Lin Yu-chun (Chinese: 林育羣; pinyin: Lín Yùqún; Wade–Giles: Lin2 Yü4-ch'ün2); born 9 March 1986 in Taipei) is a Taiwanese singer, who gained fame by appearing on a Taiwanese talent show, One Million Star (超級星光大道), singing "I Will Always Love You" (written and originally sung by Dolly Parton) in the style of Whitney Houston's cover version.[1] Lin is well known for his mezzo-soprano-like, and sometimes, contralto-like countertenor singing voice, although he has an adult speaking voice. According to many sources[which?], Lin's voice is usually described as a mixture of Whitney Houston and Susan Boyle, with a dash of Cher. When Lin sings in his normal masculine voice rather than in a falsetto range, his voice actually somewhat sounds like Jamie Walters, or even possibly like Jackson Browne, and to a lesser extent, George Harrison. [citation needed]. In 2013, he competed in the second season of The Voice of China.
Lin Yu-chun | |||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Born | 9 March 1986 | ||||||||||
| Occupation(s) | Singer, musician, songwriter | ||||||||||
| Years active | 2010–present | ||||||||||
| Chinese name | |||||||||||
| Traditional Chinese | 林育羣 | ||||||||||
| Simplified Chinese | 林育群 | ||||||||||
| |||||||||||
| Musical career | |||||||||||
| Also known as | Jimmy Lin | ||||||||||
| Genres | Pop | ||||||||||
| Labels | Sony Music Taiwan | ||||||||||
Biography
editLin was voted off the show, but after a video of Lin singing the song made it onto YouTube, Lin became an internet celebrity,[2] receiving more than 10,000,000 views[3] of his performance. Many news sources dubbed Lin "Taiwan's Susan Boyle".[4][5][6][7][8][9][10] In an interview, Lin Yu Chun explained that he selected "I Will Always Love You" to show his gratitude to his grandmother for taking care of Lin over the years.[11]
In April 2010, he visited the United States and performed "I Will Always Love You"[12][13] and Amazing Grace[14] on The Ellen DeGeneres Show. On the same trip, he attended Lopez Tonight and performed "Saving All My Love for You"[15] (also a Whitney Houston cover) and Total Eclipse of the Heart (originally by Bonnie Tyler) as a duet with William Shatner.[16][17]
Sony Music Taiwan announced they had signed Lin Yu Chun to a record deal.[18][19] Lin Yu-chun's signing press conference occurred on 13 May 2010, and was held in Shanghai San Want Hotel.
On 22 May 2010, at Dodger Stadium during a Los Angeles Dodgers game, he sang "The Star-Spangled Banner", "God Bless America" and "Taiwan, Touch Your Heart". On 11 August 2010 Lin sang Whitney Houston's "I Will Always Love You" on America's Got Talent season 5 on the YouTube selection episode, receiving a standing ovation from the crowd. Lin has been slated to play the role of Liu Lucy for the HBO Asia produced miniseries Untold Stories of 1949. In 2013, he competed in the second season of The Voice of China.
One Million Star
editOn 26 March 2010, Lin sang John Newton's "Amazing Grace", earning Lin 24 points (his opponent, Zhang Shi-Tang, got 19 points).
On 2 April 2010, Lin sang Whitney Houston's "I Will Always Love You", earning Lin 25 points (his opponent, Su Zhi-Yu, got 22 points).
On 9 April 2010, Lin sang Shunza's "Coming Home" – 17 points (his opponent, Zhang Shi-Tang, got 20 points)
On 30 April 2010,Lin sang Celine Dion's "My Heart Will Go On" as a guest performer.
On 14 May 2010, Lin sang "I Dreamed a Dream" from Les Misérables as a guest performer.
Lin also sang a duet with Kenny G., performing Whitney Houston's "Saving All My Love For You".
