At 9:30 pm on August 15, 1992, at the "92 Torch Gala" broadcast on CCTV, a singer with crutches came on stage and sang a song "Sailor" for everyone. There were bursts of warm applause at the scene, and the picture was watched by hundreds of millions of Chinese people on television.
This singer is Zheng Zhihua . This is also the first public performance of "Sailor" in mainland China. Since then, "Sailor" has swept across the country and spread all over the streets, becoming one of the most popular songs of that year. Moreover, the songs are not only popular and good-looking, but we, who were still young at the time, already felt a kind of power from the songs.
Zheng Zhihua became popular and became a household name. Since then, popular original songs such as "Stars Lighting" , " Twist Braid ", "Game World", "Young Times" and other popular original songs have been widely sung one after another. Zheng Zhihua has become an inspiration in the hearts of a generation. Idols have become symbols of an era.
28 years have passed, and we who were young at that time are no longer young. So what happened to the former idol Zheng Zhihua? Why don't you show up and sing anymore?
How to retreat from the rapids?
In fact, after Zheng Zhihua became famous in 1992, he only stayed in the music scene until the end of 1998 and then faded out. Why fade out? One reason may be that he got married and started a family at that time and intended to return to his family; another important reason is that singing itself was not his career goal. At first, he even disdained being a professional, thinking that being an artist was a low-class profession. The song "The Crying Actor" probably represents his sentiments. The reason why he became a singer was actually a bet he made with his colleagues in the advertising industry. His colleagues laughed at him that he couldn't be a singer, but he bet that I could, and that I could sing for at least ten years.
released his first album in 1988. By 1998, the ten-year agreement expired. After Zheng Zhihua won the bet, he coolly quit the music scene and went to do other things that interested him. It is said that he later joined the IT industry, opened a company, and became CEO.
After 2005, he came back for a while. In the past two or three years, I have performed a few shows on the mainland and released a few songs, but compared to the glory of the year, the splash after my comeback is very small. After that, everything calmed down again. In the past ten years, he has basically not appeared in public again.
What is Zheng Zhihua doing? Through his social media, we basically know something about his current situation.
Let’s answer a question first: What is Zheng Zhihua’s identity?
Most of us only know that Zheng Zhihua is a singer. However, apart from being a singer, he has too many identities. Before understanding him now, let's take a look at his identity changes along the way.
- studied architecture and was born
Zheng Zhihua went to Taipei Polytechnic College at the University, majoring in architecture, and worked in an engineering company after graduation. Eight months later, he resolutely left the company and the industry. Such boring work should be left to ordinary people. Even though his legs and feet are inconvenient, he always believes that he is a person with invisible wings.
- Built a career in advertising
After leaving the construction industry, Zheng Zhihua entered a brand new industry-the advertising industry, starting from scratch. He spent half a year honing his advertising expertise. Combining his natural sharp thinking and extraordinary creativity, he quickly established a foothold in a leading advertising company and became famous in the industry through advertising cases one after another. What's even more miraculous is that one time a client needed an advertising song and several professional singers were not satisfied with the composition. Zheng Zhihua tried to write a song "For Happy Girls", and the client was actually satisfied.
Because of this advertising song, Zheng Zhihua not only became famous in the advertising industry, but also got the attention of Dianjiang Records owner. He extended an olive branch to this very talented disabled young man. When Zheng Zhihua was hesitant, a disparaging remark from a colleague instantly strengthened his determination to break into the music industry.
- Singing is popular in China
There is no need to go into details at this stage.
- turned into an IT entrepreneur
After his ten-year journey as a singer, Zheng Zhihua joined the IT industry that he had identified and was interested in. It should be noted that this is a brand new industry for him that he knows nothing about. For this reason, he went to the United States to study, and returned to Taiwan in 2001 to start a company and serve as CEO. Later, the company also prospered.
- was ordered by his daughter to return to the music scene.
As for his return to the music scene a few years later, it was not because of his turning back, but entirely because of his daughter. My daughter never knew that her father was a popular singer since she was a child. Later, she accidentally learned about it from her teacher, so she went home and asked her father why he stopped singing, and she forced him to perform on the stage.
From the construction industry to the advertising industry, then to the entertainment industry, then to the IT industry, and later returned to the entertainment industry and then quit... Zheng Zhihua freely shuttled between various industries. What identity will Zheng Zhihua have when he reaches middle age? ?
