Wakin Chau (Chinese:周华健; pinyin:Zhōu Huájiàn; Jyutping:Zau1 Waa4 Gin6; born 22 December 1960), better known by his stage name Emil Chau during the 1980s and 1990s, is a Hong Kong-born Taiwanese singer and actor, popular throughout Taiwan, Hong Kong, Macau, Mainland China, and parts of Southeast Asia (Singapore, Malaysia, Indonesia and Vietnam). As of 2007, he has released more than 40 albums.
Early life
Wakin Chau was born in Sai Ying Pun, Hong Kong, the fourth son out of seven children. His parents are owners of a rice store. He is a native Cantonese speaker of Chaoshanese descent from Chaoyang, Swatow, Guangdong, mainland China. He began learning the guitar when he was about 13 years old. In 1979, he left for Taipei to major in mathematics at National Taiwan University. While at college, he sang and played folk songs in local coffee shops, learning to sing in Mandarin.
Music career
Hoping to establish a career as a recording artist, Chau sought contacts in the music industry, but after an initial lack of success, eventually signed on as an assistant producer at Rock Records, where he wrote pop songs for other artists. He was later encouraged by Chyi Yu to perform jingles for commercial advertisements. One of his jingles for a car commercial was heard by his boss at Rock, who recognised his voice and gave him a chance to record a Mandarin album, released on Rock Records in 1985.
From 1985, under the name Emil Chau, he has released more than 40 albums in Mandarin, Cantonese and English. His platinum albums, including You Make Me Happy and Sad (讓我歡喜讓我憂), The Flowery Heart (花·心), Music Brings Us Together (有弦相聚) and Emil & Friends (朋友) have won awards in Taiwan, mainland China, Hong Kong and Singapore.[which?][citation needed] Chau reverted to using his given name Wakin in 1999.
In 2008, Chau formed the four-member supergroup Superband, along with Jonathan Lee, Chang Chen-yue and Lo Ta-yu, which became a highly successful touring act. They disbanded and resumed their solo careers in 2010.
Other activities
Chau has also appeared in some films, and on TV and radio programs in China, Hong Kong, Taiwan, Malaysia, Singapore and Japan. Alongside his singing career, he is a restaurateur and is active in international charitable causes, such as kidney dialysis charities in Singapore, the January 2002 "Take a Deep Breath" concert in Taipei to raise money for local health-care organisations, Beijing's 4th Grand Charity Drive for Children in 2005, and Jackie Chan's all-star concerts in Las Vegas.
Personal life
Chau married Constance Woods, an American woman, in 1986. They met in Taiwan because her father was a Fulbright scholar there.
Discography
Mandarin studio albums
最後圓舞曲The Last Waltz (Feb 1985)
心的方向Direction of the Heart (Jul 1987)
我付出我的真愛 我實現我的夢I Gave My Love I Realized My Dream (Aug 1988)
期待更多 付出更多The More You Give the More You Expect (Jan 1989)
最真的夢The Truest Dream (Nov 1989)
不願一個人I Don't Want to Be Alone (Dec 1990)
讓我歡喜讓我憂You Make Me Happy and Sad (Nov 1991)
花·心The Flowery Heart (Apr 1993)
風雨無阻Nothing Will Stop Me From Loving You (Jun 1994)