Discography
editI Will Always Love You (2010) SICP-2778
editLin Yu Chun's debut is a mini-album, I Will Always Love You, released in Japanese on 8 September 2010 specially for the Japanese market. It contains four songs from Lin's upcoming international debut, It's My Time, and a Japanese-only bonus track, "Hello," a Japanese cover of Lionel Richie's hit from 1984.[20]
Track listing
edit| No. | Title | Length |
|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Amazing Grace" | 3:36 |
| 2. | "I Will Always Love You" | 4:57 |
| 3. | "It's My Time" | 3:31 |
| 4. | "Under Your Wings" | 4:07 |
| 5. | "Hello" | 4:23 |
It's My Time (2010)
editLin's full-length international debut album, It's My Time, was released on 17 September 2010, as a compilation of English-language pop songs previously recorded by major artists such as Mariah Carey, Kelly Clarkson, etc. The song "Under Your Wings" was written new for this album by Grammy-winning musician Walter Afanasieff.[21]
Track listing
edit| No. | Title | Length |
|---|---|---|
| 1. | "I Will Always Love You" | 4:58 |
| 2. | "Amazing Grace" | 3:40 |
| 3. | "It's My Time" | 3:34 |
| 4. | "Total Eclipse of the Heart" | 5:32 |
| 5. | "Under Your Wings" | 4:09 |
| 6. | "I Understand" | 4:00 |
| 7. | "Hero" | 4:17 |
| 8. | "A Moment Like This" | 4:18 |
| 9. | "My Heart Will Go On" | 4:34 |
| 10. | "Fighter" | 4:17 |
未來的第一站 (2010)
editTrack listing
edit| No. | Title | Length |
|---|---|---|
| 1. | "未來的第一站" | 4:30 |
| 2. | "It's My Time" | 3:33 |
| 3. | "一個人生活" | 4:31 |
| 4. | "星星 (I Am Not a Star)" | 5:19 |
| 5. | "蛻變" | 4:00 |
| 6. | "海闊天空" | 4:50 |
| 7. | "存在" | 4:08 |
| 8. | "累格" | 5:08 |
| 9. | "I Will Always Love You" | 4:58 |
| 10. | "Amazing Grace" | 4:08 |
| 11. | "未來的第一站組曲" | 6:26 |
Endlessly (2011)
editTrack listing
edit| No. | Title | Length |
|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Saving Grace (Roxanne Seeman, Philipp Steinke, Finn Martin)" | 3:50 |
| 2. | "Endlessly" | 5:04 |
| 3. | "Stay For Awhile" | 4:06 |
| 4. | "Tonight I'm Not Alone" | 3:46 |
| 5. | "Good Isn't Good Enough" | 4:14 |
| 6. | "My Love Will Follow You" | 4:04 |
| 7. | "Close to You" | 3:46 |
| 8. | "Greatest Love of All" | 4:45 |
| 9. | "Last Christmas" | 5:18 |
| 10. | "Our Song" | 3:39 |
| 11. | "100 Percent Happiness" | 3:45 |
| 12. | "Believe in Love" | 4:52 |
| 13. | "Finding You in a Sea of People (REN HAI ZHONG YU JIAN NI)" | 3:52 |
MV Performance
editGuest Performance
edit- 2009 - "H2H" by Cyndi Wang
- 2021 - "Ain't Gonna Wait" by Rose Liu (Liu Mingxiang 刘明湘)[22]
Promo Videos
edit- May 2010 - Haagon Dazs advertisement
- October 2010 - VL Sports (緯來體育台) advertisement
- January 2011 - The Body Shop advertisement
- January 2014 - "Carchs" advertisement
- June 2015 - Yanjing Beer advertisement
References
edit- ^ "'World Idol' redux? Lin Yu Chun of Taiwan could face off against Susan Boyle". The Christian Science Monitor. 9 April 2010. Retrieved 10 April 2010.
