Windy Zhan

Windy Zhan Tian-wen (; born 2 March 2006) is a Hong Kong female Cantopop singer and actress, and a member of the Hong Kong girl group After Class. She is a contestant of the season 1 of TVB's 2021 reality singing talent competition Stars Academy. Zhan made her solo debut on 31 March 2023 with the single .

Early life Born in Hong Kong with a Hubei descent on 2 March 2006, Zhan is the smallest child in a family of three children (two elder brothers). Zhan has been learning singing since the age of three, and learning and practising vocal music with Hong Kong professional sopranos Wang Shan and Candy Chik since the age of five. From 2012, she attended the and later won multiple awards at the Hong Kong Schools Music Festival. She also once performed as a soloist with the City Chamber Orchestra of Hong Kong. In 2016, she switched to the International Christian Quality Music Secondary and Primary School (ICQM) to continue her primary and secondary school studies until 2024.

Career 2020–2022: Stars Academy and group debut In 2020, Zhan was qualified as one of the 15, and one of the youngest, contestants in the season 1 of TVB's 2021 reality singing talent competition Stars Academy. Some of her notable performances in the show include her rendition of G.E.M.'s Bubble , and Bang Bang by Jessie J, Ariana Grande, and Nicki Minaj. She also performed Sandy Lam's Without You, I Still Love You as a counterpart to Gigi Yim who also performed that song in a same episode of the show. Zhan eventually ranked tenth place in the show.

Following the Stars Academy season 1, Zhan signed the sublabel All About Music under the record label TVB Music Group, and debuted as a member of the girl group After Class on 27 November 2021, along with another three Stars Academy season 1 contestants Gigi Yim, Chantel Yiu, and Yumi Chung, with their debut single .

Together with other 14 contestants of the show, Zhan then performed in her first TV drama series Forever Young at Heart in late 2021 and early 2022. In the series, she plays a secondary school student with extraordinary musical talent but is often ignored by her parents at home. She also performed the Les oiseaux dans la charmille aria, extracted from the opera The Tales of Hoffmann written by Jacques Offenbach, in the series.

During 2022 to 2023, Zhan sang drama songs or themes in Cantonese for several TV dramas that were broadcast on TVB, including the episode insert song Saying "I Do" Again for , the ending theme Love Permit for Royal Feast , and the episode insert song So That's Being Lonely Repeatedly for .

2023–present: Solo debut On 31 March 2023, Zhan formally debuted as a Cantopop solo artist with her single , a song about friendship and love in secondary school life with its music video filmed at the ICQM, her alma mater.

In June 2023, Zhan participated in a music competition of the ICQM as coloratura soprano, singing the aria Der Hölle Rache kocht in meinem Herzen (more commonly known as the Queen of the Night aria) in the second act of Mozart's opera The Magic Flute . The video of her performance was later reposted by a Taiwan-based classical music Facebook page, and was highly praised by netizens, mainly Taiwanese.

On 20 October 2023, Zhan released her second and dance-pop single . She was then awarded the "Best Rookie" at the 2023 held by Metro Broadcast Corporation, and the "Most Promising Rookie: Silver Award" at the RTHK's 2024 Top Ten Chinese Gold Songs Award .

Being a candidate of the 2024 HKDSE, Zhan announced in April 2024 that she has been accepted to admission with an entrance scholarship to the Berklee College of Music in Boston, USA. But on 29 July 2024, Zhan announced her decision to enroll in the Xinghai Conservatory of Music in Guangzhou, China, instead.

Discography Singles As lead artist +TitleYear Peak chart positionsAlbumNotesHKSaying "I Do" Again 2022—Ending theme of Love Permit —Cantonese version of the ending theme of Royal Feast My Little Darling —With , cover of the opening theme of 1981 TVB drama series So That's Being Lonely Repeatedly 2023—Episode insert song of —Non-album singleCourage to Acquire Happiness —Cantonese version of the ending theme of New Life Begins Platinum Elevator —Episode insert song of Forget about Life but Remember Death —Opening theme of —Non-album single 2024—

Filmography Television series

Awards and nominations Year Award Category Nominated work Result Notes 2023 2023 (新城勁爆頒獎禮2023) Best Rookie 2024 45th Top Ten Chinese Gold Songs Award (第四十五屆十大中文金曲) Most Promising Rookie: Silver Award