Jolin Tsai facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Jolin Tsai
Tsai in 2018
Born	Tsai I-ling (1980-09-15) September 15, 1980 (age 44) Hsinchuang, Taipei, Taiwan (now Xinzhuang, New Taipei, Taiwan)
Alma mater	Fu Jen Catholic University
Occupation	Singer songwriter actress dancer record producer author businesswoman
Years active	1999–present
Works	Albums songs singles concerts videos films
Awards	Full list
Musical career
Origin	Taipei, Taiwan
Genres	Pop dance
Instruments	Vocals
Labels	Universal EMI Gold Typhoon Warner Sony
Chinese name
Chinese	蔡依林
Transcriptions Standard Mandarin Hanyu Pinyin Cài Yīlín Wade–Giles Ts'ai4 I1-lin2 Southern Min Hokkien POJ Chhoà I-lîm

Jolin Tsai (Mandarin: [tsʰaɪ˥˩]; Chinese: 蔡依林; born September 15, 1980) is a Taiwanese singer, songwriter, and actress. Known as the "Queen of C-pop", she is one of the most influential pop cultural figures in the Chinese-speaking world. Recognized for her continual reinvention and versatility in musical style and visual image, she is regarded as a key figure in bringing dance-pop music into the mainstream in Greater China. She assumes creative control over all aspects of her career, and her works, which incorporate themes of societal issues and ideological connotations, have garnered both commercial success and critical acclaim.

Tsai was born in Hsinchuang, Taiwan. In 1998, Tsai won a singing competition held by MTV Mandarin. Her debut album, 1019 (1999), became an instant success, while her girl-next-door image established her as a teen idol with a substantial following amongst teenagers. Magic (2003) saw a transition in the singer's image and marked the beginning of her dance-oriented musical direction. Her album Dancing Diva (2006) helped established her status as a representative dance-pop artist in the Chinese music scene.

In 2009, Tsai founded her company Eternal, and began to exert creative control over all facets of her career. She began demonstrating girl power and concern for minorities with her album Myself (2010), which marked a significant turning point in her musical style. Her album Muse (2012) spanned both mainstream and independent music, while her album Play (2014) received recognition for having helped bring Chinese dance music to the attention of a global audience. Her album Ugly Beauty (2018) explored societal beauty standards and inner psychological polarity.

Tsai has sold over 25 million records, making her the highest-selling Taiwanese female recording artist since 2000. Beginning with her album Magic (2003), each of her studio albums has been the highest-selling album by a female artist in Taiwan in the year of release, with four of which also being the highest-selling album overall in the country. She has won a total of seven Golden Melody Awards, the most of any dance-pop artist in the ceremony's history. Since 2010, she has been ranked top 20 on the Forbes China Celebrity 100 list for six out of ten times, and was ranked as the number one Chinese female singer three times. Her net worth exceeded NT$2 billion in 2014, and has been ranked as the highest-paid Taiwanese female singer 16 times from (2003–2022).

Life and career

1980–1998: Early life and career beginnings

Tsai was born on September 15, 1980, in Hsinchuang City, Taipei County (now Xinzhuang District, New Taipei City), Taiwan. She has an elder sister. Her maternal grandmother was a Taiwanese indigenous Papora people. She attended Hsinchuang Elementary School, Hsinchuang Junior High School, and Chingmei Girls' High School. When she was in high school, she formed a band called Twister with her classmates. Later, she participated in singing competitions to meet the needs of extracurricular activities for university applications, and won Chingmei Girls' High School Singing Competition and the second place in the popular music category of BCC National High School Singing Competition. In May 1998, she participated in a singing competition held by MTV Mandarin, she stood out by singing English songs and won the competition.

In March 1999, Tsai signed with Universal Music Taiwan, and became the record label's key newcomer. After that, Universal arranged a series of courses for her for half a year, including dance classes twice a week to help her improve her stage performance, makeup classes twice a week to help her do her own makeup when she was pressed for schedules or in between brief interviews, and speech training classes to help her cope with the media. In addition, Universal arranged for her to fly to Ireland and the United States to watch live performances of foreign singers. In June 1999, she was admitted to the English literature major of Fu Jen Catholic University by virtue of her first place in the recommendation examination.

1999–2002: 1019, Don't Stop, Show Your Love, and Lucky Number

On July 16, 1999, Tsai released her debut single, "Living with the World". On September 10, 1999, she released her first studio album, 1019. The album, co-produced by David Wu, Peter Lee, and Paul Lee, combined pop with hip-hop, R&B, world music, and others, showing her musical talent and versatility. It was generally well received by music critics, who said that the girlish feelings exuded from the album just filled the vacancy of girl-next-door singer in Taiwan at that time, and both her idol vibe and strength combined with the excellent record production made her an instant hit. The album sold more than 400,000 copies in Taiwan.

