Eric Chou facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Eric Chou
Chou in 2023
Born	(1995-06-22) June 22, 1995 (age 30) New Taipei City, Taiwan
Nationality	Taiwanese
Occupation	Singer songwriter
Spouse(s)	Dacie Chao ​ (m. 2022)​
Children	2
Family	Alex Chou (brother)
Musical career
Genres	Mandopop R&B dance electronic
Instruments	Vocals piano
Years active	2014–present
Labels	Sony Music Taiwan
Chinese name
Traditional Chinese	周興哲
Simplified Chinese	周兴哲
Transcriptions Standard Mandarin Hanyu Pinyin Zhōu Xīngzhé Hakka Pha̍k-fa-sṳ Chiu Hin-chet Yue: Cantonese Jyutping Zau1 Hing3 Zit3 Southern Min Hokkien POJ Chiu Hèng-tiat

Eric Chou Hsing-che (Chinese: 周興哲; pinyin: Zhōu Xīngzhé) is a popular singer and songwriter from Taiwan. He was born on June 22, 1995. People in Taiwan sometimes call him the "king of sad love songs" because of his emotional music.

Eric Chou started his music career in August 2014. His first big song was "The Distance of Love". This song was used in a Taiwanese TV show called The Way We Were. The music video for "The Distance of Love" became very popular on YouTube. It reached 100 million views, making Eric the youngest Mandopop artist to do so at that time. His first album, My Way to Love, came out in December 2014.

In 2016, Eric released another hit song called "How Have You Been?". This song was from his second album, What Love Has Taught Us. It became a huge success across China and had over 250 million views on YouTube. His next album, The Chaos After You (2017), included popular songs like "Unbreakable Love". He also won the Artist of the Year award at the KKBox Music Awards for this album. In 2019, his first EP (Extended Play) and fourth album, Freedom, featured the hit song "What's Wrong".

Eric Chou's Life and Music Journey

Early Life and First Steps in Music

Eric Chou was born in Taiwan on June 22, 1995. He has two brothers, Jimmy/James and Alex. Alex is also a singer and songwriter. When Eric was young, he learned to play chess and even won a championship.

At age nine, Eric went to a concert rehearsal for another famous singer, Jay Chou. Eric said, "When I heard him sing ‘Hair Like Snow’, I knew I wanted to be a singer-songwriter just like him." When he was twelve, Eric moved with his family to Boston in the United States. He went to Fay School and Northfield Mount Hermon School there.

Eric remembers that he didn't like playing the piano at first. His mom had to make him practice. But later, playing the piano became a way for him to show his feelings. He started playing more often while he was in the US. He gets ideas for his songs from movies, his friends, and his own experiences. While in Boston, he wrote "The Distance of Love." He was inspired by trying to impress a girl he liked in high school. Eric said, "I thought music would make me more charming, and that was my first reason to get into it." When he was eighteen, Eric moved back to Taiwan.

A Taiwanese actor named Edison Huang discovered Eric. Edison heard from a friend that Eric could sing. When Eric was seventeen, he was asked to perform at Edison's wedding. He sang "The Distance of Love" there. Two years later, this song became the ending theme for the TV drama The Way We Were. Eric also had a small acting role in the same drama as a singer.

First Albums and Big Hits

Chou in 2015

In August 2014, Eric Chou released "The Distance of Love" as his first song with Sony Music Taiwan. This song was later part of his first album, My Way to Love, which came out on December 24. This album quickly became number one on 18 different music charts. In 2015, he won the TV Theme Song Award for "The Distance of Love" at the Hito Music Awards.

In 2016, Eric also wrote songs for a Chinese TV show called Magical Space-Time. He wrote three songs for it, including "Back to the Day," which he sang himself. He also acted in a short drama for a ramen brand and sang its theme song, "I Loved You."

