central Television
, this concert was instrumental in introducing musical theatre to a nationwide Chinese audience.
To further promote musical theatre among the Chinese-speaking audience, Fei Xiang released The Broadway Album in 2005, a double-CD recorded with a 36-piece orchestra in New York. One CD contains Broadway standards sung in English and a second CD presents other standards performed in Mandarin Chinese. The official Chinese-language version of several songs from The Phantom of The Opera were included on this album and Fei Xiang sang The Music of the Night at the Taipei premiere of the The Phantom of the Opera
film.
In 2006, Fei Xiang was invited to star as the Emcee in Toy Factory's production of the musical Cabaret
in Singapore. The sold-out production was a commercial and critical success, with Fei Xiang's performance and "electrifying presence" garnering rave reviews.
Fei Xiang continues to perform throughout China and around the world. He released a theme song for the 2008 Summer Olympics
in Beijing and sang on China Central Television telecasts celebrating the Beijing Olympics in Los Angeles and London. In 2009, he performed in Australia for the first time, presenting two sold-out concerts at Sydney's Lyric Theatre.
Early life
Born to an American father and a Chinese mother, Fei Xiang spent his childhood in Taipei. Fluent in English and Chinese, he graduated from Taipei American School and entered Stanford UniversityStanford University
The Leland Stanford Junior University, commonly referred to as Stanford University or Stanford, is a private research university on an campus located near Palo Alto, California. It is situated in the northwestern Santa Clara Valley on the San Francisco Peninsula, approximately northwest of San...
in 1978. After moving to New York and attending the Neighborhood Playhouse School of The Theatre, he returned to Taiwan in 1981 to pursue an acting career.
Taiwan and SE Asia – 1981 to 1986
Fei Xiang made his first television appearance in a Taiwan TV-drama at the end of 1981. He was then signed by EMIEMI
The EMI Group, also known as EMI Music or simply EMI, is a multinational music company headquartered in London, United Kingdom. It is the fourth-largest business group and family of record labels in the recording industry and one of the "big four" record companies. EMI Group also has a major...
and released his debut album, Lingering in May of 1982. The title track of the album was an instant hit that spent four weeks at number one. The album was certified gold and Fei Xiang won the award for Best New Artist of the year.
Seven subsequent albums produced during the early 1980s for EMI
EMI
The EMI Group, also known as EMI Music or simply EMI, is a multinational music company headquartered in London, United Kingdom. It is the fourth-largest business group and family of record labels in the recording industry and one of the "big four" record companies. EMI Group also has a major...
and PolyGram
PolyGram
PolyGram was the name of the major label recording company started by Philips from 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 , 1929-1950:...
launched hit singles in Taiwan and Southeast Asia.
Mainland China – 1986 to 1989
In late 1986, Fei Xiang became the first Taiwan pop singer to cross the Strait and perform in mainland China. His first album, A Voice on The Ocean was recorded in Guangzhou and his rise to fame on mainland China came almost instantaneously from his performance on the 1987 CCTV New Year's GalaCCTV New Year's Gala
The CCTV New Year's Gala is a Chinese New Year special produced by China Central Television. Broadcast on the eve of Chinese New Year on its flagship CCTV-1, satellite channels CCTV-4, CCTV-9, CCTV-E, CCTV-F, and CCTV-HD, the broadcast has a yearly viewership of over 700 million viewers, making it...
, an action that was met with great protest by the Taiwan government. The two songs he performed on the Gala, A Fire in Winter and Cloud in My Hometown became two smash hits.
A Voice on The Ocean sold over 20 million copies in mainland China and, combined with four subsequent albums, made Fei Xiang China's all-time best-selling male recording artist. His 1989 Concert Tour of 63 consecutive sold-out stadium concerts in 12 major cities set a record in China that stands unsurpassed to this day.
Musical Theatre – 1990 to 1996
In 1990, Fei Xiang moved to New York, hoping to extend the range of his performances to BroadwayBroadway theatre
Broadway theatre, commonly called simply Broadway, refers to theatrical performances presented in one of the 40 professional theatres with 500 or more seats located in the Theatre District centered along Broadway, and in Lincoln Center, in Manhattan in New York City...
. Under his English name Kris Phillips, he won a role in the Original Broadway Cast of the musical Miss Saigon
Miss Saigon
Miss Saigon is a musical by Claude-Michel Schönberg and Alain Boublil, with lyrics by Boublil and Richard Maltby, Jr.. It is based on Giacomo Puccini's opera Madame Butterfly, and similarly tells the tragic tale of a doomed romance involving an Asian woman abandoned by her American lover...
(1991). Later that same year, he was seen in the Original Broadway Cast of yet another musical, the short-lived Nick and Nora.
As Kris Phillips, Fei Xiang subsequently performed as a featured soloist with Sarah Brightman
Sarah Brightman
Sarah Brightman is an English classical crossover soprano, actress, songwriter and dancer. She is famous for possessing a vocal range of over 3 octaves and singing in the whistle register...
in The Music of Andrew Lloyd Webber, a concert with full orchestra that was presented in over 40 American cities, including two performances at New York's Radio City Music Hall. In this concert, Fei Xiang performed highlights from The Phantom of the Opera
The Phantom of the Opera (1986 musical)
The Phantom of the Opera is a musical by Andrew Lloyd Webber, based on the French novel Le Fantôme de l'Opéra by Gaston Leroux.The music was composed by Lloyd Webber, and most lyrics were written by Charles Hart, with additional lyrics by Richard Stilgoe. Alan Jay Lerner was an early collaborator,...
