# Joker Xue

Joker Xue (Chinese: 薛之谦; pinyin: Xuē Zhīqiān, born July 17, 1983) is a Chinese singer-songwriter and record producer, formerly known as Jacky Xue. One of the most-streamed and most popular Mandopop artists, Xue's musical style melds the classic pop pairing of piano and strings with folk-tinged acoustic guitar and R&B beats; in recent years, he has incorporated more rock elements into his music. Xue is known for his distinctive emotional ballads, frequently referred to as "Xue Style Love Songs" (薛式情歌/薛氏情歌) by critics, media, and listeners. In addition, his "jokester" nature and spontaneity contribute to his popularity as "duality in his persona has created an unpredictability, almost mystery, about what he is going to do or say next."
Xue's Extraterrestrial World Tour, drawing more than 4.9 million people, is among the most-attended concert tours of all-time. He is one of five Chinese artists to surpass 100 shows, counting both arena and stadium venues, in a single tour and the only Chinese artist to surpass 100 stadium shows in a single tour.

## Early life

Xue was born and raised in Shanghai, China. At age four, his mother died of a heart disease. He studied painting in his youth, then Hotel Management at Glion Institute of Higher Education in Switzerland, before dropping out to pursue a music career.

## Music career
### 2005–2010: Debut and career beginnings

In 2004, Xue passed the audition for the singing competition show My Style, My Show (我型我秀), but chose to resign because he felt he "was not qualified to compete." In 2005, he returned to My Style, My Show, finishing in fourth place and signing with Shang Teng Entertainment (上腾娱乐). In 2006, he released his self-titled debut album Jacky (薛之谦) as Jacky Xue. His debut album, including major hits such as "Serious Snow" (认真的雪) and "Yellow Maple Leaves" (黄色枫叶), sold over 200,000 copies within one and a half months and Xue was awarded the Most Popular New Artist at the 6th Global Chinese Music Awards. In 2007, Xue released his second album How Are You? (你过得好吗), which sold more than 150,000 copies within one month of its release.
In 2008, Xue was a torchbearer for the 2008 Summer Olympics torch relay. The song "Once Upon a Time in Zurich" (苏黎世的从前) from his second album was adapted to pay tribute to Olympic athletes and renamed "Origin of the Dream" (梦开始的原点). It was included on his third album Deeply Loved You (深深爱过你) which was considered a critical and commercial success, making history with seven nominations at the Beijing Pop Music Awards and prompting his company to release an upgraded commemorative album in April the following year. He closed out the year with his first concert in Shanghai on December 20.
In 2009, Xue released Unfinished Songs (未完成的歌), a compilation album composed of selected tracks from his previous albums with three new songs. In 2010, Xue starred in The University Days of a Dog (一只狗的大学时光). Despite his successes, Shang Teng Entertainment's new management was unwilling to fund Xue's next album. During this period, he fell into depression, and lost weight sharply.

### 2011–2015: Self-funded music

In 2011, Xue opened his own hotpot restaurant, its successes allowed him to keep pursuing music. In 2012, Xue starred in and provided music for the soundtrack of the television series The Queen of SOP. In July, he marked the end of his seven-year contract with Shang Teng Entertainment, which he chose to honor because they opened the door for his music career, with the announcement of a new album. Next month, he released his fifth album, Several Of... (几个薛之谦). Xue signed with Shanghai Kunhong Media and later terminated the contract due to Kunhong's inability to fulfill said contract.
In 2013, Xue signed with Ocean Butterflies and released his sixth album An Unexpected Journey (意外). It debuted at the top of Sino Chart and remained there for two weeks. In 2014, Xue starred in the television series Mother Like Flowers (妈妈像花儿一样). He also appeared on many Chinese variety shows because he needed to make money and to keep exposure during the intervals between album releases, saying "doing variety shows is to make money, and the ultimate goal of making money is to return to making music." He later called his style of humor during this period "hard humor" because he had to force himself to exaggerate his affectations for comedic effect.
In 2015, Xue founded his own streetwear brand and gained significant popularity through sharing jokes on Weibo. On June 8, he released an EP, Gentleman (绅士), which contained the highly popular song "Actor" (演员), one of the most viewed Chinese music video on YouTube with more than 218 million views. However, Xue advised against purchasing the EP because it only contained three songs and instead recommended listening to his songs online for free; a rarity as Chinese music streaming platforms, such as NetEase Cloud Music and QQ Music, follow the freemium model and require listeners to either subscribe or purchase in order to listen to the songs in full. Xue stated he made his music available at no charge because he wants his fans to "just come and listen to my songs" and he feels he can be more sincere about it if money is not involved. On October 17, Xue released the EP Half, which surpassed 100 million streams in less than a month.

