Dick Lee facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Dick Lee
李炳文
Lee in 2023
Born	Richard Lee Peng Boon (1956-08-24) 24 August 1956 (age 68) Singapore
Alma mater	Harrow School of Art
Occupation	Singer-songwriter playwright film director
Years active	1971–present
Spouse(s)	Jacintha Abisheganaden ​ ​ (m. 1992; div. 1997)​
Awards	Cultural Medallion
Musical career
Genres	Pop music, Cantopop, musical theatre
Instruments	Piano
Chinese name
Chinese	李炳文
Transcriptions Standard Mandarin Hanyu Pinyin Lǐ Bǐngwén Yue: Cantonese Jyutping lei5 di2 man4

Dick Lee, born Richard Lee Peng Boon on August 24, 1956, is a famous Singaporean artist. He is known as a singer, songwriter, writer for plays, and a film director. In 2005, Dick Lee received the Cultural Medallion, which is Singapore's highest award for people in the arts. This award recognized his amazing contributions to music.

Early Life and Education

Dick Lee grew up in Singapore. His father, Lee Kip Lee, was a writer for The Straits Times. Dick was the oldest of five children in his family. He went to St. Michael's School for his early education. Later, he attended St. Joseph's Institution for his secondary school years.

Dick Lee's Musical Journey

Starting His Music Career

Dick Lee began his music journey very young, at just fifteen years old in 1971. He first joined a group called Harmony as a pianist. He also took part in many talent shows with them. Soon after, he started his own group, Dick and the Gang, with his brothers. He performed both with his group and by himself. His first album, Life Story, came out in 1974. It featured songs he wrote himself.

Pioneering Asian Pop Music

Throughout the 1970s and 1980s, Dick Lee worked hard to mix Asian sounds into pop music. His album Life in the Lion City (1984) was a big hit. But his album The Mad Chinaman, released in 1989, became famous across the region. He won several awards in Singapore, Hong Kong, and Japan for his early music.

Music in the 1990s

In 1990, Dick Lee moved to Japan. There, he kept developing his unique Asian music style. He worked with famous Asian artists like Tracy Huang and Sandy Lam. He also wrote many songs for top singers in Asia.

His album Transit Lounge (1999) was praised by both critics and music fans. He also worked as a vice-president for Sony Music Asia. In 2000, his album Everything came out, featuring songs he had written since the 1970s. Dick Lee also helped charity by contributing a song called "It All Begins With Love" to a CD for kids with AIDS.

Musicals and Stage Shows

Dick Lee has written many musicals for the stage. Some of his well-known works include Beauty World (1988) and Fried Rice Paradise (1991). He also wrote Snow.Wolf.Lake (1997) for Jacky Cheung. Since 1998, he has been an Associate Artiste Director at the Singapore Repertory Theatre.

Highlights of the 2000s

In 2000, Dick Lee wrote songs for a musical version of the TV show Phua Chu Kang. This musical helped raise over $2 million for charity.

In 2002, he wrote and helped direct his first dance musical, re:MIX. That same year, he created Forbidden City: Portrait of An Empress. This musical was a major part of the opening festival for Singapore's cultural center, The Esplanade. It was so popular that it was performed again in 2003 and 2006.

Dick Lee was also the Creative Director for Singapore's National Day Parade in 2002. His song "We Will Get There" became the parade's theme song. This was his second National Day song, as he also wrote "Home" in 1998.

In 2003, he won the Fukuoka Arts and Culture Prize. This award recognizes people who have greatly helped the arts in Asia. He also wrote an autobiography, The Adventures of the Mad Chinaman, in 2004.

From 2004 to 2009, he was a judge on Singapore Idol. In 2004, he held a special concert called Life Stories to celebrate 30 years in music. In 2005, he received the Cultural Medallion for music.

He continued to be involved in the National Day Parades, serving as Creative Director in 2010 and 2015. For the 2015 parade, he composed "Our Singapore," performed by JJ Lin. In 2017, Dick Lee directed his first musical film, Wonder Boy, which was about his own life.

Fashion and Business Ventures

Dick Lee also has a strong interest in fashion. He studied fashion design at Harrow School of Art in London. He designed for his mother's boutique and created his own fashion labels. He also worked as a Display Director for Tangs department store and was a fashion editor for Female magazine.

In business, Dick Lee created the Boom Boom Room in 1991. It was an entertainment venue that featured performers like Kumar. It later moved locations and closed in 2004, but had a special return in 2021. In 2012, he opened a restaurant called MAD (Modern Asian Diner) in Singapore, which later closed. He also opened a pancake restaurant called Slappy Cakes.

Personal Life

Dick Lee is a Catholic. In 1992, he married jazz singer Jacintha Abisheganaden. They later divorced in 1997.

Music Albums

On Vinyl

On CD

Online Releases

Theatrical Works

Musicals Written by Dick Lee

Plays Written by Dick Lee

Awards and Recognition

See also

In Spanish: Dick Lee para niños