William Hung facts for kids

Quick facts for kids William Hung
孔慶翔
Hung in St. Cloud, Minnesota in July 2008
Born	(1982-11-10) November 10, 1982 (age 42) Sha Tin, British Hong Kong
Alma mater	Marist College (MBA) California State University, Northridge (BA) University of California, Berkeley (no degree) Pasadena City College
Occupation	Singer, actor, motivational speaker
Spouse(s)	Jian Teng (divorced)
Chinese name
Traditional Chinese	孔慶翔
Simplified Chinese	孔庆翔
Transcriptions Standard Mandarin Hanyu Pinyin Kǒng Qìngxiáng Yue: Cantonese Jyutping Hung2 Hing3 Cheung4
Musical career
Origin	Los Angeles, California, U.S.
Genres	Pop, outsider music
Years active	2004–2011
Labels	Koch

William Hung (born November 10, 1982) is a motivational speaker and former singer. He was born in Hong Kong and later became an American citizen. William Hung became famous in 2004 after his audition on the TV show American Idol.

He sang Ricky Martin's song "She Bangs" during his audition. Even though he didn't make it to the next round, his positive attitude won over many fans. At the time, he was a student at University of California, Berkeley. He later left college to follow his dream of becoming a singer.

William Hung released his first album, Inspiration, in 2004. It became very popular, reaching number one on a special music chart for independent albums. He released two more albums, but they were not as successful. In 2011, he decided to stop his music career. He took a job helping with crime analysis for the Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department. William Hung has often said he is happy about his time as a pop star.

William Hung's Early Life and Education

William Hung is a very distant relative of the famous Chinese philosopher Confucius. He grew up in Sha Tin, British Hong Kong. When he was 11, his family moved to Los Angeles, California.

He studied civil engineering at the University of California, Berkeley. After his music career, he went back to college. He earned a degree in mathematics from California State University, Northridge. Later, he completed a master's degree in business from Marist College.

William Hung was married to Jian Teng in 2014. This marriage later ended in divorce. He has spoken about personal challenges that contributed to this.

William Hung's Journey to Fame

His American Idol Audition

In September 2003, William Hung auditioned for American Idol in San Francisco. He was a civil engineering student at the University of California, Berkeley at the time. His audition was shown on TV in January 2004.

Before singing, William Hung said he wanted to make music his job. He then sang and danced to "She Bangs" by Ricky Martin. The judges, Randy Jackson and Paula Abdul, tried not to laugh. Judge Simon Cowell told him, "You can't sing, you can't dance." William Hung replied, "Um, I already gave my best, and I have no regrets at all."

Randy Jackson and Paula Abdul praised his positive spirit. William Hung also mentioned he had no professional training in singing or dancing. He did not move on to the next round of the competition.

Becoming a Fan Favorite

Even though he didn't win, William Hung quickly gained many fans. A fan website for him received over four million visits in its first week. Radio stations also received many requests for remixes of his audition song.

William Hung appeared on many TV shows after his audition. These included Jimmy Kimmel Live!, The Ellen DeGeneres Show, and Late Show with David Letterman. He was also featured in magazines and newspapers. Other TV shows like Saturday Night Live and Mad TV even made fun of his performance in a friendly way.

William Hung performing at UC Berkeley's Haas Pavilion in 2004.

More than 100,000 people signed an online petition to bring him back to American Idol. He did return for a special episode called Uncut, Uncensored and Untalented. This show looked at what it was like to audition and become famous by accident.

In 2006, William Hung was named the Artichoke King at a festival in Castroville, California. Famous actress Marilyn Monroe had received a similar honor before him.

His Music Career and Albums

In 2004, William Hung was offered a record deal by Koch Entertainment. He released three albums with them between 2004 and 2005. His first album, Inspiration, came out in April 2004. It was recorded quickly, with William Hung singing over karaoke music.

To promote the album, he performed for nearly 20,000 fans at a Golden State Warriors basketball game. He also sang "She Bangs" on shows like The Tonight Show with Jay Leno. Despite some negative reviews, Inspiration sold about 200,000 copies. It even reached number one on Billboard's Top Independent Album Chart.

His next two albums were not as popular. Hung for the Holidays, a Christmas album, sold 35,000 copies. His second album, Miracle: Happy Summer from William Hung, sold only 7,000 copies. He stopped making music in 2011.

TV Shows, Commercials, and Movies

William Hung appeared in commercials for Ask.com and the Game Show Network. He also sang "Take Me Out to the Ballgame" at a Toronto Blue Jays baseball game in 2004.

His first movie was a comedy from Hong Kong called Where is Mama's Boy (2004). It was released in 2005. In the film, William Hung played a kind village boy who sells Chinese pancakes. His character becomes a singer and helps a woman protect her business. He even sang a song called "Siu Beng" (Chinese Pancake), which was a funny nod to his "She Bangs" audition. The movie did not do well at the box office.

William Hung also made guest appearances on TV shows like Airline, Arrested Development, and George Lopez.

Life After Music

After trying to teach high school math for a short time, William Hung changed careers in 2011. He became a technical crime analyst for the Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department. He was happy about this new path and did not regret ending his music career. He once said, "I showed that even the Average Joe could succeed."

Around 2014, William Hung joined the Los Angeles County Department of Public Health. Since 2017, he has been a motivational speaker. He gives speeches to groups, sharing his story and inspiring others.

He made a surprise return to American Idol to perform "She Bangs" on the season 15 finale in 2016. He also made another surprise appearance on American Idol season 20 in 2022.

Discography

Albums

Studio Albums

Extended Plays

Singles

Music Videos

William Hung's music video for "She Bangs" was watched over 2 million times on YouTube before it was made private.

See also

In Spanish: William Hung para niños

• Fernando Villares - a Mexican singer with a similar music career