F4 (band)
Encyclopedia
F4 is a Taiwan
Taiwan
Taiwan , also known, especially in the past, as Formosa , is the largest island of the same-named island group of East Asia in the western Pacific Ocean and located off the southeastern coast of mainland China. The island forms over 99% of the current territory of the Republic of China following...

ese boy band
Boy band
A boy band is loosely defined as a popular music act consisting of only male singers. The members are expected to dance as well as sing, usually giving highly choreographed performances. More often than not, boy band members do not play musical instruments, either in recording sessions or on...

. The group began in the Taiwanese drama
Taiwanese drama
Taiwanese Drama refers to dramatic programming of television programming extended stories usually dramatizing relationships through the general range of ten to forty one-hour episodes. They are produced in Taiwan and have gained increasing popularity in the Mandarin-speaking community...

 Meteor Garden
Meteor Garden
Meteor Garden is a 2001 Taiwanese drama starring Barbie Hsu, Jerry Yan, Vic Zhou, Vanness Wu and Ken Chu. It is based on Japanese shōjo manga series, , written by Yoko Kamio...

as F4 with members Jerry Yan
Jerry Yan
Jerry Yan was born 1 January 1977. He is a Taiwanese actor and member of Taiwanese boy band F4. His birth name is Liao Yangzhen .-Career:...

, Vanness Wu
Vanness Wu
Van Ness Wu is a American actor, singer, director, producer based in Asia. He was born on August 7, 1978 in Santa Monica, California and worked as a telemarketer before moving to Taiwan...

, Ken Chu
Ken Chu
Ken Chu |F4]]. Educated in Singapore , he speaks Mandarin, Cantonese and English.-Biography:Chu was working as a waiter in Taiwan when he was discovered by Cai Zhiping, the creator of the boy band F4...

, and Vic Chou
Vic Chou
Vic Chou is a Taiwanese actor, singer and commercial model. He is a member of the Taiwanese boy band F4, and has starred in Taiwanese dramas. His stage name, 周渝民, literally means “a completely changed person”...

. They have also attained popularity in other part of Asia
Asia
Asia is the world's largest and most populous continent, located primarily in the eastern and northern hemispheres. It covers 8.7% of the Earth's total surface area and with approximately 3.879 billion people, it hosts 60% of the world's current human population...

, such as Hong Kong
Hong Kong
Hong Kong is one of two Special Administrative Regions of the People's Republic of China , the other being Macau. A city-state situated on China's south coast and enclosed by the Pearl River Delta and South China Sea, it is renowned for its expansive skyline and deep natural harbour...

, Singapore
Singapore
Singapore , officially the Republic of Singapore, is a Southeast Asian city-state off the southern tip of the Malay Peninsula, north of the equator. An island country made up of 63 islands, it is separated from Malaysia by the Straits of Johor to its north and from Indonesia's Riau Islands by the...

, Malaysia, Thailand
Thailand
Thailand , officially the Kingdom of Thailand , formerly known as Siam , is a country located at the centre of the Indochina peninsula and Southeast Asia. It is bordered to the north by Burma and Laos, to the east by Laos and Cambodia, to the south by the Gulf of Thailand and Malaysia, and to the...

, Indonesia
Indonesia
Indonesia , officially the Republic of Indonesia , is a country in Southeast Asia and Oceania. Indonesia is an archipelago comprising approximately 13,000 islands. It has 33 provinces with over 238 million people, and is the world's fourth most populous country. Indonesia is a republic, with an...

, Japan
Japan
Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...

, South Korea
South Korea
The Republic of Korea , , is a sovereign state in East Asia, located on the southern portion of the Korean Peninsula. It is neighbored by the People's Republic of China to the west, Japan to the east, North Korea to the north, and the East China Sea and Republic of China to the south...

 and in the Philippines
Philippines
The Philippines , officially known as the Republic of the Philippines , is a country in Southeast Asia in the western Pacific Ocean. To its north across the Luzon Strait lies Taiwan. West across the South China Sea sits Vietnam...

.