On August 5, 2016, Eric released his second album, What Love Has Taught Us. This album included his very popular song "How Have You Been?". This song stayed at the top of the KKBOX Mandarin Weekly Singles Chart for 30 weeks in a row. Its music video had over 185 million views by July 2022. This song helped him earn the nickname "king of sad love songs." The album was very successful, and Eric announced his first solo concert tour called "This Is Love." Tickets for his show in Taipei sold out in just two minutes! The tour started in Singapore in October, then went to Taipei in November, and later to Malaysia. Eric also performed at a big New Year's Eve party in Singapore on December 31, 2016.

Concert Tours and New Music

In 2017, Eric Chou performed at the 12th KKBOX Music Awards. He won the Artist of the Year award, becoming the youngest singer to receive it. In February 2017, he held a Valentine's concert in Macau. He sang his new song "Unbreakable Love" there. On May 21, 2017, Eric performed a sold-out concert in Taipei. He also shared that he was already working on a new album.

In August 2017, tickets for his second concert tour, "22 TWENTY TWO," in Taipei went on sale and sold out in just 6 minutes. An extra show was added, and those tickets also sold out within an hour. Eric finished his "This Is Love" tour in October and started his "22 TWENTY TWO" tour in November. During this tour, he first sang his new song "Without Her," which later appeared on his new album. On December 15, 2017, Eric released his third album, The Chaos After You. This album had ten songs, including the title track. He ended the year by performing at the Taoyuan New Year's Eve party.

In 2018, Eric won two awards at the Hito Music Awards. These included the friDay Digital Song Award for "The Chaos After You." In August 2018, he joined a competition called Chao Yin Idols. In this show, artists work together to create new music styles. During the competition, he helped write "What's Wrong" with Chinese singer Wu Jiacheng. In November 2018, Eric also starred as the main male character in a web drama called The Elfin's Golden Castle. In December 2018, he released the song "Nobody But Me" with its music video.

Recent Music and Tours

On January 10, 2019, Eric Chou released his first EP, Freedom. It had five songs, including "What's Wrong" and "Nobody But Me" from the year before. At the 15th KKBOX Music Awards, Eric performed a mix of his songs, including "At Least I Remember" from his new EP. On May 11, 2019, Eric started his "How Have You Been" concert tour. It was his first time performing at the Taipei Arena for 11,000 fans. Tickets for this show reportedly sold out in two minutes. The concert also took place in Kaohsiung Arena in August. In October 2019, Eric released his song "Forever Beautiful" to support a breast cancer awareness campaign.

In December 2019, Eric released a special version of his Freedom EP as his fourth album. It included the original five songs plus four new ones. Also, YouTube announced that the music video for "What's Wrong" was the most-watched Mandopop music video in 2019. Eric was also named the second most popular singer in Taiwan that year, after Jay Chou and before Jolin Tsai. Eric also sang on G.E.M.'s song "Don't Force It."

On January 7, 2020, Eric Chou released his fifth album, When We Were Young. This album has eleven songs, including "I'm Happy."

On August 8, 2020, Eric became the first singer to hold a concert at Taipei Arena since the COVID-19 pandemic began. This was part of his "How Have You Been Tour." The show was completely full, with 10,000 people attending. To help raise money for the COVID-19 pandemic, Eric Chou donated all the money from a new version of "Forever Beautiful." He sang this song with other Asian Sony artists.

Personal Life

In January 2019, Eric Chou shared that he was in a relationship with news anchor Dacie Chao. They had been together since March 2018. The couple broke up in October 2020 but got back together in 2021. Eric announced their engagement in October 2022. He shared that he had asked Dacie to marry him on a hotel balcony in Europe in March that year. In March 2023, Eric announced that he and Dacie were expecting their first child. In August 2023, Eric announced the birth of their daughter. In January 2025, the couple announced the birth of their first son.

Music Albums

• My Way to Love (2014)
• What Love Has Taught Us (2016)
• The Chaos After You (2017)
• Freedom (2019)
• When We Were Young (2020)
• Almost (2024)

Acting Roles

Movies

TV Shows

TV Appearances

Concert Tours

• This Is Love (2016–2017)
• 22 Twenty Two (2017–2018)
• How Have You Been Tour (2019–2020)
• Odyssey Journey World Tour (2022–2025)

Awards and Recognitions