Anita Mui Yim-fong (; 10 October 1963 – 30 December 2003) was a Hong Konger singer and actress who made major contributions to the Cantopop music scene and received numerous awards and honours. She remained an idol throughout her career, and is regarded as "Queen of Cantopop". She was dubbed as the "Daughter of Hong Kong" and is considered one of the most iconic Cantopop singers.
Mui once held a sold-out concert in Hammersmith, London, England, where she was dubbed the "Madonna of Asia", which brought her to further international fame. That title stayed with her throughout her career, in both Eastern and Western media. In June 2026, Mui was included in Oxford Dictionary of National Biography.
In the 1980s, the gangtai style of music was revolutionised by Mui's wild dancing and on-stage femininity.Baranovitch, Nimrod. China's New Voices. University of California press. . p. 164. She was famed for her outrageous costumes and high-powered performances in tandem with contralto vocals, which are rare in female artists. Her 1985 album, 壞女孩 (Bad Girl), sold over 400,000 copies in Hong Kong and remains the highest-selling album of all time in the territory.
Her fan base reached far beyond Hong Kong into many parts of Asia, including Taiwan, China, Singapore, Korea, Japan and Malaysia. In the Hong Kong entertainment industry, where stars often rise and fall quickly, Mui consistently remained in the spotlight for 21 years (1982–2003). Her career came to an abrupt end in 2003 when she announced she had cervical cancer. She died later that year at the age of 40; her sister, Ann Mui, died three years earlier, at the same age from the same disease.
Early life Mui was born at Fa Yuen Street in Mong Kok, Kowloon, in October 1963.Sina.hk , focus; retrieved 17 June 2008. She is the youngest daughter in a family of four children, and the only one of the four born in Hong Kong, as her siblings were born in China. Mui's father died when she was very young. Her mother Mui Tam Mei-kam (1924-2026) was born in Xiguan, Guangzhou. She was a Chinese medicine practitioner, who opened Yuet Wah Chinese Medical Clinic, Wah Geong Chinese and Western Music College, and a music brand in Hong Kong. Her siblings are Mui Kai-Ming, Mui Tak-Ming, and singer Ann Mui. In some of her interviews, Mui mentioned that she had little memory of her father and that her family was impoverished. This meant that she had to help provide for her siblings at an early age. More hardship followed the family when the bar that her mother ran was destroyed by a fire.
At the age of four and a half, Mui started singing with her elder sister Ann.Profile, SCMP.com; retrieved 17 June 2008. They used "Po-chu" and "Fong Fong" as their stage name respectively for their favourite actresses, Connie Chan (Chan Po-chu) and Josephine Siao (Siu Fong Fong). They would later adopt Yi Yi (依依) and Yi Na (依娜) as their stage names. Mui performed Chinese operas and pop songs in theatres, amusement parks and on the streets. Both Mui and her elder sister Ann performed in practically any nightclub that offered them a chance to make a living.
Mui studied at Kowloon Women's Welfare Club Li Ping Memorial School till she was primary four. She would transfer to another school and studied there till secondary one. While studying, Mui would be bullied by her school mates as singers were ridiculed and looked down upon.
At the age of 15, due to her high frequency of performances (up to six venues per day), she developed nodules on her vocal cords that affected her voice. Following the advice of the doctor, she took a year off and to keep herself occupied, she attended art lessons with her cousin. After a year, she started performing again despite the change in her vocal range, which lowered her voice by an octave.
Career
Singing career In 1982, encouraged by her sister, Mui competed in the first New Talent Singing Awards, organised by TVB and Capital Artists, in her stage name Yi Na. There, Mui got a big break by emerging champion with the song "The Windy Season" (風的季節), originally sung by Paula Tsui, beating over 3,000 contestants.2000 World Music: The Rough Guide. Rough Guides Publishing Company. Despite her title as "new talent" at that time, she had already been singing for more than 10 years performing as a busker from street and club performances during her childhood.
For winning the New Talent contest, Mui signed a recording contract with Capital Artists and released her debut album, Debt Heart (), under her real name with Capital Artists.HKVPradio. Anita Mui: Number One and Only; retrieved 17 June 2008. The album drew a lukewarm response from the market. However, her subsequent albums, Red () (1983) and Leaping in the Spotlight () (1984) fared much better, as she developed her personal style and image, with guidance and support from fashion designer Eddie Lau. In 1983 and 1984, she won the RTHK Top 10 Gold Songs awards back to back.
Her winning streak continued when she won another major award in 1985, her first top 10 Jade Solid Gold Best Female Singer award.Top ten songs award 1985 ; retrieved 17 June 2008. Thereafter, she won the award every year until 1989.ten songs award 1986; retrieved 17 June 2008.ten songs award 1987; retrieved 17 June 2008.Top ten songs award 1988 ; retrieved 17 June 2008.Top ten songs award 1989 ; retrieved 5 July 2008. She was awarded the Gold Songs Gold Awards () in 1989 for the ballad "Song of the Sunset" (), which became one of her signature songs throughout her career. In 1985, at the age of 21, Mui held her first concert lasting 15 nights (thus being one of the youngest singers to hold a concert at the Hong Kong Coliseum).
Beginning in late 1987 through early 1988, Mui held a series of 28 concerts at the Coliseum. This established a record at the time and dubbed Mui the title of "Ever Changing Anita Mui" (), which had become her trademark. Her popularity was also gaining prominence outside of Hong Kong, as she was invited to sing at the 1988 Summer Olympics opening ceremony in Seoul together with Janet Jackson as well as also performing her own solo with one of her hit songs of that year, "Blazing Red Lips (烈燄紅唇)".
