Lay (entertainer)

This is a Chinese name; the family name is Zhang.
Zhang Yixing

Lay at the 24th Seoul Music Awards in January 2015
Background information
Chinese name 張藝興 (traditional)
Chinese name 张艺兴 (simplified)
Pinyin Zhāng Yìxīng (Mandarin)
Jyutping Zoeng1 Ngai6 Hing1 (Cantonese)
Born (1991-10-07) October 7, 1991
Changsha, Hunan, China
Occupation
Genre(s)
Instrument(s)
Label(s)
Years active 1998–present
Associated acts
Website lay.smtown.com

Zhang Yixing (simplified Chinese: 张艺兴; traditional Chinese: 張藝興; pinyin: Zhāng Yìxīng); (Korean: 장이씽); (Japanese: レイ, 張芸興); born October 7, 1991),[1] better known as Lay (Korean: 레이), is a Chinese singer-songwriter, record producer, author, dancer, and actor. He is a member and the main dancer of the South Korean-Chinese boy group Exo and its sub-unit Exo-M.[2] He first became known after participating in the Chinese TV talent show Star Academy in 2005.[3] In January 2015, Lay was ranked 5th on Baidu's "2014 Top 10 Most Popular Celebrities" list.[4] In September 2015, he released his autobiography titled Standing Firm at 24, which broke several online book records.[5] In July 2016, Lay was appointed by the Communist Youth League of China (CYLC) of Changsha as the publicity ambassador, the first celebrity to hold such title.[6][7] On 7 October 2016, Lay released his solo debut track "What U Need" on his birthday as a surprise gift for his fans.[8] On October 28, 2016, Lay has released his mini album Lose Control in both Korea and China.[9]

Early life

Lay was born in Changsha, Hunan, China[1] on October 7, 1991.[10] In 2000, at 9 years old, he participated in a Chinese TV show as the fan club member of the actor and singer Jimmy Lin, giving him his first contact with the entertainment industry.[1] Lay began his career as a local child star in the province of Hunan, after winning third place in a competition organized by the popular TV show Star Academy in 2005.[3] He also appeared in an episode of Yue Ce Yue Xin Kai and Liu Na's variety show, Na Ke Bu Yi Yang between 2005 and 2006.[11] In April 2006, he auditioned to star in the series The Duke of Mount Deer directed by Zhang Jizhong. Despite being one of the finalists, he did not win the role.[12] In 2008, Lay joined S.M. Entertainment after a successful audition with the company's global casting system in Changsha. At the time of the auditions, he was 16 years old and was studying for his college entrance exams.[3] In 2011, prior to debut with Exo, he briefly worked with SHINee during their concert tour as Jonghyun's dance replacement.[10]

Career

2012–14: Debut with EXO

See also: Exo (band)

Lay became the sixth member of South Korean boy group Exo to be formally introduced to the public on January 17, 2012.[13] The group officially debuted on April 8, 2012. In December 2012, Lay was featured in S.M. Entertainment's project dance group S.M. The Performance, alongside fellow Exo member Kai and labelmates Yunho, Eunhyuk, Donghae, Minho and Taemin.[14] On December 29, the group performed their single "Spectrum", which was released the following day, at the 2012 SBS Gayo Daejeon.[15]

Early in 2014, Lay composed and performed the song "I'm Lay" for his solo performance during Exo's first headlining concert tour The Lost Planet.[16] Later in 2014, he performed another self-composed song titled "I'm Coming" on a special year-end television program on Hunan TV.[17]

2015: Solo activities, Standing Firm At 24 and acting career

In April 2015, S.M. Entertainment announced that a personal studio had been established for Lay's activities in China.[18] In May 2015, he became a regular cast member of the Chinese reality television show Go Fighting!.[19] In June 2015, Lay composed the song "Promise" from the repackaged edition of Exo's second studio album, Love Me Right. He also wrote the lyrics for the Chinese version of the song, while the Korean version was co-written by Chen and Chanyeol.[20]