On April 26, 2000, Tsai released her second studio album, Don't Stop. The album was co-produced by David Wu, Paul Lee, Peter Lee, and Chen Wei, and combined pop with hip-hop, rock, reggae, R&B, and others. Her singing skills on the album were more powerful than before, with a more flexible interpretation of fast songs and a more emotional interpretation of slow songs. It was well received by music critics, who said that the fast songs were full of enthusiasm and the slow songs were charming, and that it started her musical direction that focused on fast songs. The album sold more than 500,000 copies in Taiwan, becoming the year's second highest-selling album by a female artist and the year's sixth highest-selling album overall in the country, as well as her highest-selling album in the country to date. On May 5, 2000, she released her photo book, Nineteen Years, which sold more than 60,000 copies in Taiwan.

On December 22, 2000, Tsai released her third studio album, Show Your Love. The album was co-produced by David Wu, Paul Lee, Peter Lee, Chen Wei, and Jae Chong, it had more broad musical styles and a more mature vocal performance. It received positive reviews from music critics, and was described as one of the most musically rich albums in the real sense during her Universal period, with a balanced mix of fast and slow songs. The album sold more than 260,000 copies in Taiwan. On September 6, 2001, the music video of the track "Fall in Love with a Street" won an MTV Video Music Award for International Viewers' Choice.

On June 28, 2001, Tsai released the Mandarin version of the theme song "Where the Dream Takes You" of the 2001 Disney film, Atlantis: The Lost Empire. On July 7, 2001, she released her fourth studio album, Lucky Number. The album was co-produced by David Wu, Peter Lee, Paul Lee, Chen Wei, and Kay Huang, and combined pop with R&B, disco, hip-hop, and others. It was considered to be her most exciting album during her Universal period, but also suffered from a lack of promotion due to a contractual dispute with her management company D Sound. The album sold more than 150,000 copies in Taiwan, and was ranked among the year's top 20 highest-selling albums in the country. On February 18, 2002, she, on behalf of Mandopop, together with William Roedy, chairman and CEO of MTV, and t.A.T.u. featured on the cover of Businessweek.

2002–2005: Magic, Castle, and J-Game

On July 23, 2002, Tsai signed with Sony Music Taiwan. On August 2, 2002, she released the book, The Masque of the Princess, the Spirit of Knight, which sold more than 50,000 copies in Taiwan. On March 7, 2003, she released her fifth studio album, Magic. The album was co-produced by Bing Wang, Peter Lee, Jamie Hsueh, Jay Chou, Huang Yi, combining pop with disco, funk, ballads, hip-hop, Britpop, and others, and tailored according to her voice quality, vocal, positioning, and potential. It received generally positive reviews from music critics, and was regarded as a key work for her positioning transformation, establishing her musical direction with dance-pop as the dominant style. The album sold over 360,000 copies in Taiwan and over 1.5 million copies overall in Asia, becoming the year's highest-selling album by a female artist and the year's second highest-selling album overall in the country. The album was nominated for Golden Melody Award for Album of the Year, she was nominated for Best Female Mandarin Singer, and Baby Chung was nominated for Best Music Arranger for the track "Prague Square". Eventually, Baby Chung won Best Music Arranger.

On March 9, 2003, the Taiwanese television series Hi Working Girl starring Tsai premiered on CTV. On April 10, 2003, she released the songs "Angel of Love", "Darkness", and "Sweetie" for the 2003 Hong Kong film, Why Me, Sweetie?!. On June 14, 2003, she graduated from Fu Jen Catholic University with a bachelor's degree in English literature. On September 10, 2003, she released the theme song "Mirage" of the 2003 Chinese film, Warriors of Heaven and Earth. On September 15, 2003, she translated the book The English Roses for Madonna, and later translated five other books for Madonna.

On February 27, 2004, Tsai released her sixth studio album, Castle. The album was co-produced by Bing Wang, Peter Lee, Jay Chou, Jamie Hsueh, Huang Yi, and G-Power, and its musical styles were all-encompassing, combining pop with hip-hop, Latin, chanson, heavy metal, Britpop, and others. It was widely praised by music critics, and was credited with consolidating her successful development trend in the Chinese music scene. The album sold over 300,000 copies in Taiwan and over 1.5 million copies overall in Asia, becoming the year's highest-selling album by a female artist and the year's second highest-selling album overall in the country.

On August 7, 2004, Tsai embarked on her first concert tour J1 World Tour at Hongkou Football Stadium in Shanghai, China. The tour lasted one year and nine months with eight shows in seven cities. On November 12, 2004, she released the compilation album, J9. On February 8, 2005, she participated in the CCTV New Year's Gala to perform the song "36 Tricks of Love". On March 9, 2005, she released the book, Jolin's English Diary Book, which sold more than 120,000 copies in Taiwan.

On April 25, 2005, Tsai released her seventh studio album, J-Game. The album was co-produced by Jamie Hsueh, Jack Chou, Bing Wang, and Adia, and combined pop with hip-hop, electronic, disco, Chinese traditional music, and others. It received mixed reviews from music critics, who said that it followed the trend and pursued the extreme, but its positioning was vague and it lacked personality. The album sold over 260,000 copies in Taiwan and over 1.2 million copies overall in Asia, becoming the year's highest-selling album by a female artist and the year's second highest-selling album overall in the country. On September 23, 2005, she released the live video album, J1 Live Concert. On September 28, 2005, Show Lo released the single "Destined Guy", which he sang with her. On December 30, 2005, she released the book, Jolin's Party, which sold more than 150,000 copies in Taiwan.

