Kelvin Tan

Kelvin Tan Wei Lian (陈伟联, born 5 October 1981) is a Singaporean Mandopop singer who earned a living as a busker before he won the first edition of Project SuperStar in 2005. He has released three albums, All I Want Is..., i-Weilian (2007) and Moving Notes...Kelvin Tan (2009). He also had a solo concert at the Singapore Expo, lead a choir at the opening ceremony at the 2008 Summer Paralympics, and singing Singapore's 2009 National Day Parade's theme song.

Early life Born blind due to Leber's congenital amaurosis (which causes the retina to disintegrate), Tan grew up listening to 1980s Mandopop ballads, which inspired him to learn to play the piano and guitar. He studied at the Singapore School for the Visually Handicapped and Dunearn Secondary School. After his O-Levels, he worked as a massage therapist and a singer at a café. He also busked at Jurong East and Waterloo Street, playing his guitar and singing Mandopop ballads for two to eight hours per day. According to The New Paper reporter Mindy Tan, his performances drew large crowds (including Malays and Indians), some of whom were so "impressed [by] his music" that they would "sit on the pavement nearby for up to an hour listening to him".

Project SuperStar Tan and four blind friends auditioned for the inaugural season of Project SuperStar, but only he was accepted as a contestant. Thus, Tan became the grand champion and was awarded a recording contract with Play Music.

Music career Tan's debut album All I Want Is... (我只是想要), which contains four original songs and all of his famous competition recordings including Fairytale (童话), Matchstick Heaven (火柴天堂), Heaven Knows, 其实你不懂我的心, etc., Its title track topped the Singapore music charts in February 2006, while another of its songs, Touch (触摸 ), won Best Theme Song at the 2006 Star Awards. The debut album also had another TOP chart hit 爱恨难. In total, the album sold 45,000 copies in Singapore and 15,000 copies in Malaysia.

In 2009, Kelvin released his third album, Moving Notes...Kelvin Tan (走场陈伟联). This critically acclaimed original album includes his self composed melodies with the biggest lyricists in Chinese music, including Liang Wern Fook, Albert Leung, 小寒, Yao Qian (姚谦), Daryl Yeo (姚若龙), 吴玉康, Lo-Jung Chen, Kevin Yi, etc. It also included a popular interpretation of Chang Yu-sheng's 大海, which had Kelvin playing the piano in the sea in the music video. The songs from the album, Forever Friends (永远的朋友) and Break Up Letter (分手的请书) topped the Singapore charts in October 2009, In addition, 分手的请书 won two awards at the 2010 Singapore Entertainment Awards and 我们 (Together) won Best Theme Song at the 2010 Star Awards. However, his contract with Warner Music expired in September 2010 and was not renewed. and four years later, he sang a tribute song to Singapore named Treasure Every Moment.

In July 2017, Kelvin released brand new Mandarin album 新谣 (The Singapore Songbook), which is a tribute to the heritage of local writers and compositions in Singapore. In it, Kelvin interprets household classic tunes from the 80s, 90s and 00s; including Liang's Friendship Forever (细水长流), 夜的眩晕, 让夜轻轻落下, Dick Lee's Home, Roy Li's 等你等到我心痛, Eric Moo's 你是我的唯一, 情谊藏心里, among others. The song was a hit and well received by audience which won the title of Best TV Drama Theme Song at the 2019 Star Awards.

Accolades

Year Ceremony Award Nominated work Result2006 Star Awards Best Theme Song The Shining Star Star Awards Top 10 Most Popular Male Artistes Star Awards Best Newcomer 2010 Star Awards Best Theme Song Together 2013 Star Awards Best Theme Song Show Hand 2015 Star Awards Best Theme Song The Journey: Tumultuous Times 2019 Star Awards Best Theme Song You Can Be An Angel 3

Philanthropy Due to his disability and achievements, Tan has been an ambassador for several local disability awareness campaigns and performed in various charity shows, including a concert to raise funds for victims of the 2008 Sichuan earthquake. In his spare time, he works as a guide for the Singapore edition of Dialogue in the Dark, an exhibition that helps sighted people understand the experiences of blind people. In 2012, he picked up running, joined RunningHour (a running club for people with disabilities) and participated in the 10 km run of the Singapore Marathon.