Zhang Lu ( Chinese: 張露; January 21, 1932 – January 26, 2009), often written Chang Loo, was a Chinese singer and actress, known as a pioneer in Chinese pop beginning in the 1940s.

Biography

She was born Zhang Xiuying (张秀英) in Suzhou in 1932. ^{[1] [2] [3]} Her family moved to Shanghai when she was a young child. ^[1]

Zhang was discovered in the mid-1940s by her neighbor, a broadcaster, who recommended her to sing at a local radio station. She started out singing covers of popular Zhou Xuan songs. By the late 1940s, she had signed with EMI. ^[1]

She released a series of hits songs, becoming popular in both Shanghai and Hong Kong. ^{[1] [4]} "给我一个吻" ("Give Me a Kiss"), a Mandarin cover of " Seven Lonely Days," became one of her best-known songs. ^{[1] [3]} Other hits included "小小羊儿要回家," "不许他回家," and "迎春花" ("Little Lamb is Going Home," "Don't Let Him Go Home," and "Winter Jasmine," respectively). ^[5]

She was considered a pioneer of Chinese pop music in this period, singing in both Chinese and English and incorporating jazz styles. ^{[1] [2] [6]} Zhang also worked as an actress, including in the films Prisoner of Love in 1951 and The Lark in 1965. ^{[4] [7]}

In 1952, she moved to Hong Kong. ^{[1] [2]} She married the Filipino musician Ollie Delfino, whom she had met while performing in Singapore, in the late 1950s. The couple had two sons, Orlando and Alex To. ^{[1] [4] [8]}

Zhang retired in 1975 and moved to Canada in the following decade. ^{[1] [2]} She returned to Hong Kong when her son Alex became a successful performer, and she occasionally returned to the public eye to perform with him. ^[1] She died in Hong Kong in 2009, at age 76. ^{[1] [8] [9]}

Her music saw a revival in popularity in 2003, when her songs "All the Stars in the Sky" and "The Plough Song" were remixed for the compilation The Original Shanghai Divas. ^[6] In 2019, her song "Tiao Yi Ge Man Bo" appeared in Season 3 of the American show The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel. ^[10]

References