2006–2008: Dancing Diva and Agent J

Tsai at MTV Asia Awards 2006

On February 16, 2006, Tsai signed with EMI Taiwan. On May 5, 2006, Sony released the greatest hits album J-Top for her. The album sold over 100,000 copies in Taiwan, becoming the year's fifth highest-selling album overall in the country. On May 12, 2006, she released her eighth studio album, Dancing Diva. Co-produced by Adia, Paul Lee, Peter Lee, Paula Ma, Yuri Chan, and Stanley Huang, the album is based on pop and electronic music, and had a wide variety of musical styles, with smooth melodies and catchy lyrics that were impressive, dynamic dance songs and unforgettable dance moves that stirred up discussion. It was widely praised by music critics for its rich content, exquisite production, as well as high audibility and popularity, establishing her status as a representative dance-pop artist in the Chinese music scene. The album sold over 300,000 copies in Taiwan and over 2.5 million copies overall in Asia, becoming the year's highest-selling album overall in the country. The album was nominated for Golden Melody Award for Best Mandarin Album, she was nominated for Best Female Mandarin Singer, and Adia was nominated for Best Single Producer for the track "Dancing Diva". Eventually, she won both Best Female Mandarin Singer and Favorite Female Singer/Group.

On September 15, 2006, Tsai embarked on her second concert tour Dancing Forever World Tour at Hong Kong Coliseum in Hong Kong. The tour lasted two and a half years and held 28 shows in 20 cities, with audience of about 500,000 and box office of about NT$1 billion. On September 29, 2006, she released the compilation album, Dancing Forever. The track "Marry Me Today" won Golden Melody Award for Song of the Year. On February 17, 2007, she participated in the CCTV New Year's Gala to perform the song "Marry Me Today" with David Tao. On June 8, 2007, she released the live video album If You Think You Can, You Can!, which sold more than 120,000 copies in Taiwan.

On September 21, 2007, Tsai released her ninth studio album, Agent J. The album was co-produced by Lars Quang, Nik Quang, RnG, Adia, Paul Lee, Michael Lin, Paula Ma, and Jamie Hsueh. It was released in conjunction with the film of the same name, which was co-directed by Jeff Chang, Marlboro Lai, and Kuang Sheng, and featured Kim Jae-won, Stephen Fung, and Carl Ng as the three male leads. It received mixed reviews from music critics, who said that she maintained her consistent bold style and diversified musical styles, but it lacked freshness and melodicity. The album sold over 200,000 copies in Taiwan and over 3 million copies overall in Asia, becoming the year's highest-selling album overall in the country. Adia won Golden Melody Award for Best Single Producer for the track "Agent J", and Andrew Chen won Best Music Arranger for the same track.

On November 21, 2007, Kylie Minogue released the single "In My Arms", which she sang with Tsai. On July 18, 2008, she was awarded the Butterfly Award by the Taiwan's Ministry of Labor, in recognition of her outstanding performance in the entertainment industry. On October 31, 2008, she released her cover album, Love Exercise. The album was released in conjunction with the book of the same name, which included her covers of ten English songs, and was co-produced by Paula Ma, Peter Lee, Jim Lee, Daniel Bi, Paul Lee, and Adia. It was originally planned to be released on March 7, 2008, but the release was delayed due to the personnel change and stock acquisition of EMI in Greater China. It was not well received by music critics, who said that the production lacked new ideas and the original songs were too classic. The album sold more than 30,000 copies in Taiwan, becoming the year's highest-selling Western-language album in the country.

2008–2018: Butterfly, Myself, Muse, and Play

Tsai in 2008

On December 16, 2008, Tsai signed with Warner Music Taiwan. On March 27, 2009, she released her tenth studio album, Butterfly. The album was co-produced by Adia, Paul Lee, Peter Lee, and Paula Ma. It was not well received by music critics, who said it lacked surprise, sincerity, and breakthrough. With over 120,000 copies being pre-ordered in Taiwan, it became the most pre-ordered album of all time in the country. The album sold over 130,000 copies in Taiwan and over 1 million copies overall in Asia, becoming the year's highest-selling album overall in the country. On March 28, 2009, she embarked on her Butterfly Campus Tour at Chung Hua University in Hsinchu, Taiwan. The tour was originally planned to hold a total of ten shows, due to the recurrence of her old injury, it was decided to cancel the remaining shows after four shows. On October 9, 2009, she released the live video album, Love & Live. On October 15, 2009, she and Ke Fu-hung jointly established the company Eternal, specializing in her artist management, music production and copyright, concert production and copyright, fan club member recruitment, and other matters. On April 27, 2010, she released the theme song "Heartbeat of Taiwan" of the Taiwan pavilion at the Expo 2010.