On September 18, 2015, the limited edition of Lay's autobiography Standing Firm At 24 was published, while the standard edition became available on October 7.[21] The book documents important events throughout his life and broke several online sales records by selling 68,537 copies in the first 24 minutes of pre-sales.[22] With less than 3 month sale of 1.4 million in royalties, he took the 4th place on ‘The 10th Chinese Celebrity Writers List’, which released by China’s 3 influential media outlets, WCC Daily (mainstream), Cover News (Digital) and Great Star Media, becoming the youngest celebrity author to enter the charts. He was also the champion of the 2015 installment of the ‘Annual Celebrity Book Sales’, with his book still in the 2016 Bestsellers List. He also took the top spot of ‘Asia’s Best Books’, twice during its monthly ranking and six times for the weekly chart, and also locked in standings for Rakuten’s listings, with 400,000 copies sold within 6 months, and has received much reader acclaim and praise.[23]

He was also cast in the upcoming Chinese movie Kung Fu Yoga, starring Jackie Chan and directed by Stanley Tong,[3][24] and was later announced to be starring as the male lead alongside labelmate Krystal in the upcoming South Korean-Chinese movie Unexpected Love.[25]

In November 2015, Lay made his big screen debut with a supporting role in the Chinese movie Ex Files 2: The Backup Strikes Back, which was a box office hit, garnering 2 billion in sales within 10 days of its release. He later won the Best Supporting Actor Award at the 2016 China Britain Film Festival for his performance.[26] He also wrote and recorded an original soundtrack for the movie titled "Alone (One Person)", which reached number one on the Baidu Music Chart,[27] and later won Best Movie Original Soundtrack awards at the 16th Top Chinese Music Awards and 4th V-Chart Awards. Lay also starred in the Chinese movie Oh My God and collaborated with his co-stars Coco Jiang Wen and Li Xiaolu on an original soundtrack for the movie titled "Happy Youth",[28][29] which debuted at number 8 on the Billboard V Chart.[30]

2016–present: The Mystic Nine and Lose Control

In January 2016, Lay and the other cast members of Go Fighting! appeared in the Chinese movie Royal Treasure. In April 2016, he received the Most Popular Newcomer award at the 16th Top Chinese Music Awards. In May 2016, Lay made his small screen debut in the Chinese television series To Be A Better Man,[31][32] and released a Chinese song titled "Monodrama" as part of S.M. Entertainment's Station music project.[33] Written by Lay and co-composed and arranged with Divine Channel,[34] "Monodrama" broke records by staying at number 1 on YinYueTai's VChart for 5 consecutive weeks.[35] He later played the lead role in the Chinese television series The Mystic Nine, a prequel to The Lost Tomb. The series achieved unprecedented success, placing first in television ratings and setting a record for the most online views garnered in a day, and has accumulated over 10 billion views in total.[36] The television series went on to have a side story, which focuses on Lay's character Er Yue Hong.

In October 2016, Lay's career as a solo singer began with the release of "What U Need?" (stylized as "what U need?"), the first single from his upcoming debut album set to be released later in 2016.[37][38] The song made it to the top 60 on the US iTunes chart, making Lay the first Chinese artist to appear on the chart.[39] He performed the song for the first time on October 10 at the 2016 Asia Song Festival in Busan, South Korea.[40][41] On October 28, one day after holding a press conference at Shanghai Town & Country Community, Lay released his debut extended play Lose Control, which contains 6 Mandarin tracks, and the music video for the title song.[42] He personally participated in the composition, arrangement and songwriting of every song.[43] Lay broke a record in South Korea by being the first solo artist to sell more than 40,000 album copies within a day and 125,000 within a week from the album's release. He performed "Lose Control" for the first time on The Show on November 15.[44] Later in November, Lay was announced to be starring in a Chinese remake of the hit Japanese drama TV series Operation Love.[45]

Endorsements

In 2015-2016, Lay was chosen to be a spokesperson for several brands, in particular Pancoat and Mentos for which he became the first spokesperson in Asia. He is also Asia’s first male endorser for Vichy, and China’s first endorser for Planters. Other products he endorses include Kangshifu Ice Tea, Tide, Cornetto, Huawei, Lay's, AirBender, Chushou TV and Tmall.

