Ken Lim

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Ken Lim
Singapore Idol and The Final 1 judge
Born
Occupation(s)Composer, music producer, publisher, artiste manager, concert promoter, campaign management and concepts development.
Years active1977–present
Chinese name
Traditional Chinese林智強
Simplified Chinese林智强

Ken Lim Chih Chiang (born 1964) is a Singaporean concept & campaign manager, concerts & event promoter, artist manager, composer, music producer & publisher. He was the executive director of Hype Records.

Early life and career[edit]

Lim has represented Singapore in numerous song festivals and competitions since he was 16. Amongst them are, Asia Song Contest,[citation needed] Seoul Song Festival, World Popular Song Festival[1] and Popular Song Festival.[1]

In 1978, Ken Lim was employed as an engineer and record producer at EMI Recording Studios at the age of 14, while still attending school.[citation needed]

In 1984, Lim submitted his composition 'I Live in the past' to the 7th Seoul Song Festival and was selected as the final 13 songs.[1] Together with Reggie Verghese and three other partners, Lim formed Boogie Productions Pte Ltd and took over the recording studio and equipment from EMI Singapore Pte Ltd which had closed down.[2]

In 1992, Lim set up Hype Records,[3] a Singaporean record company, and served as its executive director.[4]

In 1993, Lim co-wrote the song, 'Bring Out the Love', the official song for the 1993 SEA Games held in Singapore.[5]

In 1994, Lim released his first album Empyrean, meaning highest heaven, an instrumental and ballads album with guest singers such as Farid Ali, Harvey Malihollo and Connie Amon.[6] The album was commissioned by a Taiwanese record label who was looking for a producer album.[7]

In 1999, Lim was commissioned to write a Singapore National Day parade song[8] which he wrote 'Together', a duet which was performed by Dreamz FM and Evelyn Tan.[9] He also composed 'Moments of Magic', the theme song of Singapore's millennium celebrations.[10][11]

In May 2000, the Ministry of Information and the Arts of Singapore, invited local composers were invited to rearrange the national anthem, Majulah Singapura, in F major. After selecting the version submitted by Cultural Medallion winner Phoon Yew Tien, MITA then commissioned Lim to produce a recording by the Singapore Symphony Orchestra conducted by Lim Yau, which was carried out at the Victoria Concert Hall on 20 November 2000.[12]

In 2004, Lim became one of the judges for Singapore Idol, the first Asian show of the Idol franchise.[13] He drew substantial attention due to his remarks and deadpan expressions, known to be brutally honest and direct with his comments.[14] He would also later be the judge for all three seasons of Singapore Idol (2006 and 2009).[14] For the third season, Lim wrote a song "Touched by an Angel" to be sung by the finalists in the final show and to be recorded by the winner.[15]

In 2005, Lim produced another Singapore National Day parade song, 'Reach Out for the Skies', which was performed by Taufik Batisah and Rui En.[16]

In 2007, Lim was also one of the judges for Asian Idol.[17] He was also the judge for Mediacorp's reality show "Live The Dream".[18]

In 2010, Lim wrote and produced the official theme song, Everyone, of the 2010 Summer Youth Olympics held in Singapore from 14 to 26 August 2010.[19]

In 2013, Lim said he wanted to produce new local talent and make them to be celebrities.[20] He then created a Singaporean reality-singing competition programme, The Final 1 in 2013.[21] He was also one of the three judges for the show.[22] The programme went on for a second season in 2015 with Lim as a judge again.[23]

Awards[edit]

  • 'The Most Outstanding Composition Award' at the Asia Popular Song Festival in 1981[1]

Personal life[edit]

Lim is married to Judy Hsu, a Taiwanese Canadian and Singaporean PR who was a former singer and current CEO of the Consumer, Private and Business Banking (CPBB) at Standard Chartered Bank.[24] They met while she was a recording artist and known as Hsu Zhong Wei (徐仲薇) more than 37 years ago.[25] They have two sons.[25]

In March 2023, Lim was charged for molestation which happened in 2021 at his Hype Records office.[26] He was later charged in June for insulting the modesty of 3 other women over the time period of 1998 and 2013.[27] In September, Lim received an additional charge for insulting another woman's modesty in 2012, resulting in him having a total of seven charges across five victims.[28]

References[edit]

