Wednesday, February 15, 2012

Feng Fei Fei : Another Mandarin Pop Icon Died



Feng Fei Fei, another Mandarin pop icon died.  Many youngsters may not know her too well.  Incidentally, my number one pop icon, Teresa Teng was of the same age.  Both are now gone; very sad.
I don't speak Mandarin or write Chinese, but I am always a fan of Chinese songs.  I don't fully understand the lyrics, but I still enjoy listening to all of them.  My male pop idol is Fei Yi Ching. (Incidentally, the man sitting next to Fei Fei in the 3rd video below is Fei Yi Ching) 
Theresa Teng and Feng Fei Fei had very special vocal resonance.  I think there is no appropriate word to describe their special vocal excellence.  For Theresa Teng I would say she had a sweet and beautiful voice. As for Feng Fei Fei, haunting and sexy. 
The best way to "describe" is just to listen and enjoy their sweet renditions.  Below, I have chosen five special songs by Fei Fei which are my favourites.  For Theresa's please clik here:
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Her next major award came in 1974, when she went on a concert trip to Singapore, where she was crowned one of the "top ten Southeast Asian Singers."
Better known on stage as the hat-wearing diva who never completely revealed her coiffured locks, Feng Fei Fei was known for her huge collection of headwear as well as her unflagging support for causes the nation held dear.
A frequent performer at National Day celebrations and beneficiaries after her first trip to Kinmen in 1978, when she entertained troops stationed on the island, she donated both her time and money generously to charities. Baseball fans still recall the time when she put on the hat of a cheerleader and went to the United States to root for the junior national baseball team playing there. She was named a "patriotic entertainer" in 1981.
She married in 1980 and her singing career continued until 2011, when she had to cancel a pre-scheduled concert because of the damage done to her vocal cords by cancerous cells.
Fans rushed to CD stores today and bought up all stocks of her album in less than 12 hours.


Mandarin pop legend Fong Fei-fei died Jan. 3 in Hong Kong aged 58
2012/02/13 21:21:50
Taipei, Feb. 14 (CNA) Fong Fei-fei, one of Taiwan's most prominent pop divas in the 1970s and 1980s who enjoyed an enduring following in much of Asia, died from lung cancer Jan. 3 in Hong Kong at the age of 58, her family and lawyer announced at a news conference Monday.

The belated announcement came a day after the pop queen's ashes were placed in a Buddhist temple in her hometown of Dasi in Taoyuan County in northern Taiwan.

"We did not break news of her death earlier in line with her will," her attorney Chiang Yen-wei said.

Noting that Fong Fei-fei, the stage name of Lin Chiu-luan, was a fairly modest and low-profile person, Chiang said the singer demanded that information of her death be withheld until after her funeral was completed.

"Fong Fei-fei also asked me to convey her heartfelt thanks for all the support her working partners and faithful fans had offered her throughout her career and life," Chiang said.

Fong Fei-fei, who started her legendary career by winning the first prize of a radio singing contest in 1968 when she was still a junior high school student, was originally scheduled to hold a concert at Taipei Arena last June.

While rehearsing for that concert in May, she noticed abnormalties in her vocal cords, Chiang said.

Medical examinations confirmed that the problems with her vocal cords were caused by lung cancer, forcing her to decide to cancel her scheduled concert, according to Chiang.

He further said Fong Fei-fei's health condition deteriorated abruptly Jan. 1 and she died at a Hong Kong hospital two days later.

A posting on the late singer's official website said Monday that Fong Fei-fei had willed that her death be announced after the Lantern Festival, which fell on Feb. 6 this year.

The posting also quoted Fong Fei-fei, who attained a goddess-like status among her fans with her charming voice and amiable manner, as saying that she had lived a happy and wonderful life and would like to sing for her fans again in her next life.

"She still personally wrote birthday cards and 2012 New Year cards for her friends and loyal fans in the last month of her life," the posting said.

Fong Fei-fei married a Hong Kong travel industry tycoon in 1980 at the age of 27. Her husband died from lung adenocarcinoma in 2009. She is survived by a 23-year-old son.

In her prime, Fong Fei-fei recorded songs for soundtracks of romantic films adapted from novels of noted writer Chiung Yao. The popularity of those films also helped take her career to new heights.

Music and film critics said Fong Fei-fei's geniality and the plain lyrics and simple melodies of those songs, which were easy to sing along with but whose vocal intensity was difficult to copy, produced a unique mix of legendary virtuosity and approachable reality.

Wen Tien-hsiang, a film critic, said Fong Fei-fei's charm was not just for young female audiences but also male listeners. According to him, some of the Chiung Yao film songs, sung in Fong Fei-fei's somewhat masculine voice, actually portray the male protagonists' feelings, so male listeners found great empathy in them.

Throughout her decades-long career, Fong Fei-fei produced more than 80 albums and held numerous sold-out concerts at home and abroad, particularly in countries with a large Chinese-speaking population.

In addition to Mandarin songs, she also sang many old Taiwanese songs and engaged in reviving the Taiwanese ballad tradition. In 1992, she released her 78th album, "Wishing to Play the Same Tune." Most of the songs on the album had long been forgotten until its release.

A versatile signer, Fong Fei-fei also sang new Taiwanese songs that broke free from the typically slow and sad style of traditional Taiwanese ballads. She once said "embracing the past is good, but embracing the present is wonderful."

(By Sabine Cheng and Sofia Wu)
enditem/npw


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1 comment:

Unknown said...

She is the best singer in my mind. I still listen to her songs every day. Never forget her.

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