Discography

See also: Exo discography

Extended play

Title Album details Peak chart positions Sales
CHN
[46]		 JPN
[47]		 KOR
[48]		 US Heat
[49]		 US World
[50]
Lose Control 1 34 1 23 4

Songs

Title Year Peak chart positions Album
CHN KOR US
World
[54]
CHN
Baidu
[55]		 CHN
V Chart
[56]		 KOR
Gaon
[57]
Title Tracks
"Monodrama" (独角戏） 2016 — 1 155 5 non-album single
"what U need?" — 4 41 4 Lose Control
"Lose Control" — 1 57 18
As lead artist
"I'm Lay" 2014 — — — — Exology Chapter 1: The Lost Planet
"MYM" 2016 — — 94 — Lose Control
"Tonight" — — 96 —
"Relax" — — 100 —
Soundtrack appearances
"Happy Youth"（青春快乐）
(with Coco Jiang Wen and Li Xiaolu)		 2015 8 8 — — Oh My God OST
"Alone (One Person)" (一个人) 1 4 — — Ex Files 2: The Backup Strikes Back OST
"—" denotes releases that did not chart or were not released in that region.

Songwriting and Composing credits

Year Album Song Lyrics Music
Credited With Credited With
2014
 Exology Chapter 1: The Lost Planet "I'm Lay" Yes — Yes —
— "I'm Coming" Yes — Yes —
2015
 Love Me Right "Promise" (Korean version) Yes Chen & Chanyeol Yes Deez
"Promise" (Chinese version) Yes — Yes Deez
— "Dancing Young" Yes — Yes —
Ex Files 2: The Backup Strikes Back "Alone (One Person)" Yes — Yes —
Oh My God "Youth Happiness" Yes Hou Hao Zhong Yes Hou Hao Zhong
2016
 non-album single "Monodrama" Yes — Yes Devine-Channel
Lose Control "what U need?" Yes CC Yes Devine-Channel
"Lose Control" Yes CC Yes Devine-Channel
"Tonight" Yes CC & 王雅君 Yes Devine-Channel
"Relax" Yes — Yes Devine-Channel
"MYM" Yes — Yes Command Freaks &

Maeng Yonze

Filmography

Main articles: Exo videography and Exo filmography

Films

Year Title Role Notes
2015 SMTOWN The Stage Himself Documentary of SM Town.[58]
Ex-Files 2: The Backup Strikes Back. Lee Xiang He Special Appearance
Oh My God Le Yi Lead Role
2016 Go Fighting The Movie: Royal Treasure Himself Supporting Role
Unexpected Love Han Bing Lead Role
2017 Kung Fu Yoga Xiaoguang Supporting Role

Dramas

Year Title Role Network Notes
1998 We The People 咱老百姓 Huan Huan BTV as Zhang Jia Shuai
2015 Exo Next Door Lay Naver TV Cast Special Appearance
2016 To Be A Better Man Xiao Cai Jiangsu Television

Zhejiang Television

 Supporting cast
The Mystic Nine Er Yuehong Dragon Television
IQiyi		Lead Role
The Mystic Nine Side Story: Flowers bloom in February Er Yuehong IQiyi
2017 Operation Love Yan Xiaolai TBA

Variety shows

Year Title Network Role Notes
2005 Star Academy HBS: Hunan Television Participant
2013 Beatles Code 2 Mnet Guest with D.O., Xiumin, Suho, Baekhyun and Sehun
Immortal Songs 2 KBS Ep. 116: with D.O., Baekhyun, Chen, Kai, Sehun and Xiumin

Ep. 118 - Heartthrob Special Part 1: with Chen, Xiumin, D.O., Luhan, Kai, Sehun and Baekhyun

Ep. 119 - Heartthrob Special Part 2: with Chen, Xiumin, D.O., Luhan, Kai, Sehun and Baekhyun