On August 13, 2010, Tsai released her eleventh studio album, Myself. The album was co-produced by Andrew Chen, Adia, and Paula Ma. It was based on the concept of party, and dance music accounted for ninety percent of the entire album. It received mixed reviews from music critics, and was described as a new benchmark for Chinese dance music albums, but an imbalance between commerciality and musicality. The album sold more than 65,000 copies in Taiwan, becoming the year's highest-selling album by a female artist and the year's fourth highest-selling album overall in the country. The music video of the track "Honey Trap" was nominated for Golden Melody Award for Best Music Video. On December 24, 2010, she embarked on her third concert tour Myself World Tour at Taipei Arena in Taipei, Taiwan. The tour lasted two years and four months and held a total of 35 shows in 31 cities, with audience of about 600,000 and box office of about NT$1.5 billion. On July 12, 2011, she released the book Living Slim, which sold more than 120,000 copies in Taiwan.

On September 14, 2012, Tsai released her twelfth studio album, Muse. Co-produced by Michael Lin, Peggy Hsu, JJ Lin, and Tanya Chua, the album combined pop music and pop art, and spans both mainstream and independent music. It received generally positive reviews from music critics, and was described as a paragon of pop albums, with clear themes and a balanced mix of fast and slow songs. The album sold more than 95,000 copies in Taiwan, becoming the year's highest-selling album by a female artist and the year's third highest-selling album overall in the country. The album was nominated for Golden Melody Award for Best Mandarin Album, the track "The Great Artist" and its music video were nominated for Song of the Year and Best Music Video, respectively, and she was nominated for Best Female Mandarin Singer. Eventually, "The Great Artist" won Song of the Year.

On January 16, 2013, Tsai represented Taiwanese singers to attend MIDEM in Cannes, France. On October 19, 2013, she released the live video album, Myself World Tour. On May 19, 2014, she released the song "Now Is the Time" for the 2014 FIFA World Cup, which was included on the compilation album, Pepsi Beats of the Beautiful Game. On June 13, 2014, she released the theme song "Kaleidoscope" of the 2014 Chinese film, Tiny Times 3. On August 27, 2014, she released the theme song "Be Wonderful Together" of a campaign jointly held by Pepsi and Tmall. On October 31, 2014, she began to serve as a judge of the CCTV variety show Rising Star, which ended on December 30, 2014.

On November 15, 2014, Tsai released her thirteenth studio album, Play. Co-produced by Starr Chen, Andrew Chen, Tiger Chung, JJ Lin, and Michael Lin, the album broke away from the framework of previous Chinese albums, with rich contents and all-encompassing themes. It received critical acclaim from music critics, and was credited with introducing the world to the high standard of Chinese dance music. The album sold more than 85,000 copies in Taiwan, becoming the year's highest-selling album by a female artist and the year's fourth highest-selling album overall in the country. It was nominated for a total of ten Golden Melody Awards, becoming one of the albums with the most Golden Melody Award nominations in history. The album was nominated for both Best Mandarin Album and Best Vocal Recording Album, the track "Play" was nominated for Song of the Year, the music videos of "Play", "We're All Different, Yet the Same", and "I'm Not Yours" were all nominated for Best Music Video, Alex Ni and Starr Chen were jointly nominated for Best Music Arranger for "Play", Starr Chen and Andrew Chen were nominated for Best Single Producer for "Play" and "Lip Reading", respectively, and Aaron Nieh was nominated for Best Album Packaging. Eventually, the album won both Best Mandarin Album and Best Vocal Recording Album, and Andrew Chen won Best Single Producer.

Tsai performing in 2015

On May 22, 2015, Tsai embarked on her fourth concert tour Play World Tour at Taipei Arena in Taipei, Taiwan. The tour lasted one year and two months and held a total of 34 shows in 23 cities, with audience of about 600,000 and box office of about NT$1.5 billion. On December 2, 2015, she won Mnet Asian Music Award for Best Asian Artist. On February 26, 2016, she dubbed Judy Hopps in the Taiwanese Mandarin edition of the 2016 Disney film Zootopia, which was her first dubbing work. On September 30, 2016, Alesso released the single "I Wanna Know" in collaboration with her. On October 31, 2016, Starr Chen released the single "Ego-Holic" in collaboration with her. On May 12, 2017, she released the theme song "Give Love" of a Mother's Day campaign held by Da Ai Television. On June 20, 2017, Hardwell released the single "We Are One" in collaboration with her. On November 20, 2017, she released the theme song "On Happiness Road" of the film of the same name. On December 29, 2017, she released the theme song "Stand Up" of the 2018 Chinese film, Monster Hunt 2. On January 30, 2018, she released the live video album, Play World Tour. On June 12, 2018, she released the 10th anniversary theme song "The Player" of the video game, Dungeon & Fighter.

2018–present: Ugly Beauty

On December 26, 2018, Tsai released her fourteenth studio album, Ugly Beauty. The album was co-produced by Starr Chen, Razor Chiang, Howe Chen, Øzi, and her, and combined pop with reggae, electronic, hip-hop, and others. It returned to the inner level of the singer herself, with the theme of breaking the secular beauty standard and exploring the inner psychological polarity. It was generally praised by music critics, who said that the concept of the album was complete and unified, the singing state was comfortable, and the production was exquisite and ranked top among Chinese albums. The album became the highest-selling album of 2019 overall in Taiwan. As of August 13, 2023, it has sold more than 850,000 digital copies in China, becoming the highest-selling digital album by a female Hong Kong/Taiwan artist in history, she also became the female Hong Kong/Taiwan artist with the highest-selling digital sales of all time. The album was nominated for a total of eight Golden Melody Awards. The album was nominated for Album of the Year, Best Mandarin Album, and Best Vocal Recording Album, the track "Womanly" was nominated for Song of the Year, the music videos of the tracks "Ugly Beauty" and "Lady in Red" were nominated for Best Music Video, she was nominated for Best Female Mandarin Singer, and she and Starr Chen were jointly nominated for Best Single Producer for the track "Ugly Beauty". Eventually, the album won Album of the Year, and "Womxnly" won Song of the Year.

