F4 (band)
| F4 | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Origin | Taiwan | ||||
| Other name(s) | JVKV | ||||
| Occupation | Singers, actors | ||||
| Genre(s) | Mandopop | ||||
| Label(s) | Sony Music Taiwan (2001–2007) | ||||
| Years active | 2001–2003, 2007–2008, 2013 | ||||
| Current Members |
Jerry Yan Vanness Wu Ken Chu Vic Chou | ||||
| Official Website | Sony Music Taiwan | ||||
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Awards
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F4 or JVKV is a Taiwanese boy band consisting of Jerry Yan, Vanness Wu, Ken Chu, and Vic Chou. The group formed in 2001 after the Taiwanese drama Meteor Garden that they starred in was widely successful. Together they have starred in several Taiwanese drama series and released three albums, Meteor Rain (2001), Fantasy 4ever (2002), and Waiting for You (2007).
In 2007, due to copyright issues, the group changed its name to JVKV, using the initials of its members.[1] Other than their home country, Taiwan, they have also attained popularity in other parts of Asia, such as China, Hong Kong, Singapore, Malaysia, Thailand, Indonesia, Japan, South Korea and The Philippines.
History
Formation and Meteor Garden: 2001
The group formed as a result of the success of a Taiwanese drama series, Meteor Garden. The series is an adaptation of the Japanese shōjo manga series, ' (Hana Yori Dango). Yan plays the lead role of Dao Ming Si, an extremely arrogant and rich university student who meets his match in the poor but proud girl, Shan Cai. Chou, Wu and Chu play as his friends Hua Ze Lei, Mei Zuo, and Xi Men, respectively. In the series, the four guys identify themselves as a group called "Flower Four", or often shortened as F4.
Meteor Garden was released in Taiwan in 2001 and turned the leads into stars virtually overnight.[2] In 2002 Meteor Garden was released in Hong Kong, Singapore, Malaysia, Thailand, Indonesia, Japan, Korea and in the Philippines in 2003. It was also released in some place of Europe. The series was aired on Xing Kong channel, and was later remade in China. A sequel, Meteor Garden II, was shot in Spain later and released in 2002.
Musical venture, Meteor Rain, and Fantasy 4ever: 2001-2003
In 2001, F4 became a boy band and signed a record deal with Sony Music Taiwan. In the same year they released their debut album, Meteor Rain, and in the following year they released Fantasy 4ever. The album includes the Mandarin cover of "Can't Help Falling in Love" they recorded for the Asian version of Walt Disney's Lilo & Stitch soundtrack,[3] a Mandarin cover of "Yo Te Amo" by Chayanne, and a Pepsi advert theme song "Ask For More".
In 2003 they embarked on an Asian tour to support Fantasy 4ever, and went on an unannounced hiatus afterwards as the members began to focus on their solo careers.
Waiting for You and name change to JVKV: 2007-2008
On April 29, 2007, Meteor Garden producer Angie Chai announced that the group would no longer be known as F4. The change in name stemmed from copyright-related issues. Japanese publisher Shueisha, who owns the copyright to Hana Yori Dango allowed the group to use F4 as its band name in 2001. However, as Japan had filmed and aired its own live action versions of the popular manga, with its own cast of four, the publisher felt that there may be confusion over the name in different countries.[4][5] Due to this conflict, the group was renamed JVKV using the first initials of each of the group's members. According to the producer, the members are listed in the new name by the order of their birth dates from oldest to youngest, thus Vanness Wu's name appears before Vic Chou's.[1]
Despite rumours of disbanding,[6] JVKV released their third album, Waiting For You, on December 28, 2007.[7] Their third album still bore the name F4, not JVKV.
F4 were the first foreign artists to hold 7 consecutive concerts in Japan. Thousands flooded Narita Airport when the band's plane touched down. Jerry Yan even attracted two thousand fans at the airport during his solo fan meeting.