Star Face-Off SBS with Chanyeol, Chen and D.O.
Dancing 9 Mnet with Kai and Girls' Generation's Hyoyeon
Our Home's Maknae MBC with Kris
Hello Counselor KBS Episode 145 with Kai
Super Hit Mnet with D.O., Baekhyun, Chen and Luhan
2014 Celebrity Chef Has Arrived JSBC: Jiangsu Television Contestant Ep. 1 and 2
Star Room Escape ZRTG: Zhejiang Television Guest Ep. 3 and 4
The Generation Show SZMG: Shenzhen Television with Xiumin
Crazy Magic- Happy Baby Go HBS: Hunan Television Ep. 4
2015 Happy Camp HBS: Hunan Television March 14, 2015
Guerilla Date KBS with Xiumin, Lay, Sehun, Chanyeol and Kai
You Hee-yeol's Sketchbook KBS2 Episode 277 with Exo
Hurry Up, Brother ZRTG: Zhejiang Television Ep. 20 May 8, 2015
Happy Camp HBS: Hunan Television November 21, 2015
Go Fighting! SMG: Dragon Television Main Cast Season 1
2016 Go Fighting! SMG: Dragon Television Season 2
We Got Married MBC Cameo Jo Se-ho & Cao Lu couple
Happy Camp HBS: Hunan Television Guest September 10, 2016
Day Day Up HBS: Hunan Television

Radio shows

Year Title Role Station Notes
2013 Sukira Kiss the Radio Guest KBS Cool FM with Baekhyun, Chen, Chanyeol and D.O.
Cultwo Show SBS Power FM with Suho, Baekhyun, Kris, Chanyeol, D.O., Xiumin and Kai
Shim Shim Tapa MBC Standard FM with Kris
Special DJ MBC Standard FM with Xiumin
MBC C-RADIO 偶像本色 Idol True Colours Guest MBC Standard FM with Kris

Music video appearance

Year Album Song Artist Notes
2014 Missing You Missing You Fly to the Sky Exo 90:2014 MV Remake
2016 non-album single "Monodrama" Lay SM Station single
Lose Control "what U need?"
"Lose Control" Title song of his first solo album

Bibliography

Year Title Notes ISBN
October 1, 2015 Standing Firm at 24 Autobiography 978-7550260917

Awards and nominations

Year Award Category Nominated work Result
2015 The Wind of the East Ceremony[59] Music Pioneer of the Year N/A Won
Asian Influence Awards Asia's Most Influential Artist N/A Won
Cosmopolitan Beauty Awards China Beautiful Idol of The Year N/A Won
Baidu Music Awards Best Movie OST "Alone (One Person)" Won
2016 Qingting FM Awards[60] Most Popular Male Artist N/A Won
18th Huading Awards Best New Actor N/A Nominated
16th Top Chinese Music Awards[61] Best Movie OST "Alone (One Person)" Won
Best Rookie Actor N/A Won
Most Popular Movie Idol Oh My God Nominated
4th YinYueTai V-Chart Awards Movie OST of the Year "Alone (One Person)" Won
Most Popular Newcomer N/A Won
LeTV LeEco Night Most Popular All-Rounded Idol N/A Won
4th China-Britain Film Festival Best Supporting Actor Ex-Files 2 Won
Asia Good Book Awards (China) Best Crossover Author of the Year Standing Firm at 24 Won
CCTV Global Chinese Music Awards Best Song "Lose Control" Pending
SBS PopAsia Awards Best Solo Star N/A Pending
TVBS Global Chinese Music Awards Best Song "Lose Control" Pending

