RiddleZhang Mi

Author: Zhang Mi
Publisher:
Publish Date: 2005-06-01
Features: At the age of 14, I left my hometown with 25 yuan and entered an art school in Inner Mongolia, starting my singing career and finally realizing my dream of becoming a singer. I don’t know how to describe the joy I felt at the time. Later, I was borrowed by a dance and music troupe for an internship. Everything there was unfamiliar and hard, but my heart was filled with curiosity and novelty. I was assigned to a dormitory converted from a temple, which was eerie at first. Those days, I often followed a small team to the grasslands for small, simple performances. We had to carry our own luggage and stay with herdsmen at night. At that time, my lung disease, which had not yet healed, flared up again. I had fever and coughed up blood. My monthly salary was only 25 yuan, so there was no money to buy medicine or treat myself. My face was pale, and my body was weak. Soon after, I was dismissed from the dance and music troupe. This sudden blow left me unsure of where to go. Heartbroken and helpless, I packed my belongings. In the early morning, before dawn, I rented a donkey cart and left the place where many of my dreams had originated. I was lost and disoriented, bought a platform ticket, and boarded a train aimlessly. Looking out the window at the desolate desert, it mirrored my own feelings. Only when I realized the train was heading north did I remember that I still had a place to go—Mudanjiang. My brother worked there as a temporary worker. I forgot about hunger and sleep, riding a hard-sprung train for two days and two nights. When I finally found my brother after much trouble, I couldn’t speak a word. My voice was completely hoarse, and only tears fell silently from my eyes. Seeing my pitiful state, my brother hugged me tightly, crying out of heartache. After many days, I carried my luggage, dried my tears, and took the exam for the Fuxin County Cultural Troupe in Liaoning Province. I passed the exam and became a temporary trial performer in the troupe. Here, I practiced tirelessly every day, sitting in the practice room for six to eight hours. Singing allowed me to express my emotions and find solace in the lyrics. Six months later, I read in a newspaper that the Luoyang City Dance and Music Troupe in Henan was recruiting. This made me want to give it a try, as there were almost no performances in this county’s troupe, and I couldn’t improve myself. I left here and boarded a train heading south. The carriage was packed with people, leaving almost no space to stand. I struggled to find a small spot to sit in the aisle. Though thirsty, dirty, and exhausted, the thought of possibly getting into the troupe lifted my spirits. I thought Luoyang was an ancient and civilized city, so it must be a mysterious place. I carried my luggage and found the head of the Luoyang Dance and Music Troupe, explaining my background. I passed the exam at the rehearsal hall and became a temporary member of the vocal team in the Luoyang Dance and Music Troupe. I joined a touring team to perform in Shandong. The performances were tough; we had to carry our own luggage. To save costs, we performed on stage during the day and slept in the backstage area at night. Sometimes, I was covered in mosquito bites of all sizes, the stinging pain unbearable! At that time, my lung disease was still severe. During the performances, I kept taking injections and medicine. Whenever we arrived at a performance location, the first thing I did was ask where the hospital was. My body was weak and frail, sweating profusely after each performance. Despite enduring constant pain, I refused to stop. I feared days without work. This touring lasted for three months, and each performance earned me five yuan in labor fees. When moving to the next location, I sometimes took long-distance buses or squeezed onto trains. After ending this lonely tour, my life returned to the usual lonely and friendless routine. A year later, I moved from Luoyang to Zhengzhou. It seemed that the higher the rank of the troupe, the more complicated it became. Without friends or a support system, I often faced indifference, criticism, and exclusion. Just because my singing was well-received, I was frequently envied by singers who had once been popular in the troupe. They would fabricate stories to slander me, causing those around me to look down on me. From then on, I grew accustomed to malicious attacks, strangeness, and loneliness. The people I trusted betrayed me one after another. I learned to endure and became quieter. Thanks to a teacher’s recommendation, I passed the exam for the Beijing Film and Television Troupe. Beijing! The place I had long dreamed of since childhood, with the Tiananmen, beautiful streets, large shopping malls, and excellent stages. There were so many artistic