On January 21, 2019, Tsai began to serve as the dance mentor of the iQiyi variety show Youth with You, which ended on April 6, 2019. On January 24, 2019, she released the single "Happy New Year Do Re Mi", which she sung with Liu Yuning and TikTok influencers. On November 1, 2019, she released the single "Gravity" with Karry Wang. On December 30, 2019, she embarked on her fifth concert tour Ugly Beauty World Tour at Taipei Arena in Taipei, Taiwan. On April 3, 2020, she released the single "Fight as One" with Eason Chan. On November 22, 2020, she released the songs "Who Am I", "Turn Back Time", "Opposite" for the 2020 Chinese television series, The Wolf. On March 21, 2021, she released the single "Stars Align" with R3hab. On October 21, 2021, she released the single "Equal in the Darkness" with Steve Aoki and Max Schneider. On December 9, 2022, she released the theme song "Untitled" of the 2022 Taiwanese film, Marry My Dead Body. The song was nominated for Golden Horse Award for Best Original Film Song. On October 31, 2023, she released the theme song "Someday, Somewhere" of the 2023 Taiwanese web series, At the Moment. She and Richard Craker were jointly nominated for Golden Melody Award for Best Composer for this song. On November 20, 2023, she released the 40th anniversary theme song "Oh La La La" of McDonald's Taiwan.

Artistry

Influences

Tsai has cited Madonna, Whitney Houston, Mariah Carey, and Destiny's Child as major influences. In May 1998, she won a singing contest held by MTV Mandarin where she performed songs by Whitney Houston and Mariah Carey. She acknowledged the significant influence that the two artists had on her during her student years, stating, "I've been listening to music since I was a child, at that time, I often listened to tapes and radios. Western music was very popular at that time, I liked Whitney Houston, and I often recorded myself imitating her singing voice. After that, I made my debut as a singer by participating in singing competition." She also mentioned how Destiny's Child were a source of inspiration for her, expressing admiration for the group's singing and dancing abilities.

Tsai's opening yoga act during the J1 World Tour (2004–06) drew inspiration from Madonna's Re-Invention World Tour (2004). Tsai also utilized voguing, which Madonna brought into the mainstream, in the music video for "Honey Trap" from her album Myself (2010).

Tsai remarked that she became a fan of Madonna after watching her perform, and expressed a desire to "lead trends in music, stage, dance, and fashion" in the same vein of the singer. Taiwanese choreographer Bruce Chang recalled Tsai's observations about how Madonna seldom does line dancing, yet her dance movements remained powerful. Tsai expressed a desire to emulate her, commenting, "Madonna has always been an artist I admire and she has done a lot of stuff that became very innovative, even at the moment when her works have been criticized by a lot of people, looking back people still think of her as amazing." Tsai also believed that "when making popular music, we should lead people to accept new styles and new elements, and challenge existing concepts." She has additionally cited Kylie Minogue, Britney Spears, Lady Gaga, amongst others, as inspirations.

Musical style

Tsai has utilized a diverse range of musical genres and concepts throughout her career. Tsai noted, "Apart from experimenting with a variety of styles, I try to interpret and express them with my own colors". Tsai's predominant musical style is dance-pop; she holds the belief that "every singer must establish their own identity and unique traits." The singer expressed that "Maybe I don't have many representative ballad works, but dance music is what I am best at." Her debut album 1019 (1999) featured a variety of styles such as ballads, R&B, and hip-hop. Her 2000 album, Don't Stop, incorporated elements such as rock and reggae, and began to feature dance tracks such as "Don't Stop" and "You Gotta Know". Her next two albums, Show Your Love (2000) and Lucky Number (2001), utilized R&B and hip-hop styles in addition to disco elements.

Tsai's 2003 album, Magic, combined elements of disco, funk, hip-hop, rock, and R&B, and marked the singer's shift towards a predominantly dance-oriented musical direction. Her 2004 album, Castle, expanded on the styles of its predecessor; it contained tracks such as "36 Tricks of Love" and "Priority", which incorporated heavy metal elements, along with the chanson track "Love Love Love". Many of the dance tracks on her album J-Game (2005) were heavily influenced by electronic music and retained the disco and hip-hop elements found in her previous two albums. The track "Exclusive Myth" incorporated hip-hop and Chinese traditional music. Dancing Diva (2006) is primarily a pop and electronic album; its title track is recognized for its exotic elements, while the track "Good Guy" utilizes electronic rock. Agent J (2007) showcased Eurodance and continued to utilize elements like disco and hip-hop. It also included the swing track "Fear-Free".

