The sole survivor

[Photo/China Daily]

Wang spent 4 million yuan ($645,500) on producing his double CD Life Asks for Nothing in 2011 and he made the money back within four months.

"He is a rare Chinese rock star, a box office guarantee in both northern and southern cities," says Li Hui, CEO of Rock Forward Entertainment Company.

Veteran music critic Li Wan once said: "Wang is a very confident musician. He has not been influenced by suspicions or negative reviews. He knows what he wants."

For Wang, being able to write and sing his songs makes him feel alive and content.

"There are no boundaries for rock music, which can be about love for one's father, hope and struggle," he says, adding he writes all the time.

"One month last year I held 25 performances. It was also that month that I wrote 17 songs. I don't feel tired, I feel refreshed after completing a song."

Wang attributes his musical vitality to studying the violin from the age of 5.

"It's torture to keep repeating the same sounds for four hours. Compared with that, writing songs is much more relaxing."

Born to a musical family, Wang studied at the Central Conservatory of Music, majoring in violin and viola.

At 17, he listened to Michael Jackson, The Beatles, and Pink Floyd, which inspired him. In 1994, when Chinese rock music was in its heyday, Wang and his friends formed the band No 43 Baojia Street.

Like any other young rock band, they were overshadowed by legends like Cui Jian, Tang Dynasty and Dou Wei.