Sandy Lam facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Sandy Lam
林憶蓮
Lam in 2024
Born	(1966-04-26) 26 April 1966 (age 59) British Hong Kong
Occupation	Singer actress producer
Years active	1982–present
Spouse(s)	Jonathan Lee ​ ​ (m. 1998; div. 2004)​
Musical career
Genres	Mandopop Cantopop electronic
Instruments	Vocals
Labels	Stardust (1986–present) Universal Music (2012–present)
Chinese name
Traditional Chinese	林憶蓮
Simplified Chinese	林忆莲
Transcriptions Standard Mandarin Hanyu Pinyin Lín Yìlián Yue: Cantonese Jyutping lam4 jik1 lin4

Sandy Lam Yik-lin (林憶蓮; born on April 26, 1966) is a famous singer, actress, and producer from Hong Kong. She became well-known in the 1980s. Later, she gained many fans across Asia.

Sandy has released over 30 albums. Her music includes different styles and languages. She sings in Cantonese, English, Mandarin, and Japanese. She is one of the most famous artists in Chinese music.

Sandy is known for her success and for trying new things. She is not afraid to explore different music styles. Her albums Gaia (2012) and 0 (2018) both won her a Golden Melody Award. This is a very important music award.

Sandy has worked with many record labels. These include CBS Sony Records, Warner Music, Rock Records, and Universal Music.

Early Life of Sandy Lam

Sandy Lam was born in Hong Kong on April 26, 1966. She was the oldest of three children. She grew up in North Point. Music was always a big part of her family's life.

Her father, who came from Shanghai, was a professional musician. He played the Erhu, a Chinese instrument, with the Hong Kong Chinese Orchestra. Her mother sang Yue opera at local places.

Sandy Lam: From DJ to Actress

In 1982, Sandy was still a student at Marymount Secondary School. A classmate asked her to try out for a disc jockey (DJ) job. This was at Commercial Radio Hong Kong. Soon, she started working part-time as a DJ. She used the stage name "611."

By 1984, she became a full-time DJ. A talent scout from CBS/Sony Records noticed her. He saw her singing Crying in the Rain at an outdoor show. She signed with CBS/Sony in 1985. Her first album came out in 1986.

At the same time, Sandy also acted in movies. She was in Merry Christmas (1984) and The Intellectual Trio (1985). She also played a nurse in a RTHK TV show called "左鄰右里" (1985).

Sandy Lam's Music Journey

Sandy's first steps in music were not an instant hit. Her first Cantonese album looked like Japanese idol music. Even though this style was popular in Hong Kong, Sandy's music did not connect with everyone.

Things changed with her album Grey (1987). People in Hong Kong started to see her as a serious singer. The main song "灰色" and her cover of Berlin's Take My Breath Away (from the movie Top Gun) became very popular. These songs won her first awards at the 1987 Jade Solid Gold Best Ten Music Awards Presentation. She also showed her talent in jazz music with her album Ready (1988).

The City Rhythm Albums

The City Rhythm series truly made Sandy a big star. This was a very important time in her career. It was a group of three albums released between 1988 and 1990.

City Rhythm showed Hong Kong her amazing musical skills. The albums sold very well, becoming platinum records. Sandy was also an Executive Producer for these albums. They featured upbeat dance-pop songs and slow ballads. Many of these were covers of Western songs.

City Rhythm was the first successful "concept album" in Cantopop. This means the songs had a main idea or story. The lyrics were bold and focused on women's experiences. They showed a woman living and loving in busy Hong Kong. She was a woman who knew what she wanted. Each song explored a different part of life.

Sandy covered songs by artists like Martika and Taylor Dayne. This made her seem fresh and young. The City Rhythm series captured the exciting feel of 1980s Hong Kong. It also showed the energy and dreams of that time. She also released remix albums, which made her known as Hong Kong's "dancing queen."

The Wildflower Album

In 1991, Sandy worked with Singaporean songwriter Dick Lee. They released the album Wildflower ("野花"). This album was about growing up and becoming a modern Asian woman. Wildflowers were a symbol for this journey.

Wildflower was a beautiful mix of Eastern and Western music. It combined traditional ideas with jazz influences. This album showed Sandy's amazing talent and how versatile she was. It also started a trend in Cantonese music called "Unplugged." This meant creating real and raw music that felt very personal to listeners.

At first, people were not sure about Wildflower. But later, it was seen as a groundbreaking work. Today, it is known as one of the most important albums in Cantopop history.

Home Again Without You Success

At the same time, Sandy also started to become popular in Taiwan. She made a name for herself in Mandopop music. Her first Mandarin album, Home Again Without You ("愛上一個不回家的人"), came out in 1990.

