Kit Chan

{{short description|Singaporean singer (born 1972)|bot=PearBOT 5}}

{{Use dmy dates|date=December 2020}}

{{family name hatnote|Chan|lang=Chinese}}

{{infobox person

| honorific_prefix =

| name = Kit Chan

| honorific_suffix =

| native_name = {{nobold|{{lang|zh-hans|陈洁仪}}}}

| image = Kit Chan.jpg

| image_upright =

| landscape =

| alt =

| caption = Chan in 2022

| birth_name =

| birth_date = {{Birth date and age|1972|9|15|df=y}}

| birth_place = Singapore

| death_date =

| death_place =

| death_cause =

| body_discovered =

| resting_place =

| resting_place_coordinates =

| burial_place =

| burial_coordinates =

| nationality =

| education = {{hlist|Raffles Girls' School|Raffles Junior College}}

| alma_mater = Lasalle-SIA College of the Arts

| occupation = {{hlist|Singer|actress|businesswoman|former public relations executive}}

| years_active = 1993–present

| known_for =

| notable_works =

| style =

| net_worth =

| height = 1.64 m

| partner =

| children =

| parents =

| mother =

| father =

| relatives =

| othername = Chen Jieyi

| awards = Star Awards 2000 : Best Theme Song
Star Awards 2012 : Best Theme Song
Star Awards 2016 : Best Theme Song

| website = {{URL|http://www.kitchan.com}}

| module2 = {{Infobox Chinese |child= yes|hide= no |headercolor=lightblue

| t = 陳潔儀

| s = 陈洁仪

| p = Chén Jiéyí

| bpmf = ㄔㄣˊ ㄐㄧㄝˊ ㄧˊ

| j = can4 git3 ji4

}}

| module = {{infobox musical artist|embed=yes

| background = solo_singer

| genre = {{hlist| Pop| Mandopop| Cantopop }}

| label = Ocean Butterflies (1993–2004)
Banshee Empire (2010–Present)
Taihe Music Group (2015–Present)

}}

}}

Chan Kit Yee ({{lang-zh|s=陈洁仪|j={{tone superscript|Can4 Git3 Ji4}}}}; born 15 September 1972), known professionally as Kit Chan, is a Singaporean singer and actress.

Early life and education

Born on 15 September 1972 in Singapore, Chan is the third daughter in a family of four sisters.

Chan studied in Fairfield Methodist School, Raffles Girls' School, Raffles Junior College and Lasalle-SIA College of the Arts. During Chan's six-year hiatus from the music scene from 2004 to 2010, she returned to LaSalle as a mature student. She wrote a thesis on the psychology of performance and graduated with first-class honors.

Career

Since her debut in 1993, Chan has worked in singing, theatre, television drama, poetry, song-writing, entrepreneurship and creative direction. In 1994, Chan released the album Heartache (心痛) into the Taiwanese market. She subsequently released more albums regionally including Liking You (喜欢你), Dazzling (炫耀), and Worried (担心), performing in parts of Asia, the United States, Korea, and New Zealand, as well as collaborating with symphonies and orchestras in Hong Kong, Taiwan and Singapore.

Chan performed a song, Home, during the 1998 Singapore National Day Parade which became very popular in Singapore. It was subsequently performed in various editions of the National Day Parades.

Chan took a hiatus in 2004 from her performing career to further her studies and joined international PR consultancy Hill & Knowlton as a campaign specialist in 2007. She worked on the Ministry of Defence's 2009 Total Defence campaign, 'What Will You Defend?'.{{cite web | url=http://is.asia-city.com/events/article/first-person-kit-chan | title=Kit Chan | access-date=12 August 2010 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100811212956/http://is.asia-city.com/events/article/first-person-kit-chan | archive-date=11 August 2010 | url-status=dead }} She left the company after 19 months.{{cite news | url=http://www.channelnewsasia.com/stories/entertainmentfeatures/view/1071120/1/.html | title=Kit Chan: From showbiz to office and back again | access-date=12 August 2010 | archive-date=21 October 2012 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121021080104/http://www.channelnewsasia.com/stories/entertainmentfeatures/view/1071120/1/.html | url-status=dead }}{{cite news | url=http://www.divaasia.com/article/7891 | title=Kit is back in showbiz | url-status=dead | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100824024528/http://www.divaasia.com/article/7891 | archive-date=24 August 2010}}

