Yang Zi (actress)
Yang Zi (, born 6 November 1992) also known as Andy Yang, is a Chinese actress and singer. She graduated from the Performance Institute of Beijing Film Academy (BFA) in 2014. In 2016, Yang was chosen by Southern Metropolis Daily as one of the Four Dan Actresses of the post-90s Generation (). Yang is noted for her roles in "Home with Kids" (2005), "Battle of Changsha" (2014), "Ode to Joy" (2016), "Noble Aspirations" (2016), "Ode to Joy 2" (2017), "Ashes of Love" (2018), "Go Go Squid!" (2019) and "The Oath of Love" (2022). Yang ranked 73rd on Forbes China  Celebrity 100 list in 2017, 24th in 2019, 13th in 2020 and 8th in 2021. Early life and education. Yang was born as Yang Niao () in Fangshan District, Beijing, China. Her father Yang Yunfei was a firefighter who worked in emergency rescue and disaster relief and her mother Ma Haiyan was a housewife. Her father who is quite nationalistic chose " (ao)" from the idiom " (cheng gong shen ao)", which means to have a successful bid for the Olympics and named her Yang Niao. From an early age, her parents accompanied her to various audition because of her love for acting . She first starred in "Ru Chi Chu Shan" at the age of 6. Yang studied at Beijing Xingcheng Primary School in Fangshan District, and Beijing No. 55 High School in Dongcheng District. In 2010, she was accepted to Beijing Film Academy. Career. 1999–2006: Beginnings and rise to prominence. In 1999, Yang made her acting debut by playing Zhou Qiong in "Ru Ci Chu Shan". In 2002, Yang had a minor role as little Consort Donggo in "Xiaozhuang Epic". In May 2004, Yang made her big-screen debut in the youth romance film "Girl's Diary", playing Ran Dongyang, an elementary  school student. She received a Best Child Actor nomination at the "Tongniu Film Awards" for her performance in the film. In 2005, Yang rose to prominence playing Xia Xue in the popular Mainland Chinese sitcom "Home with Kids". The series reached number one in ratings when it aired in China, and won the Outstanding Television Series (for children) award at the Flying Apsaras Awards and the Golden Eagle Awards. Yang became a household name in China since then. In March, she played little Bing Yue in historical costume drama Young Kangxi. In 2006, she reprised her role as Xia Xue  in the sequel "Home with Kids 2", though not in the subsequent installments. 2008–2013: Transition to teenage roles. In June 2008, Yang released her first solo album titled "Home with Snow", which is named after her character's name in "Home with Kids". In 2009, Yang voiced Ma Xiaotiao in the comedy animation series "Mo's Mischief: Teacher's Pet", adapted from Yang Hongying's children's literature series of the same name. The same year, Yang played her first leading role in the youth drama "Girl Rushes Forward". In 2010, Yang starred in the friendship drama "Boy's Diary . Then she was admitted to the Performance Institute of Beijing Film Academy. In February 2011, she starred in the family drama Love Comes Knocking on the Door", based on the novel "Stepmother" by Geling Yan. Her role as a rebellious teenager allowed her to successfully shed her image of a "child star". In May 2012, Yang starred in the medical drama "Angel Heart", portraying a kindhearted nurse. In August, she starred in the horror mystery thriller film "Insisrence", and won the Best Newcomer Award at the 14th Golden Phoenix Awards. She also sang the theme song "The Quiet Rubble" for  the film. In February 2013, Yang played the lead role in the period comedy drama "King Rouge", and sang a soundtrack for the drama titled "Blooming Rouge". In April, she starred in the family drama "Dad Comes Home". In August, she starred in the romance drama "Flowers in Fog", written by acclaimed Taiwanese writer Chiung Yao. 2014–2017: Rising popularity and breakthrough. In March 2014, Yang starred in her first war drama "Battle of Changsha", directed by Magnolia Award-winner Kong Sheng. The series was set against the backdrop of the "Battle of Changsha" in 1939 during World War II. Yang  played the role of Hu Xiangxiang, a nurse in the field hospital with different temperaments from the bright and lively girlhood to the aftermath of being a wife and a mother. The series was a critical success and was voted Best Drama of 2014 in major streaming website Douban after being broadcast on CCTV-8 beginning mid-July 2014. In May, Yang joined the second season of youth inspirational reality show "We Are Young" as a regular cast member. On May 22, she graduated from Beijing Film Academy. In