On 12 February 1994, Mui was invited to hold a concert at the MGM Grand Garden Arena which is located on the Las Vegas Strip in Paradise, Nevada. The venue opened on 31 December 1993, with a concert by Barbra Streisand, and subsequent concerts by Luther Vandross, Mui herself and Janet Jackson. In 1995, Mui performed the song "Bad Girl" (a Cantonese cover of Sheena Easton's "Strut") in Guangzhou, China, where it was banned, as it was considered pornographic in nature. The government authorities in Guangzhou were infuriated when she chose to sing the song on the last day of her concert.
In 1990, during her birthday celebration with her fan club, Mui announced that she would put an end to receiving music awards to give a chance to newcomers. She held farewell concerts for 33 consecutive nights before retiring from the stage. At the age of 28, she stepped down from the industry, only to return from retirement in 1994. Mui mentored several Hong Kong newcomer singers who have since become successful, most notably Andy Hui, Denise Ho, Edmond Leung, the band Grasshopper, and Patrick Tam.
Mui released 50 albums in total. Her best-selling album was the 1985 "Bad Girl" (), which sold over 400,000 copies in a week (platinum 8x by Hong Kong's standards) and broke the selling record in Hong Kong. In 1994, she sold over 10 million albums. She was the first female singer in Hong Kong to achieve such sales result.
Mui performed in 300 concerts in her career. CNN compared her singing career with stars like Diana Ross and Madonna." "Anita Mui Charity Concert" "
In 1998, aged 35, Mui was awarded the RTHK Golden Needle Award, being one of the youngest recipients to receive the award as a lifetime achievement."RTHK" , 歷年十大中文金曲頒獎音樂會; retrieved 27 June 2008.
In 2003, Mui announced that she had cervical cancer, from which her sister had also died. She held a series of eight shows at the Hong Kong Coliseum from 6–11 November and 14–15 November 2003, which were to be her last concerts before her death.Yesasia.com. "Anita Classic Moment Live Karaoke (DVD)", yesasia.com; Retrieved 23 June 2008.
Her symbolic act was to "marry the stage", which was accompanied by her hit song "Sunset Melody" () as she exited the stage wearing a white wedding dress and veil. The last song she performed on stage was "Cherish When We Meet Again" (), a rendition of The Manhattans' "Kiss and Say Goodbye", on 15 November 2003, where she was accompanied by her friends on stage.
Acting career Mui was also well known as an actress across Asia, as she starred in more than 40 films over a 20-year period."HK pop diva Anita Mui dies of cancer", chinadaily.com; retrieved 14 July 2008. Her films were mainly of the action-thriller and martial arts variety, but she had also taken comedic and dramatic roles.
Her first acting award as a supporting actress was won at the Hong Kong Film Awards for her performance in Behind the Yellow Line (1984) alongside fellow Cantopop icon Leslie Cheung. Three years later in 1987, her performance in Stanley Kwan's Rouge, which also starred Cheung, won her the Best Actress Award at the Golden Horse Awards, as well as at the Hong Kong Film Awards in 1989. In the same year, she starred alongside Chow Yun-fat in Tsui Hark's A Better Tomorrow III: Love & Death in Saigon, which features her iconic ballad "Song of the Sunset". She also co-starred with Chow Yun-fat in the 1988 romantic comedy The Greatest Lover.
In 1990, she was cast in the titular role for Kawashima Yoshiko, a biopic of the flamboyant cross-dressing spy Yoshiko Kawashima based on the novel by Lilian Lee, who also authored the original novel and screenplay for Rouge. In 1992, she starred alongside comedy icon Stephen Chow in Justice, My Foot!, proving her calibre in the comedy genre. She also paired up with Stephen Chow in 1993 in Fight Back to School III. In the same year, she starred in The Heroic Trio with Michelle Yeoh and Maggie Cheung, and it proved to be one of her most popular action films. In 1994 and 1995, she found some international recognition by starring opposite Jackie Chan in The Legend of Drunken Master and Rumble in the Bronx. In 1996, she starred in Who's the Woman, Who's the Man with Leslie Cheung and Anita Yuen in a gender-bending love triangle story.
Later, in 1997, she also won another best supporting actress award at the Hong Kong Film Awards for her role in Eighteen Springs. In 2001, she starred in yet another Johnnie To comedy Wu Yen alongside Sammi Cheng and Cecilia Cheung as the lewd yet charming Emperor Qi. In 2002, she won Best Actress at the Changchun Film Festival Golden Deer Awards for Best Actress with her performance in July Rhapsody, which she starred alongside Jackie Cheung.Hanban.edu. "Hanban.edu." Film Festival Closes in Northeast China; retrieved 19 June 2008.
In 2003, Mui was originally cast for a major role for House of Flying Daggers but eventually declined due to her failing health before any of her scenes were filmed. After her death on 30 December 2003, director Zhang Yimou decided to alter the script to remove her character rather than recasting her. The film is dedicated to her memory.
Throughout her career, the tabloid magazines were unforgiving. Rumours relentlessly plagued Mui, who was accused of having tattoos on her arms and plastic surgery, being addicted to drugs, suicidal behavior and being linked to the death of a triad leader in the 1980s and 1990s. Rumours of affairs with leading actors also circulated.
Politics, activism, and philanthropy