, Jesus Christ Superstar
Jesus Christ Superstar
Jesus Christ Superstar is a rock opera by Andrew Lloyd Webber, with lyrics by Tim Rice. The musical started off as a rock opera concept recording before its first staging on Broadway in 1971...
, and Sunset Boulevard
Sunset Boulevard (musical)
Sunset Boulevard is a musical with book and lyrics by Don Black and Christopher Hampton and music by Andrew Lloyd Webber. Based on the 1950 film of the same title, the plot revolves around Norma Desmond, a faded star of the silent screen era, living in the past in her decaying mansion on the...
.
Return to Asia – 1997 to present
In 1997, Fei Xiang returned to China after a seven-year absence to take part in China Central Television's gala live telecast commemorating the Hong Kong handover. He resumed his recording and concert work in China, Taiwan and SouthEast Asia, combining his biggest Chinese pop music hits with his newly-developed musical theatre repertoire. He signed a new recording contract with Forward Music and released two new pop albums in China, Taiwan and SE Asia: Having Loved You (2000) and Wildflower (2002).In 2001, Andrew Lloyd Webber
Andrew Lloyd Webber
Andrew Lloyd Webber, Baron Lloyd-Webber is an English composer of musical theatre.Lloyd Webber has achieved great popular success in musical theatre. Several of his musicals have run for more than a decade both in the West End and on Broadway. He has composed 13 musicals, a song cycle, a set of...
produced and personally supervised a major production of The Music of Andrew Lloyd Webber starring Elaine Paige
Elaine Paige
Elaine Paige OBE is an English singer and actress best known for her work in musical theatre. Raised in Barnet, North London, Paige attended the Aida Foster stage school, making her first professional appearance on stage in 1964, at the age of 16...
and Fei Xiang. Andrew Lloyd Webber attended the Beijing performance of this Concert, which was staged in The Great Hall of The People and was filmed for DVD release and worldwide telecast. Through repeated broadcasts on China Central Television
China Central Television
China Central Television or Chinese Central Television, commonly abbreviated as CCTV, is the major state television broadcaster in mainland China. CCTV has a network of 19 channels broadcasting different programmes and is accessible to more than one billion viewers...
, this concert was instrumental in introducing musical theatre to a nationwide Chinese audience.
To further promote musical theatre among the Chinese-speaking audience, Fei Xiang released The Broadway Album in 2005, a double-CD recorded with a 36-piece orchestra in New York. One CD contains Broadway standards sung in English and a second CD presents other standards performed in Mandarin Chinese. The official Chinese-language version of several songs from The Phantom of The Opera were included on this album and Fei Xiang sang The Music of the Night at the Taipei premiere of the The Phantom of the Opera
The Phantom of the Opera (2004 film)
The Phantom of the Opera is a 2004 film adaptation of Andrew Lloyd Webber's 1986 musical of the same name, which in turn was based on the French novel Le Fantôme de l'Opéra by Gaston Leroux....
film.
In 2006, Fei Xiang was invited to star as the Emcee in Toy Factory's production of the musical Cabaret
Cabaret (musical)
Cabaret is a musical based on a book written by Christopher Isherwood, music by John Kander and lyrics by Fred Ebb. The 1966 Broadway production became a hit and spawned a 1972 film as well as numerous subsequent productions....
in Singapore. The sold-out production was a commercial and critical success, with Fei Xiang's performance and "electrifying presence" garnering rave reviews.
Fei Xiang continues to perform throughout China and around the world. He released a theme song for the 2008 Summer Olympics
2008 Summer Olympics
The 2008 Summer Olympics, officially known as the Games of the XXIX Olympiad, was a major international multi-sport event that took place in Beijing, China, from August 8 to August 24, 2008. A total of 11,028 athletes from 204 National Olympic Committees competed in 28 sports and 302 events...
in Beijing and sang on China Central Television telecasts celebrating the Beijing Olympics in Los Angeles and London. In 2009, he performed in Australia for the first time, presenting two sold-out concerts at Sydney's Lyric Theatre.
Names
Kris Phillips is his actual birth name. He was named "Kris" as he was born on Christmas Eve. His Chinese name was formed from the Chinese pronunciation of the first syllable in Phillips, "Fei" and choosing Xiang as his given name, taken from a homophone of the Chinese for "soaring" or "taking flight" (飛翔, pinyin: fēi xiáng). Other variations due to different transliteration practices are Fei Tsiang, Fei Cheung and Fei Hsiang.External links
- http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UrggBcBBvks (great interview); http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yuW8WaVUMGU&feature=related ; http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9Fub-rp_BeA&feature=related ; http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d92H2bwBDDU&feature=related ; http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=if9Ufz0Hs1M&feature=related
- http://www.last.fm/music/Fei+Xiang/+wiki (more extensive biography)
- http://www.feixiangbrazil.com/ (Brazilian fan website—Because China is behind the Great Firewall, the Brazilian website is probably the best source of information. It seems that most of the videos of Kris on YouTube are from the Brazilian fan club)