Jiangsu TV’s Spring Festival: 2013
In January 2013, the group was confirmed to perform at Jiangsu TV’s Spring Festival in China.[8] The performance was taped in Beijing on January 30, 2013,[9][10] and was aired on February 10, 2013. It was their first performance together in four years. During the show, they hinted that they were going to have a concert tour in China.
Members
| Stage name | Birth name | Date of birth | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| English | Chinese | Romanized | Chinese | |
| Jerry Yan | 言承旭 | Liao Yang Chen | 廖洋震 | January 1, 1977 |
| Vanness Wu | 吳建豪 | Wu Chien Hao | 吳建豪 | August 7, 1978 |
| Ken Chu | 朱孝天 | Chu Hsiao Tien | 朱孝天 | January 15, 1979 |
| Vic Chou | 周渝民 | Chou Yu Min | 周育民 | June 9, 1981 |
Solo projects
JVKV are also individually concentrating on their solo careers in both acting and music. Three of them appeared in Wish To See You Again, starring Chou and Chu, while Wu made a few guest appearances in a few episodes. Due to scheduling conflicts, Yan did not star in the series; his part was played by Kingone Wang. Yan filmed a series in Taiwan alongside Wu Chun of Fahrenheit and Show Luo, called Hot Shot otherwise known as 篮球火 which was released in the Summer 2008. The series revolves around basketball and the boys' competition on court. This series was highly anticipated due to the star status of the three male leads.
Jerry Yan
In August 2004, Yan came out with his first solo album titled, The First Time (第一次 Jerry for You). He's acted in Taiwanese drama series such as Spicy Teacher, Meteor Garden, its sequel Meteor Garden 2, Meteor Rain, Come To My place, Love Scar, The Hospital, and made a movie, Magic Kitchen 魔幻廚房 (2004). Hot Shot (2008) was broadcast in Taiwan, and Starlit aired in Taiwan in 2009; and Down With Love, with Ella Chen of S.H.E.
Vanness Wu
Wu focused his attention on both movies and music. He first released a solo album titled Body Will Sing in 2002, and has since released several more albums. He also has been featured in several music videos, such as "Ai Cuo" with Wang Leehom, the Chinese version of "Crazy in Love" with Beyoncé Knowles, and Coco Lee's "Hip Hop Tonight". Besides music, he also has been acting as well, notably in Autumn's Concerto (下一站，幸福) with Ady An. He also has been involved with several big-screen movies such as Star Runner, Kung Fu Fighter, Three Kingdoms: Resurrection of the Dragon, and Dragon Squad, among others. Many of his movies relate to his love of martial arts. He also took part in China Jiangsu TV's "Stars in Danger: The High Dive" (星跳水立方) and gained popularity from his great figure with Apollo's belt as well as his good diving skills. Other than singing in Chinese and English, Wu also sings in Japanese and Korean. As of 2013, he has released two Japanese albums, Reflections and Reason. He also collaborated with Kangta from H.O.T on the album Scandal, which was produced by SM Entertainment.
Vic Chou
Chou was the first JVKV member to release a solo album. He has since came out with 3 solo albums, Make a Wish (2002), Remember I Love You (2004), and I'm not F4 (2007). He also has acted in at least one drama series every year since 2001, with the exception of 2003. Within the last year, he came out with two movies: Linger and Tea Fight.
Ken Chu
Chu, known to love food and cooking, came out with his own cookbook, Delicious Relations (美味關係) in 2006, after starring in a string of idol dramas. He has also starred in at least one drama per year since 2001, except 2005, where he came out with his own solo album, On Ken's Time. He has released his 2nd solo album "Getting Real" in January 2009. He has filmed three movies to date. In an interview with F4, Chu has mentioned that he is growing increasingly more interested in music.