Her 2009 album, Butterfly, experimented with synth-pop. Myself (2010) primarily utilized house music, but also included tracks such as "Nothing Left to Say" which incorporated R&B and urban pop elements. Muse (2012) is a pop record with styles encompassing mainstream and independent music, with tracks such as "Fantasy", "Dr. Jolin", and "Beast" drawing influences from trance, progressive house, and techno, respectively. Play (2014) was largely influenced by electronic dance music styles such as trap and dubstep. The track "Gentlewomen" blended noise rock and alternative dance, whereas the track "Miss Trouble" integrated opera. Ugly Beauty (2018) integrated reggae, electronic, hip-hop, and other elements. Tracks such as "Necessarily Evil" incorporated gothic rock, whereas "Vulnerability" incorporated soul music.

Voice

Tsai possesses a mezzo-soprano vocal range. Since her debut, she has received criticism for her weak singing skills, directed towards her thin voice and limited vocal range. Taiwanese musician Bing Wang noted that while Tsai's voice might be considered average, he acknowledged the distinctiveness of her articulation. Wawa Chen, one of the vocal judges from MTV Mandarin, also expressed appreciation for Tsai's voice, whereas Sohu Entertainment felt that the singer's vocals and delivery had improved substantially over the years. Qu Er from Tencent Entertainment felt that Tsai's vocal skills have often been misinterpreted, and expressed that only a handful of singers can sustain such seamless breath control throughout an entire performance.

Tsai has been nominated for Golden Melody Award for Best Female Mandarin Singer four times, and won the award for her 2006 album Dancing Diva. Some observers questioned whether her vocal ability was enough for Tsai to be qualified to win the award. In response, chief jury of the 18th Golden Melody Awards Liu Ya-wen publicly praised Tsai's singing and songwriting skills in Dancing Diva, and felt that the record signified the singer's transformation from merely a performer to a true vocalist. During the 26th Golden Melody Awards in 2015, she received ten nominations for her 2014 album, Play. However, she was not nominated in the Best Female Mandarin Singer category after a judge pointed out significant pitch correction in the album, which swayed the votes of other judges. In response to this, Tsai's manager Tom Wang dismissed the claim that Tsai had been reliant on pitch correction while recording Play. DJ Casey Cheng commented that he did not see an issue with pitch correction in the first place, emphasizing that "records are designed to produce unique sounds."

In 2017, during her opening performance at the 54th Golden Horse Awards, she was off-key while singing a cover of "Tian Mi Mi" by Teresa Teng. As the following songs she performed were characterized by low pitches, critics believed her overall performance fell short of expectations as she usually excelled in songs with mid and high pitches. The performance sparked discussion and criticism, while Tsai openly acknowledged her mistakes.

Music videos

Tsai is often involved in the creative direction of her music videos, which have been noted for blending creativity and aesthetic appeal, while also considering commercial aspects. According to Apple Music, Tsai has "always been on the cutting edge of fashion, and her music videos are full of varied costumes, sometimes colorful and sometimes avant-garde, very dazzling." You Zuo of The Beijing News wrote, "In the production of her music videos, she has achieved advancements with each release. While there are traditional music videos that primarily showcase the singer's image, she simultaneously releases videos with a distinctive style like 'Play', 'Womxnly', and 'Lady in Red', demonstrating the continual evolution of her work with every album."

Tsai's music videos have been recognized domestically and overseas. The music videos of the songs "Honey Trap", "The Great Artist", "Play", "I'm Not Yours", "Ugly Beauty", and "Lady in Red" have all been nominated for Golden Melody Award for Best Music Video, while the music videos of the songs "The Great Artist", "Play", "I'm Not Yours", and "Ugly Beauty" all won Golden Pin Design Awards. In addition, the video for "The Great Artist" was awarded the Bronze Award for Visual Design at the International Design Awards. Time remarked that the video for "Play" "might be 2014's best pop music video"; it later won a Red Dot Design Award for best Visual Communication Design. The video for "Sweet Guilty Pleasure" won the Gold Award for Best Music Video at the Telly Awards.

Legacy

Referred to as the "Queen of C-pop", Tsai has emerged as a significant figure in the C-pop music scene, earning recognition for her music, image, dance, and resilience. Liu Hsiu-wen of Billboard noted that in the early 2000s, Taiwanese artists like Jay Chou and Jolin Tsai dominated Chinese-speaking markets across Asia, marking a golden era for Taiwanese pop music. Former chairwoman of the Kuomintang, Hung Hsiu-chu, remarked that Tsai's artistic accomplishments have set a "high standard" in the C-pop music industry, adding that Tsai's name had been synonymous with a generation's vibrant youth over two decades. Liang Xiaohui of NetEase Entertainment suggested that when future generations reflect on the early 21st-century Chinese divas, Tsai might be the first name that comes to mind, in a similar vein to Madonna in the late 20th-century. In 2010, Tsai was honored as one of the Top Ten Influential Hong Kong/Taiwan Music Figures of the Decade at the Top Chinese Music Awards.

