Julian Cheung Chi-lam (born 27 August 1971), better known by his stage name Chilam, is a
Hong Kong
Hong Kong ( (US) or (UK); , ), officially the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region of the People's Republic of China ( abbr. Hong Kong SAR or HKSAR), is a city and special administrative region of China on the eastern Pearl River Delt ...
singer and actor.
Cheung is popularly known for his role as
Guo Jing
Guo Jing is the fictional protagonist of the wuxia novel '' The Legend of the Condor Heroes'' by Jin Yong. He also appears as a supporting character in the sequel, '' The Return of the Condor Heroes'', and is mentioned by name in '' The Heaven ...
in the
1994 TV series adaptation of the ''
Wuxia
( ), which literally means "martial heroes", is a genre of Chinese fiction concerning the adventures of martial artists in ancient China. Although is traditionally a form of historical fiction, its popularity has caused it to be adapted ...
'' novel, ''
The Legend of the Condor Heroes
''The Legend of the Condor Heroes'' is a wuxia novel by Chinese writer Jin Yong (Louis Cha). It is the first part of the '' Condor Trilogy'' and is followed by '' The Return of the Condor Heroes'' and '' The Heaven Sword and Dragon Saber''. I ...
'', and also as Chi-Kin from the TVB drama ''
Cold Blood Warm Heart
{{Chinese, title=Cold Blood Warm Heart, t=天地男兒, s=天地男儿, l="Men of Heaven of Earth", p=Tiān Dì Nán Ér, j=Tin1 Dei6 Naam4 Ji4
''Cold Blood Warm Heart'' (天地男兒) is a 1996 Hong Kong crime thriller and romantic drama televis ...
'' (1996).
Cheung hit instant fame in 1991 with the release of his first single, "A Modern Love Story" with Maple Hui and has since been the only artist that has sold the most copies for a debut album under IFPI. In 1992, Cheung received a TVB Jade Solid Gold award as Best Newcoming Singer (Bronze) for his first album. In 2000, Cheung reap 2 notable awards from
TVB
Television Broadcasts Limited (TVB) is a television broadcasting company based in Hong Kong SAR. The Company operates five free-to-air terrestrial television channels in Hong Kong, with TVB Jade as its main Cantonese language service, and ...
for the drama, ''
Return of the Cuckoo.''
Cheung has earned 60 million HKD in 2014.
Early life
Born in
Hong Kong
Hong Kong ( (US) or (UK); , ), officially the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region of the People's Republic of China ( abbr. Hong Kong SAR or HKSAR), is a city and special administrative region of China on the eastern Pearl River Delt ...
on 27 August 1971,
Cheung spent most of his early years in Hong Kong attending
all-male Catholic
The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptized Catholics worldwide . It is among the world's oldest and largest international institutions, and has played a ...
primary school. He later went to a
Protestant
Protestantism is a Christian denomination, branch of Christianity that follows the theological tenets of the Reformation, Protestant Reformation, a movement that began seeking to reform the Catholic Church from within in the 16th century agai ...
secondary school. He has an elder sister and a younger sister. When he was 13, his parents divorced and he and his father emigrated to Australia when he was 15. He attended
Pendle Hill High School
Pendle Hill High School is a comprehensive, co-educational high school with over 300 students located in Pendle Hill, a suburb in the west of Sydney, Australia.
School profile
The school is set in a residential area that is slowly undergoing r ...
in
Sydney
Sydney ( ) is the capital city of the state of New South Wales, and the most populous city in both Australia and Oceania. Located on Australia's east coast, the metropolis surrounds Sydney Harbour and extends about towards the Blue Mountain ...
. In 1986, his parents remarried but later divorced a second time. He was a good actor and singer and his father thought he had a gift and sent him to an acting school.
Career
In 1990 when Cheung was 19, Cheung visited Hong Kong during his summer vacation and was reacquainted with his cousin and childhood friend, Anna Ueyama (
上山安娜). Anna introduced Cheung to his first manager, Tony. Impressed with Cheung's voice, Tony immediately signed him into IFPI and started to train him. Cheung then recorded his first song, a duet album with Hong Kong singer Maple Hui (
許秋怡). The debut single, "A Modern Love Story", was released by the record company Fitto in 1991 and was an immense success. This single was on IFPI Album Sales Chart for 11 weeks, and as of today still holds the IFPI record for newcomer singers.