F4 (2001–2002)

The Meteor Garden
Meteor Garden
Meteor Garden is a 2001 Taiwanese drama starring Barbie Hsu, Jerry Yan, Vic Zhou, Vanness Wu and Ken Chu. It is based on Japanese shōjo manga series, , written by Yoko Kamio...

series is an adaptation of the Japanese shōjo
Shojo
The term refers to manga marketed to a female audience roughly between the ages of 10-18. The name romanizes the Japanese 少女 , literally: "little female". Shōjo manga covers many subjects in a variety of narrative and graphic styles, from historical drama to science fiction — often with a strong...

 manga
Manga
Manga is the Japanese word for "comics" and consists of comics and print cartoons . In the West, the term "manga" has been appropriated to refer specifically to comics created in Japan, or by Japanese authors, in the Japanese language and conforming to the style developed in Japan in the late 19th...

 series, ' (Hana Yori Dango). Yan plays the lead role of Dao Ming Si, an extremely arrogant and rich university student who meets his match in the poor but proud girl, Shan Cai - played by Barbie Hsu
Barbie Hsu
Barbie Hsu also known as Dà S |Mars]] with Vic Chou of F4. She has also acted in movies, her first being the Chinese movie The Ghost Inside. She also had a singing career prior to her acting career. She was in a duo group called "S.O.S." with her sister Dee Hsu. Their last album was called...

. Chou, Wu and Chu play his friends Hua Ze Lei, Mei Zuo, and Xi Men respectively. The four boys were the most popular and handsome boys at the university; they were recognised as the group named the "Flower Four", hence the title: F4.

Meteor Garden was released in Taiwan
Taiwan
Taiwan , also known, especially in the past, as Formosa , is the largest island of the same-named island group of East Asia in the western Pacific Ocean and located off the southeastern coast of mainland China. The island forms over 99% of the current territory of the Republic of China following...

 in 2001 and turned the leads into stars virtually overnight. In 2002 Meteor Garden was released in Hong Kong
Hong Kong
Hong Kong is one of two Special Administrative Regions of the People's Republic of China , the other being Macau. A city-state situated on China's south coast and enclosed by the Pearl River Delta and South China Sea, it is renowned for its expansive skyline and deep natural harbour...

, Singapore
Singapore
Singapore , officially the Republic of Singapore, is a Southeast Asian city-state off the southern tip of the Malay Peninsula, north of the equator. An island country made up of 63 islands, it is separated from Malaysia by the Straits of Johor to its north and from Indonesia's Riau Islands by the...

, Malaysia, Thailand
Thailand
Thailand , officially the Kingdom of Thailand , formerly known as Siam , is a country located at the centre of the Indochina peninsula and Southeast Asia. It is bordered to the north by Burma and Laos, to the east by Laos and Cambodia, to the south by the Gulf of Thailand and Malaysia, and to the...

, Indonesia
Indonesia
Indonesia , officially the Republic of Indonesia , is a country in Southeast Asia and Oceania. Indonesia is an archipelago comprising approximately 13,000 islands. It has 33 provinces with over 238 million people, and is the world's fourth most populous country. Indonesia is a republic, with an...

, Japan
Japan
Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...

, Korea
Korea
Korea ) is an East Asian geographic region that is currently divided into two separate sovereign states — North Korea and South Korea. Located on the Korean Peninsula, Korea is bordered by the People's Republic of China to the northwest, Russia to the northeast, and is separated from Japan to the...

 and in the Philippines
Philippines
The Philippines , officially known as the Republic of the Philippines , is a country in Southeast Asia in the western Pacific Ocean. To its north across the Luzon Strait lies Taiwan. West across the South China Sea sits Vietnam...

 in 2003. It was also released in some place of Europe. The series was aired on Xing Kong channel, and later remade title Meteor Shower
Meteor shower
A meteor shower is a celestial event in which a number of meteors are observed to radiate from one point in the night sky. These meteors are caused by streams of cosmic debris called meteoroids entering Earth's atmosphere at extremely high speeds on parallel trajectories. Most meteors are smaller...

, which was a commercial flop. A sequel, Meteor Garden II
Meteor Garden II
Meteor Garden II is a 2002 Taiwanese drama starring Barbie Hsu and F4: Jerry Yan, Vic Zhou, Vanness Wu and Ken Chu. It is the sequel to 2001 Meteor Garden and is based on Japanese shōjo manga series, , written by Yoko Kamio...

