Artist of the week - Jang Ri In (Zhang Li Yin)

Oct 31, 2006

Our featured artist this week is SM entertainment’s prized Chinese prospect Jang Ri In. SM discovered her in China and brought her over to Korea. She was under intensive training in Korea for three years not only to learn the language but also to sing and dance. Finally in September 2006, Jang Ri In made her long-awaited debut in Korea. Her first song, Timeless, an R&B ballad, featured DBSG’s Xiah. Right after its release, this song gained a lot of popularity, and even hit No. 1 on some music charts in Korea. She’s only 17 now, and the sky is the limit. Fans (especially back home in China) are now waiting for her to release a Chinese album, which is likely to happen next year. Let’s find out more about her:

PROFILE:

Name: 장리인
-romanized: ZhangLiYin (or Jang Ri In)
Chinese name: 张力尹
Birth year: 1989
Height: 162cm
Weight: 42kg
Nationality: Chinese
Hobbies: appreciating music, movies, traveling
Talents: Violin
Occupation: Singer
Genre: R&B
Debut CD: Timeless
Debut Song: Timeless (feat. Xiah Junsu)
Stage Debut: Sept. 9, 2006 "Timeless" performance (feat. Xiah Junsu)

BIOGRAPHY:

Zhang Liyin, brought up in a musical family, grew up listening to a diverse range of music. As the daughter of two violinists, Liyin was surrounded by classical music from birth. Her parents took her to their concerts exposing her to a variety of music.

Liyin started to learn the violin when she was only three years old and also has the ability to learn a song after hearing it only once. She was so accustomed to classical, American and European pop music that she insists she never sang a children’s song when she was young.

Liyin grew more interested in pop music as she grew older. When she was 12 years old, she was accepted by a middle school affiliated with Sichuan Music College after receiving high marks for her violin talent. However, her dream was to become a great singer and not a violinist. Eventually, her parents became her biggest supporters and she gained confidence when she was selected as one of the top 10 teenager singers in a national competition under the sponsorship of Beijing.

Since then, she has worked hard to become a great singer. She finally had the opportunity to make her dreams come true when she met her Korean producer. Ever since her arrival in Korea in 2003, Liyin has devoted herself to achieving her dream of being a successful singer.

In addition to her vocal training, she was trained in dance, Chinese martial arts and foreign languages – all of which enhanced her talents. Though Liyin had a naturally powerful and attractive voice, she still needed to undergo vocal training to fine tune her sound before she debuted as a singer.

In addition to her interest in singing, Liyin was always interested in dance as well. She quickly developed her dance skills and has shown extraordinary talent in a range of styles including jazz dance, hip-hop and pop-locking.

As for the language difference, Liyin has no problem communicating in Korean, which she learnt to be closer to her Korean fans. She even worked on overcoming her Sichuan accent through special intonation and pronunciation training from a Chinese broadcaster.

DISCOGRAPHY:

Timeless (1st single, 2006) : Timeless, Y(why…)
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