That same year, Cheung signed into
TVB
Television Broadcasts Limited (TVB) is a television broadcasting company based in Hong Kong SAR. The Company operates five free-to-air terrestrial television channels in Hong Kong, with TVB Jade as its main Cantonese language service, and ...
and starred in his first television series, ''Peak of Passion'', released in 1992. A year later, he filmed his very first movie, ''A Warrior's Tragedy''. Cheung reached to the peak of his popularity in 1994 when he took part as the role of
Guo Jing
Guo Jing is the fictional protagonist of the wuxia novel '' The Legend of the Condor Heroes'' by Jin Yong. He also appears as a supporting character in the sequel, '' The Return of the Condor Heroes'', and is mentioned by name in '' The Heaven ...
from ''
The Legend of the Condor Heroes
''The Legend of the Condor Heroes'' is a wuxia novel by Chinese writer Jin Yong (Louis Cha). It is the first part of the '' Condor Trilogy'' and is followed by '' The Return of the Condor Heroes'' and '' The Heaven Sword and Dragon Saber''. I ...
'', which helped him to become one of the most favourite actors at that time. In 1996, he starred in the TVB classic hit drama ''
Cold Blood Warm Heart
{{Chinese, title=Cold Blood Warm Heart, t=天地男兒, s=天地男儿, l="Men of Heaven of Earth", p=Tiān Dì Nán Ér, j=Tin1 Dei6 Naam4 Ji4
''Cold Blood Warm Heart'' (天地男兒) is a 1996 Hong Kong crime thriller and romantic drama televis ...
'', which acclaimed him notable praises of his performance, making him a household name and boosted his career in the Hong Kong entertainment industry.
After the release of ''Cold Blood Warm Heart'', he transitioned into movies such as ''Perfect Match'' and ''
Comic King
''Comic King'' () is a 2000 Hong Kong comedy film directed by O Sing-Pui. It was shown in cinemas from 19 January 2001 to 21 February 2001.
Synopsis
A romantic triangle turns fantasy into reality in this comedy from Hong Kong. Fung Yip (Julian ...
''. He returned to TVB in 2000 in the series ''Return of the Cuckoo'', which was a tremendous success with Charmaine Sheh, reaching a peak of 40 points. His status and recognition as an actor dramatically increased to countries such as
Singapore
Singapore (), officially the Republic of Singapore, is a sovereign island country and city-state in maritime Southeast Asia. It lies about one degree of latitude () north of the equator, off the southern tip of the Malay Peninsula, borde ...
,
Malaysia
Malaysia ( ; ) is a country in Southeast Asia. The federation, federal constitutional monarchy consists of States and federal territories of Malaysia, thirteen states and three federal territories, separated by the South China Sea into two r ...
,
Vietnam
Vietnam or Viet Nam ( vi, Việt Nam, ), officially the Socialist Republic of Vietnam,., group="n" is a country in Southeast Asia, at the eastern edge of mainland Southeast Asia, with an area of and population of 96 million, making i ...
,
Thailand
Thailand ( ), historically known as Siam () and officially the Kingdom of Thailand, is a country in Southeast Asia, located at the centre of the Indochinese Peninsula, spanning , with a population of almost 70 million. The country is bo ...
,
Taiwan
Taiwan, officially the Republic of China (ROC), is a country in East Asia, at the junction of the East and South China Seas in the northwestern Pacific Ocean, with the People's Republic of China (PRC) to the northwest, Japan to the nort ...
and
China
China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. It is the world's most populous country, with a population exceeding 1.4 billion, slightly ahead of India. China spans the equivalent of five time zones and ...
. He also reaped 2 awards in the TVB award ceremony (My Favorite Couple-with
Charmaine Sheh
Charmaine Sheh Sze-man (; born 28 May 1975) is a Hong Kong actress. After winning second runner-up in the 1997 Miss Hong Kong pageant, Sheh signed a contract with TVB in 1998. She is best known for her roles in ''Return of the Cuckoo'' (2000 ...
and My Favorite Themesong), adding to his string of wins. in 2003, he won My Favorite Leading Character again for his role as Yeung Kwong from ''
Take My Word For It
''Take My Word For It'' () is a 30–episode TVB drama broadcast between November 2002 and December 2002.
Synopsis
The story follows the lead characters through their experiences as members of the Police Negotiation Cadre (PNC). The PNC is a volun ...
''. His performance with Charmaine Sheh in the 2004 drama ''
Point of No Return
The point of no return (PNR or PONR) is the point beyond which one must continue on one's current course of action because turning back is dangerous, physically impossible or difficult, or prohibitively expensive. The point of no return can be a ...
'' also won the pair the Best Onscreen Couple award at the 2005 Astro Awards in Malaysia. Cheung has also found success in the Mainland entertainment industry with starring roles in the television series ''Ni Shui Han'', ''Lu Xiao Feng'', and ''Red Powder''.
In 2012, he returned to TVB to film sequel to TVB's 2003 blockbuster television drama Triumph in the Skies. His role as Captain Koo has boosted his popularity once again and earned him a spot in the peoples' hearts.