References

  1. 1 2 3 Mark Russell (29 April 2014). K-Pop Now!: The Korean Music Revolution. Tuttle Publishing. p. 59. ISBN 978-1-4629-1411-1.
  2. ↑ "EXO-M Official Website". exo-m.smtown.com. Retrieved 2016-03-25.
  3. 1 2 3 4 "EXO-M, Dreamers who chase dreams". Entertainment: Shanghai TV Magazine. November 2013.
  4. ↑ "Luhan, EXO's Lay, f(x)'s Victoria, and K-drama "You Who Came From The Stars" tops Baidu's charts". Koreaboo. January 12, 2015. Retrieved November 15, 2015.
  5. ↑ "엑소 레이 문집, 초당 50부 판매 신기록…'엑소 효과'" (in Korean). Naver. September 17, 2015. Retrieved October 11, 2015.
  6. ↑ "EXO member becomes Hunan youth league ambassador". en.people.cn. July 15, 2016. Retrieved July 15, 2016.
  7. ↑ "Zhang Yixing NETEase Interview". youtube.com. August 15, 2016. Retrieved August 15, 2016.
  8. ↑ "Lay asks "What U Need?" in surprise MV release for his birthday". Allkpop. October 7, 2016.
  9. ↑ "Watch #EXO's Lay Wants You To "Lose Control" With Him In New MV". Soompi. October 28, 2016.
  10. 1 2 "Lay Naver Profile". Naver Profiles (in Korean). Naver.
  11. ↑ "051228 LAY (张艺兴) 越策越开心". Tudou (in Chinese). December 28, 2005. Retrieved October 10, 2015.
  12. ↑ "兴坨小猪参加《鹿鼎记》角逐韦小宝" (in Chinese). tieba.baidu. January 26, 2012. Retrieved October 10, 2015.
  13. ↑ "SM releases tenth Exo teaser, featuring Lay". Allkpop. 2012-01-16. Retrieved 2012-04-09.
  14. ↑ "Group SM The Performance". Jpopasia. 2012-12-30. Retrieved 2013-10-16.
  15. ↑ "DANCE UNIT SM ENTERTAINMENT 'SM THE PERFORMANCE' MERILIS "SPECTRUM"". Wordpress. 2012-12-30. Retrieved 2013-06-16.
  16. ↑ "EXO 首場個唱將加場" (in Chinese). kpopn. May 8, 2014.
  17. ↑ "EXO Lay to Reveal Self-Composed Song "I'm Coming" on Chinese End-of-the-Year Show". Soompi. December 30, 2014. Retrieved October 10, 2015.
  18. ↑ "SM Entertainment establishes individual studio in China to support Lay of EXO-M". Koreaboo. Retrieved November 15, 2015.
  19. ↑ "EXO Lay Becomes Regular Cast Member of Chinese Variety Show "Go Fighting"". Soompi. May 13, 2015. Retrieved January 6, 2016.
  20. ↑ "EXO Reveals More Details on New Repackaged Album Ahead of Release". Soompi. June 1, 2015. Retrieved October 10, 2015.
  21. ↑ "EXO's Lay to release an autobiography photobook in October". Koreaboo. September 12, 2015. Retrieved October 11, 2015.
  22. ↑ "EXO's Lay Breaks Record With Pre-Order of His Book". Soompi. September 17, 2015. Retrieved October 11, 2015.
  23. ↑ "EXO's Lay Tops Multiple Book Charts With Autobiography". hellokpop. March 24, 2016. Retrieved October 18, 2016.
  24. ↑ Tamar Herman (September 28, 2015). "EXO's Lay To Appear Alongside Jackie Chan in Upcoming Indian-Chinese Film 'Kung Fu Yoga'". KpopStarz. Retrieved October 11, 2015.
  25. ↑ "EXO's Lay and f(x)'s Krystal confirmed to act together in film 'Biyeon'". allkpop. October 7, 2015. Retrieved January 6, 2016.
  26. ↑ "EXO's Lay Cinches 'Best Supporting Actor' Award At 2016 China Britain Film Festival". Hello Kpop. June 28, 2016. Retrieved October 8, 2016.
  27. ↑ "新歌榜-百度音乐排行榜_百度音乐-听到极致". music.baidu.com. Retrieved 2016-10-08.
  28. ↑ "엑소 레이, 장쯔이 제작 영화로 中 스크린 진출" (in Korean). Naver. March 28, 2015.
  29. ↑ "엑소 레이, 장쯔이 세 번째 제작 영화 '종천아강'으로 스크린 데뷔" (in Korean). 10asia. March 18, 2015.
  30. ↑ "China V Chart | Billboard". Billboard. Retrieved 2016-10-08.
