The 30th anniversary of Chen Baiqiang's death, how did Chen Baiqiang die?

His "What to Seek in Life" seems to be a portrayal of his life, perhaps it has long been doomed.

Text | Hexi

On October 25, 1993, Chen Baiqiang died of progressive brain failure at the age of 35, and today is the 30th anniversary of his death.

30 years, at the snap of a finger. Although Chen Baiqiang fell into a coma and died a year later was a sensation at the time, as time went by, as well as the death of superstars such as Leslie Cheung and Anita Mui, it attracted more people's attention, and Chen Baiqiang's figure seemed to be more and more blurred in our impression.

But when the music of "What to Seek in Life" sounds, I believe you will immediately think of this name: Chen Baiqiang.

Born on September 7, 1958 in Hong Kong, China, to a wealthy merchant family, Chen Baiqiang fell in love with music while studying at the São Paulo Co-educational High School, especially playing the electronic organ and piano. Chen Baiqiang, who wanted to sing, had no intention of studying, and dropped out of school at home after graduating from middle school. Later, he also made a cameo appearance in "Wenna Band", where Alan Tam was the lead singer, and sang English songs on the radio. His father initially disapproved of his career in singing, but seeing that he was so obsessed with music, he changed his mind and supported his child's choice, so he was sent by his father to the San Francisco Conservatory of Music in the United States for further study.

In 1977, Chen Baiqiang returned to Hong Kong, after which he participated in the "Hong Kong Yamaba Electronic Organ" competition and won the championship; In the same year, he won the third place in the "Hong Kong Pop Songwriting Invitational" with his English song "Rocky Road", and was signed as a singer by TVB, and has since entered the music scene.

Chen Baiqiang looks handsome, rich in bookishness, and has a beautiful voice, and after his debut, he was immediately sought after by fans. In 1979, he officially joined EMI Records and released his first solo album "First Love", the song "Tears for You" in the album won the Top Ten Chinese Golden Melody Award, becoming Chen Baiqiang's first widely known masterpiece. The following year, he held the "Chen Baiqiang Concert" in the Hong Kong City Hall Concert Hall, and it can be said that his musical path has gone very smoothly.

In 1982 and 1983, his "How Precious Tonight" and "I Like You" became very popular. "How Precious Tonight" was not only selected as the first season of the 1982 Top Ten Golden Melody Season, but also won the Top Ten Golden Melody Award and the AGB Audience Survey Most Popular Award at the Top Ten Songs Awards. His own song "Like You" became the song selected in the fourth season of the 1983 Top Ten Golden Songs and won the Top Ten Chinese Golden Melody Award of Radio Television Hong Kong. In 1988, he won the Top Ten Golden Melody Award for "Smoke and Rain".

At this time, Chen Baiqiang was already a very popular king-level singer in the Hong Kong music scene, and his popularity was second only to Alan Tam and Leslie Cheung among male singers. If it is said that before Jacky Cheung, Andy Lau and others were named the Four Heavenly Kings, there were four king-level singers in the Hong Kong music scene, Chen Baiqiang must have a place. In 2009, Chen Baiqiang was posthumously awarded the "Golden Needle Award", the highest award in the Hong Kong music scene, which also proved Chen Baiqiang's status in the Hong Kong music scene.

Chen Baiqiang, Leslie Cheung, Alan Tam, the three giants of the Hong Kong music scene in the 80s

In 1989, Chen Baiqiang came to Taiwan, China, and in a taxi, heard the song "Remember This" from Wang Jie's first album "A Game and a Dream", and he immediately liked the song and bought the copyright from UFO Records. After returning to Hong Kong, the famous Hong Kong lyricist Poon Wai Yuen refilled the lyrics for him, which is the famous "What to Seek in Life".

This song became popular all over the streets as the theme song of TVB's hit TV series "Unforgiving", and the ending song of this TV series is the Cantonese version of Wang Jie's "A Game One Dream" "A little sad and a little crazy". "What to Seek in Life" can be said to be one of the very few works in Wang Jie's works that have been covered by others and become popular with Wang Jie, "Remember These" is not particularly eye-catching in Wang Jie's golden song library, but after being covered by Chen Baiqiang, it has become one of the most impressive and widely circulated pop music.