,
was shot in Spain
Spain
Spain , officially the Kingdom of Spain languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Spain's official name is as follows:;;;;;;), is a country and member state of the European Union located in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula...

 later and released in 2002.

In 2001, F4 became a boy-group and signed a record deal with Sony Music Taiwan
Sony Music Entertainment
Sony Music Entertainment ' is the second-largest global recorded music company of the "big four" record companies and is controlled by Sony Corporation of America, the United States subsidiary of Japan's Sony Corporation....

. Together they have released three albums, Meteor Rain, Fantasy 4ever, and "Waiting for You". In 2002, F4 sang the Mandarin cover of "Can't Help Falling in Love
Can't Help Falling in Love
"Can't Help Falling in Love" is a pop song originally recorded by American singer Elvis Presley and published by Gladys Music, Elvis Presley's publishing company. It was written by Hugo Peretti, Luigi Creatore, and George David Weiss. The melody was based on "Plaisir d'Amour" but with a different...

" included in the Asian version of Walt Disney
Walt Disney
Walter Elias "Walt" Disney was an American film producer, director, screenwriter, voice actor, animator, entrepreneur, entertainer, international icon, and philanthropist, well-known for his influence in the field of entertainment during the 20th century. Along with his brother Roy O...

's Lilo & Stitch
Lilo & Stitch
This article is about the movie. For the television series, see Lilo & Stitch: The Series.Lilo & Stitch is a 2002 American animated feature produced by Walt Disney Feature Animation and released on June 21, 2002...

soundtrack. The English
English language
English is a West Germanic language that arose in the Anglo-Saxon kingdoms of England and spread into what was to become south-east Scotland under the influence of the Anglian medieval kingdom of Northumbria...

 version of this song is sung by A*Teens, which is a cover of the 1961 Elvis Presley
Elvis Presley
Elvis Aaron Presley was one of the most popular American singers of the 20th century. A cultural icon, he is widely known by the single name Elvis. He is often referred to as the "King of Rock and Roll" or simply "the King"....

 hit of the same title. They also made the Mandarin cover of Yo Te Amo by Chayanne
Chayanne
Elmer Figueroa Arce , best known under the stage name Chayanne, is a Puerto Rican Latin pop singer and actor. As a solo artist, Chayanne has released 21 solo-albums and sold over 20 million albums worldwide.-Early life:...

.

JVKV (April 29, 2007)

On April 29, 2007, Meteor Garden producer Angie Chai announced that the group would no longer be known as F4. The change in name stemmed from copyright-related issues. Japanese publisher Shueisha
Shueisha
is a major publisher in Japan. The company was founded in 1925 as the entertainment-related publishing division of Japanese publisher Shogakukan. The following year, Shueisha became a separate, independent company. Magazines published by Shueisha include Weekly Shōnen Jump, Weekly Young Jump,...

, who owns the copyright to Hana Yori Dango allowed the group to use F4 as its band name in 2001. However, as Japan had filmed and aired its own live action
Live action
In filmmaking, video production, and other media, the term live action refers to cinematography, videography not produced using animation...

 versions of the popular manga, with its own cast of four, the publisher felt that there may be confusion over the name in different countries. Due to this conflict, the group was renamed JVKV using the first initials of each of the group's members. According to the producer, the members are listed in the new name by the order of their birth dates from oldest to youngest, thus Vanness Wu's name appears before Vic Chou's.

Despite rumours of disbanding, JVKV released their third album, Waiting For You, on December 28, 2007. Their third album still bore the name F4, not JVKV.

2008

F4 were the first foreign artists to hold 7 consecutive concerts in Japan. Thousands flooded Narita Airport when the band's plane touched down.
Jerry Yan even attracted two thousand fans at the airport during his solo fan meeting.

Solo projects

JVKV are also concentrating on their solo careers in acting and music.