Chan has also worked linguistically and theatrically, with her Cantopop, and English albums. She has held lead roles in the Hong Kong musical Snow.Wolf.Lake with Jacky Cheung – both the Cantonese version in 1997 and the Mandarin production in 2005 – followed by The Legend (where she played the late Teresa Teng), and Forbidden City: Portrait of An Empress (where she played the young Empress Dowager Cixi)– first performed in 2002 as part of the Esplanade's opening programme, and again in 2003. Chan has also played the lead in the Dutch-Hong Kong production of East Meets West, and the Taiwanese musical What's Love Got to Do with It?.

In September 2006, she reprised her role again in Forbidden City: Portrait of an Empress, as part of a plan to make this musical internationally recognized, in the hope of going on a world tour. Chan later fronted the first Singapore Day in New York City in 2007. After her corporate sojourn, Chan performed the commissioned theme song One World at the APEC 2009 Gala Night and returned the theatre as leading lady (Li Qing) in the Mandarin musical December Rains (雨季) at Esplanade Theatre in 2010. In the same year, she sang Home for the third time at the National Day Parade. Chan was also a member of the cast of the television drama Healing Hands II, the sequel to TVB's medical drama Healing Hands in 2000. She was the female lead in SPH MediaWorks Channel U's drama serial Cash is King. Chan also acted in the 2010 film Lover's Discourse.

In 2011, Chan released her first studio album Re-interpreting Kit Chan (重譯 陳潔儀) since 2004 and staged two solo concerts in collaboration with the Singapore Chinese Orchestra at Esplanade Concert Hall, as the anchor performance of the Huayi Chinese Festival of Arts 2011. In the same year, she held her three-night solo concert The Music Room at the Marina Bay Sands Grand Theater. Also in 2011, Chan worked with Nexus, Ministry of Defence as Creative Director for the Total Defence "Home – Keeping It Together" Campaign 2011. She was also executive producer for the remake of the Home MV, which featured 39 local artistes spanning different genres, eras and races, including Max Surin, Dick Lee, Taufik Batisah, JJ Lin, and Stefanie Sun.{{cite news | url=http://www.channelnewsasia.com/stories/singaporelocalnews/view/1110936/1/.html | title=Singapore classic "Home" gets remade for Total Defence Day | access-date=12 July 2011 | archive-date=22 October 2012 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121022081044/http://www.channelnewsasia.com/stories/singaporelocalnews/view/1110936/1/.html | url-status=dead }} She wrote the theme song 倔强 for the MediaCorp Channel 8 anniversary drama Devotion, which won Best Drama Theme Song award at the 2012 Star Awards. Concerts themed An Enchanted Evening with Chiu Tsang Hei (傾城) were also held in Hong Kong.{{cite news | url=http://www.channelnewsasia.com/stories/singaporelocalnews/view/284931/1/.html | title=The Final Roar at Singapore's National Stadium}}