"What to Seek in Life" won the 1989 Hong Kong Top Ten Chinese Golden Melody Award and Wireless Top Ten Golden Melody Award, which made Chen Baiqiang's music career reach the pinnacle.

"What to ask for in life" is a melancholy and ethereal song. The helpless sigh about the rush of life from the lyrics is believed to be the reason why this work has always been boring. This song, Pan Weiyuan's excellent lyrics really add a lot of points. And Chen Baiqiang's interpretation, coupled with the plot of the TV series "Duty", can be said to perfectly interpret the artistic conception of this song, so it has been sung for more than 30 years.

But after the peak, Chen Baiqiang fell into his own bottleneck period. The rise of young singers such as Jacky Cheung and Andy Lau made him suffer from depression due to stress. From January 30 to February 1, 1992, he held three "farewell Shanghai concerts" in Shanghai, and announced that he would bid farewell to the music scene at the end of the year.

Just a few months later, on May 18, 1992, Chen Baiqiang fell into a coma after taking sleeping pills with alcohol, and was later sent to Queen Mary Hospital for treatment. On October 25, 1993, Chen Baiqiang died of progressive brain failure after 17 months in a coma at the age of 35. Died young, indeed too young.

And his "What to Seek in Life" seems to be a portrayal of his life, perhaps it has long been doomed.

Maybe in the first place, Chen Baiqiang should not have entered the entertainment industry. His personality is suitable for singing quietly, but not for showing himself in flash. He feels very wooden on stage, almost singing step by step. After he became popular, he also entered the film industry, participating in many film and television dramas such as "Cheers", "Unemployed Student" and "Autumn Fairy Tale", in addition to his handsome appearance has gained some female fans, his acting skills are really lackluster, no matter what role he plays, it is difficult for him to hide the temperament of his noble son.

Chen Baiqiang in "Autumn Fairy Tale"

In "Autumn Fairy Tale", Chen Baiqiang's brilliance was completely crushed by Zhou Yunfa, and there was almost no sense of existence. It should be said that this is all Chen Baiqiang's true colors. Such a character is indeed not suitable for climbing in the competitive Hong Kong music scene, he is more suitable for singing heart songs quietly behind the scenes.

However, Chen Baiqiang was one of the most popular male singers in Hong Kong in the 80s of last century, and if he was so unsuitable for the music scene, it seems that he should have been eliminated a long time ago. Another reason why he died young is because of He Chaoqiong.

Chen Baiqiang and He Chaoqiong

Ho Chaoqiong, the daughter of Macau gambling king Stanley Ho and the second wife Lan Qiongying. In 1981, Chen Baiqiang filmed "Breakthrough", then 19-year-old He Chaoqiong studied acting in the Hong Kong TVB artist training class and successfully passed the audition, and her cameo role was played by Chen Baiqiang's girlfriend in the play. The two met because of this.

In 1985, Chen Baiqiang invited He Chaoqiong to be the heroine of the MV of his song "Love You Deeply", and at that time he also frankly told the public that He Chaoqiong was his confidant. On September 7, 1988, Chen Baiqiang's 30th birthday banquet, He Chaoqiong sat in the hostess position beside him, and even Chen Baiqiang leaned on He Chaoqiong's shoulder after drinking. The relationship between the two seems to be very obvious.

But Stanley Ho played the role of a battering mandarin duck for the better development of the family. Stanley Ho forced Ho to marry Hui Jinheng, the son of a wealthy Hong Kong businessman Hui Saixun.

In 1991, He Chaoqiong and Xu Jinheng got married. After that, Chen Baiqiang fell into severe depression. He relied on alcohol and sleeping pills to relieve his pain. It can be seen that Chen Baiqiang's depression is a reason.

After Chen Baiqiang's death, He Chaoqiong, as Xu Jinheng's wife, did not shy away from supporting Chen Baiqiang's soul, and her grief was overflowing.

He Chaoqiong helped Chen Baiqiang to support the spirit

In 2000, He Chaoqiong and Xu Jinheng's marriage came to an end. If it was Chen Baiqiang and He Chaoqiong who came together at that time, would the two be happy? Wouldn't Chen Baiqiang have left like this?

There are no ifs in this world, there are only regrets. As "What to Seek in Life" sings:

What to ask for in life

You can never see through in confusion

I didn't expect what I lost

It's all mine

- "What to Seek in Life"