An Actor, a Singer, an Artist: Who is Xiao Zhan (肖战)?

Chinese celebrity 肖战, or Sean Xiao, was born on October 5th, 1991 in Chongqing (重庆), China. From a young age, he was exposed to the arts and music by his parents enrolling him in violin lessons and painting classes. He later graduated from the Modern International Art Design Academy at Chongqing Technology and Business University where he studied graphic design and photography. During his college years, he was also a member of the University’s acapella group, winning school-wide competitions.

After graduation, he became a full-time photographer and graphic designer, but during the year 2015, he auditioned and debuted as a contestant in the reality TV show X-Fire. Then, in 2016, he and eight of the other contestants formed an idol group called X Nine. During the year of X Nine’s debut, he also jump-started his acting career, gaining fame through his many roles in different Chinese dramas. As a result of acting in dramas during the day and attending acting classes at night, he became renowned for his award-winning performances in dramas such as Oh! My Emperor, The Wolf, Douluo Continent, and his most popular role (my personal favorite) as Wei Wuxian (魏无羡) in The Untamed (陈情令). https://youtu.be/GKKIx7eDoxI

Xiao Zhan Wei Wuxian GIF - Xiao Zhan Wei Wuxian The Untamed - Discover & Share GIFs

Although he initially became famous because of his good looks and immeasurable talent, he is admired by such a large audience because of his kind, humble, and playful personality. Throughout the many hardships he has experienced throughout his career, his fans have always stood by him to support him. Specifically, when he was dealing with cyberbullying, hate, and controversy, he walked onto the stage of the Tencent Star Awards 2020 with the fear of rejection only to see his fans showing their support by holding up red, glowing signs during his performance, which designated the event as the “red sea” (click on the link!); a significant moment in his career.

Even though 肖战 is a popular celebrity, he humbly portrays that he is just like everyone else. He does his own chores, is a talented cook, has a cat named 坚果 (Jiānguǒ) or Nut, wears glasses, and enjoys knitting, believe it or not. 肖战 is my favorite celebrity because of all his wonderful virtues. He is mature, generous, and pure-hearted, and I hope everyone else will be inspired by him as much as I have been.