| Vanness Wu | |||||||
| Native Name Lang: | zh | ||||||
| Citizenship: |  United States | ||||||
| Birth Date: | 7 August 1978 | ||||||
| Birth Place: | Santa Monica, California, U.S. | ||||||
| Education: | Corona del Mar High School | ||||||
| Years Active: | 2000–present | ||||||
| Module: |
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Vanness Wu is an American-born Taiwanese singer and actor. He was a member of the Taiwanese boyband F4 and the Korean Mandopop duo Kangta & Vanness.
Born in Santa Monica, California, on August 7, 1978. After graduating, he moved to Taiwan to pursue a career in entertainment. He learned to breakdance as a teenager and competed in numerous dance competitions throughout the '90s[1] and featured in the 1998 breakdancing-themed music video for Jason Nevins' remix of Run-D.M.C.'s "It's Like That".
See main article: F4 (band). Wu starred as Mei Zuo (美作), one of the F4 members, in the Taiwanese drama series Meteor Garden and its sequel, Meteor Garden II. At the conclusion of the series, they continued to perform together and released three studio albums as the boy band F4. In 2002, Wu became the second F4 member, after Vic Chou, to release his debut solo album, Body Will Sing. The track, "I Hate Myself" is listed at number 95 on Hit Fm Taiwan's Hit Fm Annual Top 100 Singles Chart for 2002.[2] The album was awarded as one of the "Top 10 Selling Mandarin Albums of the Year" at the 2002 IFPI Hong Kong Album Sales Awards, presented by the Hong Kong branch of IFPI.[3]
In 2003, he performed a Mandarin Chinese rap in a version Beyoncé's single "Crazy in Love", featured on the Asian special edition of her album Dangerously in Love.
In 2004, Wu made his film debut in the Hong Kong film Star Runner and was nominated at the Hong Kong Film Awards for Best Newcomer.
In 2006, he collaborated with Korean singer Kangta, forming Kangta & Vanness. The duo released the album Scandal.
In 2008, Wu was announced as the opening act and special guest for Kanye West's "Glow in the Dark" concert in Shanghai. They performed the hit song “Good Life”[4]
Wu has appeared in several Taiwanese dramas as well as motion pictures. In 2009, he starred as Ren Guang Xi in Autumn's Concerto, one of the highest-rated Taiwanese idol drama. He also released his first Japanese single "Only", which entered Top 10 of the Oricon Chart, as well as another single "I Don't Wanna Lose You".
In 2010, Wu became the executive producer for the television series Year of the Rain.
Wu's third Chinese solo album C'est La V was released July 2011 under Universal Music Taiwan. It features collaborations with international artistes such as Ryan Tedder from OneRepublic, as well as Bruno Mars and Justin Michael who wrote the track "Knockin". Besides directing, producing, acting, and singing, Wu is also the creator/designer of his own jewelry line 3.V.O.7. He is also the creative director of Reebok (greater China division).
In 2012, Wu won the "Best Crossover Singer" at the 16th Chinese Global Music Charts.
In 2013, Wu joined Jiangsu TV's diving variety show Stars in Danger: The High Dive, and won the silver medal.
In January 2015, Wu was announced to be one of the judges of the talent show Asia's Got Talent, along with Indonesian-French singer Anggun, Canadian musician David Foster, and former Spice Girls member Melanie C, which aired from March to May on AXN Asia.[5]
In July 2015, Wu returned to the Philippines after a decade of his first visit for the special show for the #LiveinLevis event sponsored by Levi's in line with the launch of the Women's Denim Collection for Fall 2015. Wu's performance was a way of thanking the brand's fans and style seekers.[6] [7]
In 2016, it was announced that Wu would star in his first Chinese television series The Princess Weiyoung alongside Tiffany Tang, playing the 5th century prince and then Emperor Tuoba Yu of the Northern Wei Dynasty. He was also in the science fiction film Pili Back. In the same year, he participated with his sister Melody in the third season of The Amazing Race China, based on CBS's reality program of the same name, where they were eliminated on the ninth leg and finished 4th.
