Zi Yu

Zi Yu (Chinese: 梓渝; born 6 July 2002), also known by his real name Zheng Peng (Chinese: 郑朋), is a Chinese singer and actor. He was a student at the Department of Performing Arts at the Beijing Contemporary Music Academy (Chinese: 北京现代音乐研修学院).  

 Early years 
Born in Lianyungang, Jiangsu, in 2002, Zi Yu attended the Beijing Contemporary Music Academy. There, he was discovered by a talent scout. On May 28, 2019, he became a trainee with the entertainment company Huakai Banxia (Chinese: 花开半夏). 

 Career 
On June 26, 2020, he appeared as a Huakai Banxia trainee in "We Are Young" (Chinese: 少年之名), a Youku's boy band survival program. 

On September 19, 2020, he appeared on "Emperor Has Arrived" (Chinese: 欧皇驾到), a Youku's fashion toy variety show. 

In January 2021, Zi Yu again competed as a Huakai Banxia trainee in iQiyi's boy band survival show, "Youth With You Season Three." But he did not get a spot in the final group. 

In February 2021, he appeared in "Youth in Bloom" (Chinese: 花开的少年们), an iQiyi's game challenge mini-variety show.

On June 25, 2021, he joined the boy band Guanghe Shaonian and made his formal debut. 

His acting career began on August 25, 2022. He played the role of Xiao Ban (Chinese: 萧绊) in his first TV series, "My Lady General" (Chinese: 将军在下). 

On December 8, 2022, word went that he had been bullied by the band's leader, Zheng Xingyuan, for a long period. 

On December 10, the company denied the bully claims. Later, a voice recording of Zi Yu comforting his fans was shared online. 

By December 23, Zi Yu had started talks with Huakai Banxia to end his contract. On January 8, 2023, the company asked him to pack his things and move to Hangzhou by January 14. On January 9, Zi Yu said he had been bullied by Zheng Xingyuan and claimed he would take legal action to end his contract.

After Zi Yu's post spread online, Zheng Xingyuan said that an argument during practice had become a physical fight. He also showed a medical certificate and said he had depression. Fans called his certificate "a fake" because his medical check only took one minute.

Although Zi Yu was able to end his contract, he had to pay a fine of 600,000 Chinese yuan within five years. This caused financial problems, and he took many part-time jobs to make money. 

In June 2025, the TV series "Revenged Love" (Chinese: 逆爱) was released, and Zi Yu became famous. 

 References 
Category:Chinese actors
Category:Chinese singers

Category:C-pop