Wu has focused more of his attention on movies and music. He released his 2nd album, titled V.Dubb (his nickname), in April 2007, five years after his first album, Body Will Sing, and has released his 3rd album titled In Between 2008 new song + collection album in June 2008. He's been in numerous music videos, such as "Ai Cuo" with Wang Leehom, the Chinese version of "Crazy in Love" with Beyoncé Knowles
Beyoncé Knowles
Beyoncé Giselle Knowles , often known simply as Beyoncé, is an American singer, songwriter, record producer, and actress. Born and raised in Houston, Texas, she enrolled in various performing arts schools and was first exposed to singing and dancing competitions as a child...

, and Coco Lee
CoCo Lee
Coco Lee , born on 17 January 1975, also known by her official English name as Ferren Lee, is a pop singer, songwriter, record producer and actress. Coco started her career in Hong Kong but, after becoming popular in Taiwan, she was widely considered to be a Taiwan artist. She was born to a Chinese...

's "Hip Hop Tonight". His latest album C'est La V has also been released in July 2011. He has been acting in many shows as well. He was best known for acting in Autumn's Concerto (下一站,幸福)with Ady An, which received good comments. He has also been involved with several big-screen movies such as Star Runner, Kung Fu Fighter, Three Kingdoms: Resurrection of the Dragon, and Dragon Squad, among others. Many of his movies relate to his love of stunts and martial arts. Many of his albums feature him dancing to his songs, as he is a great dancer, and dancing is his favorite hobby. Other than just singing in Chinese and English, Van Ness also went on to sing Japanese songs and Korean songs. His Japanese albums include Reflections and Reason. He collaborated with Kangta
Kangta
Ahn Chil-Hyun , better known by his stage name Kangta is a South Korean pop, R&B singer, first known as the lead singer the boy band H.O.T. ....

 from H.O.T and the album Scandal
Scandal (album)
Scandal is a one-off album released in 2006 by Kangta & Vanness, a duo composed of Korean singer Kangta and Taiwanese singer Vanness Wu. Several of the songs on Scandal were recorded in both Korean and Mandarin, and two music videos were produced...

, was produced, by SM Entertainment
SM Entertainment
S.M. Entertainment is an independent Korean record label, talent agency, producer, and publisher of pop music, founded by Lee Soo-man in South Korea...

.

In August 2004, Yan came out with his first solo album titled, The First Time (第一次 Jerry for You). He's acted in Taiwanese drama series such as Spicy Teacher, Meteor Garden, its sequel Meteor Garden 2, Meteor Rain, Come To My place, Love Scar, The Hospital, and made a movie, Magic Kitchen 魔幻廚房 (2004). Hot Shot (2008) was broadcast in Taiwan, and Starlit aired in Taiwan in 2009; and Down With Love, with Ella Chen
Ella Chen
Chen Chia-Hwa , more commonly credited as Ella, is the oldest member of the Taiwanese girl group S.H.E. Her name 'Ella', which means courage, was given after the personality test given by HIM Management Co....

 of S.H.E
S.H.E
S.H.E is a Taiwanese girl group whose members are Selina Jen, Hebe Tien, and Ella Chen. The name of the group is an alphabetism derived from the first letter of each member's name. Since releasing their first album Girls Dorm , S.H.E has recorded 12 albums with sales totalling over 15 million, and...

.

Chou has come out with 3 solo albums, Make a Wish (2002), Remember I Love You (2004), and I'm not F4 (2007), and has acted in at least one drama series every year since 2001, with the exception of 2003. Within the last year, he came out with two movies: Linger and Tea Fight.

Chu, known to love food and cooking, came out with his own cookbook, Delicious Relations (美味關係) in 2006, after starring in a string of idol dramas. He has also starred in at least one drama per year since 2001, except 2005, where he came out with his own solo album, On Ken's Time. He has released his 2nd solo album "2009 Getting Real new songs + collections album" in January 2009 (just before his birthday). He has filmed three movies to date. In a recent interview with F4, Chu has mentioned that he is growing increasingly more interested in music.

Three of the four appeared in Wish To See You Again, starring Vic Chou and Ken Chu, while Vanness had guest appearances in a few episodes. Due to scheduling conflicts, Jerry Yan did not appear; his part was played by Kingone Wang
Kingone Wang
Kingone Wang was born 5 May 1980. He is a Taiwanese actor, singer and host. He was part of the boy band Comic Boyz and winner of Taiwanese Golden Bell Awards for Best Supporting Actor in a Television Series....

