Zhang Liyin facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Zhang Liyin
张力尹
Zhang in 2010
Born	(1989-02-28) February 28, 1989 (age 36) Chengdu, Sichuan, China
Occupation	Singer lyricist
Years active	2006–present
Musical career
Genres	Mandopop K-pop R&B Ballad
Instruments	Vocals
Labels	SM Show City Times Beijing S.W. Culture Media iFlytek Music
Chinese name
Traditional Chinese	張力尹
Simplified Chinese	张力尹
Hanyu Pinyin	Zhāng Lìyǐn
Transcriptions Standard Mandarin Hanyu Pinyin Zhāng Lìyǐn Bopomofo ㄓㄤ˙ㄌㄧ˙ㄧㄣ˙ Wade–Giles Chang Li-yin Tongyong Pinyin Jhāng Lìyǐn
Korean name
Hangul	장리인
Transcriptions Revised Romanization Jang Riin McCune–Reischauer Chang Riin

Zhang Liyin (born February 28, 1989) is a talented Chinese singer and songwriter. She has released many songs in both China and South Korea. Zhang sings in both Chinese and Korean.

She was the first Chinese female artist to start her music career in South Korea. This happened when she released her song "Timeless" in 2006. This song quickly became very popular and reached number one on music charts. Zhang also made history as the first foreign artist to win the Best Newcomer award at the Mnet Asian Music Awards.

Early Life and Musical Beginnings

Zhang Liyin was born in Chengdu, a city in Sichuan, China. Her parents were classical musicians. They often took her to their concerts, which helped her discover many different kinds of music.

When she was just three years old, Zhang started learning to play the violin. She loved classical music, as well as American and European pop music. She even said she never sang children's songs when she was little! Zhang had a special talent: she could sing a song perfectly after hearing it only once. When she was nine, she showed off her amazing voice by singing Celine Dion's famous song "My Heart Will Go On".

As she got older, Zhang became more interested in pop music than classical music. She would secretly listen to pop songs because her parents preferred classical. When she was twelve, she got into a special music school for her violin skills. However, she decided she wanted to be a singer instead. Her parents eventually supported her dream. She gained confidence after being chosen as one of the top 10 adult singers in a national singing competition in Shanghai.

A Korean entertainment company, DR Music, discovered Zhang in 2002. She was at a concert in China at the time. She later signed a contract with SM Entertainment and moved to South Korea at age fourteen to train.

Music Career Highlights

2006–2007: Debut with Timeless

In August 2006, SM Entertainment announced that Zhang Liyin would officially debut. She performed her first song, "Timeless," with Xia Junsu on MBC's Music Core. Before the song was officially released, "Timeless" was available for free download in five Asian countries.

Her debut single, "Timeless," came out on September 8. It was an R&B song, which was a Korean version of a song by Kelly Clarkson and Justin Guarini. The music video for "Timeless" was like a two-part movie. It starred Lee Yeon-hee and Super Junior members Han Geng and Siwon. The video was so popular that it stayed at No. 1 on Melon's Video Chart for four weeks. Within ten days of her debut, Zhang was already on the "Take 7" chart on SBS's Inkigayo.

Zhang also promoted another song from her debut single called "Y (Why...)." SM Entertainment released a special "Timeless" documentary version of the "Y (Why...)" music video. This video showed how hard she trained and included behind-the-scenes moments with Xiah. After these promotions, Zhang took a break to get ready for her big debut in China. She also made guest appearances at TVXQ's concerts in Seoul and Malaysia.

2008: Releasing I Will

Zhang's first album in Mandarin Chinese, called I Will, was released in March 2008. Before the album came out, two music videos were released to promote it. Like "Timeless," these two videos for "I Will" and "The Left Shore of Happiness" told one story in two parts. Han Geng, Siwon, and Lee Yeon-hee also starred in these videos.

After the album's release, many music experts praised Zhang. The famous singer-songwriter Leehom Wang was surprised by her strong voice for someone so young. Hong Kong singer-songwriter Hins Cheung compared her "soulful" voice to well-known R&B singers like Whitney Houston and Christina Aguilera. He was very impressed by the "international-level music" and her powerful voice.

On May 25, 2008, Zhang won her first award for her Chinese album. She received the Female Mainland Newcomer with Most Potential award at the 5th Annual Music King Global Chinese Ultimate Song Chart Awards. In her speech, she asked for support for the 2008 Sichuan earthquake that had affected her home province. Zhang also did many online interviews and TV appearances to raise money for the earthquake victims. She held a fan meeting in Beijing in July 2008, where she sang songs from I Will and covers by Whitney Houston and Christina Aguilera.

