Jody Chiang

Jody Chiang
江蕙
Born
Jiang Shuhui (江淑惠)

(1961-09-01) 1 September 1961 (age 63)
Occupation(s)Singer, songwriter
Years active1981–2015
FamilyChiang Shu-na
AwardsGolden Melody AwardsBest Mandarin Female Artist (regardless of language)
1990

Best Album (regardless of language)
1993
Best Dialect Female Artist
2000–2002
Best Taiwanese Female Artist
2003
Best Taiwanese Album
2005–2006, 2009, 2011

Special Contributions
2015

Musical career
Also known asJiang Hui, Second Sister (二姐), Queen of Taiwanese Music (臺灣歌后)
OriginTaiwan
GenresHokkien pop
Instrument(s)vocals, guitar
Jody Chiang
Hàn-jī江蕙
Pe̍h-ōe-jīKang Hūi
Tâi-lôKang Huī
BbánpìngGang Hûi
Birth name
Hàn-jī江淑惠
Pe̍h-ōe-jīKang Siok-hūi
Tâi-lôKang Siok-huī
BbánpìngGang Siok-hûi

Jody Chiang or Jiang Hui (Chinese: 江蕙; pinyin: Jiāng Huì; Pe̍h-ōe-jī: Kang Hūi), born Jiang Shuhui (Chinese: 江淑惠; Pe̍h-ōe-jī: Kang Siok-hūi), is a Taiwanese singer. She began recording in the 1980s and retired in 2015, having released 60 albums. Her trademark ballads and folk songs are typically sung in Taiwanese. Her role in Taiwan's popular music scene is often compared to that of Teresa Teng. She is the older sister of Chiang Shu-na.

Early career

Chiang's mother was a food vendor and her father a glove puppeteer.[1] She grew up in a poor family and quit school at the age of ten to begin singing at warehouses and bars in Beitou, Taipei.[2] She started her commercial singing career in 1981 with a Japanese language album,[3][4] and was signed to Country Records two years later.[2] Chiang held her first concert in April 2008.[3] The singer has released 60 albums and won thirteen Golden Melody Awards over her career.[5][6] Chiang is known as "Second Sister" amongst her fans, because she is the second eldest of four siblings.[6][7] Chris Hung and Chiang are known as the King and Queen of Taiwanese pop.[2][8][9]

Farewell concerts

On 2 January 2015, Chiang announced that she would end her singing career that year with 16 farewell concerts between July and September in Taiwan.[5] Tickets to her final performances sold out quickly. The concert promoter, Kuang Hong Arts Management, faced protests by Chiang's fans and eventually announced nine additional performances only to see those tickets sell out in thirty minutes.[10][11][12] The first farewell concert was staged at Taipei Arena on 27 July.[13] The final concert of Chiang's career took place at Kaohsiung Arena on 13 September, and featured a retirement ceremony in which she locked a microphone in a box and threw the key into the crowd.[14] The concerts held were recorded and sold as a DVD, released in October 2016.[15]

Personal life

Chiang is the second eldest of four siblings, three sisters and one brother.[7] In 2009, she was reported to be chased for large amounts of debt due to her eldest sister's gambling problem.[16] Chiang's younger sister Chiang Shu-na is also a singer.

References

  1. ^ Hu, Ju-hung; Chung, Jake (15 September 2015). "FEATURE: Jody Chiang looks ahead to quiet life". Taipei Times. Retrieved 8 March 2017.
  2. ^ a b c "The Queen of Taiwanese Music". Taiwan Today. 1 June 1994.
  3. ^ a b Chen, Christie (8 January 2015). "Queen of Taiwanese songs to say goodbye after four decades". Central News Agency. Retrieved 11 January 2015.
  4. ^ "NEWSMAKER: Retirement of biggest star a blow to world of Hoklo pop". Taipei Times. 12 January 2015. Retrieved 9 March 2017.
  5. ^ a b Wang, Ching-yi; Low, Y.F. (2 January 2015). "Singer Jody Chiang to retire (update)". Central News Agency. Retrieved 7 March 2017.
  6. ^ a b Pan, Jason (9 January 2015). "Jody Chiang announces new dates". Taipei Times. Retrieved 9 March 2017.
  7. ^ a b Wang, Hsuan-ching; Tseng, Chien-ming; Hetherington, William (24 December 2016). "Singer Jody Chiang protects brother in armed home robbery". Taipei Times. Retrieved 9 March 2017.
  8. ^ Teo, Larry (30 September 2015). "Jody Chiang's retirement 'ended the best era of Minnan pop'". AsiaOne. Archived from the original on 12 March 2017. Retrieved 9 March 2017.
  9. ^ "A Place on the Pop Map". Taiwan Today. 1 June 1994. Retrieved 8 March 2017.
  10. ^ Chen, Christie (16 January 2015). "Jody Chiang demand drives nine extra concerts". Taipei Times. Retrieved 8 March 2017.
  11. ^ Chen, Christie (25 January 2015). "Tickets for Jody Chiang's extra concerts sold out in 30 minutes". Central News Agency. Retrieved 8 March 2017.
  12. ^ "Extra Jody Chiang concerts to appease fans". China Post. Central News Agency. 7 January 2015. Retrieved 8 March 2017.
  13. ^ "Chiang cries in first farewell gig". The Straits Times. 27 July 2015. Retrieved 8 March 2017.
  14. ^ Cheng, Sabine; Chen, Christie; Kao, Evelyn (13 September 2015). "Jody Chiang concludes farewell tour with microphone ceremony". Taiwan News. Central News Agency. Archived from the original on 14 September 2015. Retrieved 8 March 2017. Alt URL
  15. ^ "Pop diva Jody Chiang's farewell concert DVD selling like hotcakes". Taipei Times. Central News Agency. 15 October 2016. Retrieved 8 March 2017.
  16. ^ "Strange timing". Inside Asian Gaming. 20 January 2009. Retrieved 3 January 2015.