Discography
| Title | Released | Label | Format |
|---|---|---|---|
| Meteor Rain (流星雨) | August 28, 2001 | Sony Music Taiwan | Studio album (CD) |
| Fantasy 4ever (煙火的季節) | December 18, 2002 | Sony Music Taiwan | Studio album (CD) |
| 360 Degrees:F4 Five Years Glorious Collection (360度定番精選輝煌五年全記錄)[11] | November 28, 2006 | Sony Music Taiwan | Greatest hits album (2CD+2DVD) |
| Waiting for You (在這裡等你) | December 28, 2007 | Sony Music Taiwan | Studio album (CD) |
| Fabulous: F4 Best Selections (神话般 F4最佳收藏) | September 24, 2008 | Sony Music Taiwan | Greatest hits album (2CD) |
Filmography
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2001 | Meteor Garden | F4 | Drama series |
| 2001 | Meteor Rain | F4 | Mini series |
| 2002 | Meteor Garden II | F4 | Drama series |
| 2002 | Come to My Place | Yan as Zhong Yi Ye Chou as Zhong Yuan Wu as JJ Chu as Guang Tian Jian |
Drama series |
Awards
| Year | Awards | Category | Nomination | Result | Ref |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2002 | Hong Kong TVB8 Awards | Best Group (Gold) | F4 | Won | [12] |
| IFPI Hong Kong Album Sales Awards IFPI香港唱片銷量大獎 | Top 10 Selling Mandarin Albums of the Year 十大銷量國語唱片獲獎 | Meteor Rain | Won | [13] | |
| 2003 | Fantasy 4ever | Won | [14] | ||
| MTV Asia Awards | Inspiration Award | F4 | Won |
References
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 (Chinese) F4嫌新称呼JVKV绕口 合体宣传用回本名. May 2, 2007. Retrieved December 30, 2007.
- ↑ "CNN.com - F4 Talkasia Transcript - Jun 16, 2006". Edition.cnn.com. June 16, 2006. Retrieved July 10, 2012.
- ↑ "F4主唱《星际宝贝》横袭好莱坞 F4 singers hit Hollywood in Lilo & Stitch" (in Chinese). NETandTV.com. June 26, 2002. Archived from the original on June 27, 2007. Retrieved December 15, 2007.
- ↑ Wang, Vivien (April 29, 2007). "Boy band changes name F4 into JVKV". China Daily. Retrieved May 31, 2007.
- ↑ "Boys over Flowers Forces F4 Idol Band to Rename Itself". Anime News Network. May 14, 2007. Retrieved June 5, 2007.
- ↑ "F4 to Formally Disband in October". CRI English. August 31, 2007. Retrieved December 15, 2007.
- ↑ (Chinese) F4再度合體發行全新專輯「在這裡等你」 四騎士劍誓再度征服全亞洲. December 28, 2007. Retrieved December 30, 2007.
- ↑ Belmonte, Maureen Marie (11 January 2013). "‘Meteor Garden'’s F4 To Reunite At China’s Spring Festival". The Manila Bulletin. Retrieved 21 January 2013.
- ↑ "http://entertainment.xin.msn.com/en/celebrity/buzz/asia/f4-arrives-in-beijing-for-spring-festival-gala". xinMSN. 1 February 2013. Retrieved 30 January 2013.
- ↑ "http://entertainment.xin.msn.com/en/celebrity/buzz/asia/f4-performs-in-million-dollar-costumes". xinMSN. 1 February 2013. Retrieved 31 January 2013.
- ↑ (Chinese) Sony Music Taiwan 360 Degrees:F4 Five Years Glorious Collection album info November 28, 2006. Retrieved May 4, 2011
- ↑ (Chinese) Epoch Times.com 陳奕迅與陳慧琳奪得最受歡迎男女歌手獎 December 3, 2002. Retrieved July 2, 2011
- ↑ IFPI Hong Kong 2002 IFPI Hong Kong Album Sales Awards winners list Retrieved April 19, 2011
- ↑ IFPI Hong Kong 2003 IFPI Hong Kong Album Sales Awards winners list Retrieved April 19, 2011
External links
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Wikimedia Commons has media related to F4. |
- (Chinese) Official SonyMusic F4 360 site
- F4 in CNN's Talkasia
- Van Ness' Wikipedia page
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