On Chinese New Year's Eve in 1999, on the stage of CCTV's Spring Festival Gala, a young female singer named Li Qiong won the love of the national audience by singing "Eighteen Bends of the Mountain Road".
The original name of this work is "Son of the Sun", which was carefully polished by the famous lyricist Yan Su for three years, and the lyrics are inspired by the poem "The Song and Road of the Tujia" by the lyricist Tong Wenxi.
Li Qiong with a clear voice and unique singing voice, with a melody full of national characteristics, then she stood in the center of the stage, her eyes were firm and enthusiastic, as if she really led the audience on the winding mountain road.
It is no accident that "Eighteen Bends of the Mountain Road" can be performed in the Spring Festival Gala. At the end of 1998, when the director team of the Spring Festival Gala was reviewing the program, they heard Li Qiong's song and were immediately attracted by its unique idea, beautiful melody and Li Qiong's excellent interpretation.
Although there were many big-name stars competing to send songs at that time, the director team still firmly chose this work suitable for the Spring Festival Gala stage after repeated comparisons and careful consideration.
For Li Qiong, it is undoubtedly indescribable to be honored to be on the stage of the Spring Festival Gala. It is said that when she learned that her song was selected for the Spring Festival Gala, she was so excited that she cried on the spot.
And her wonderful performance did not live up to the expectations of the director team, and her perfect performance won the love of the audience.
In this way, "Eighteen Bends of the Mountain Road" made Li Qiong famous overnight, became popular across the country, and became a hit song sung on the streets and alleys. This song is not only her masterpiece, but also a common memory of a generation.
Soon after the Spring Festival Gala, Li Qiong was transferred to the singing team of the Beijing Armed Police Headquarters Art Troupe and became a solo singer.
Standing at the pinnacle of her career, the 21-year-old is full of hopes for the future, which she believes is just the beginning of her music career. However, the twists and turns of fate are so unpredictable that no one expected that this rising star who shone on the stage of the 2000 Spring Festival Gala would withdraw from the public eye after only one year.
Li Qiong, a musician with a profound musical background, was born in 1978 in Wuhan, Hubei Province, in an artistic family, her father is an actor in a Chu Opera troupe, and she is also the inheritor of intangible cultural heritage, and her mother has contributed a lot to publicity.
In such an artistic atmosphere, Li Qiong has shown extraordinary musical talent since she was a child.
As a child, Li Qiong liked to watch cartoons like other children, but she was particularly interested in the theme song of cartoons. She only needs to listen to it a few times before she can accurately remember the melody and sing it.
Sometimes, when her parents sang Chu Opera at home, Li Qiong could imitate it so accurately, making the family laugh, and her parents admired her talent very much, bought her radio and other equipment, and encouraged her to listen and learn more.
As she grew older, Li Qiong's singing talent became more and more apparent. She began to participate in various children's singing competitions. Although she is young, she is not afraid of the scene at all, but behaves quite freely.
Her loud voice and energetic performance deeply impressed the judges, so she won the competition many times.
In 1990, 12-year-old Li Qiong was admitted to Hubei Art School with her own strength and officially began to systematically learn vocal music and piano. When she entered the school, Li Qiong was placed in the second grade poor class, but this did not make her lose her self-confidence.
She got up early every day and practiced hard, listened carefully in class, and communicated with her classmates after class, and finally after a year, she was successfully promoted from the B-level poor class to the A-level training class.
In 1992, Li Qiong was 14 years old, and she was admitted to the vocal music class of Wuhan University with excellent results, and she was the youngest in the vocal music class. In the process of university study, Li Qiong maintained an attitude of hard work and won the love of teachers and classmates.
During her university internship, Li Qiong worked as an intern as a radio broadcaster. Although she didn't pass the internship due to a slip of the tongue, this experience made her realize the importance of details and accumulated valuable experience for future stage performances.
In 1996, Li Qiong joined the Hubei Armed Police Corps and was specially recruited for her singing skills. Two years later, she sang "Three Gorges, My Hometown" at the 8th National Young Singer Grand Prix, and won the Special Award and the "Five Ones" Project Award of the Central Propaganda Department.
This success opened a broader stage for her, and also laid the groundwork for her to appear on the Spring Festival Gala later.
With her love and dream of music, Li Qiong has always walked from Wuhan to a broader stage with solid steps, laying a solid foundation for her later brilliant appearance on the national stage.
After Li Qiong became famous in the Spring Festival Gala in 1999, her career reached its peak. However, in 2000, she participated in the National Young Singer TV Grand Prix (Youth Song Competition) after the Spring Festival Gala became popular, which became a turning point in her fate.
In order to show her strength in important competitions, Li Qiong carefully selected Li Shuangjiang's "Boatman's Trumpet" as the repertoire. It's a song that is both rhythmic and powerful, but it's difficult to sing.
Li Qiong hopes to further improve her career development level by singing this difficult song.
However, a series of accidents occurred on the day of the race, and it can be said that the situation is frequent. At the beginning, the host accidentally made a mistake when introducing Li Qiong, and missaid "Li Qiong from the Armed Police Art Troupe" as "Li Qiong from the Cultural Police Art Troupe", but this seemingly small mistake made Li Qiong mess up the rhythm and appear hesitant on the stage.
After the game, Li Qiong's heart was full of loss and self-blame. She realized that her mistakes had a negative impact on the team, failed to achieve the expected goals, failed to live up to the expectations of the troops, and failed to bring glory to the collective.
