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I Chris, My Music Map

Two years ago, Li Yuchun, or Chris Lee, 21, won quick fame by winning Hunan TV’s Super Girl Contest, a famous TV singing show. Fans from around the country rewarded her Super Girl efforts with more than three million votes in the competition and Li became a household name. When the contest was over, many new but now popular phrases were introduced into our social life, such as grass root stars, voting with SMS, and fierce fans.

I Chris, My Music Map is a pictorial collection with more than 200 pictures shot in five cities: Chengdu, Beijing, Seoul, London and Taipei. These places were chosen to reflect different stages of Li’s career development. In her hometown, Chengdu, she gave her first solo concert. In Beijing, she launched her first album. She gradually gained international recognition and performed on overseas stages in London and Las Vegas.

Although photographers have tried different fashion styles to show different sides of Li, her characteristic tomboyish look is still the keystone of the book. With little make-up, no skirts, spiky hair, tank tops, jeans, and sneakers, the young singer has led a new trend of gender-neutral dressing in China. She's so different from the image of a traditional Chinese girl that she makes some people feel uneasy, while others welcome her as a new icon for women’s independence.

Most striking in the book is ambivalence about her fame. Quite different from other young stars who vow to conquer the world, Li is modest about her accomplishments. When she was invited to London to co-host an opening ceremony with London Mayor Ken Livingstone, she said she was excited but at the same time regretful for not spending New Year’s Eve with her parents. She returned to China the day after the London ceremony and went directly home to be with her family.

At the end of the book, there is a brief self-portrait written by Li in which she writes: “I don’t want to be an icon of any kind. I just want to be myself.”