Post by weilianfans on Aug 14, 2006 10:38:09 GMT
Kelvin Tan Wei Lian (Simplified Chinese: 陈伟联; pinyin: Chén Wěilián; born 5 October 1981) is Singapore's first visually impaired professional singer who has been touted as Asia's Stevie Wonder and Ray Charles. On 1 September 2005 he shot to prominence when he won Project SuperStar, a Mandarin singing competition hosted by Singapore's MediaCorp TV Channel U, after garnering 64% of the 533,000 telephone votes.
Kelvin worked as a street busker for a living before the competition. He performed at various locations in Singapore, including areas around Mass Rapid Transit (MRT) stations. According to press reports, his listeners encompass all age groups and races.
As the Grand Champion of Project Superstar, Kelvin secured a recording contract with "Play Music", a subsidiary of Music Street. His debut album entitled All I want is...Kelvin was released on 11 January 2006 with impressive sales record - hitting platinum status in Singapore within a period of just 5 days.
Kelvin is proficient in both piano and the guitar, and sings in a variety of languages and dialects. In his debut concert on 22 April 2006 at the Max Pavilion in Singapore, he sang in Mandarin, English, Thai, Cantonese and Hokkien . With this public concert, Kelvin became the first visually impaired singer in Asia (fourth around the world- after Ray Charles, Andrea Bocelli and Stevie Wonder) to sing in front of a crowd of more than 5,000 people.
Kelvin is also one of only two visually disabled competitive bowlers in Singapore who had won in a bowling competition, organized by the visually handicapped associations in Singapore and in Perth, Australia between 1996 and 1999. He has also become the first visually disabled person in Singapore to get a product endorsement. This has created a milestone for the advertising industry in Singapore, which frequently engages celebrities and models for product endorsements.
Kelvin is also a DJ at Radio Melody, an internet radio station hosted by his friends - Brother Bjorn and Edwin. This channel allows internet radio listeners to get to know him better.
An idol drama from Singapore's television company (MediaCorp TV) has included Kelvin in the lineup. This was the first time a blind person has involved as a leading role in a Singapore drama. The new Mandarin drama, titled Dream Chasers, has made its debut on Channel U on March 2006.
Kelvin is also actively involved in charity and social events. As one of the ambassadors for the 2005 Singapore Disability Awareness Public Education Campaign, he actively promotes awareness of the abilities and employability of people with disabilities. As a motivational speaker for Young Leaders Foundation, he inspires the young to follow their dreams.In recognition of his achievement, he was awarded The Outstanding Young Persons (TOYP) of Singapore Award 2006 (Merit Winner) for the Personal Improvement and/or Accomplishment category.
His transformation from busker to stardom have inspired a short feature named 'Life Story', depicting how he has overcome his disability and become the first blind person in Singapore to attain fame in the regional music scene.
China fans
www.youtube.com/watch?v=enzob00Lkjo&mode=related&search=
WeiLian - Chu Mo MTV 陈伟连 - 触摸 music video
www.youtube.com/watch?v=viFSW6uY-aQ&mode=related&search=
Weilian &Wu Qi Xian At Xin shou xian lian
www.youtube.com/watch?v=gbfnNQX--iE&mode=related&search=
Weilian webpage
www.weiliankelvin.com