This album was a huge success. It sold over 600,000 copies in Taiwan alone. It was a big moment for Cantopop. Its success encouraged many Hong Kong musicians to try making Mandopop. This helped Taiwan become a leader in pop music.

The Love, Sandy Album

In 1995, Sandy worked with Taiwanese music producer Jonathan Lee. They released her fourth Mandarin album, Love, Sandy. This album had ten songs, including ballads, love songs, and R&B-inspired pop.

Love, Sandy was a massive hit. It sold 800,000 copies in Taiwan. It sold 3 million copies across Asia. This made her famous in new places like Singapore and Mainland China. Almost every song on the album became a hit. Many became popular songs for KTV singing. It is still one of the best-selling Mandopop albums ever.

After her 14th Cantopop album Feeling Perfect (1996), Sandy spent most of her time in Taiwan, China, and Japan. In 1997, Sandy acted in Hong Kong's biggest musical, Snow.Wolf.Lake ("雪·狼·湖"). This show had 42 sold-out performances in the Hong Kong Coliseum. This is still a record today.

At Least I Still Have You and New Music

After taking a break when her daughter was born, Sandy returned to music. She released many Mandarin albums in the early 2000s. She kept improving her skills and trying new things. During this time, she released Clang Rose ("鏗鏘玫瑰") in 1999. This album was praised for being new and different, but still popular.

In 2000, she released Sandy Lam's ("林憶蓮’S"). This album included the huge hit song At Least I Still Have You ("至少還有你"). A Korean version of this song was made by Super Junior-M, a sub-group of the K-Pop band Super Junior. It was released in 2008.

Sandy also started writing more of her own songs. On her album Truly… Sandy ("原來…林憶蓮") in 2001, she helped write four songs. In the same year, Sandy performed in an Andrew Lloyd Webber concert called Masterpiece. This concert was held in Beijing and Shanghai. Other famous singers like Elaine Paige also performed. In April 2002, she sang the Mandarin theme song, On My Own ("屬於我"), for the musical Les Misérables in Shanghai.

In 2005, Sandy released her first Cantonese album in almost ten years, True Colour ("本色"). After her Mandarin album Breathe Me ("呼吸") in 2006, Sandy did not release new music for over six years. During this time, she went on tour and thought about her music. From 2009, Sandy slowly started working on a new album. She wanted it to be very different from her past work. She wanted to change how she made music and not rely too much on others.

The Gaia Album

In 2012, Sandy released Gaia ("蓋亞"). The album was named after the Goddess of earth in Greek mythology. This album was very experimental. Sandy tried out new sounds, including New Age music. This added a fresh style to her collection of songs.

Gaia was celebrated as a great comeback. It was also seen as a very important album in Mandopop. Critics praised it for being new and groundbreaking. Sandy won four awards at the 24th Golden Melody Awards in 2013. These included "Best Mandarin Female Singer," "Best Mandarin Album," "Best Album Producer," and "Best Musical Arranger."

Sandy continued to challenge herself. In 2017, she surprised everyone by joining the Hunan Television show Singer 2017. This show introduced her as a pop icon to many new fans.

Re: Workz and In Search of Lost Time Albums

Sandy briefly returned to Cantopop. She released two albums of cover songs from the 1980s Hong Kong music scene. These were Re: Workz (2014) and In Search of Lost Time ("陪著我走") (2016). She changed the songs to fit different styles and genres.

Winning Singer 2017

In January 2017, Sandy joined the TV show Singer 2017 on Hunan Television. She was one of the first eight singers in the competition. Sandy was declared the winner in the final on April 15, 2017.

The 0 Album

In 2018, Sandy released her 12th Mandarin album, 0. It was released with very little advertising. This album took three years to make. 0 continued Sandy's journey of trying new things in music. Her first song from the album was "Core." For this song, she worked with Mayday's lead singer Ashin again.

0 is a very emotional and thoughtful album. It tries to understand and explain the many ideas of "zero." This includes the idea of beginnings and endings. Sandy won "Best Mandarin Female Singer" and "Best Vocal Recording Album" for 0. These awards were given at the 30th Golden Melody Awards in 2019.

Sandy Lam's Personal Life

Sandy married Taiwanese singer-songwriter and producer Jonathan Lee in 1998. They had a daughter named Renee (李喜兒), who was born on May 17, 1998. Sandy and Jonathan Lee divorced in 2004. Sandy was in a relationship with drummer-songwriter Jun Kung from 2011 to 2019.

Discography

Filmography

Motion pictures

Television

Major Awards for Sandy Lam

Published Work

See also

In Spanish: Sandy Lam para niños