G.E.M.
Gloria Tang Sze-wing, known professionally as G.E.M. or Tang Tsz-kei, is a Hong Kong singer, songwriter, and producer. Born in Shanghai and raised in Hong Kong, G.E.M. is known for her vocal performances, autobiographical songwriting, and musical versatility. She is recognized as a leading figure in Chinese popular music and among the most known artists in the Greater China region.
G.E.M. debuted under Hummingbird Music in 2008 with the release of her self-titled Cantonese extended play, G.E.M., which won her the gold award for best newcomer at three major award ceremonies in Hong Kong. Her debut studio album, 18..., was recorded in both Mandarin and Cantonese and was named one of the top ten best-selling records in the territory in 2009. Xposed was named the best-selling Mandarin album of the year and made her the youngest nominee for Best Female Mandarin Singer in the history of the Golden Melody Awards. In 2014, her appearance on the Chinese singing competition I Am a Singer 2 gained her immense popularity in Greater China.
G.E.M. subsequently released her first Mandarin studio album, titled Heartbeat, which produced the singles "Long Distance", "Goodbye", and "Away". The following year, she released the single "Light Years Away" as the Chinese theme song for the film Passengers, which remains the most viewed music video by a Chinese artist on YouTube. In March 2019, G.E.M. departed from Hummingbird after 11 years following a highly-publicized contractual dispute, and subsequently launched her own company G-Nation. She found continued success with City Zoo and Revelation, both of which topped the Hong Kong album charts. Her I Am Gloria World Tour grossed over $424 million in revenue across 86 shows, making it among the top-five highest-grossing tours by a female artist of all-time.
G.E.M. has won numerous accolades throughout her career, including sixteen IFPI Hong Kong Sales Awards, twelve RTHK Top 10 Gold Songs Awards, thirteen Metro Radio Mandarin Music Awards, one Golden Melody Award, and one MTV Europe Music Award. In 2016, G.E.M. became the only Asian artist featured on the Forbes 30 Under 30 list, and in 2018, she was included at number 34 on BBC's 100 Women list of the most influential women in the world.
Early life
Tang Sze-wing was born on 16 August 1991, in Shanghai, China; she was given the English name Gloria by her father. Her father is from Hong Kong, and her mother is from Shanghai. She has a sister four years her junior. G.E.M. spent her childhood at Caoyang New Village and lived with her maternal grandmother who died in March 2011. She moved to Hong Kong with her parents at the age of four. She attended Christian schools for her education.G.E.M. grew up with a musical background, her mother from Vocal Music department of Shanghai Conservatory of Music, her grandmother was a vocal coach, her grandfather was a saxophonist in an orchestra, and her uncle was a violinist. G.E.M. started to write songs at the age of five. She would play a few practice songs and improvise them herself. She was featured in a performance on Hong Kong's Educational Television at the age of seven. She achieved ABRSM's piano grade 8 at the age of thirteen. G.E.M. names Christina Aguilera, Beyoncé, and Mariah Carey as her influences.
In 2006, G.E.M. won the champion in the singing competition titled Spice It Up, and caught the attention of Chang Tan, who offered her a recording deal with Hummingbird Music. She then became a professional singer at the age of 16. She graduated from Heep Woh Primary School and True Light Girls' College with a score of 21 points in HKCEE. In 2008, she attended Hong Kong Academy for Performing Arts, but dropped out in 2009 due to her decision to focus on her singing career.
Career
2008–2010: ''G.E.M.'', ''18...'', and ''MySecret''
In October 2008, G.E.M. released her debut self-titled EP G.E.M. which included two Mandarin songs and three Cantonese songs. She won a series of awards for the album, and was dubbed the "Girl with Giant Lungs" and "Young Diva with Giant Lungs" for her vocal range. In May 2009, G.E.M. travelled to Los Angeles to record her first studio album, 18..., which was released in October 2009. In November 2009, she held her first concert G.E.M. 18 Live 2009 at Hong Kong International Trade and Exhibition Centre, and the concert featured special guests including Jan Lamb and Justin Lo. In the same year, she also held a concert in Toronto. In 2010, G.E.M. went to Taiwan to promote the album 18... and then returned to Los Angeles to record her next studio album, MySecret, which was released in October 2010.2011–2012: Get Everybody Moving Tour and ''Xposed''
In May 2011, G.E.M. performed a three-day concerts titled Get Everybody Moving Tour in Hong Kong Coliseum, and became the youngest Hong Kong female artist to perform in the venue. She then performed another five concerts in the same venue in September and embarked a concert tour in eight countries.In June 2012, she performed alongside Jason Mraz and Khalil Fong at the iTunes Live in Hong Kong, and sang "Lucky" with Jason Mraz. Her third studio album, Xposed, was released in July 2012. G.E.M. wrote the record based on her growth experience and life insights in the two years since her previous album, My Secret. After its official release, the album reached number one on the sales charts of major record stores in Hong Kong, including HMV and CD Warehouse. In debuted at number one on the Hong Kong Record Merchants Association album chart, with the second and third places occupied by Maroon 5 and Linkin Park. It remained atop the sales chart for a second week.