The defeat in this competition was a huge blow to Li Qiong, prompting her to start reflecting deeply on her own problems. She began to wonder if she had become complacent because of the success of the Spring Festival Gala and whether she had neglected the practice of basic skills.
In Li Qiong's opinion, since she shined in the Spring Festival Gala, she is indeed a little fluttering, and she has not made enough preparations for this competition.
With such reflection and self-blame, Li Qiong made a decision that surprised many people, she decided to temporarily withdraw from the public eye and return to the army to continue to polish her musical skills.
She decided to settle down and re-examine her music career and regain her original love and focus on music.
This decision marked an important turning point in Li Qiong's musical career. From a shining star to an unknown military singer, Li Qiong began a low-key life for 20 years.
The song "Eighteen Bends of the Mountain Road" made him a popular singer all over the country, so he withdrew from the public eye and started a new chapter in his life.
After the 2000 Youth Song Competition, Li Qiong suddenly disappeared from public view, causing a lot of speculation and rumors for 20 years.
Regarding Li Qiong's whereabouts, some people say that she chose to quit the music scene after losing the Youth Song Competition, and some people speculate that she may have been banned by the TV station. There are also rumors that Li Qiong became arrogant and arrogant after becoming popular during the Spring Festival Gala, offending some big names. However, none of these speculations could not be further from the truth.
In fact, Li Qiong has been silently staying in the army and continuing her music career. She no longer appears frequently in public, but follows the troops to the countryside to give condolence performances. In the remote countryside, in front of the simple villagers, Li Qiong rediscovered the purity and happiness of music.
Although she is no longer as popular as she once was, her singing voice is still loved by the grassroots people.
During this time, Li Qiong's personal life entered a beautiful stage. She has known and fallen in love with her favorite partner for many years, and her relationship is stable. Her boyfriend loves her very much and often takes her to taste various delicacies.
Because life is full of happiness, Li Qiong's figure has also become plump, however, this change has not affected her love for music, but has added more life and warmth to her singing.
In the past 20 years, Li Qiong has been actively participating in various public welfare activities in her own way, spreading positive energy, and never forgetting to give back to the society. After the Wenchuan earthquake in 2008, she personally drove to the disaster area, not only delivered relief materials, but also actively participated in many rescue efforts, and even composed several uplifting songs for the disaster area.
This low-key life gave Li Qiong a lot of time to think about life. She began to realize that fame is not the whole story of life, and that true happiness comes from doing what she loves and spending time with her lover.
For her, music is no longer a tool for seeking fame and fortune, but a way to express one's heart and serve others.
Although away from the spotlight, the accumulation of life in the past 20 years has made Li Qiong's heart richer and more mature. She found her own rhythm in life and redefined her relationship with music, an experience that became an integral part of her life experience and laid a solid foundation for her later re-emergence.
Despite staying out of the spotlight, Li Qiong has never given up on her musical dreams. She continued to write and sing in the army, using music to convey positive energy. At the same time, she also devotes more energy to public welfare undertakings and repays the society with practical actions.
After the Wenchuan earthquake in 2008, Li Qiong rushed to the disaster area without hesitation, not only carrying a large number of relief materials, but also personally participating in the rescue work. At this difficult time, Li Qiong used her singing voice to bring hope and strength to the people in the disaster area.
She also wrote some stirring songs for the disaster area, as a kind of music to comfort the wounded heart, this experience made Li Qiong more deeply aware of the power of music, and also strengthened her determination to continue to use music to serve the society.
In addition to participating in disaster relief, Li Qiong also often participates in various donation activities and does her best to help those in need. Although her behavior is low-key, it truly demonstrates her concern and sense of responsibility for society.
In 2020, the new crown epidemic broke out, and Li Qiong, a native of Wuhan, was deeply affected. She has repeatedly spoken out on social media, promising that "she is with Wuhan" to encourage the people in her hometown to fight the epidemic.
In this special period, Li Qiong also participated in the theme song of the TV series "Mighty City 2020", which tells the story of the Wuhan people's fight against the epidemic.
Over the years, Li Qiong has been firmly adhering to her music dream, and at the same time, she is also repaying the society with practical actions. Although her singing voice is not as brilliant as it was back then, it silently brings warmth to more people in need.
Li Qiong fulfills the social responsibility of an artist in her own way, showing the responsibility of a mature artist.
Although Li Qiong no longer appears frequently in the public eye, her love for music and care for society have always been the same. She proved with practical actions that a true artist is not only a star on the stage, but also should lend a helping hand to the society when needed.
Today's Li Qiong has taken off the halo of a star and has become an ordinary person who truly loves music and life, and loves to help others. In her opinion, this kind of life is really wonderful.
Li Qiong still loves music, but no longer pursues commercial success, but sees it more as a way of life and a way of expressing herself. She believes that being able to continue singing and influencing others with music is the greatest happiness.
Although Li Qiong has experienced past glories and setbacks, she has been able to face them with a calm attitude. She never regretted her choices, as these experiences have shaped her today.
Li Qiong often said: "I already feel extremely happy to be able to stand on the stage because of the music I love, fame and fortune are not all I pursue now, doing what I like and cherishing those who should be cherished is the true meaning of life."
Li Qiong, a singer who became popular all over the country with "Eighteen Bends of the Mountain Road", chose to live a low-key life at the turn of life. Her story teaches us that true success lies not in fame and fortune, but in inner fulfillment and perseverance in dreams. Li Qiong interprets the true meaning of life in her own way, and also shows the growth and transformation of an artist.