Chien Pai-hui Photo: VCG

 
"My mother always said this was the greatest honor of her life, and she always cherished this video. Her only regret was not living to see her hometown's return to the motherland," a post shared on Wednesday evening on China's Taiwan singer Chien Pai-hui's Sina Weibo account by her son, who uploaded a video clip of her singing.

The video clip showed Chien performing The Girl from Alishan at a gala marking the 60th anniversary of the founding of the People's Republic of China.

Chien passed away in the early hours of Tuesday at the age of 62, a number of media outlets, including the Weibo account of Chinanews.com and The Paper, reported on Wednesday, citing an obituary posted by singer Huang An on Sina Weibo.

According to public records, Chien was born in May 1963. In 1984, she met renowned composer and director Liu Chia-Chang, and soon rose to prominence with her performance of his song Running for Unity.

In 1986, her album When I Miss You and its title track quickly became extremely popular. The song, which captured an indescribable sense of loss, loneliness and longing, resonated deeply with listeners, according to Guangming Daily.

In 1990, Chien took part in the "Light of the Asian Games" concert and the cross-Straits gala in support of the Asian Games athletes. In 1992, she married Gao Dalian and gradually shifted her focus from career to family life. During her career, she also played the role of Zhu Yingtai in the television drama New Butterfly Lovers. 

In 2006, Chien made a comeback to the music scene with the release of her new album.

In 2021, she released a new single titled Staying in Chengdu, a heartfelt tribute to her motherland. At the time, she proudly displayed her Chinese mainland ID card, saying with emotion: "The motherland is my strongest support."

Global Times