In November 2008, Zhang won the Best Mainland Newcomer award at the 6th Annual Southeast Music Ranking. She also received invitations to other award shows, including the 2008 Tencent Star Ceremony.

2009–2013: Moving On and Album Delays

In early 2009, Zhang finished her activities in China and began preparing for her second album. She joined Super Junior-M for Chinese New Year events, including her first appearance on China's biggest TV channel, CCTV.

On February 6, 2009, Zhang traveled to Thailand for the SMTown Live '08 tour concert. She had a very busy schedule, flying across Asia for different events. She also performed as the opening act for a Super Show concert in Chengdu in March 2009.

After a year and a half since her first album, a preview for her new song, "Moving On," was released in October. The full music video came out a few days later. It showed Zhang remembering a past relationship with Donghae from Super Junior. Even though the video was mostly a slideshow of photos, fans were very excited about it.

After promoting "Moving On" for three months, Zhang returned to South Korea to work on her second Chinese album. She mentioned on her social media that the album might be released in September or October, but it was delayed several times. In June 2013, her labelmate Zhou Mi hinted that a new album from Zhang might be coming soon.

2014: SM The Ballad, Agape, Not Alone

In February 2014, it was announced that SM The Ballad, a special music group, would return. Zhang Liyin joined other famous singers like Shinee's Jonghyun, Super Junior's Yesung, Super Junior-M's Zhou Mi, TVXQ's Changmin, Girls' Generation's Taeyeon, Exo's Chen, and Krystal from f(x). They released a new album called Breath. Zhang sang the Chinese version of "Breath" with Chen. They promoted the song on various Chinese and Korean music shows.

In May 2014, news came out that Zhang would release a new song that summer. f(x)'s Victoria was the main actress in the music video. Later, EXO member Tao and actor Song Jae-rim also joined the cast. Zhang's third digital single, Agape, was released in August 2014. She promoted "Agape" on Korean TV shows and in China.

In August, Zhang announced that a new song would be released after "Agape." This new song and its music video would be a continuation of the "Agape" story.

On September 20, Zhang released her fourth single, Not Alone. This song was a new version of Tiffany's "By Myself." It continued the storyline from her previous single, Agape. To celebrate the release, Zhang had a special showcase in Beijing. EXO members Chen and Tao were special guests. Zhang performed many of her songs at the showcase.

2017–Present: New Agencies and Return to Korea

On February 28, 2017, Zhang shared that her contract with SM Entertainment would end in April 2017. She decided to continue her music career in China. In August, her social media profile showed she was now managed by Show City Times.

While with Show City Times, Zhang released three new songs: a duet with Henry Huo called "Lonely," a song for a Chinese TV drama called "Answer," and "Ashes of Time" for a movie. Her time with Show City Times was short. In September 2020, she signed with Beijing S.W. Culture Media. In July 2022, Zhang signed with iFlytek Music. On September 26, 2022, she released her first Korean single in several years, titled "Sense."

In October 2023, Zhang appeared on the third season of the JTBC show Sing Again - Unknown Singer Competition. This was her first time on South Korean national television in 15 years. She was eliminated in the seventh episode.

On December 19, 2023, Zhang released her second full album, The Tide of Life. It included ten songs she had released since 2022. On December 29, 2023, Zhang performed her duet song "Timeless" with Kim Junsu at his year-end concert. This was their first performance together in 15 years.

On February 16, 2024, Zhang released a duet single with ballad singer Lee Jung-bong called "How Have You Been?". It was a remake of Lee Jung-bong's own song and came out in both Korean and Chinese versions. On June 29, 2024, Zhang and Super Junior-M's Zhoumi released a single called "Don't Go Today," a remake of a 2016 song.

Discography

• I Will (2008)
• The Tide of Life (2023)

Tours and Appearances

Zhang Liyin has performed in many concerts and tours with other artists from SM Entertainment. These include:

• "O": The 2nd Asia Tour (TVXQ) (2007)
• SM Town Summer Concert (2007)
• SM Town Live '08 (2008–2009)
• Super Show (Super Junior) (2009)
• SM Town Live '10 World Tour (2010–2011)
• SHINee World (SHINee) (2011)
• SM Town Live World Tour III (2012–2013)
• SM Town Live World Tour IV (2014–2015)

Filmography

Television Shows

Radio Shows

Awards and Achievements

See also

In Spanish: Zhang Li Yin para niños