April 2015, Yang joined Dragon TV's star travel-reality show "Sisters  Over Flowers" as a regular cast member. In August, she starred in the youth romance film "Where Are All The Time". In October, Yang starred in the period drama "Yangko Dance", which is a story inspired by the Haiyang Yangge folk dance that follows a man who gets caught in the complications of family, love and revenge. The series has reached a total of 6 billion online view and within 21 days of its broadcast, it became the Provincial Television Prime Ratings Champion in Jiangsu and Tianjin Satellite TV, maintaining top 5 positions till the end of its broadcast. Yang 's portrayal of the kindhearted and patriotic young lady received positive reviews. The same month, she co-starred in the horror mystery web series "The Ferryman". In April 2016, Yang starred in the metropolitan romance drama "Ode to Joy", which depicts the stories of five young women who comes from different social and educational backgrounds, but share a common goal. The series received critical acclaim and commercial success, and Yang gained widespread recognition for her portrayal of Qiu Yingying, a simple-minded girl from a small town. Yang was nominated for the Best Actress award at the China TV Golden  Eagle Award, and the Best Supporting Actress award at the 23rd Shanghai Television Festival for her performance. In June, she starred in urban romance drama "Perfect Wedding", where she played the role of a wedding planner. In July, she portrayed Lu Xueqi, one of the two female protagonists in Noble Aspirations, the television series adaption of the Xianxia novel "Zhu Xian". The drama was a commercial success and accumulated 23 billion views online, the highest record held by a Chinese drama at that time. Yang gained wider popularity as a result and was nominated at the 22nd Huading Awards as  Best Actress in the ancient drama category for her performance. In August, she co-starred in "Crying Out in Love", a film based on the romance novel "Socrates in Love" by Japanese novelist Kyoichi Katayama. In September, Yang was picked as one of the Four Dan Actresses of the post-90s generation along with Zhou Dongyu, Guan Xiaotong and Zheng Shuang by a survey conducted by Southern Metropolis Daily among 173 million netizens and 110 professional media and industry insiders. In December, she returned in the second season of Noble Aspirations as Lu Xueqi. On 27 January 2017, Yang appeared on  the stage of CCTV New Year's Gala for the first time and performed the opening song "Beautiful Youths of China" with her sisters from "Ode to Joy" and TFBoys. In May, she starred in the historical romance comedy drama "Legend of Dragon Pearl". Yang reprised her role as Qiu Yingying in the second installment of "Ode to Joy". 2018-2020: Mainstream recognition. On February 15, 2018, Yang attended the CCTV Spring Festival Gala and performed a comedy skit called "At Your Service" with Lin Yongjian, Li Mingqi and Dai Chunrong. In April, she played a guest role in the  urban drama "Women in Beijing". She then joined the second season of Chinese youth variety show "Give Me Five", as a regular cast member. In July, she starred in "The Destiny of White Snake", a fantasy romance drama based on the renowned Chinese folktale. Yang's portrayal of the innocent and naive snake spirit; as well as her voice-dub for the character, received positive reviews. In August, Yang starred in the fantasy romance drama "Ashes of Love", playing an innocent and lively fairy maiden. The series was a commercial success, topping both television and web ratings; and received positive  reviews. Yang received acclaim for her acting and experienced a new high in popularity. On November 26, she joined Sina Entertainment's year-end special project short film "The Most Beautiful Performance". On February 4, 2019, Yang performed a comedy skit titled "Platform" at the CCTV New Year's Gala with Shang Daqing, Li Wenqi, Huang Xiaojun and Tong Dawei. In July, she starred in the romantic comedy drama "Go Go Squid!", playing a talented computer major who is also a popular online singer. The drama topped television ratings and had been streamed more than 9.6 billion times in its  timeslot and was praised for its transmitting positive and uplifting messages such as the pursuit of dreams as well as patriotism. The success of "Go Go Squid" reaffirmed Yang's popularity. She won the Best Actress award in modern drama category at the 26th Huading Awards for her performance. She also sang the ending theme song of the drama titled "Milk