更新時間：2012-03-05 11:59:07
By Xinhua writers Du Jie and Feng Yuanyuan
JINAN, March 1 (Xinhua) -- The man who has been dubbed China's male-version of the UK's "Susan Boyle" has shot to fame after appearing on a reality TV show. His appearance on the country's most watched Spring Festival Gala earlier this year brought his fame to a new height.
Zhu Zhiwen, 42, a peasant comes from east China's Shandong Province, appeared on the gala show and sang the song,"I want to go home" on the eve of Chinese New Year on Jan. 22. His moving performance won the hearts of millions of viewers.
Over the past year, youku.com, China's most popular video-sharing site, has been inundated with clips of Zhu's performances. Videos featuring him have received a total of over 20 millions hits. Earlier this year, Zhu soared to become the most searched person on baidu.com, China's largest search engine, and now remains among the top five.
"Nowadays, my schedule is always so full. It's overwhelming," Zhu told Xinhua. "If I had known my life would be like this, I would not have wanted to be famous in the first place."
Zhu first became a web sensation in February last year, when he appeared on Shandong TV's talent show "I'm a Big Star" wearing an old-fashioned military coat and a black wool hat. His stage appearance earned him the name, "Brother Coat".
Despite Zhu's impressive performance, the judges gave him a hard time by questioning his background as a farmer. One judge insisted Zhu remove his military coat to reveal what he was wearing underneath, which turned out to be a shabby sweater. The TV host then felt Zhu's hands and commented he had "laborers' hands."
The video clip received almost 4 million hits from outraged Internet users after it was uploaded on youku.com. The Internet attention changed Zhu Zhiwen's life overnight.
However, behind Zhu's instant success was years of struggle to make his dream of becoming a singer a reality. Zhu dropped out of school after the second year of primary school. His father died young and his family couldn't afford education for all the children in the family.
Throughout his childhood, Zhu helped his mother with farm work. Singing became Zhu's way of escaping the cruel reality of his life.
"I never imagined singing would change my life. I just love singing and decided that I wanted to be a really good singer," he said.
To help him achieve his dream, Zhu purchased a book of popular songs.However due to his limited education, he had trouble understanding the lyrics. He explained, "It was really challenging because there were so many words that I didn't understand. I had to look them up in the dictionary one at a time."
Zhu longed to understand the lyrics, and would teach himself the new words by writing them in sand with his finger. He would stay up until 2 a.m., studying the lyrics.
"To be honest with you, for someone like me, who doesn't have much education, working hard is the only way out. Back then, I was afraid of going to bed early - I didn't want to waste the time that I could use on study," he explained.
Zhu's story has inspired people around the country. He said, "Nothing in the world is impossible for one who sets his mind to it. This is my philosophy."
Zhu would sneak out of the house early every morning to go to the riverside and practice his singing. Li Yuhua, Zhu Zhiwen's wife said, "Whether is was raining or snowing, he would insist on going out to practice his singing. It became an essential part of his life."
However his newfound fame has changed Zhu Zhiwen's old routine. Now, he is often invited to attend social events or media functions. He found the lack of freedom under the media spotlight quite suffocating.
"I've been living in this village for over 40 years. No one knew who I was, and I had freedom. But now I don't have much say in my schedule and I don't have much time for myself and my family," Zhu Zhiwen said.
"In the past, I sang when I wanted to. When I worked, I worked the way I wanted to work. It is because of this freedom that I have become the person who I am, and sing the way I do," he said.
Despite all the fame and media attention, Zhu continues to live with his siblings in the three one-story buildings and one mud hut in his old village.
Inside his house, the walls started to peel off and in need of repair. An electric organ stands in the corner of the plain room. At the age of 17, while Zhu was in Beijing looking for work, an old lady overheard him singing on the worksite, and decided to give him this electric organ.
Zhu carried the instrument back home to Shandong, and practiced his singing with it.
Over 20 years ago, Zhu was just one of China's anonymous farmers. Now he has become well known as China's male version of Susan Boyle, a middle-aged housewife from Scotland who shot to fame for her outstanding vocals on the TV show Britain's Got Talent.
By holding onto his dream of being a singer, he has achieved stardom and gained critical acclaim. But now he faces the new challenge of reclaiming his life and identity amid the burden of fame.
(English.news.cn)