Yao Beina

Yao was best known for recording the soundtracks and theme songs of movies and TV shows, such as Empresses in the Palace, Painted Skin: The Resurrection, and Back to 1942.

She also recorded the Mandarin version of "Let It Go" from Disney's Frozen.

Yao Beina (September 26, 1981 – January 16, 2015), also known as Bella Yao, was a Chinese singer and songwriter.

Yao was born on September 26, 1981 in Wuhan, Hubei, China, to a family of musicians.

Her father, Yao Feng (姚峰; Yáo Fēng), was an associate professor at Wuhan Conservatory of Music and her mother, Li Xinmin (李信敏; Lǐ Xìnmǐn), was a vocalist of the Hubei Song and Dance Ensemble.

Yao's first name, Beina, was given by her father as his vocal teaching was greatly inspired by the lectures given by Italian operatic baritone Gino Bechi during his visit to the Central Philharmonic Orchestra in Beijing, China, in September 1981, shortly before Yao's birth.

Yao started learning piano at the age of four under the supervision of her parents.

She was first found to have absolute pitch by her father when she was six years old as she could accurately identify keys by listening to the piano, and this ability was validated by several noteworthy musicians during her singing career later.

She debuted as a singer on stage at a local television at the age of nine, since when she occasionally performed at galas and contests.

Yao attended Wuhan No. 45 Middle School from 1993 to 1997 when she was determined to make singing a career.

She majored in popular music when she was admitted to the Affiliated High School of Wuhan Conservatory of Music as the top scorer in 1997, when her father, the founder of the Department of Vocal Music at Wuhan Conservatory of Music, was the only professor in the major of popular music.

To avoid the conflict of interest, her father did not intervene in her admission process and legitimately became her advisor.

Due to her father's job transfer to Shenzhen in 1998 and the suspension of the major of popular music therewith, Yao transferred to folk music under Professor Feng Jiahui (冯家慧).

In 2000, Yao was admitted to China Conservatory of Music with the highest score among her class in high school and ranked the seventh among the 15 admitted students nationwide.

She continued majoring in folk music in college under Professor Dong Hua (董华) and Professor Ma Qiuhua (马秋华).

During her undergraduate years, she was invited to perform at several important galas in China, South Korea, France, and Russia.

She debuted as a professional singer with her portrayal of the diva of the musical Jin Sha (金沙) in 2005.

After graduating from China Conservatory of Music in the same year, she started her singing career in the Song and Dance Ensemble of the Political Department of the People's Liberation Army Navy.

In 2005, Yao was selected as the diva of musical Jin Sha (金沙), the plot of which was based on the discovery of the archaeological site Jinsha, and gained recognition from the public.

She graduated from China Conservatory of Music in the same year and was admitted to the Song and Dance Ensemble of the Political Department of the People's Liberation Army Navy as the only college student admitted to the military from regular college.

In 2006, Yao won the second place of pop singing in the 12th CCTV National Young Singer Contest, the most prestigious singing contest in China at that time, and assisted in Song Zuying's concert at Kennedy Center, Washington D.C. In 2007, she stepped onto the stage of the CCTV New Year's Gala, the biggest and most well-known gala in China, for the first time.

Yao won the champion of pop singing in the 13th CCTV National Young Singer Contest in 2008 by earning the first and the only full score throughout the history of the contest.

She performed at the Beijing 2008 Summer Olympics closing ceremony.

She again competed in the 13th CCTV National Young Singer Contest in 2008 and won the championship by earning the first and the only full score throughout the history of the contest.

She performed at the Beijing 2008 Summer Olympics closing ceremony.

In June 2009, she retired from the military and transformed into a pop singer.

In 2009, Yao left the military to pursue her interests in pop music.

She was invited by Liu Huan to record the original soundtracks of Empresses in the Palace in 2011.

Her first album Yao Beina (姚贝娜), named after herself, was released on June 8, 2012.

On June 8, 2012, she released her first album named after herself, Yao Beina (姚贝娜), consisting of most songs composed by herself.

As of 2012, she recorded original soundtracks and theme songs of over 60 TV shows and films, such as "River of the Life" (生命的河) of Back to 1942 and "Love in the Painting" (画情) of Painted Skin: The Resurrection. In March 2013, Yao was invited to return to the 15th CCTV National Young Singer Contest as the youngest judge.

In 2013, she was invited to compete in The Voice of China Season 2 and gained great popularity.

In 2013, Yao was invited to participate in The Voice of China Season 2.

She gained much focus as an already well-known singer and earned great popularity by her skilled vocal control and range.

On July 12, 2013 (air date), Yao performed "Maybe Tomorrow" (也许明天) in the blind auditions and was selected by all the four coaches, and she chose coach Na Ying to work with.

Yao finally earned the second place within the coach's team and the top 8 of the Season 2.

She became the champion of the personal popularity leaderboard online by the end of the competition.

Yao's performance listing in The Voice of China Season 2:

Yao's career breakthrough came after her competition in The Voice of China.

On December 9, 2013, her extended play Half of Me (1/2的我) was released.