Zheng Zhihua once introduced his identity on Weibo like this:
I am a singer and a music creator, but these are not enough to represent me. I should be an artist and a knowledgeable thinker!
It sounds very conceited, but after understanding it, I found that there is nothing wrong with what he said. Zheng Zhihua, who has washed away his reputation, should be the most accurate identity as an artist and thinker.
Why is Zheng Zhihua said to be an artist?
Let’s take a look at what kind of artistic creation he is engaged in:
1, music. As we all know, is a popular singer and an original musician. He has composed and sang so many classic songs and has infected so many people. And music is definitely an art.
2, painting. Due to problems with his legs and feet since childhood, Zheng Zhihua spent most of his time lying on the bed painting, which laid a good foundation and became his lifelong artistic hobby. When people reach middle age, they have more time for themselves, and his achievements in this area are even more evident, and he has successfully held art exhibitions.
3, calligraphy. Zheng Zhihua is not only outstanding in painting, but also good at handwriting since childhood. Now, he is even more outstanding in this aspect. He is so brilliant in regular script, running script and cursive script that even professional calligraphy teachers are amazed. If you don’t believe me, please read:
And the Heart Sutra copied in running script:
I usually write to my wife Zhang memo is like a master calligraphy treasure:
Zheng Zhihua also put forward a point of view based on his decades of experience: practicing calligraphy in does not necessarily require you to master regular script before you can practice cursive. This is different from what we heard from the teacher in class, but I agree with his point of view.
4, seal cutting. If the previous arts can be considered the result of years of study and accumulation, then seal cutting is not at all. This art originated from when he first started his company. He wanted to find a "master" to carve an official seal, but the other person was very assertive and asked him to wait for a few months. He was so angry that he simply decided to let it go. After a month of self-study, I quickly became proficient in seal cutting skills, and the seals I carved were no less impressive than those of the master.
5, handicrafts. Zheng Zhihua also likes to toy with handicrafts by himself, making lacquerware, repairing ceramics, making mobile phone cases, making various necessary tools... Everything that passes through his hands becomes a work of art.
This is a mobile phone case he made for his wife, whose name is Zhang Yuya , a unique love.
These are two pieces of lacquerware he made and signed on them. No one can imitate them.
This is his homemade tableware. Eating with it is the most luxurious happiness.
This is a log clothes hanger that has been with him for 30 years. It is quite valuable, but it was broken. He repaired it using raw lacquer technology and a leather shoelace, and he felt full of accomplishment.
This is a small tool he made from disposable bamboo chopsticks, which is useful when making lacquerware and pottery by himself.
6. Write poetry. Zheng Zhihua loves to write and draw, and sometimes he will compose a poem when the mood strikes.
With so many arts surrounding him, is he still not an artist?
So, what about thinkers?
In fact, everyone knows this. When he was young, Zheng Zhihua was a very thoughtful person. His songs were inspirational, caring, but also angry and critical. Works such as "Grand Nation" had... and it was even rumored that he was in jail.
As I get older, I may not be as sharp, but my thoughts are still there. For example, when he first opened Weibo in 2016, he posted several such updates one after another, each of which is worthy of your careful consideration:
In addition to the above identities, Zheng Zhihua also has another most important identity after retirement, that is, " daughter slave" ". The world is vast, and his daughter is the biggest, and her daughter is his lifeblood. He also revealed humorously that in his family, there are strict "three obediences and four gains":
I have to obey my daughter's orders;
I have to obey my daughter's abuse;
I have to obey my daughter's prejudices. Blind obedience;
My wife is extravagant, and I will definitely give it up;
I understand immediately with one look from my wife;
My wife is nagging, but I will remember it;
My wife is unreasonable, and I deserve it.
In short, Zheng Zhihua is such a man now: Although he is no longer in the music scene, he is still an omnipotent artist, a thinker with a clear attitude, a good father and a good husband, and a happy family the creator of.
Perhaps Zheng Zhihua’s life was filled with regrets due to his leg problems since childhood, but his life was a successful and inspirational one! And his success stems from his endless pursuit of life, from the stubbornness and tenacity in his heart that never admits defeat!
He used his life to explain to us what the true "sailor" spirit is!