Bread", which reached number 2 on Billboard China Social Chart. She then joined the third season of cooking reality show "Chinese Restaurant 3" as a regular cast member. In August, Yang featured in the disaster film "The Bravest" as  the wife of a firefighter, and won the Most Popular Supporting Actress award at the 16th Guangzhou Student Film Festival. She was also nominated for the Best Supporting Actress award at the 35th Hundred Flowers Awards for her performance. The same month, she starred in the crime suspense film "Bodies at Rest" playing a forensics scientist. She then starred in the romance environmental protection drama "My Mowgli Boy" where she played a marketing executive. Yang was awarded the iQiyi Scream Goddess at the iQiyi All-Star Carnival, and Weibo Queen at the Weibo Awards Ceremony. On January 24, 2020, Yang  performed "Meeting in 20 Years Again" alongside Angela Zhang, Xu Ziwei and Roy Wang at the CCTV New Year's Gala. In October, she featured in nationalistic film "My People, My Homeland", and sang the promotional OST "My Homeland" for the film. In November, she starred in "Hear Her", the first monologue series in China about women's rights. "Hear Her" is based on the format of BBC Studio's short-film series "Snatches: Moments from Women's Lives", produced and directed by famous Chinese actress Zhao Wei. Her themed episode is called "Wish for Love". On December 20, as  the "Guardian of National Treasure" Yang participated in an episode of the third season of large-scale cultural exploration reality show "National Treasure". 2021-present. In February 2021, Yang played a guest role in "Go Go Squid 2 Dt.Appledog's Time", the sequel to her hit drama "Go Go Squid!". The same month, she was awarded Weibo Queen for the second time at the Weibo Awards Ceremony. In In May, she participated in the detective reality show "The Detective's Adventure". On July 1, Yang participated in the "Great Journey", a large-scale epic theatrical performance to celebrate the  100th anniversary of the founding of the Chinese Communist Party and performed in the inaugural skit titled "Breaking Dawn" along with several other artists. In November, She starred in the urban healing drama "Psychologist", the television series adaption of Bi Shumin's 2007 novel "Female Psychologist". On January 4, 2022, Yang participated in an episode of People's Daily's "Dream Radio" Season 4: "Chinese Youth" as a guest host to promote Beijing Winter Olympic with Olympic gold medalist athlete Li Jianrou. On 15 February, she joined Tencent's "Olympic Report Star Radio" for the 2022 Winter Olympics and 2022  Winter Paralympics. In March, she starred in the romance drama "The Oath of Love", playing a cellist. The series was a commercial success and had gained over 3.5 billion streams throughout its run. Yang is set to star in the historical mystery drama "The Golden Hairpin", playing a detective and the xianxia drama "Immortal Samsara", playing a lotus fairy. She is also set to star in the crime film "Drug Hunting" playing an anti drug policewoman. She was cast in the xianxia drama "Lost You Forever". Other activities. On May 28, 2019, Yang unveiled her wax figure at Madame Tussauds  Beijing through an unveiling ceremony. On November 15, 2021, Yang announced the expiration of her contract with H&R Century Pictures Co., Ltd on her personal social media account. The next day, November 16, she set up her own personal studio. Endorsement. Yang has become one of the most in demand brand ambassadors in China. Her endorsement range is from food and beverage, daily necessities, fashions and jewellery, skincare, cosmetics and hygiene, to mobile applications, games and technological product. She endorses more than 15 brands including Chopard, Origins (cosmetics), Nivea and Lay's potato chips. In December 2019, she was named  the promotional ambassador for the "Beijing Television Spring Festival Gala 2020". On February 6, 2021, Tencent Video announced Yang as one of the VIP spokesperson for the platform. On December 8, Yang was announced as the Credit card spokesperson of China CITIC Bank. Live performances and others. On 16 September 2017, Yang appeared as a special guest at Vision Wei's 10th Anniversary Concert in Beijing, performing "Looking for Someone" and "Our Little World" with the singer. On December 31, Yang participated in the Hunan TV New Year Eve Concert and performed a song titled "Unsullied" which is the opening  theme song of her drama Ashes of Love. On 5 February 2019, Yang appeared on the Beijing Television