In 2019. he starred in alongside Donnie Yen where he played Hartman Wu, a U.S. Marine Corps Staff Sergeant and Bruce Lee's student.
| Year | English title | Chinese title | Role | Notes | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2001 | Meteor Garden | 流星花園 | Mei Zuo | Live-action adaptation of Japanese manga Boys Over Flowers | |
| Meteor Rain | 流星雨 | Mei Zuo | Mei Zuo's chapter | ||
| Peach Girl | 蜜桃女孩 | Ah Li | Live-action adaptation of Japanese manga Peach Girl | ||
| 2002 | Meteor Garden II | 流星花園2 | Mei Zuo | ||
| Come to My Place | 來我家吧 | JJ | Live-action adaptation of Japanese manga Uchi ni Oideyo by Hidenori Hara | ||
| 2004 | Say Yes Enterprise | 求婚事務所 | Song Zhenkai | Story 01: Cinderella | |
| 2008 | Wish to See You Again | 這裡發現愛 | Leo | ||
| 2009 | Autumn's Concerto | 下一站,幸福 | Ren Guang Xi | ||
| 2010 | Year of the Rain | 那年，雨不停國 | Ah Huang's cousin | Guest star, executive producer | |
| 2011 | Material Queen | 拜金女王 | Cai Jiahao | ||
| 2012 | Ti Amo Chocolate | 愛上巧克力 | Fang Jiahua | ||
| 2016 | The Princess Weiyoung | 锦绣未央 | [8] | ||
| 2018 | Love Won't Wait | 如果，爱 | Song Qiaozhi | [9] |
| Year | Title | Alternate | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2003 | Star Runner | 少年阿虎 The Kumite (Canada, USA) | Bond Cheung (Zheng Jianbang) | Film debut Nominated―Hong Kong Film Awards for Best Newcomer |
| 2005 | Dragon Squad | 猛龍 Dragon Heat (USA) | Wang Sun-ho | |
| 2006 | Cars | 汽車總動員 | Voice-acting, Taiwanese version only. | |
| 2007 | Kung Fu Fighter | 功夫無敵 | Ma Li | |
| 2008 | 三國之見龍卸甲 | |||
| 2009 | LaMB | Dr. Jack Griswold | English voice-acting. | |
| Kung Fu Chefs | 功夫廚神 | Long Jianyi | ||
| 2010 | The Haunting Lover | 借室還魂 | Liang Guang | |
| 1040 Movie | Himself | Exclusive interview. | ||
| 2011 | The Road Less Traveled | 樂之路 | Mike | Produced by Smash and Grab (co-founded by Vanness). |
| 2012 | Baseballove | 球愛天空 | Lin Chenghui | |
| 2013 | Machi Action | 變身 | Cameo appearance. | |
| 2014 | Girls | 閨蜜 | Sky (Jiu Tian) | |
| 2015 | Dragon Blade | 天將雄獅 | Cameo appearance. | |
| Monk Comes Down the Mountain | 道士下山 | Cui Daorong | ||
| 2016 | Lulu the Movie | 露露的电影 | Himself | Exclusive interview. |
| Birth of the Dragon | Sonny Lo | |||
| 2017 | A-Choo | 打噴嚏 | Alternative title: My Lover is a Superman (我的情敌是超人). | |
| Pili Back | 霹雳再现 | |||
| 2019 | Undercover Punch and Gun | Hou Wu | ||
| 葉問4 | Hartman Wu |
| Year | English title | Chinese title | Notes | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2013 | Stars in Danger: The High Dive | 星跳水立方 | Diving variety show Qualified into finals | |
| 2015 | Asia's Got Talent | Judge (Season 1) | ||
| 2016 | The Amazing Race China 3 | 极速前进第三季 | With sister Melody | |
| 2019 | Street Dance of China | 就是街舞 | Judge (Season 2) | |
| 2022 | Call Me by Fire | 披荊斬棘 | Season 2 |
See also: F4 (band).
| Album# | Title | Track List | Notes | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1st | Body Will Sing (身體會唱歌)
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| "CD + CD Extra" version also featured "Ask for More" by F4 | |
| 2nd | V.DUBB
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| Japanese release featured a Japanese version of "Wanna Love Somebody" as Track 11, plus a Japanese version of "Wanna Love Somebody (Justin Michael Remix)" as Track 12 | |
| 3rd | In Between (New + Best Selection)
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| 4th | Reflections
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| First Japanese album | |
| 5th | V
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| Second Japanese albumBetter was written by Bruno Mars | |
| 6th | C'est La V
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| Knockin' was written and produced by Bruno Mars有你在 was featured in TV Drama "Material Queen"Is This All was written and composed by Ryan Tedder, and was also the theme song from TV Drama "Material Queen". | |
| 7th | Different Man
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| 8th |
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| 9th | Vanness Best
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| 10th | Take a Ride
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| Single# | Title | Track List | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1st | Only
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| 2nd | I Don't Wanna Lose You
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| 3rd | Reason
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| 4th | No More Tears
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| 5th | Soldier
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| 6th | Endless Dance
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| 7th | Summertime Love - Single
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