. Yan filmed a series in Taiwan alongside Wu Chun
Wu Chun
Wu Chun was born on 10 October 1979, birth name Goh Kiat Chun, is a Brunei-born Taiwanese actor, singer, former model and gym instructor....

 of Fahrenheit
Fahrenheit (Taiwanese band)
Fahrenheit is a Taiwanese boy band who has been active in Asia since 2005. The group debut with four members: Jiro Wang, Calvin Chen, Aaron Yan and Wu Chun. They are managed by Comic International Productions . The group's music is distributed by HIM International Music in Taiwan, by WOW Music in...

 and Show Luo
Show Luo
Show Luo also known as Xiao Zhu was born on 30 July 1979. He is a Taiwanese entertainer: Mandopop singer, dancer, host and actor. He has been dubbed "Dancing King of Asia" for his dancing skills.-Biography:...

, called Hot Shot otherwise known as 篮球火 which was released in the Summer 2008. The series revolves around basketball and the boys' competition on court. This series was highly anticipated due to the star status of thethree male leads.

Discography

Album # Title Released Label Format
1st Meteor Rain
Meteor Rain (album)
Meteor Rain is the debut Mandarin studio album of Taiwanese Mandopop quartet boy band F4. It was released on 28 August 2001 by Sony Music Taiwan...

(流星雨)
28 August 2001 Sony Music Taiwan
Sony Music Entertainment
Sony Music Entertainment ' is the second-largest global recorded music company of the "big four" record companies and is controlled by Sony Corporation of America, the United States subsidiary of Japan's Sony Corporation....

 
Studio album (CD)
2nd Fantasy 4ever
Fantasy 4ever
Fantasy 4ever is the second Mandarin studio album of Taiwanese Mandopop quartet boy band F4. It was released on 18 December 2002 by Sony Music Taiwan...

(煙火的季節)
18 December 2002 Sony Music Taiwan
Sony Music Entertainment
Sony Music Entertainment ' is the second-largest global recorded music company of the "big four" record companies and is controlled by Sony Corporation of America, the United States subsidiary of Japan's Sony Corporation....

 
Studio album (CD)
3rd 360 Degrees:F4 Five Years Glorious Collection
(360度定番精選輝煌五年全記錄)
28 November 2006 Sony Music Taiwan
Sony Music Entertainment
Sony Music Entertainment ' is the second-largest global recorded music company of the "big four" record companies and is controlled by Sony Corporation of America, the United States subsidiary of Japan's Sony Corporation....

 
Greatest hits album (2CD+2DVD)
4th Waiting for You (在這裡等你) 28 December 2007 Sony Music Taiwan
Sony Music Entertainment
Sony Music Entertainment ' is the second-largest global recorded music company of the "big four" record companies and is controlled by Sony Corporation of America, the United States subsidiary of Japan's Sony Corporation....

 
Studio album (CD)
5th Fabulous: F4 Best Selections (神话般 F4最佳收藏) 24 September 2008 Sony Music Taiwan
Sony Music Entertainment
Sony Music Entertainment ' is the second-largest global recorded music company of the "big four" record companies and is controlled by Sony Corporation of America, the United States subsidiary of Japan's Sony Corporation....

 
Greatest hits album (2CD)

Awards

Year |Category
IFPI Hong Kong Album Sales Awards
IFPI香港唱片銷量大獎
Top 10 Selling Mandarin Albums of the Year
十大銷量國語唱片獲獎
Meteor Rain
Meteor Rain (album)
Meteor Rain is the debut Mandarin studio album of Taiwanese Mandopop quartet boy band F4. It was released on 28 August 2001 by Sony Music Taiwan...

2003 Fantasy 4ever
Fantasy 4ever
Fantasy 4ever is the second Mandarin studio album of Taiwanese Mandopop quartet boy band F4. It was released on 18 December 2002 by Sony Music Taiwan...


External links

Official SonyMusic F4 360 site
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