Music
His first concert at
Hong Kong Coliseum was held on 27 March 2011 which the title for the concert was ''I Am An Alien''. On 6 July 2014, he had his second concert at Hong Kong Coliseum on four-sided stage, called ''Crazy Hours''.
In 2021, he joined the cast of
reality tv show
Reality television is a genre of television programming that documents purportedly unscripted real-life situations, often starring unfamiliar people rather than professional actors. Reality television emerged as a distinct genre in the early 19 ...
''Call Me By Fire'' as a contestant.
Personal life
Julian is married to Hong Kong actress
Anita Yuen
Anita Yuen Wing Yee (born 4 September 1971) is a Hong Kong film and television actress.
Pageant career
At the age of 18, Yuen entered the Miss Hong Kong 1990 pageant. She was a heavy favorite to win the crown from the semifinal to final. During t ...
. They have a son together, born in 2006. Their relationship started back in the 1990s where they met each other in the Hong Kong entertainment business in a music video they did together and during that time, they were at the height of their Hong Kong entertainment careers and eventually by 1994, they publicly announced their relationship. They secretly wedded in 2001 in
San Francisco
San Francisco (; Spanish language, Spanish for "Francis of Assisi, Saint Francis"), officially the City and County of San Francisco, is the commercial, financial, and cultural center of Northern California. The city proper is the List of Ca ...
,
California
California is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States, located along the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the List of states and territori ...
. Anita said in 2021 that they tried to have another child, but all efforts failed including
in vitro fertilisation
In vitro fertilisation (IVF) is a process of fertilisation where an egg is combined with sperm in vitro ("in glass"). The process involves monitoring and stimulating an individual's ovulatory process, removing an ovum or ova (egg or eggs) ...
.
Discography
He has recorded albums in both Cantonese and Mandarin. He has been with various record labels, such as
Fitto Entertainment,
Sony Music
Sony Music Entertainment (SME), also known as simply Sony Music, is an American multinational music company. Being owned by the parent conglomerate Sony Group Corporation, it is part of the Sony Music Group, which is owned by Sony Entertainment ...
,
EMI
EMI Group Limited (originally an initialism for Electric and Musical Industries, also referred to as EMI Records Ltd. or simply EMI) was a British Transnational corporation, transnational Conglomerate (company), conglomerate founded in March 1 ...
(Cantonese albums only),
Rock Records
The Rock Records Co., Ltd. () commonly known as Rock Records (), is a record label based in Taipei, Taiwan. Founded in the 1980s as the Rock Music Publishing (滾石有聲出版社; ) by Tuan Chung-tan and Tuan Chung-i, It is the largest record ...
(Mandarin albums only),
Cinepoly Records
Cinepoly Records (新藝寶) is a Hong Kong-based record label founded in 1985. It was a subsidiary of PolyGram Records and the film company Cinema City. Ownership of Cinepoly Records switched to Universal Music Group after Universal acquired Pol ...
(subsidiary of
Universal Music
Universal Music Group N.V. (often abbreviated as UMG and referred to as just Universal Music) is a Dutch– American multinational music corporation under Dutch law. UMG's corporate headquarters are located in Hilversum, Netherlands and its ...
Hong Kong), Starj & Snazz and Neway Star.
* ''Modern Love Story'' () (November 1991) (duet album with Maple Hui)
Note: The album was later re-released under the EMI label and later,
Warner Music
Warner Music Group Corp. ( d.b.a. Warner Music Group, commonly abbreviated as WMG) is an American multinational entertainment and record label conglomerate headquartered in New York City. It is one of the " big three" recording companies and th ...
.
