Will Faye Wong Return?

Piko, in her Green Paws blog, wrote, “I thought of Faye Wong today, kind of miss her song, her voice. It’s such a waste that she quit from the show biz. There aren’t many singers nowadays who has substance like her, not to mention her ‘cool’ (of course there are some who thinks she’s aloof). Hmm… why do people want to quit doing what they do best?….” (“Angelic voice,” 6 Mar 2008). Piko includes a link to a YouTube video of Faye’s “I’m Willing,” from her April 1994 album, Mystery. This is one of my all-time favorite Faye songs, and the unplugged version is just as good if not better.

Will Faye return? This has to be the question on every fan’s mind, and no one (perhaps not even Faye herself) really has the answer. We’ve heard from her manager, Katie Chen (Chen Jiaying 陈家瑛), from her husband, Li Yapeng (李亚鹏), but we’ve actually never heard from Faye herself. The possibility that she will come out of retirement to perform is on everyone’s mind, and most fans seem to agree that there’s some hope that she will. Even now, as the Summer Olympics in Beijing looms closer, scheduled to open on Faye’s birthday (August 8), the people of China, especially those in Beijing, and her fans around the world are still hoping that Faye will accept the organizing committee’s invitation to perform in the opening ceremonies.

Despite a nearly three year hiatus, Faye is not only on the Chinese media radar but at the top of the newsmaker list. In a recent video interview, Maggie Q, sensational young Hong Kong film star, says that Faye is big in China and that the second best isn’t even close. Faye can’t step out for a brief shop without the media descending on her, and even a tiny glimpse captured on video or a still is headline entertainment news for days throughout the Chinese-speaking world, with images shown over and over again. Rather than lessen her appeal, her absence has indeed made the fans grow fonder of her.