### 2016–2018: Commercial success

In 2016, Xue changed his English name from "Jacky" to "Joker" as "Jacky" was the result of a guessing game he played at his debut and "Joker" reflected his sense of humor. Xue pushed himself to appear in more than 40 variety shows in an effort for the audience to connect his name to his music so he would not become outdated once again; the physical demands of the packed schedule led to him being hospitalized in May. In July, Xue produced and released his seventh album Beginner (初学者), which won multiple awards, including Album of the Year, Most Popular Album of the Year, Most Popular Artist of the Year, and Most Popular Singer-Songwriter of the Year. In 2016, Xue ranked tenth on the list of top ten internet celebrities commercial value, compiled and released by data analysis agency Standard Ranking.
In January 2017, Xue was again hospitalized due to acute gastroenteritis while filming the variety show Our Challenge (我们的挑战). He later said his focus will be on music going forward, shedding the variety show star persona and working toward the goal of becoming "Eason Chan of mainland." In April, he embarked on his first concert tour I Think I've Seen You Somewhere Tour (我好像在哪见过你巡回演唱会). That same year, he starred in the film What a Day! (有完没完) and the television series Boy Hood (我们的少年时代). In December, Xue released his eighth album The Crossing (渡) and won Most Popular Male Artist of the Year at Kugou Music Awards. By the end of 2017, the total stream count of his songs across all Chinese platforms exceeded 12.7 billion and he ranked first amongst solo artists cumulative playback volume on QQ Music.
In early 2018, Xue suffered from laryngitis for several months and at one point feared he would not be able to perform anymore before making a full recovery. In July, he began his Skyscraper World Tour. On December 31, he released his ninth album Freak (怪咖) and again ranked first amongst solo artists cumulative playback volume on QQ Music.

### 2019–2023: Extraterrestrial World Tour

Xue continued the Skyscraper World Tour through the first half of 2019. His shows in London and Sydney ranked 45 and 33 on Billboard's March and April boxscore lists, respectively. On May 19, the tour concluded in Hong Kong and set the record for highest concert box office by a mainland China male singer. In December, Xue released his tenth album Dust (尘) and was named Male Singer of the Year at CMIC Music Awards. Billboard magazine included "Puppet" (木偶人), the lead single from Dust, on their The Global No. 1s You (Probably) Never Heard list. In 2020, Xue released his eleventh album Extraterrestrial (天外来物). The lead single "Extraterrestrial" was named one of the Best Songs of the Year and Xue was named "Most Influential Male Singer (Mainland China)" at the 2021 Tencent Music Entertainment Awards.
In 2021, Xue adopted the stage persona "Joker" at Flower Sea Beauty Music Festival in Shanghai and continued the trend through 2023. He held the first two shows of his Extraterrestrial World Tour in Suzhou in October followed by two shows in Guangzhou in November, ranking first in comprehensive concert box office. He was listed among the Top 20 Artists of the Year and Top 10 Singer-Songwriter of the Year on Tencent Music Year End Charts. In 2022, Xue released his twelfth album, Countless (无数). He was named Best Male Singer at the 15th Migu Music Awards and Male Singer of the Year by the CMIC Music Awards for a second time. In December, he resumed the Extraterrestrial World Tour, previously paused due to COVID-19 restrictions, with one show at Wuyuan River Stadium.
In 2023, Xue headlined 75 shows with consecutive shows at most stops and a series of three consecutive shows at the Beijing National Stadium on August 11–13, attracting approximately 60,000 people per show. Quzhou, the first stop of Xue's 2023 shows, placed first as fastest-growing city in the country's box office rankings, prompting Quzhou News Media Center voicing their gratitude to Xue in a video on their official Douyin account. Xue released five singles in 2023. "Worship" (崇拜) and "Conviction" (念) were among the Top 10 Songs of the Year on Tencent Music's year-end chart while Xue himself was named Top 10 Artists of the Year and Top 10 Songwriters of the Year. In July and August, Xue briefly served as a judge on Sing! China before the show was suspended for alleged mistreatment of former coach Coco Lee. In December, Xue ranked number one in total number of fans across all music streaming platforms in China with 83.62 million fans.