  1. ^ a b c d "A niche in music at 20". The Straits Times. 15 October 1984. p. 21. Retrieved 22 September 2023 – via NewspaperSG.
  2. ^ "LET'S BOOGIE!". Singapore Monitor. 16 August 1984. p. 4. Retrieved 22 September 2023 – via NewspaperSG.
  3. ^ "Hype Records" www.hyperecords.com
  4. ^ "Netizens reminisce Ken Lim's infamous Singapore Idol roastings, Joakim Gomez would rather not". AsiaOne. 11 January 2022. Retrieved 5 July 2022.
  5. ^ Lo, Tien Yin (8 April 1993). "Top stars record SEA Games song". The New Paper. p. 13. Retrieved 22 September 2023 – via NewspaperSG.
  6. ^ "'Heavenly' album after 17-year wait". City Weekly. 1 July 1994. p. 8 – via NewspaperSG.
  7. ^ "Yes he Ken". Weekend East. 8 July 1994. p. 29 – via NewspaperSG.
  8. ^ "'There's something about singing together': 12 fun facts and stories behind our national songs". CNA. Retrieved 21 September 2023.
  9. ^ Teo, Pau Lin (7 July 1999). "Eve's happy with just being No. 5". The Straits Times. pp. L12.
  10. ^ "8 DAYS' Top 8 Favourite National Day Songs From The Past 20 Years". 8days. Retrieved 22 September 2023.
  11. ^ "Moments of magic". Retrieved 22 September 2023.
  12. ^ The National Anthem: Credits, Singapore Infomap, MICA, 2004, archived from the original on 13 December 2007, retrieved 9 December 2007; Judges: Ken Lim, Singapore Idol, MediaCorp, 2006, archived from the original on 17 January 2008, retrieved 9 December 2007.
  13. ^ "The first Singapore Idol is held - Singapore History". eresources.nlb.gov.sg. Retrieved 21 September 2023.
  14. ^ a b "Singapore musicians are 'so full of themselves': Ken Lim". sg.entertainment.yahoo.com. 11 February 2013. Retrieved 21 September 2023.
  15. ^ Lee, Joycelyn (23 December 2009). "Woman idol?". The Straits Times. pp. C2.
  16. ^ Chan, Boon (21 August 2014). "Will Singapore love the next NDP song?". The Straits Times. ISSN 0585-3923. Retrieved 22 September 2023.
  17. ^ Tan, Jeanmarie (17 November 2007). "ASIAN IDOL, Here I come". The Electric New Paper. Archived from the original on 19 November 2007.
  18. ^ "Is Ken Lim addicted to judging". AsiaOne. 27 August 2013. Retrieved 22 September 2023.
  19. ^ Patwant Singh (25 March 2010). "YOG theme song to be sung by stars from around the world". Channel NewsAsia. MediaCorp. Archived from the original on 28 March 2010. Retrieved 10 August 2010.
  20. ^ "Singapore musicians are 'so full of themselves': Ken Lim". sg.entertainment.yahoo.com. 11 February 2013. Retrieved 25 September 2023.
  21. ^ "Hype honcho Ken Lim prepares for The Final 1". TODAY. Retrieved 5 July 2022.
  22. ^ "Kit Chan, Taufik and Ken Lim named as judges for 'The Final 1′ reality show". sg.entertainment.yahoo.com. Retrieved 5 July 2022.
  23. ^ Auto, Hermes (5 October 2015). "Jermaine Leong, 16, wins singing contest The Final 1 | The Straits Times". www.straitstimes.com. Retrieved 5 July 2022.
  24. ^ "Judy Hsu". Standard Chartered. Retrieved 21 September 2023.
  25. ^ a b "5 Things To Know About Ken Lim, Former Singapore Idol Judge And Hype Records Head Honcho". 8days. Retrieved 21 September 2023.
  26. ^ "Former Singapore Idol judge Ken Lim charged with molesting woman at Hype Records office". CNA. Retrieved 21 September 2023.
  27. ^ "Former Singapore Idol judge Ken Lim gets fresh charges of insulting women's modesty". CNA. Retrieved 21 September 2023.
  28. ^ Lam, Lydia. "Ex-Singapore Idol judge Ken Lim gets fresh charge of insulting woman's modesty while discussing music career". CNA. Retrieved 20 September 2023.

External links[edit]