In 2014, Chan performed in her first leading film role in Jason Lai's Miss J Contemplates Her Choice as the titular Miss J, who offers advice to callers on a radio talk show. The film premiered at the Singapore International Film Festival in December.{{cite web|title=Miss J Contemplates Her Choice|url=http://sgiff.com/films/miss-j-contemplates-choice/|website=SGIFF|access-date=28 October 2014|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://archive.today/20141028100039/http://sgiff.com/films/miss-j-contemplates-choice/|archive-date=28 October 2014}} In 2014, Chan reportedly underwent a surgical procedure that left her barely able to speak, however she completed her 'Spellbound' concert eventually in 2015 at Star Theatre.{{cite web|title=Kit Chan Spellbound Concert 2015|url=http://www.vizpro.sg/vizpro/events/concert/kit-chan-spellbound/1724444.html|website=VizPro|publisher=MediaCorp VizPro International Pte Ltd|access-date=4 December 2015|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151208144024/http://www.vizpro.sg/vizpro/events/concert/kit-chan-spellbound/1724444.html|archive-date=8 December 2015}}{{cite news|last1=Toh|first1=Christopher|title=Concert review: Kit Chan's Spellbound|url=http://www.todayonline.com/entertainment/music/music-reviews/concert-review-kit-chans-spellbound|access-date=4 December 2015|publisher=Today}}{{cite news|last1=Han|first1=Wei Chou|title=Kit Chan enthralls at Spellbound concert in Singapore|url=http://www.channelnewsasia.com/news/entertainment/kit-chan-enthralls-at/1912762.html|access-date=4 December 2015|publisher=Channel NewsAsia}} She also participated in China reality singing contest I Am A Singer where Chinese critic Deng Ke remarked that Kit Chan can't sing.{{cite news|last1=Quek|first1=Eugene|title=The shocking reason behind Kit Chan's exit from I Am A Singer!|url=http://www.herworldplus.com/celebs-men-sex/celebs/shocking-reason-behind-kit-chan%E2%80%99s-exit-i-am-singer|access-date=4 December 2015|publisher=her world plus}} She announced her retirement from performing at the National Day Parades in 2015 after making her last NDP performance.{{cite news|last1=Hio|first1=Lester|title=Kit Chan says this year may be her last NDP performance|url=http://www.straitstimes.com/singapore/kit-chan-says-this-year-may-be-her-last-ndp-performance|access-date=4 December 2015|work=The Straits Times}} In 2015, she sang the theme song for Channel 8 Blockbuster The Dream Makers II.

In July 2016, she released her first album of original material in 12 years, titled The Edge of Paradise (天堂边缘). In September, Chan ended her Spellbound concert tour with a finale at Singapore Indoor Stadium to a 7,000-strong audience.

In 2018, Chan marked her 25th anniversary as a singer with an acoustic live sessions album in which she also penned the lyrics for the title track “A Time for Everything”. She also staged “25 Years On: A Time For Everything” concerts in Singapore and Taipei.

Chan has published a collection of her English poems, Cork out of my Head, in 2000 in Taiwan, I Write a Page in 2000 in Singapore, and a fiction book (together with her friend, Siew Fern Yong) titled Cathy and Jodie: The Princess and the Flea.{{cite web | url=http://www.mica.gov.sg/creative2006/press/2006-11-23-creative%20youth%20exchange%20results.pdf | title=CREATIVE YOUTH XCHANGE @ HELLO KITTY WINNERS UNVEILED | url-status=dead | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110720153914/http://www.mica.gov.sg/creative2006/press/2006-11-23-creative%20youth%20exchange%20results.pdf | archive-date=20 July 2011}}

In 2022, Chan performed in The LKY Musical, where she performed as the late Madam Kwa Geok Choo, the wife of Singapore’s founding Prime Minister Lee Kuan Yew.{{cite web | url=https://www.straitstimes.com/life/arts/kit-chan-to-play-mrs-lee-kuan-yew-opposite-adrian-pang-in-the-lky-musical | title=Kit Chan to play Mrs Lee Kuan Yew opposite Adrian Pang in The LKY Musical| work=The Straits Times| date=26 April 2022}}{{cite web | url=https://www.straitstimes.com/life/arts/theatre-review-the-lky-musical-s-strong-cast-performances-bring-history-to-life-for-younger-generations | title=Theatre review: The LKY Musical's strong cast performances bring history to life for younger generations| work=The Straits Times| date=13 September 2022}}

Community involvement

In 1998, Chan was appointed as the first National Youth Ambassador for Singapore's National Youth Council. She served for two years.{{Cite web |title=Kit Chan {{!}} Infopedia |url=https://eresources.nlb.gov.sg/infopedia/articles/SIP_429_2005-01-14.html |access-date=2023-03-30 |website=eresources.nlb.gov.sg}} From 2001 to 2005, she served as a council member with the National Youth Council. In 2002 the Commonwealth Youth Programme Asia Centre awarded her an Award for Excellence in Youth Work.

