Wei Wei (singer)

Wei Wei (simplified Chinese: 韦唯; traditional Chinese: 韋唯; pinyin: Wéi Wéi; born 28 September 1963) is a Chinese singer, actress, philanthropist and professor. Nicknamed "The Empress of Pop", she has been widely recognized for her artistry and vocal performances. She has been regarded as one of the greatest Chinese entertainers of her generation, and her contributions to music and visual media have made her a prominent and influential Chinese pop culture figure during the 1990s and early 2000s. Wei started performing in various state-sponsored singing and dancing competitions as a child, singing state-sanctioned revolutionary music. Her breakthrough came alongside the reform and opening up in 1986 when she won both the National Young Singers contest in China, and the 24th Sopot International Song Festival in Poland. Four years later, she performed a duet with Spanish singer Julio Iglesias at the 1993 East Asian Games in Shanghai. Largely associated with sports culture and the Olympics, Wei has been an Olympic Cultural Ambassador for China since 1993, a role she assumed when the Chinese Olympic Committee submitted its initial application to host the Olympic Games. Wei was the sole cultural representative for Asia at the 1996 Summer Olympics, and has performed at several major events, including the opening ceremony of Expo 2010, the closing ceremony of the 2008 Summer Olympics, and the opening and closing ceremonies of the 11th National Games of China. Wei's songs have been used as the official theme songs for many major sporting events in China. Her single "I Want to Fly" was chosen by the Chinese Olympic Committee as the official theme song for the 2008 Olympic Sailing events. In 2007, The All-China Women's Federation recognized Wei's contributions to Chinese sports culture by designating her the "Queen of Sports". Having sold an estimated 100-200 million records worldwide,...