  31. ↑ "엑소 레이, 특별출연으로 중국 드라마 데뷔" (in Korean). TVReport. August 18, 2015. Retrieved October 11, 2015.
  32. ↑ Ilin Mathew (August 19, 2015). "EXO Member Lay to Make Acting Debut in Chinese Drama". International Business Times. Retrieved October 11, 2015.
  33. ↑ crystalcove. "Watch: EXO's Lay Sings Of Unrequited Love In Solo Track "Monodrama"". Soompi. Retrieved 2016-05-26.
  34. ↑ "엑소 레이, SM STATION 16번째 주인공..첫 솔로곡". Osen. Retrieved 2016-05-26.
  35. ↑ "Lay's Monodrama topping 9 charts and breaking the VChart record with 1,968,909 views in 48hrs !!!". onehallyu. Retrieved 2016-10-18.
  36. ↑ "EXO Lay's drama 'The Mystic Nine' reaches 10 billion views online!". Retrieved 2016-10-08.
  37. ↑ leonid (2016-09-29). "EXO's Lay To Release New Song For Fans On Birthday". Soompi. Retrieved 2016-10-08.
  38. ↑ kminjungee (2016-10-06). "Watch: EXO's Lay Asks "What U Need" In First Release From Upcoming Solo Album". Soompi. Retrieved 2016-10-08.
  39. ↑ "엑소 레이, 中 가수 중 최고 성적 '해외차트 올킬'". 2016-10-10. Retrieved 2016-10-10.
  40. ↑ Han Hyuk-seung (October 9, 2016). "EXO 레이 '솔로로 멋지게'". My Daily (in Korean). Retrieved October 9, 2016.
  41. ↑ "KPOP NEWS - [Video] EXO′s Lay Surprises Fans with ′what U need?′ on Birthday". mwave.interest.me. Retrieved 2016-10-10.
  42. ↑ Ahn Eun-kyung (October 27, 2016). "엑소(EXO) 레이, 28일 첫 솔로 앨범 'LOSE CONTROL'의 전곡 공개…'관심폭발'". Top Star News (in Korean). Retrieved November 25, 2016.
  43. ↑ Kang, E. (2016-10-20). "Release Date And Details Of EXO Member Lay's First Mini Album Revealed". Soompi. Retrieved 2016-10-21.
  44. ↑ "엑소 레이, 솔로로 韓음악방송 활동…'루즈컨트롤' 첫선". Retrieved 2016-11-08.
  45. ↑ "엑소 레이, '프로포즈 대작전' 中 리메이크판 주연 - 스타뉴스". star.mt.co.kr. Retrieved 2016-10-25.
  46. ↑ "Vchart Album Sales Chart" (in Chinese). YinYueTai. Retrieved November 4, 2016.
  47. ↑ "Oricon Album Chart - October Week 5" (in Japanese). Oricon. Retrieved November 23, 2016.
  48. ↑ [gaonchart.co.kr/main/section/chart/album.gaon?nationGbn=T&serviceGbn=&targetTime=46&hitYear=2016&termGbn=week "Gaon Album Chart - Week 46"] Check |url= value (help) (in Korean). Gaon. Retrieved November 17, 2016.
  49. ↑ "US Top Heatseekers Albums". Billboard Chart. Retrieved November 23, 2016.
  50. ↑ "US World Albums". Billboard Chart. Retrieved November 23, 2016.
  51. ↑ "Gaon Album Chart - October, 2016". Gaon Music Chart (in Korean). Retrieved November 10, 2016.
  52. ↑ "Oricon Album Chart - November Week 1". Oricon. Retrieved November 23, 2016.
  53. ↑ "Lose Control on Xiami". h.xiami.com. Retrieved November 30, 2016.
  54. ↑ "World Digital Songs : Page 1". Billboard. Retrieved 2016-07-16.
  55. ↑ "Baidu Weekly Music Charts". Baidu (in Chinese).
  56. ↑ "China V Chart". Billboard.
  57. ↑ "Gaon Chart". Gaon Chart (in Korean).
  58. ↑ "'SMTOWN The Stage' concert documentary film to be released this summer". Allkpop. May 15, 2015. Retrieved June 24, 2015.
  59. ↑ "EXO'S ZHANG YIXING RECEIVES MUSIC PIONEER OF THE YEAR AWARD: LAY ADMITS HE WAS 'VERY NERVOUS'". Movie News Guide. November 18, 2015. Retrieved January 1, 2016.
  60. ↑ "2015蜻蜓空中音乐榜投票结果". marketingvote.qingting.fm. Retrieved 2016-01-26.
  61. ↑ "EXO, Kangta, and Lee Soo Man take home awards at the '16th Top Chinese Music Awards' + NCT U debuts in China | allkpop.com". www.allkpop.com. Retrieved 2016-04-10.

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