### 2024-Present: Recent activities

On June 15, Xue was announced as a brand ambassador for QQ Speed, with in-game customization rewards and a theme song written by Xue. The theme song, "Relieve Boredom" (解解闷), was released on August 8 via a virtual concert in-game and on streaming platforms the following day. On August 18, Xue concluded his Extraterrestrial Tour in Suzhou; the record-setting tour totaled 140 shows with the attendance of approximately 5,000,000. At the end of the final Extraterrestrial concert, Xue shared a trailer of his next tour: "King of Beasts" (万兽之王). Same month, Xue's hashtag (#薛之谦) surpassed 100 billion views on Douyin. From August 25 to December 15, Xue performed at 18 music festivals, again adopting the stage persona "Joker" he used at previous music festivals.
In September, Xue performed "Rent or Purchase" (租购) on the music variety shows Melody Journey (音乐缘计划), which was very well received. In October, he performed "That Day On the Road of No Return" (在那天回不去的路上) on the show, the song was later released as a single with a new verse and elements of Beijing Opera added. On October 15, Xue extended the Extraterrestrial Tour with seven international stadium shows that will have same stage design and setlist as his shows in China, so his overseas fans can have the complete experience. On November 21, Xue announced on his Weibo the studio version of "Rent or Purchase" will be released at midnight and that it is the final song of his 13th album, The Guardian, released digitally the next day. In December 2024, China Music Group released the 2024 Music Industry Report; in it, "Rent or Purchase" was named Global Nostalgic Single of the Year and Extraterrestrial World Tour was named among Top 10 Performances of the Year.
In January 2025, TVBS News reported Xue has acquired rights to his music videos after all of his music video were removed from Taihe Rye Music's official YouTube channel and reuploaded on Xue's own YouTube official channel. On January 28, Xue made his debut at the CMG New Year's Gala. As one of the exceptionally few singers granted song selection autonomy for the event, Xue chose "Fang's Words" (方的言) by Zhao Yingjun; the title is a wordplay on "dialect" (方言). Xue was the only male artist to have a solo stage and one of the four artists who had solo stages. During the post-performance interview, Xue said he chose the song because of the significance of dialect in Chinese culture and Zhao's dream of appearing on the CMG New Year's Gala. Xue performed with the guitar Zhao gifted him before Zhao passed away in 2021.
On February 14-15, Xue performed two shows at the Singapore National Stadium as part of the Extraterrestrial World Tour, and received positive from Straits Times.