In 2007, Chan was appointed to the board of the National Heritage Board over a two-year period, reaching out to the Singapore audience and linking with the creative industries.{{cite web|url=http://www.nhb.gov.sg/WWW/pr/pra/07/NHB%20New%20Board%20Members.pdf |title=NATIONAL HERITAGE BOARD CHARTS FRESH DIRECTIONS WITH THE APPOINTMENT OF NEW BOARD MEMBERS |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110717031706/http://www.nhb.gov.sg/WWW/pr/pra/07/NHB%20New%20Board%20Members.pdf |archive-date=17 July 2011 }}

She is also the ambassador to the Christian relief organization "World Vision".

Business ventures

Chan has invested in two boutiques in Singapore, Flowers in the Attic and Roses in the Loft.

In 2010, Chan set up her own record label, named after her singing group Banshee Empire from when she was in secondary school.{{cite web|title=FINDING HER VOICE |url=http://www.jetstarmag.com/story/finding-her-voice/1407/1/ |publisher=Jetstar Magazine |access-date=12 December 2012 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140111215120/http://www.jetstarmag.com/story/finding-her-voice/1407/1/ |archive-date=11 January 2014 }}

Personal life

It was reported that Chan married her long-time boyfriend in 2012 {{cite news|last1=Soh|first1=Elizabeth|title=Local songbird Kit Chan ties the knot|url=https://sg.entertainment.yahoo.com/blogs/singapore-showbiz/local-songbird-kit-chan-ties-knot-083215081.html|access-date=4 December 2015|publisher=Yahoo!|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151208072531/https://sg.entertainment.yahoo.com/blogs/singapore-showbiz/local-songbird-kit-chan-ties-knot-083215081.html|archive-date=8 December 2015}} and divorced in 2017.{{Cite news|url=https://entertainment.toggle.sg/en/entertainment/localbuzz/article/newly-single-kit-chan-opens-up-about-her-divorce-9951054|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180619065124/https://entertainment.toggle.sg/en/entertainment/localbuzz/article/newly-single-kit-chan-opens-up-about-her-divorce-9951054|url-status=dead|archive-date=19 June 2018|title=Newly-single Kit Chan opens up about her divorce - Toggle|work=Toggle|access-date=2018-06-19}}

However, during an interview on “The Assembly”, aired on news network CNA in January 2025, Chan clarified that although she held a “wedding dinner” she was never legally married and hence, was never divorced. {{Cite AV media |url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NHA_byfioTk |title="Worse Than Tabloids": Kit Chan Gets Personal With Neurodiverse Interviewers {{!}} The Assembly - Part 3 |date=2025-01-16 |last=CNA Insider |access-date=2025-01-17 |via=YouTube}}{{Cite web |title='I was never married': Singer Kit Chan on keeping her 'divorce' a secret |url=https://www.straitstimes.com/life/entertainment/i-was-never-married-singer-kit-chan-on-keeping-her-divorce-a-secret |access-date=2025-01-19 |website=The Straits Times |language=en}}{{Cite web |title=未及时澄清离婚误会 陈洁仪:一切皆有时 |url=https://www.zaobao.com.sg/entertainment/story20250118-5752694 |access-date=2025-01-18 |website=www.zaobao.com.sg |language=zh-Hans}}

Discography

class="wikitable sortable"

!Year

!Title

1993

|Do Not Destroy The Harmony (EP) 不要傷了和气

1994

|Heartache 心痛

1995

|Cornered 逼得太紧

rowspan="2" |1996

|Sadness 伤心

Don't Let Me Hate You 别让我恨你
1997

|Revelation 揭晓 (Cantonese)

rowspan="3" |1998

|"Home" (Single)

Dreams and Memories 有你愛过 (Cantonese)
Too Deep in the Act 入戏太深
1999

|Dazzling 炫耀

rowspan="3" |2000

|That Day, That Night 那天那夜

Best 最好 (Cantonese)
Lola 萝拉
2001

|Numbness 麻醉 (Cantonese)

rowspan="2" |2002

|Like Kit 喜歡.潔儀.喜歡 (Compilation)

Dreamscape 异想世界
2003

|Understand 懂得

2004

|East Toward Saturn 东弯土星

2008

|Love Again 再愛一回 - 精選集 (Compilation)

