Chinese name 李宗盛 Name Jonathan Lee Other name(s) Lee Tsung Sheng Role Record producer | Genre(s) Mandopop Movies CZ12, My Favorite Season Instrument(s) Guitar, piano Children Renee Lee | |
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Pinyin Born July 19, 1958 (age 65)
Taipei, Taiwan ( 1958-07-19 ) Occupation Record producer, singer, songwriter Spouse Sandy Lam (m. 1998–2004), Rosita Chu (m. 1988–1997) Albums The Classic of Jonathan Lee, 生命中的精靈, 李宗盛的凡人歌, 凡人歌 Similar People Sandy Lam, Wakin Chau, Ta‑yu Lo, Sylvia Chang, Chang Chen‑yue Profiles | ||
Jonathan Lee Chung-shan (Chinese: 李宗盛; pinyin: Lǐ Zōngshèng; born July 19, 1958) is a Taiwanese musician. Lee is regarded as one of the most influential and powerful figure in the world of Mandopop music.
Contents
- Life and career
- Film theme songsscore productions
- Television theme songs productions
- Songs for advertisementscommercials
- Film
- Television
- Radio programs
- References
Life and career
Lee started in the music industry in the 1970s, during Taiwan’s popular "campus folk song" era. He was a member of the "Wood Guitar" band. In 1983, Lee made his debut as a music producer for the album Light Rain Just Comes in Time by Zheng Yi, which became an instant hit. The self-titled single “Light Rain Just Comes in Time” ranked No. 1 for 13 consecutive weeks on Taiwan’s main music chart, while the first single written, composed, and sang by Lee entitled “End”, a duet in the album, also became a hit.
In 1994, Lee joined Rock Records, and has been credited with catapulting Rock Records into a foremost independent music label in Asia. He helped pave the way for the golden era of Chinese pop music in the 1990s and 2000s, during which he wrote and produced many classic hits popular until today, setting impressive sales records, plus winning numerous accolades, such as Sarah Chen’s “Dream to Awakening” (夢醒時分), Jackie Chan’s “The Sincere Hero” (真心英雄), Wakin Chau’s “You Make Me Happy and Sad” (讓我歡喜讓我憂), Jeff Chang’s “Love is Like Tidal Wave” (愛如潮水), Sandy Lam’s “It Doesn’t Matter Who I Am” (不必在乎我是誰), Winnie Hsin’s “Understanding“ (領悟), Karen Mok’s “Overcast” (陰天), and many more, which have all been hugely popular. As such, Lee has been hailed as the “million-dollar” producer, and deemed as the Godfather of Mandopop music, reaching and touching hundreds of millions of Chinese-speaking music fans around the world. He has been and remains one of the most successful and sought-after record producers in Chinese pop music scene. Given his iconic status in the Chinese music world, Lee’s songs have influenced artists across Asia and beyond.
More than music production, Lee has also been involved in movie theme songs and OST projects, and having collaborated with many famous directors, including Hou Hsiao-hsien, Sylvia Chang, Jackie Chan, Chen Kaige, plus others.
In 2002, he founded his own guitar brand “Lee Guitars”, and has been personally involved in the design and production of hand-made guitars ever since.
In 2009, Lee formed "Superband" with three other popular artists fromRock Records: Wakin Chau, Luo Dayou and Chang Chen-yue.[1]
Lee also occasionally produces solo albums for himself and have recorded duets with many artists. His own songs “Jonathan’s Song” in 2011 and “Hills” in 2013, both won “Song of the Year” and “Best Lyricist” awards at the 22nd and 25th Taiwan Golden Melody Awards respectively.
From 2013 to 2015, Lee embarked on his Even If Youth Is Never Lasting world tour, which kicked off in Taiwan, then toured on to China, Singapore, Malaysia, Australia, the U.S., and U.K., etc., covering dozens of cities around the world, including two consecutive performances at Lincoln Center in New York, a first for a Chinese-speaking musician. He also held a concert at the famed Royal Albert Hall in London, also a first for a musician from Taiwan.
Lee also served as Chief A&R Consultant for Sony Music in Greater China from 2013 to 2016. In addition, Lee was also a driving force in introducing the renowned Blue Note Jazz Club to Beijing, China. In September 2016, Lee was joined by famous American jazz pianist and composer Chick Corea, for the grand opening of Blue Note in Beijing. His hope is to introduce the great American jazz music and culture, plus the many great jazz musicians, to the Chinese-speaking world.