## Social impact
### Philanthropy

In 2007, Xue went to Russia with other artists to participate in the China Cultural Festival key project "Friendship Tour along the Volga River" jointly organized by the Ministry of Culture of the People's Republic of China and the Russian Federation Cultural Film Agency. In 2008, Xue presented the "Wings of Happiness" charity evening on January 20. In March, Xue donated part of the royalties from his new book and 10 photos for auction to Shanghai Red Cross in support of the reconstruction to the snow disaster-stricken area. In July, He was elected as a torchbearer for the 2008 Summer Olympics and passed the torch in Zhengzhou. In 2018, Xue served as promotion ambassador for the "Run Beijing" charity project, aimed to raise awareness for the importance of physical and mental health. In 2024, while serving as a special guest at Xue's concert in Beijing, Han Hong shared that Xue has quietly been donating to charitable causes for many years though he has never publicly announced it.

### Consumer protection

In September 2023, Xue was forced to cancel the second show on his Chengdu stop due to a high fever. He announced the news and refund policy in person because he felt it was only right to do so given the fact that fans had already travelled to the stadium. He then stayed and chatted with the audience in an impromptu mini meet-and-greet session for an hour before leaving. Not only were fans offered to choice to refund or keep their tickets for a future show, but those from out of town could also be reimbursed for their travel and lodging expenses in full. This kind of comprehensive refund policy has never been done before and drew widespread praise. Tianjin Consumers Association voiced their approval of the decision, stating that "refunding the ticket of a cancelled concert is the basic responsibility of the performer," Xue's proactive reimbursement of travel and lodging expenses demonstrates "the social responsibility that public figures should have" and serves to "maintain a harmonious consumption environment." Other artists began providing similar refund policy, but with limits on travel and lodging reimbursement amounts, for concert cancellations in the following year.
Xue has stated multiple times that he is against ticket scalping. He will add one or two more shows at each stop to increase the likelihood that his fans can get tickets and decrease the chances of scalpers taking advantage. He has also urged his fans to only come to one show per tour and to spend their time and money on enjoying other things in life.

## Business ventures

Xue stated "I want to use the money I earn from business to make music" because relying on music to make a living is "very tiring" and having other means of income means "making music is no longer a burden". In 2011, Xue opened a hotpot restaurant named Shang Shang Qian (上上谦, a play on 上上签 meaning the luckiest draw and the character 谦 in his name). At its peak, Shang Shang Qian had multiple locations across the country. As of 2023, only 2 locations remain in Shanghai and Guangzhou.
In 2015, Xue established the streetwear brand Dangerous People and said in an interview that he does not want it to only rely on fan economy but also be accepted by others who are not his fans. In January 2019, he is no longer a shareholder but remains the brand manager. As of December 2023, he still promotes the brand on social media.
In July 2020, Chaoshi Music was registered and established, its business scope includes cultural and artistic exchange activities, radio and television program production, performance management, and Internet cultural engagement. Xue's father owns 33% of the stocks and serves as a director. Chaoshi Music is part of Grand Vista Music Group, which is part of Tencent Music. On December 24, 2021, he released a new single "Phoenix Feathers and Unicorn Horns" (凤毛麟角) through Chaoshi Music. On May 31, 2022, Xue posted a photo on his Weibo announcing the opening of Chaoshi Music. All of Xue's albums are acquired and currently owned by Chaoshi Music, and Chaoshi Music produces Xue's Extraterrestrial World Tour.

## Accolades

Xue's artistry has received praise from other acclaimed musicians, producers, and songwriters. Zhang Yadong said: "Through these lyrics, you can understand his particularly delicate thoughts, which are very, very good" when discussing the song "Skyscraper" from Freak. Yuan Weiren said: "I think a musician like Xue actually possesses the most important part of many Chinese music creations. I especially hope to have the opportunity to work with Xue" when discussing mainland China singer-songwriters. Cui Shu said: "Xue is now on his way to becoming a national singer. He is well-known and has popular songs" while participating at a forum hosted by Sina Entertainment Zhao Yingjun said: "he is one of the best lyricists in the music industry" on his personal Weibo.
Throughout his career, he has been recognized by Chinese Top Ten Music Awards, Global Chinese Music Awards, Music Radio China Top Chart Awards, Migu Music Awards, CMIC Music Awards, Tencent Music Entertainment Awards and many more for his music and popularity.

