Jing Chang

Early life

Chang was born in Taipei, Taiwan on 6 September 1983. Her birth name is pronounced the same, but written with different characters (張芸菁). She studied graphic design and graduated from Song Shan High School of Commerce. Before entering Super Idol, she was a graphic design artist. She is familiar with many instruments such as guitar, drums, and yueqin (a traditional Chinese musical instrument).

Chang has been noted for her androgynous style and looks. She states that she has not had long hair since preschool. She is also known for her deep voice, quite similar to that of Shirley Owens, who was the lead singer of The Shirelles, and with likes of English pop singer, Dusty Springfield: not only can she handle deep, low notes but she is also able to hit very high notes. She has always been interested in music, and even created her own band called Pensauce (筆醬).

Career

Chang made her debut in 2007 as a singer after winning the first season of Taiwanese singing competition Super Idol (超級偶像) and signed to label Gold Typhoon.

In 2008, Chang and her band, Pensauce, released their first EP titled "The Power of Rain" (雨的力量). Later that year, Chang and other top 10 Super Idol performers participated in an album called "Dreams Come True".

Chang released her first album Unprecedented (破天荒) on May 8, 2009; in its first week, it started at #3 on local music charts, but then rose to #1. Her album grew popular very quickly resulting in her rise to fame. The album was so successful that a limited edition was made, this album not only included her 10 songs but also included 3 music videos and a thank you card written by Chang. She also participated in a group song with various artists on the 10th anniversary of the 921 earthquake called "Let love turn the whole universe" (讓愛轉動整個宇宙).

In March 2010, Chang and Kevin Lin, one of the judges of Super Idol, sang a duet called "When Did We Start to Forget" (怎麼開始忘了). In July 2010, she released her second studio album The Opposite Me (相反的我), of which the title track "相反的我" was composed by Chang. It and "愛情選項" are listed at number 13 and 32 respectively on Hit Fm Taiwan's Hit Fm Annual Top 100 Singles Chart (Hit-Fm年度百首單曲) for 2010.

Chang and members of the Taiwanese boy band Lollipop (棒棒堂) collaborated and released a single, "義氣", which she also composed herself. That song consists of rapping and hitting quite a number of high notes. In the music video, she had to dance, which she has never done before, and also known as one of her few weaknesses.

In 2011, Chang released a new EP for the Valentine's Day. It contains Jing's latest single, the love song "Lovers Knot" as well as two extra tracks. It was released with an organizer for February 2011-January 2012, featuring hand-drawn illustrations and photos of Chang.

Books

In 2009, Chang traveled to Japan and wrote a book called 一個人的東京,張芸京361°. The book included her journey in Japan and articles and stories written by her, including anecdotes such as a 3-year-old boy proposing marriage to her. To be released on February 19, 2011 is her new book Crash Amadeus 衝撞.阿瑪迪斯.

Awards

2008

20090524 Jing Chang's album [Unprecedented] tops 8 charts

2009 Chengdu Music Hits

20091106 Singapore HIT Awards

2009 TPBS’ China Original Melodies Awards

2009 Yahoo! Taiwan Asia Buzz Awards

2010 MY Astro Music Awards (Malaysia)

2010 KKBOX Awards Ceremony

Baidu Hot Point 2009 Awards Ceremony

2010 TTV's Red vs. White Superstar Showdown

Canada's Fairchild Radio HiT Cpop Chart

Sprite Awards

Guangzhou Peng Peng Music Awards 2009

Yahoo!搜尋人氣大獎2010