In addition to her influence on Chinese popular culture, Tsai has made significant contributions to social issues. Tamar Herman of Billboard described Tsai as a leading figure in Chinese pop music who has represented same-sex couples and diverse LGBTQ+ lifestyles through her "vibrant" pop songs, providing a platform for diverse expression in the conservative Chinese music scene. Herman noted that through her music that promoted self-love and understanding of differences, Tsai became a prominent icon in Asia's LGBTQ+ community. Liao Yuanling of Business Today wrote that Tsai consistently uses her platform to advocate for gender equality, empowering minority groups to speak up for themselves. In a 2019 survey conducted by Cheers magazine and Elle Taiwan titled "Who Are the Most Influential Women to the New Generation," Tsai ranked first in the field of fashion styles and second in both fields of gender issues and life attitudes.

Tsai is regarded for having led the way for dance-pop's mainstream acceptance in the Greater China region. QQ Music critic Mimimao wrote that "Jolin Tsai is undoubtedly the biggest contributor to the development of electronic dance music in the C-pop music industry", and opined that Tsai's innovative approach had placed her "far ahead" of her contemporaries. Hou Cheng-nan, an associate professor at the Department of Mass Communication at I-Shou University, remarked how Tsai "elevated" the landscape of Chinese dance music and "set a high standard that is difficult to surpass". Fan Jung-ching of Bloomberg Businessweek Taiwan referred to her as a "Great Chinese Dance Music Artist", writing how Tsai showcased the "world-class quality" of Chinese dance music to global audiences. Apple Music wrote that songs such as "Play" and "Ugly Beauty" not only served as "sharp societal critiques", but also helped set "new visual and creative standards for Mandopop".

Tsai and her work has influenced numerous artists, including Cyndi Wang, Rainie Yang, A-Lin, Lala Hsu, Eve Ai, Shi Shi, Emma Wu, Yao Yao, By2, and others. You Zuo from The Beijing News wrote, "As one of the most influential female stars in the C-pop music scene, Jolin Tsai's insistence on making breakthroughs in art and caring for the society deserves the respect of everyone who cares about C-pop music."

Other ventures

Endorsements

Taiwan Beer's advertisement featuring Tsai in Taipei

Tsai has endorsed many internationally renowned brands and products since her debut, including Absolut Vodka, Adidas, Always, Balvenie, Bausch & Lomb, Bulgari, Crest, Diablo, Dr. Jart+, Dungeon & Fighter, Gap, Head & Shoulders, Intel, Knorr, Levi's, L'Oréal, Lux, Max Factor, McDonald's, Mercedes Benz, Morinaga, Motorola, Nars, Olay, Pepsi, Pony, Puma, Quaker, Rémy Martin, Samsung, Shiseido, Standard Chartered, Sunbites, Swarovski, Toyota, Tropicana, Uber Eats, Valentino, Vidal Sassoon, Yamaha, 7-Eleven, etc.

Tsai has cooperated with some of the brands to launch cooperative products. In December 2018, Pony launched two limited-edition collaborative sneakers of her design, based on the brand's M100 series of sneakers. In July 2019, Gap released six collaborative T-shirts she designed, inspired by six songs from her 2018 album Ugly Beauty. In September 2019, Gap released four long-sleeved pullover hoodies designed by her.

Products

In September 2007, Tsai and her sister released the nail polish brand Oops! Jealous, which was originally sold on the Taiwanese online shopping website PayEasy, while she was mainly responsible for the development of nail polish colors and styles. In August 2010, PayEasy and it further cooperated and sold its products in the vending machine at Qsquare in Taipei, Taiwan. In October 2011, it entered the personal care chain retailer Watson. It has been discontinued since 2014.

In February 2009, Tsai and Ken Erman announced the release of the fashion brand Seventy Two Changes in New York City. It was originally sold in Nordstrom in 12 cities in North America, and planned to expand the business scope to Asia, including Taiwan, China, Singapore, Malaysia, and others. In February 2010, it entered the mainland Chinese market, and opened its first flagship store in Shanghai Times Square in Shanghai, China. In the following year, it was reported that because the shareholders in the United States and China had differences in business philosophy, coinciding with the expiration of her two-year contract, she quit being the designer of the brand.

On October 20, 2015, Tsai opened a fondant cake fan page Your Majesty on Facebook. On December 7, 2015, she set up a company mainly engaged in the affairs of the fondant cake brand, which mainly sold fondant cakes and offered customized fondant cake order services on Facebook and Instagram. On January 8, 2018, she said that her cake business had four cake chefs.

Achievements

Tsai has been nominated for a total of 16 Golden Melody Awards, including two Album of the Year, four Song of the Year, four Best Mandarin Album, four Best Female Mandarin Singer, one Best Composer, and one Best Single Producer. She has received a total of seven Golden Melody Awards, Including one Album of the Year for the album Ugly Beauty (2018), three Song of the Year for the songs "Marry Me Today", "The Great Artist", and "Womxnly", one Best Mandarin album for the album Play (2014), one Best Female Mandarin Female Singer for the album Dancing Diva (2006), and one Favorite Female Singer/Group. She became the most awarded and nominated dance-pop artist at the Golden Melody Awards in history, and has been recognized by the Guinness World Records as the artist who has won the most Song of the Year awards at the Golden Melody Awards. Her 2014 album Play has become one of the nominated albums at the Golden Melody Awards in history with a total of ten nominations, tying Jay Chou's Fantasy (2000) and A-Mei's Amit (2009). In addition, her 2018 album Ugly Beauty was nominated for eight Golden Melody Awards.