## Discography

Studio albums
* Jacky (2006)
* How Are You? (2007)
* Deeply Loved You (2008)
* Unfinished Songs (2009)
* Several Of... (2012)
* An Unexpected Journey (2013)
* Beginner (2016)
* The Crossing (2017)
* Freak (2018)
* Dust (2019)
* Extraterrestrial (2020)
* Countless (2022)
* The Guardian (2024)

## Variety shows

While Xue has starred in films (e.g. The University Days of a Dog, What a Day!) and television series (e.g. The Queen of SOP, Mother Like Flowers, Boyhood), he is better known to the viewing audience for his variety show presence. Since 2017, Xue has shifted his focus to music and concert tours. He is more discriminating with his variety show appearances in recent years, choosing either long-standing or music-oriented programs.
Mars Intelligence Agency (火星情報局) is the longest-standing variety show Xue has appeared on. He has been a main cast member since the first season in 2016 and is scheduled to return for the seventh season in 2024. Xue has appeared on multiple singing competition shows, the most notable being The Coming One (明日之子) in 2017 and Sing! China (中国好声音) in 2023 as both shows had controversy regarding fairness that Xue called out publicly.
Earlier in his career, Xue tended to be the host or a panel member on music-oriented variety shows, such as Hidden Singer (誰是大歌神), Golden Melody (金曲捞), and Golden Melody 2 (金曲捞之挑战主打歌). In recent years, he tended to be a collaborator or mentor on shows such as The Next Banger (我的音樂你聽嗎), Singer with Legends 3 (我们的歌第三季), and In China (中國潮音). In 2024, Xue joined the variety shows Melody Journey (音乐缘计划) and Run! Live Performance for Ten Thousand People (奔赴! 万人现场).

## Concerts and tours

Xue held his first concert in 2008 in Shanghai. Since 2017, he has headlined three tours for a total of 173 shows. His first tour, I Think I've Seen You Somewhere, was based in China. He expanded the scope for his second and third tours, Skyscraper World Tour and Extraterrestrial World Tour, to include stops in other Asian countries and cities in North America, Europe, Australia.
Xue holds several tour records, all accomplished during his Extraterrestrial Tour in 2024. In April, he became one of five Chinese artists who have held more than 100 concerts in a single tour. In June, he became the only Chinese artist to have held more than 100 stadium concerts in a single tour, a significant milestone as stadiums have much larger capacity compared to arenas and demand more of the artist's performance, tour equipment, and ticket sales. In October, he became the first mainland China artist to hold an international stadium tour when he extended the Extraterrestrial World Tour with seven international stadium shows.
He also holds numerous venue records as the first artist to perform at many stadiums in China and as the first mainland China artist to perform at various stadiums and arenas overseas, both due to his willingness to travel to second- and third-tier cities (as categorized by Chinese city tier system) and his widespread fanbase. In July 2023, Xue held three consecutive concerts at Beijing National Stadium, fulfilling his wish of headlining the venue as stated in an interview eighteen years ago, and returned for six more shows in July 2024.
Both of his world tours received positive reviews from The Straits Times. Of the Skyscraper World Tour, Xue's voice "smouldered at its lower end and shimmered in its higher register" and he was able to "play up the drama in performance without being showy." Of the Extraterrestrial World Tour, Xue's style was "playful and wisecracking", his voice "rang with a pleading intensity perfect for the grand anthems he is known for", and he familiarized "himself with all things Singapore" to include local details into his performance. He again received positive review for his encore shows at Singapore National Stadium, "no script, no filter, all in good fun" with the appeal for his shows being "his authenticity, spontaneity and the fact that he can sing."

### Tours

* I Think I've Seen You Somewhere Tour (2017)
* Skyscraper World Tour (2018–2019)
* Extraterrestrial World Tour (2021–2025)

### Concerts

* Live Concert in Shanghai (2008)
* Douyin Online Concert: Ke (2023)