* ''Make Me Happy'' () (October 1992)
* ''Miss You Much'' () (September 1993)
* ''CHILAM'' (October 1994)
* ''Love at Creation Times'' ()(November 1994)
* ''Love Played A Joke on Us'' () (1995)
* ''Thanks For Your Concern'' () (June 1995)
* ''Cold Blood Warm Heart Compilation'' () (March 1996)
* ''Insincere'' () (1996)
* ''Smile With Tears Single'' () (1996)
* ''I Love You Too'' () (March 1997)
* ''Best of the Best 22 Songs'' () (1997)
* ''Black Temptation'' () (November 1997)
* ''Yes or No'' () (1998)
* ''Monsieur Enfant EP'' () (1999)
* ''Chi Lam Love Collection'' () (1999)
* ''Tian Di Nan Er'' () (1999)
* ''Moonlight / Return of the Cuckoo Original Soundtrack'' () (2000)
* ''Ten Fingers Interlocked'' () (2000)
* ''Ten Fingers Interlocked Special Edition'' () (2001)
* ''California Red 903 Live in Concert (Video)'' (2001)
* ''EMI Best Music Collection'' () (2002)
* ''Love & Dream'' () (2003)
* ''I Am Chilam'' (2009)
* ''I AM CHILAM 2nd Version'' (2009)
* ''What is Love'' (2011)
* ''Like A Song'' (single) () (2013)
* ''DEJA VU'' (2014)
Filmography
Television series
Film
Variety and reality show
Awards
* TVB Star Award Malaysia 2013 – My Favourite TVB Actor in a Leading Role – Triumph in the Skies 2
* TVB Star Award Malaysia 2013 – My Favourite Top 15 TVB Drama Characters – Triumph in the Skies 2
*
StarHub TVB Awards 2013 : My Favourite TVB Male Character – Triumph in the Skies 2
* StarHub TVB Awards 2011: Best Couple on Screen – with Myolie Wu – The Rippling Blossom
* StarHub TVB Awards 2011: My Favorite Male Character – The Rippling Blossom
* Jade Solid Gold 2009 : Best Duet Award (Silver) with Myolie Wu
* Metro Radio Hits Music Awards 2009 - Best Duet with Myolie Wu
* Metro Radio Hits Music Awards 2009 – Best Karaoke Song – 你太善良
* 粤港十年·网娱盛典颁奖晚会 2007 – 最具关注度男艺人
* CTV's 7th Lily Awards: Most Popular Actor (2007)
* Astro Awards 2005: Best Couple with Charmaine Sheh from Point of No Return
* Astro Awards 2005: Best Character Award – Chow Tin Ci / Zhou Tian Ci from Point of No Return
* Astro Awards 2005: Best Theme Song – Love Has No Dreams from Point of No Return
* 36th TVB Anniversary Awards: "My Top 12 Favorite Television Characters" – Yeung Kwong / Yang Guang from Take My Word For It (2003)
* Publication Weekly Television Awards: Most Popular Theme Song – Wishing Kwan Well from Return of the Cuckoo (2001)
* Publication Weekly Television Awards: Top 10 Television Artists – #9 (2001)
* Jade Solid Gold: Most Popular Adapted Song Performance Grand Prize – Wishing Kwan Well from Return of the Cuckoo (2001)
* Singapore's Friday Publication Weekly Student Idol Voting: Most Popular Foreign Film Actor (2000–2001)
* New City Station: Karaoke Song Grand Prize for Wishing Kwan Well from Return of the Cuckoo (2000)
* 33rd TVB Anniversary Awards: "My Favorite On-screen Couple" with Charmaine Sheh from Return of the Cuckoo (2000)
* 33rd TVB Anniversary Awards: "Top 10 My Favourite Television Characters' as Man Chor in Return of the Cuckoo (2000)
* One of the Top 10 Most Popular Artists of the Millennium (2000)
* 3rd Jade Solid Gold: Top 10 Songs of the Year – Wishing Kwan Well from Return of the Cuckoo (2000)
* Singapore Yes93: Top 3 Golden Songs – You Mei You (有没有) Have it or Not (1999)
* Singapore's Friday Publication Weekly Student Idol Voting: Voted amongst the Top 10 Most Popular Actors, Top 10 Most Popular * Film Artists, Top 10 Most Popular Foreign Film Actors, and Top 10 Most Popular Foreign Television Actors (1998–1999)
* 1st Annual Top 10 Movie Theme Songs Award: Lofty Once in a Lifetime from "To Be No. 1" (1997)
* Commercial Radio Chit Chat Pop Chart: Best New Male Singer – Silver Prize (1993)
* Hit Radio: Best New Male Singer Award (1993)
* TVB's Jade Solid Gold: Best Newcomer Award – Bronze (1992–1993)
* Metro Radio: Best Young Talent Award (1992)
* CRHK2 New Generation Show: Best Performance Award (1992)
* 1991 Jade Solid Gold: Top 10 Songs of the Year (Modern Love Story, a duet with Maple Hui)
References
External links
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
JayneStars.com – English translated news about Julian Cheung
{{DEFAULTSORT:Cheung, Julian
1971 births
Living people
Alumni of Lingnan University (Hong Kong)
Cantonese people
Cantopop singers
Hong Kong emigrants to Australia
Hong Kong Buddhists
Hong Kong male film actors
20th-century Hong Kong male singers
Hong Kong Mandopop singer-songwriters
Hong Kong singer-songwriters
Hong Kong male television actors
Naturalised citizens of Australia
TVB veteran actors
20th-century Hong Kong male actors
21st-century Hong Kong male actors
21st-century Hong Kong male singers
Australian people of Chinese descent