Ayi Jihu

Ayi Jihu (; born 1984) is a Chinese singer of Yi ethnicity, signed to British company Shlepp Records.

Early life Ayi Jihu grew up in Leibo County in the Liangshan Yi Autonomous Prefecture of Sichuan. Her parents were farmers. Her father died when she was just five or six, leaving Ayi to help her mother with farm chores, mainly raising ducks and chickens. She was exposed to traditional Yi ethnic music and dance from an early age, and found inspiration in the example of Qubi Awu, also an ethnic Yi from Sichuan, whose talents earned her a performance on China Central Television. She studied in The Leys School for Year 9 in the academic year of 1998-1999 in North B House. In her new country, she came into contact with a variety of musical styles in concerts and clubs she attended with her friends; R&B especially piqued her interest. Though living in the UK, she continued to observe a number of Yi traditions at home, including the Torch Festival.

Career Ayi Jihu was signed to Shlepp Records in 2007, with whom she released her first album, Try Me.

In September 2010, the BBC released an article describing Ayi Jihu's rise to stardom, dubbing her the "Chinese Madonna" and claiming that she had been awarded a gold disc to commemorate 100 million downloads of her album by fans in China.

In April 2011, she was in the "Fear Chaser" Event on AdventureQuest Worlds. This is where the player helps her defeat the Fears of Heights, the Fear of the Dark, and the Fear of Death and even the personification of Fear. Ayi Jihu has been developing the Fear Chaser Chronicles franchise movie property with her manager and producer Stevie Eagle Ellis and independent producer James With. An early treatment has now been developed into a full feature screenplay.

In January 2014, Ayi Jihu embarked on a new series of performances around the world and commenced recording of new songs in London's Battery Studios. A new song from Brazilian artist Edu Casanova with the legendary Tito Jackson has been released. Ayi performed it in Brazil with Edu Casanova.