The lead single, "What Have U Done", peaked number one on all four pop music charts in Hong Kong. The album's other singles included "Oh Boy, "Someday I'll Fly", and "Bubble". On 8 July 2012, she held a signing event at apm shopping mall in Kwun Tong, Hong Kong, attracting nearly 1,000 people. On 28 July, G.E.M. held her first concert in Taiwan at the Red House in Ximen. On 19 November, G.E.M.'s first official mobile app was released.
2013–2015: X.X.X. Live Tour'', I'' ''Am a Singer'', and ''Heartbeat''
G.E.M. embarked on her X.X.X. Live World Tour in April 2013, in support of her third studio album, Xposed. The tour started with five shows in Hong Kong Coliseum, and ended with a show at Wembley Arena in London, which is also her debut show in Europe. There was a total of 73 shows in 4 continents, and the tour attracted a total of 800,000 people. In May, she became the youngest nominee ever of Golden Melody Award for Best Female Vocalist Mandarin, with her album Xposed. In June, she released a cover of Chinese smash hit Intoxicated, which was played for 15 million times on QQ Music within a week.In January 2014, she appeared in the second season of Hunan TV's I Am a Singer 2 alongside Han Lei, Zhou Bichang, Phil Chang, Gary Chaw and others, which was broadcast to over 200 million people. Her second-place finish gained her immense popularity and fame in Greater China. In the same year, she earned a World Music Award nomination for World's Best Female Artist and an MTV Europe Music Award nomination for Best Mainland China & Hong Kong Act. In December 2014, G.E.M.'s wax figure at Madame Tussauds Hong Kong was unveiled. On 10 February 2015, JJ Lin published the official music video for his song "Beautiful" featuring G.E.M., which was included on his album Genesis.
In early May of the same year, G.E.M. was ranked at number 11 on the Forbes China Power 100 Celebrity List. With an annual income of ¥62 million, she ranked first among artists born in the 1990s or later. In September 2015, she was selected to be the team advisor for team Wang Feng at The Voice of China 4. In November 2015, she appeared on the cover of China's Apple Music, and released her studio album Heartbeat with music videos of all ten tracks in the album. The album topped the iTunes chart in China.
2016–2018: ''G-Force'' and Queen of Hearts Tour
In 2016, she appeared on the list of Forbes 30 Under 30, being the only Asian musician on the list. In the same year, she was asked to voice a lead role in the animated film Charming, alongside Demi Lovato, Ashley Tisdale, and Avril Lavigne. She also performed at Heroes of Remix that same year, singing EDM versions of songs such as "Loving You" and "The Brightest Star In The Night Sky", among others. In September 2016, she released her photobook 25 Looks and an EP, which includes four remix songs. In November 2016, she earned an MTV Europe Music Award for Best Mainland China & Hong Kong Act.On 29 December 2016, G.E.M. released the Chinese theme song for the science fiction film Passengers titled "Light Years Away", which she also performed on several occasions, including NASA 2019 Breakthrough Prize. Lyrically, similar to the plot of the film itself, it speaks of a doomed love. The song reached number one on the Billboard Radio China Top 10 Chart, where it remained for two consecutive weeks. On its year-end annual chart ranking the top songs of the year, "Light Years Away" ranked at number four in 2017.
In May 2017, G.E.M released her first documentary G-Force, which was directed by Nick Wickham. In April 2017, she embarked on her Queen of Hearts World Tour. In June, G.E.M. released the single "Peach Blossom Promise" as the theme song for the Chinese television drama A Life Time Love. It peaked at number one on the Billboard Radio China Top 10 Chart for two non-consecutive weeks. On 21 October 2017, Chinese-Malaysian hip hop artist Namewee published a video featuring her in a cover of his song "Stranger in the North ", which had received widespread popularity, where she sings the chorus which was originally performed by Taiwanese-American singer-songwriter Wang Leehom.
At the 13th Annual KKBox Music Awards on 21 January 2018, G.E.M. and Namewee together sang "Stranger in the North" immediately after she sang "Goodbye" and "Light Years Away" for her 2018 KKBox Artist of the Year award-winner performance. On April, she was invited to be the duet partner for Hua Chenyu in the finals of Singer 2018 and sang "Light Years Away". On 18 August 2018, her Queen of Hearts World Tour has called for an end for part 1 of the tour and she announced the part 2 tour will hold in 2019 with more new songs.