Spring Festival Gala and sang the song "Childhood" with 3 other artist. On 31 December, she participated in the Hunan TV New Year Eve Concert and performed the song "Possible Night". On 25 January 2020, Yang participated in the "Beijing Television Spring Festival Gala 2020" together with her co-stars from Home with Kids and performed a song titled "Beijing, My Love" with actor Zhang Yishan. On October 17, Yang attended the 70th Anniversary Celebration of Beijing Film Academy and presented the  opening speech of the ceremony. On December 31, she participated in the Dragon TV New Year Eve Concert, performing "Unsullied", "One person Likes One Person", "Milk Bread" and "Us", the OST of her drama Ashes of Love , The Oath of Love , Go Go Squid! and Ode to Joy respectively. In September, Yang was announced as one of the 6 recommendation officers for "City Personification ()" IP series, representing Beijing. Bigeye Comics and Weibo Animation collaborated to release comic strips of Yang and Yan Bo called Yang Zi X Yan Bo "Hutong Projector ()" of "City Personification" IP series. On 31 December, Yang  participated in the Hunan TV New Year Eve Concert and performed the song "The Guardian of Princess Wendy". Public image. Ambassadorships. In January 2018, Yang participated in "Our New Era", a public music service advert produced by National Radio and Television Administration to promote youths and Chinese films and recorded a song titled "Thumbs Up For The New Era" and took part in its MV filming along with 20 other artists. In November, she joined the People's Daily to mark the 40th anniversary of the reform and opening up of the "China has me" activity. Then on 16 November , she participated in the celebration of the reform and opening up jointly produced by the Beijing Committee of the Communist Youth League of China and China Youth Daily, recorded the song "The Future Me" and took part in its MV filming. On August 28, 2020, the Supreme People's Court and the People's Court released a mini-video on the popularity of the Public Welfare Act of the Civil Code and invited Yang to participate in the mini-video to explain the rules as China's first "Civil Code Ambassador". In February 2021, she was invited to participate in  a video series event as one of the Observer of Law for the Supreme People's Court. On April 12, 2021, Yang was announced as the Cybersecurity Education Promoter for the 6th National Security Education Day. Influence. Yang ranked 73rd on Forbes China Celebrity 100 list in 2017. "Forbes China" listed Yang under their 30 Under 30 Asia 2017 list which consisted of 30 influential people under 30 years old who have had a substantial effect in their fields. She ranked 24th on Forbes China Celebrity 100 in 2019 and 13th in 2020. Yang was awarded the Most Influential Actress  of 2019 by Powerstar China on May 7, 2020. Yang has appeared on the "Forbes Asia" 100 Digital Star list, comprising 100 artists from across the Asia-Pacific region who have been able to stay active, raise awareness and inspire optimism despite the cancellation of physical events during the COVID-19 pandemic. In 2021, she ranked 8th on Forbes China Celebrity 100. As of January 2022, Yang has more than 59 million followers on Chinese microblogging platform Weibo. Her topic on Douyin has exceeded 60 billion views making her the first and only post-90s actress to do so. Philanthropy. WildAid. Yang  has been a WildAid Ambassador in China since 2019. On 20 December 2019, Yang participated in "Green Lifestyle" charity project jointly created by China Youth Daily, China Youth Online and WildAid and served as the Green Lifestyle Public Welfare Promotion Ambassador. In November 2020, Yang was announced as the Promotional Charity Ambassador of WildAid, advocating to protect wildlife. On 30 April 2021, WildAid and the China Wildlife Conservation Association co-launched a new PSA and billboard entitled "Bring Home Memories, Not Regrets" in China. The new campaign, led by Yang, calls on families not to purchase ivory and other wildlife  products as souvenirs, ahead of May Day, a peak vacation and travel period in China. She also lends her voice to WildAid's elephant program by starring in the "Be Their Role Model" campaign which asks parents to use their actions to set good examples for the next generation by not consuming ivory and other wildlife products. As the Convention on Biological Diversity Conference of Parties (CoP15) opened on October 11 in Kunming, China, WildAid, China Environmental News, and the China Wildlife Conservation