2008

|Kit Chan Selections 私房歌 (2CD)

rowspan="2" |2009

|Kit Chan Selections 私房歌 (24K Gold Edition)

Wait and Wait 等了又等 (Compilation)
2010

|Songs From The Heart 心頭歌 (Compilation)

rowspan="3" |2011

|Re-interpreting Kit Chan 重譯 陳潔儀

Re-interpreting Kit Chan 重譯 陳潔儀 . 重奏
"The Music Room” Concert Live Recording 想像空間 Live
2012

|An Enchanted Evening with Kit Chan & Chiu Tsang Hei featuring the HKCITYPOPS 傾城 - 陳潔儀 X 趙增熹音樂會 Live

rowspan="2" |2016

|Wait 等 (EP)

The Edge of Paradise 天堂邊緣
2018

|A Time For Everything

2022

|In Parallel 平行线 (EP)

rowspan="3" |2023

|安 (Cantonese, Single)

願愛堅定 (Mandarin, Single)
Home (25th Anniversary Remake) (English, Single)
rowspan="2" |2024

|落花如雨 (新傳媒戲劇《小娘惹之翡翠山》主題曲 / Mediacorp drama "Emerald Hill" theme song) (Mandarin, Single)

笑容 (《雄獅少年音樂劇》 精選曲 / From the musical "I Am What I Am") (Cantonese, Single)

Theatre

class="wikitable sortable"

!Year

!Performance type

!Title

!Location

1997

|Musical (Cantonese)

|Snow.Wolf.Lake

|Hong Kong

1998

|Musical (Cantonese)

|The Legend 漫步人生路

|Hong Kong

2001

|Concert (English / Mandarin / Cantonese)

|That's Kit 就是陳潔儀

|Singapore

rowspan="2" |2002

|Musical (Cantonese)

|East Meets West 千里情牽

|Hong Kong

Musical (English)

|Forbidden City: Portrait of an Empress 慈禧太后的肖像

|Singapore

rowspan="2" |2003

|Musical (Mandarin)

|What's Love About? 愛情有什麼道理

|Singapore

Musical (English)

|Forbidden City: Portrait of an Empress 慈禧太后的肖像

|Singapore

2005

|Musical (Mandarin)

|Snow.Wolf.Lake

|China, Hong Kong

2006

|Musical (English)

|Forbidden City: Portrait of an Empress 慈禧太后的肖像

|Singapore

2009

|Concert (Mandarin / Cantonese)

|Join Love Club Concert 情牽女人心演唱會

|Hong Kong

2010

|Musical (Mandarin)

|December Rains 雨季

|Singapore

rowspan="2" |2011

|Concert (English / Mandarin / Cantonese)

|My Musical Journey 我的音乐之旅

|Singapore

Concert (English / Mandarin / Cantonese)

|The Music Room 想像空间

|Singapore

2012

|Concert (Cantonese)

|An Enchanted Evening with Chiu Tsang Hei 傾城

|Hong Kong

2015

|Concert (English / Mandarin / Cantonese)

|Kit Chan Spellbound 著迷·陳潔儀

|Hong Kong, Singapore, China

2017

|Musical (English)

|Forbidden City: Portrait of an Empress 慈禧太后的肖像

|Singapore

2018

|Concert (English / Mandarin / Cantonese)

|Kit Chan 25 Years On:A Time For Everything

|Singapore

rowspan="3" |2019

|Musical (Cantonese)

|Matteo Ricci The Musical 利瑪竇音樂劇

|Hong Kong

Concert (English / Mandarin / Cantonese)

|Kit Chan 25 Years: A Time For Everything

|Taiwan

Concert (English / Mandarin / Cantonese)

|MOOV Live Kit x Gin x Aga Love Encounter 網上行夢想系MOOV Live 陳潔儀 x 李幸倪 x 江海迦”

|Hong Kong

2020

|Musical (Cantonese)

|Matteo Ricci The Musical 利瑪竇音樂劇

|Hong Kong

2021

|Concert (English / Mandarin / Cantonese)

|Reignite 'Live' in Concert

|Singapore

2022

|Musical (English)

|The LKY Musical 光燿建國路

|Singapore

2023

|Concert (English / Mandarin / Cantonese)

|Little Things - Kit Chan 30th Anniversary Concert

|Singapore

2024

|Musical (Mandarin / Cantonese)

|I Am What I Am 雄獅少年

|China, Hong Kong

2024

|Musical (Cantonese)

|Matteo Ricci The Musical 利瑪竇音樂劇

|Hong Kong

Filmography

=Film=

class="wikitable sortable"

