Liu Wei (Chinese: 刘伟, born October 7, 1987, in
Beijing
}
Beijing ( ; ; ), alternatively romanized as Peking ( ), is the capital of the People's Republic of China. It is the center of power and development of the country. Beijing is the world's most populous national capital city, with over 21 ...
) is a
Chinese
Chinese can refer to:
* Something related to China
* Chinese people, people of Chinese nationality, citizenship, and/or ethnicity
**''Zhonghua minzu'', the supra-ethnic concept of the Chinese nation
** List of ethnic groups in China, people of va ...
disabled
pianist
A pianist ( , ) is an individual musician who plays the piano. Since most forms of Western music can make use of the piano, pianists have a wide repertoire and a wide variety of styles to choose from, among them traditional classical music, ja ...
from
Beijing
}
Beijing ( ; ; ), alternatively romanized as Peking ( ), is the capital of the People's Republic of China. It is the center of power and development of the country. Beijing is the world's most populous national capital city, with over 21 ...
who won
the first series of ''China's Got Talent'' at the age of 23 by playing the piano with his
toe
Toes are the digits (fingers) of the foot of a tetrapod. Animal species such as cats that walk on their toes are described as being ''digitigrade''. Humans, and other animals that walk on the soles of their feet, are described as being ''plan ...
s.
The accident
Liu Wei lost his arms at the age of 10 after touching a high-voltage wire during a game of
hide-and-seek
Hide-and-seek (sometimes known as hide-and-go-seek) is a popular children's game in which at least two players (usually at least three) conceal themselves in a set environment, to be found by one or more seekers. The game is played by one chose ...
.
[Subtitles of his /www.youtube.com/watch?v=rVYMBOQxte8 video profile(YouTube)] He regained consciousness after 45 days of critical condition.
[ His parents told him he should learn how to eat by himself, otherwise no one could take care of him when they become old.][ His mother kept telling him that he is not different from the others.][ In the hospital, he met an armless painter, which inspired him to learn to use his feet to write, brush his teeth and eat.
At the time, he dreamed of becoming a ]soccer
Association football, more commonly known as football or soccer, is a team sport played between two teams of 11 players who primarily use their feet to propel the ball around a rectangular field called a pitch. The objective of the game is ...
player.swimming
Swimming is the self-propulsion of a person through water, or other liquid, usually for recreation, sport, exercise, or survival. Locomotion is achieved through coordinated movement of the limbs and the body to achieve hydrodynamic thrust that r ...
two years later.[ He won two gold medals and one silver at the National Swimming Championship for the Disabled in 2002.][ He learned how to do other daily activities such as navigating online, eating, dressing and brushing his teeth.][
]
Becoming a musician
He started playing the piano at age of 18[ His first teacher quit as he considered it impossible for someone to play with their toes.][ However, Liu, who was studying music theory, persisted and taught himself in secret how to play,][ despite cramps and abrasion, often practicing seven hours a day.][ Nevertheless, he aims to become such a good pianist that people won't notice that his arms are missing.][
]
Appearance in the talent show
In his first appearance, Liu received a standing ovation from the audience, many of whom were moved to tears, for a performance of "Mariage D'amour" by Richard Clayderman
Richard Clayderman (; born Philippe Pagès , 28 December 1953 in Paris) is a French pianist who has released numerous albums including the compositions of Paul de Senneville, Olivier Toussaint and Marc Minier, instrumental renditions of popular ...
on August 8, 2010.[ The semifinal took place on September 12,][ and he played "You're Beautiful"][ in ]Shanghai Stadium
The Shanghai Stadium () is a multi-purpose stadium in Shanghai. Between 2009 and 2019, the stadium hosted home matches of the Chinese Super League team Shanghai SIPG.
History
The stadium opened on 14 March 1999 when the eighth National Games o ...
[ at the final on October 10, accompanied by his singing. The jury panel of China's Got Talent, Shanghai stand-up comedian Zhou Libo, Taiwan singer-actress Annie Yi and mainland pop composer Gao Xiaosong, all praised Liu's performance.][
As a prize for his achievement, Liu was invited by Taiwanese singer ]Jolin Tsai
Jolin Tsai (; ; born September 15, 1980) is a Taiwanese singer, songwriter, and actress. Referred to as the " Queen of C-Pop", she is considered one of the most influential figures in Chinese popular culture. She is known for her continual rein ...
to be a guest act on her Myself World Tour in Shanghai
Shanghai (; , , Standard Mandarin pronunciation: ) is one of the four direct-administered municipalities of the People's Republic of China (PRC). The city is located on the southern estuary of the Yangtze River, with the Huangpu River flow ...
, which would give him the chance to perform in Las Vegas
Las Vegas (; Spanish for "The Meadows"), often known simply as Vegas, is the 25th-most populous city in the United States, the most populous city in the state of Nevada, and the county seat of Clark County. The city anchors the Las Vegas ...
for three months.[ In addition, he was likely to get a contract with Fremantle Media and Sony Music Entertainment,][ and his itinerary was to include ]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 ...
, Paris
Paris () is the capital and most populous city of France, with an estimated population of 2,165,423 residents in 2019 in an area of more than 105 km² (41 sq mi), making it the 30th most densely populated city in the world in 2020. S ...
, Vienna
en, Viennese
, iso_code = AT-9
, registration_plate = W
, postal_code_type = Postal code
, postal_code =
, timezone = CET
, utc_offset = +1
, timezone_DST ...
and Taipei
Taipei (), officially Taipei City, is the capital and a special municipality of the Republic of China (Taiwan). Located in Northern Taiwan, Taipei City is an enclave of the municipality of New Taipei City that sits about southwest of the n ...
.[
In 2010, he won the Guinness World Record of typing the most letters alphabetically in 1 minute, using the feet: 251 letters.
]
Quotes
(Source[ /www.youtube.com/watch?v=B1Qut0Nrsiw Description of his achievement(YouTube)])
*''"To me, there are three things can not be missed in life – air, water and music."''
*''"There are only two paths in my life for me – either to die as fast as possible, or to live as brilliant a life as I could."''
*''"I don't feel that I am that different from other people. Normally everyone is used to do everything with one's hands so your hands are more flexible. There is no rule saying that you can't do things with your feet."''
*''"A man should be responsible to his dreams. My dream is to become a great musician."''
*''"I know if I want to do it better than other people, I have to put in more efforts."''
*On the note he wrote on the paper in this clip, it says: ''"Walk on, at least I have a pair of perfect legs."''
References
External links
The video of Liu Wei on China's Got Talent final
* /www.youtube.com/watch?v=v8A2dN0P7XM Video of his first performance(YouTube)
* /www.youtube.com/watch?v=mfR0H8Yt0V4 A close-up of his playing the piano(YouTube)
Other selected news, photos, and videos
(Liquida)
{{DEFAULTSORT:Liu, Wei
Chinese pianists
Got Talent winners
People without hands
Musicians from Beijing
21st-century pianists
Living people
1987 births
Chinese amputees
Musicians with disabilities