groups there, and I admired many singers. My heart was filled with fantasies, and for years, I had dreamed of becoming a member of an artistic group in the capital of our great motherland! When I arrived in Beijing alone with my luggage, my heart was so proud and excited! I remember that the exam scene was incredibly tense, as the room was filled with familiar singers and composers. My palms were cold, and my heart beat rapidly. I kept telling myself, “Don’t be nervous. If I don’t pass, I’ll go back to Henan.” I told myself to stay calm. When I finished singing, unexpectedly, the whole hall erupted in warm applause. From their faces, I saw hope. Zhang Mi, an introverted and unassuming person, always delivers a powerful impact whenever she appears. This makes us understand something called charm, a beauty that radiates from within, something no fancy outfit can disguise. After her boyfriend published My Sexy Girlfriend Zhang Mi, Zhang Mi released another masterpiece, Mystery—Authentic Zhang Mi, featuring highly artistic and lifelike photos. In the photo collection, Zhang Mi showcases her perfect body and shares her skincare secrets. She hopes to use her own experience to tell Chinese women that time can only make a woman more dazzling, as long as you stay passionate about life. Although my arrival brought joy to my family, as time passed, I grew from a babbling infant into a restless “grasshopper”! Due to my competitiveness and stubbornness, after work, my parents often looked at each other helplessly and asked in unison, “Heaven! Who does she resemble? Is she even a girl?” Before receiving an award on stage, I kept telling myself to stay calm and not cry. But when the host announced my results, when I received the golden trophy, I couldn’t help but burst into tears. This wasn’t tears of joy! It was tears of grievances! Ten years of grievances! At that moment, I felt as if my mother had passed away. She must have! I had never been this lucky! It must have been her sacrifice that brought me this honor! I thought deeply about it. Someone like me, who goes to bed at 10 p.m. and wakes up at 7:30 a.m., who doesn’t smoke, drink, socialize, or hang out in bars, is just an outsider doing things in the entertainment industry. A person who lags behind the times can only rely on their own money to do their own things, which is the most reliable way. What truly confuses me is that you don’t know which words the other person is telling the truth, you don’t know who to trust, and you don’t know what they’re thinking. I’m truly tired of dealing with people, and that’s the real exhaustion.
Zhang Mi Profile:
Chinese Name: Zhang Mi
English Name: MIMI
Date of Birth: December 26
Zodiac: Capricorn
Blood Type: A
Height: 1.75 meters
Weight: 53 kg
Specialties: Singing/Modeling
Zhang Mi’s Artistic Resume:
1989: Participated in the National Top Ten Singers Selection Contest organized by the Ministry of Culture and won third place! She established a strong position in the music scene in Guangdong!
1990: Participated in the Fourth National Young Singers Competition and won the championship in the pop singing category!
1991: Published the novel A Heart That Cries and became the first female artist in China to write an autobiography!
1993: Starred in the TV series A Lone Star and became the first female artist in China to bring her story to the screen!
1993: Hosted and produced the 52-episode TV short film Perspective!
1994–1998: Traveled to Italy, France, the United States, Monaco, etc., and lived in Switzerland!
1999: Signed with a Taiwanese record company, released the full album I Am Your upon returning to China, co-wrote six songs, and served as the album’s producer!
1999: Won the Golden Award for Most Charming Woman from Vogue magazine!
2000: April—Collaborated with renowned fashion designer Liu Yang as a model, becoming the first Chinese artist to transition from singing to modeling!
2000: June—Received the Car Princess award from the World Classic Car Association!
2000: July—Signed with the Taiwanese Grammy 8866 record company!
2001: Won the Special Award at the U.S. Global Asian Model Contest!
2001: Held a concert in Atlantic City, U.S.A.!
2002: Participated in the CCTV Spring Festival Gala and performed Spring Returns!
2002: Released the second Mandarin album MAYA and won the Breakthrough Female Singer Award from the Music (Music Trend)!
2002: Elected as one of the Top 10 Golden Melodies in the U.S. poll and the Most Fashionable Female Artist!
2002: Won the Best Dressing Award from Vogue magazine!
2002: Received the Most Popular Star Award at the China Golden Eagle TV Festival!
2002: Participated in the opening ceremony of the Guangzhou International (Cowboy Festival) and performed MAYA, along with performing with 100 models!
2003: Participated in the CCTV New Year’s Gala and performed I Love China!