!Year

!Title

!Role

!class="unsortable" |Notes

!Ref

1999

|Eating Air

| Mysterious Girl

|

|

2010

|Lover's Discourse

|Mrs. Lai

|

|

2014

|Miss J Contemplates Her Choice

|Miss J

|

|{{Cite web |title=Ms J Contemplates Her Choice |url=https://www.todayonline.com/entertainment/movies/movie-reviews/ms-j-contemplates-her-choice |access-date=2023-11-06 |website=TODAY |language=en}}

=Television series=

class="wikitable sortable"

!Year

!Title

!Role

!class="unsortable" |Notes

2000

|Healing Hands II

|Dorothy Yuen

|

2004

|Cash Is King

|Huang Jin Hao

|

=Web series=

class="wikitable sortable"

!Year

!Title

!Role

!class="unsortable" |Notes

2017

|Patisserie Fighting

|See Yu Tin

|Mediacorp Toggle web-series

Awards and nominations

class="wikitable sortable"

!Year

!Award

!class="unsortable" |Ref

1994

|Singapore Hit Awards, Media Recommendation—Best Newcomer

|

1995

|Singapore Hit Awards, Best Local Artiste

|

1996

|RTHK 18th Top 10 Mandarin Hit Awards, Best Vocalist - Best Newcomer

|

rowspan="3" |1997

|8th Gold Awards, World Best Chinese Female Artiste

|

Hit Radio Pop Music Awards, Outstanding Female Artiste

|

8th Golden Melody Awards, World Best Chinese Female Artiste

|

rowspan="2" |1998

|TVB Pearl Channel Top 10 Hit Awards, Outstanding Performance (Gold)

|

Hit Radio Pop Music Awards, Outstanding Female Artiste

|

rowspan="2" |1999

|Singapore Hit Awards, Best Local Artiste

|

Her World Young Woman Achiever{{cite web|title=KIT CHAN|url=http://womanoftheyear.herworldplus.com/1999-kit-chan|access-date=4 December 2015}}

|

rowspan="3" |2000

|Singapore Hit Awards, Best Local Artiste

|

COMPASS Award, Top Local Artiste of the Year

|

Hit Radio Awards 2000, Best Chinese Artiste Outside Hong Kong & Taiwan Territories

|

2003

|Singapore Hit Awards, Decade of Outstanding Achievement Award

|

2009

|COMPASS Award, Artistic Excellence Award

|

2011

|Singapore Entertainment Awards, Outstanding Achievement Award – Music

|

rowspan="2" |2012

|Global Chinese Music Awards, Pop Music Outstanding Achievement Award

|

12th Chinese Music Media Awards, Best HIFI Artiste

|

rowspan="2" |2015

|QQ Music Awards, Special Achievement Award

|

Inaugural Voice of ELLE, Style Music Achievement Award of the Year

|

rowspan="3" |2016

|23rd Oriental Billboard Awards, Most Popular Artiste: Singapore Region & Best Asia Style Artiste

|

KU Music Asian Music Awards, Artiste of the Year

|

Inaugural Fresh Asia Music Awards, Media Recommended Artiste of the Year

|

2017

|Oriental Billboard Awards, Most Popular Artiste: Singapore Region & Influential Artist of the Year

|

= Star Awards =

class="wikitable sortable"
YearAwardCategoryNominated workResultclass="unsortable" |Ref
1998Star Awards 1998Best Theme SongMyths & Legends of Singapore{{nom}}

|

2000Star Awards 2000Best Theme SongMy Home Affairs {{won}}

|

2012Star Awards 2012Best Theme SongDevotion {{won}}

|

2016Star Awards 2016Best Theme Song The Dream Makers II{{won}}

|

References

{{reflist|colwidth=30em}}