- ^ Taylor, Adam (9 April 2010). "Lin Yu-Chun (VIDEOS): Taiwan Singing Phenomenon Draws Comparisons To Susan Boyle". Huffington Post. Retrieved 25 April 2010.
- ^ "Lin Yu Chun Sings Whitney Houston's 'I Will Always Love You'". YouTube. Archived from the original on 15 December 2021. Retrieved 25 April 2010.
- ^ "Lin Yu Chun Dubbed 'Taiwan's Susan Boyle' After Singing Whitney Houston – Billboard Underground". Billboard. Retrieved 25 April 2010.
- ^ "Taiwanese singer Lin Yu Chun dubbed 2010's Susan Boyle « Entertainment". Fox News. 8 April 2010. Archived from the original on 11 April 2010. Retrieved 25 April 2010.
- ^ "Lin Yu Chun is Taiwanese 'American Idol's' answer to Susan Boyle". Newsday. Retrieved 25 April 2010.
- ^ "VIDEO: Is Lin Yu Chun the Next Susan Boyle?". Retrieved 25 April 2010. [dead link]
- ^ Taylor, Adam (9 April 2010). "Lin Yu-Chun (VIDEOS): Taiwan Singing Phenomenon Draws Comparisons To Susan Boyle". Huffington Post. Retrieved 25 April 2010.
- ^ "The Taiwanese Susan Boyle? Video a hit on the Web – Yahoo! News". Archived from the original on 11 April 2010. Retrieved 25 April 2010.
- ^ "Next Susan Boyle Found in Lin Yu Chun? – The Early Show – CBS News". 8 April 2010. Archived from the original on 10 April 2010. Retrieved 25 April 2010.
- ^ "A Countertenor Touches Our Hearts: An Interview with Lin Yu Chun". Asia Pacific Arts. 7 June 2010. Archived from the original on 26 August 2013. Retrieved 13 February 2011.
- ^ "Lin Yu Chun on The Ellen Degeneres Show". Stareastasia. Archived from the original on 2 May 2010. Retrieved 25 April 2010.
- ^ "Video of the Day: Taiwan's Singing Sensation! – The Ellen DeGeneres Show". Archived from the original on 24 April 2010. Retrieved 25 April 2010.
- ^ "Web Exclusive: Lin Yu Chun Performs 'Amazing Grace' During Rehearsal – The Ellen DeGeneres Show". Archived from the original on 24 April 2010. Retrieved 25 April 2010.
- ^ "Lin Yu Chun Does "Saving All My Love For You" On Lopez Tonight". 23 April 2010. Retrieved 25 April 2010.
- ^ "William Shatner and Lin Yu Chun 'Total Eclipse' Duet". Retrieved 25 April 2010.
- ^ "William Shatner / Taiwanese Boy Duet". Lopez Tonight. Archived from the original on 25 April 2010. Retrieved 25 April 2010.
- ^ Lin Yu-Chun, 'Taiwan's Susan Boyle,' Signs Record Deal, Billboard, 13 May 2010. Retrieved 2010-07-31.
- ^ "买球App官网(中国)集团有限公司".
- ^ "I Will Always Love You English Version Lin Yu Chun CD Album". CDJapan.
- ^ "Lin Yu Chun - It's My Time (2010) | Alex Music blog". Archived from the original on 19 September 2010. Retrieved 22 September 2010.
- ^ NetEase (3 August 2021). "Rose Liu puts out new EP "Ain't Gonna Wait", with Lin Yu-chun performing in MV". Archived from the original on 18 August 2021. Retrieved 3 September 2021.
External links
edit
- Lin Yu Chun's Official Website (in English and Chinese)
- Lin Yu Chun【I will Always Love You】 Music Video (HD).
- Ellen Show Lin (Jimmy) Yu Chun sings I Will Always Love You.
- Lin Yu Chun "Under Your Wings" Official MV
- Dolly Parton watches Lin Yu Chun sings I Will Always Love You.
- Lin Yu Chun's personal album