Association launched a new billboard campaign series featuring Yang and 3 other WildAid ambassador. She led the  COP15 Conservation Biodiversity Campaign, helping to educate the public on the serious consequences of biodiversity loss and calling on the public to take action to protect biodiversity by saying no to illegal wildlife trade. Other charity works. In 2008, at the age of 15, Yang went to help children affected by the 2008 Sichuan earthquake with her father as a volunteer. In July 2009, she participated in a child star charity project, withdrew part of the project's fund and donated it to the China Youth Care Foundation and Western China Eagle Education Network to assist young students. In March  2011, she served as the Love Ambassador of the "Girl's Heart" charity event, which aims to care for the growth of adolescent girls in millions of families in China. She then participated in "We Share a Blue Sky" charity project. On April 22, 2012, She participated in the 8th Beijing Youth Charity Film Festival as its Image Ambassador. In July 2013, Yang served as the Image Ambassador of "Chinese Campus Health Action" Student Vision Health Guidance Program and encouraged the students to do eye exercise. In April 2017, She was announced as the Smart Action Ambassador for the China  Children and Teenager's Fund. She then participated in a project sponsored by the China Foundation for Poverty Alleviation and the China Environmental Protection Foundation titled "Towards Ecological Civilization, Salute to Environmental Protection Pioneers" as its Public Welfare Envoy. On September 9, Yang joined BAZAAR Stars' Charity Night to raise money for Bazaar's "Accelerating for Love" ambulance project. In January 2018, Yang participated in China Women's Development Foundation's "Mother's Postal Package" project as its Charity Ambassador to help mothers and families in poor areas. In August 6, she participated in the "For Hope+1" project organized by  China Women's Development Foundation to help children with sJIA. In October, she was announced as the National Mental Health Advocate. Yang then joined the "My Hometown and Me" campaign jointly initiated by the Central Committee of the Communist Youth League of China and Weibo to help fight poverty. She participated in the "Watch Hunger Stop" charity project through Instagram. Her costume pink gauze skirt in Ashes of Love was sold for 12,800 yuan and the money was used in the Amity Foundation's "National Culture Companion Child Growth" project. In March 2019, Yang joined "China Science Popularization Month" event  and served as the China Popular Science Month Health Ambassador. On September 5, She joined Public Welfare Fund for the "Philharmonic Listening Program" as the Ambassador of Love. She then participated in the "Beautiful China" education support project that focused on rural education. On November 1, China Fire and Rescue announced Yang as the National Fire Prevention Public Welfare Messenger. On November 17, She participated in BAZAAR Stars' Charity Night and performed a song titled "Mercury" to support an aesthetic education charity project. In January 2020, National Anti-fraud Center announced Yang as their Guardian Ambassador. In February, Yang donated  500 thousand to help people affected by COVID-19 pandemic. On March 9, Yang participated in "China Science Popularization Month" event and was named as the China Popular Science Month Anti-epidemic Science Ambassador. In April, she participated in World Health Organization's anti-epidemic welfare activities. On 17 October, the 7th National Poverty Alleviation Day, she was invited to work as an Advocate for the China Foundation for Poverty Alleviation to help alleviate poverty. In January 2021, Yang joined hands with Han Hong Love Charity Foundation along with more than 40 celebrity volunteers to support the advocate and practice of  public welfare everywhere. On March 11, she was announced as the first "Campus Charity Ambassador" of the 11th National Youth Green Plant Adoption. In July, Yang donated 300 thousand to Red Cross Society of China Zhengzhou Branch, 500 thousand to China Foundation for Poverty Alleviation and another 500 thousand to Henan Charity Federation to relieve the damages done in 2021 Henan floods. On December 1, Yang and Psychologist joined hands with UNAID for an AIDS Awareness campaign for World AIDS Day 2021. On January 4, 2022, Yang joined hands with China Social Welfare Foundation as one of the public welfare  ambassador of "Warm Heart Plan - Love for Farmers" project.