Tsai has received several awards from other Chinese music awards, Including Beijing Pop Music Awards, CCTV-MTV Music Awards, China Music Awards, Global Chinese Music Awards, Global Chinese Pop Chart Awards, Hito Music Awards, IFPI Hong Kong Top Sales Music Award, KKBox Music Awards, Metro Radio Hits Music Awards, Metro Radio Mandarin Hits Music Awards, Migu Music Awards, Music Radio China Top Chart Awards, My Astro Music Awards, Singapore Hit Awards, Top Chinese Music Awards, Top Ten Chinese Gold Songs Award, TVB8 Mandarin Music on Demand Awards, etc. Among them, she has been awarded eight Hito Music Award for Best Female Singer and eight for Most Weeks at Number One Album/Song, ten KKBox Music Award for Top Ten Singers of the Year, one Top Chinese Music Award for Top Ten Most Influential Hong Kong/Taiwan Music Figure of the Decade in 2010, and one Migu Music Award for Best Female Singer of the Decade in 2016.

Tsai has received accolades from international entities, such as the MTV Video Music Award for International Viewers' Choice for the music video of the song "Fall in Love with a Street" in 2001, the MTV Asia Award for The Style Award in 2006, and the MAMA Award for Best Asian Artist – Taiwan in 2015. She received nominations for MTV Video Music Award Japan for Best Buzz Asia for the music video of the song "Pirates" in 2005, MTV Europe Music Award for Best Asian Act in 2012, MTV Europe Music Award for Best Taiwanese Act in 2015, amongst others. In July 2008, she was awarded the Butterfly Award by the Taiwan's Ministry of Labor, in recognition of her outstanding performance in the entertainment industry. In October 2023, her song "Untitled" was nominated for Golden Horse Award for Best Original Film Song.

Tsai has reached number one on the Taiwan's Hit FM Top 100 Singles of the Year chart five times with her songs "Marry Me Today", "Sun Will Never Set", "Honey Trap", "Play", and "Ugly Beauty", becoming the singer with the most number one songs on the chart so far. Each of her studio albums, beginning with her 2003 album Magic, has been the highest-selling album by a female artist in Taiwan in the year of release, with four of which, Dancing Diva (2006), Agent J (2007), Butterfly (2009), and Ugly Beauty (2018), also being the highest-selling album overall in the country in the respective years of release.

Personal life

Tsai's personal life has been the subject of media attention. Since her debut, media outlets have speculated that she had been in a long-term romantic relationships with three male artists, Jay Chou, Eddie Peng, and Vivian Dawson. In January 2001, she and Chou met on the CTV variety show, Guess. In December 2001, she and Chou were seen dining at an izakaya in Shinjuku, Japan, and the two were later seen meeting privately several times in Taiwan. In February 2005, Chou and Patty Hou were seen together in Shibuya, Japan, after which Tsai and Chou began to avoid seeing each other on various occasions. In June 2010, Tsai was invited to be the guest performer of Jay Chou's The Era World Tour at Taipei Arena in Taipei, Taiwan.

In January 2007, she and Eddie Peng were seen together in London, England, and the two were seen meeting privately in Taiwan several times. In September 2008, Peng was involved in a dispute with his management company, which allegedly tried to block his relationship with Tsai. In August 2009, Peng's former manager Liu Wei-tzu indirectly confirmed that Tsai and Peng had been in a relationship for more than three years since mid-2006, and that the breakup was suspected to be due to Peng's mother preventing the two from continuing their relationship because she was unhappy with Tsai's reluctance to disclose her relationship with Peng.

In July 2010, Vivian Dawson appeared in the music video of her song "Love Player". In September 2010, she and Dawson were seen together in Tokyo, Japan, and the two later traveled together around the world several times. In November 2011, her father indirectly confirmed the relationship between Tsai and Dawson, and indirectly revealed that Tsai had relationships with both Chou and Peng. In February 2013, she and Dawson flew to New Zealand to meet his parents, and the relationship between the two was confirmed. In December 2016, her agent Tom Wang confirmed that the relationship had ended in November 2016.

Discography

Filmography

• Six Friends (2001)
• Come to My Place (2002)
• In Love (2002)
• Hi Working Girl (2003)
• Agent J (2007)
• Zootopia (2016)

Tours

• J1 World Tour (2004–2006)
• Dancing Forever World Tour (2006–2009)
• Myself World Tour (2010–2013)
• Play World Tour (2015–2016)
• Ugly Beauty World Tour (2019–2024)

Enterprises

• Oops! Jealous (2007–2014)
• Seventy Two Changes (2009–2011)
• Eternal Music Production Co., Ltd. (2009)
• Your Majesty (2015)

See also

In Spanish: Jolin Tsai para niños

• Forbes China Celebrity 100
• Honorific nicknames in popular music
• List of best-selling albums in Taiwan
• List of dance-pop artists