Chan was born on 9 June 1993 in Hong Kong. He is the youngest son and has two older brothers and one older sister. He was originally given the baptismal name Thomas, but he later chose the name Ian based on the main character of a story.
In high school, Chan's first-year homeroom teacher happened to be the coach of the volleyball team and asked him to try out. Although he did not make the cut the first year, Chan kept practicing and was successfully selected the following year.[5] He was named "best setter" at the 2011-2012 All Hong Kong Schools Jing Ying Volleyball Tournament.[6] Chan also took part in basketball, table tennis and track and field.[7] He also got a black belt in Taekwondo.[8]
Chan also developed an interest in music, learning how to play the piano and guitar on his own in his free time. In his freshman year at CityU, he participated in the CityU Student Union's 8th Joint Society Singing Contest, winning first place and getting free vocal lessons for a year.[9] He later went on to sign with ST Entertainment, introduced to him by his vocal coach.[10]
Career
2018–present: King Maker and MIRROR
In 2018, Chan's entertainment company suggested that he participate in the ViuTV Good Night Show - King Maker competition.[11] With his university graduation approaching and knowing it would be difficult to have a career as an athlete in Hong Kong, Chan retired from the national volleyball team in order to focus on his career as a performer and to participate in the show.[9]
Throughout the show, Chan exhibited his musical talents, singing in Cantonese, English and Mandarin, as well as performing with a guitar and a piano. Chan finished in second place with a score of 16.3%.[12]
On 3 November 2018, Chan debuted as a member of MIRROR alongside 11 of the other participants from the show under the management of Ahfa Wong [zh].[13]
During a MIRROR 100問 video, when a staff member asked what each of the group members called their personal fans, Chan responded "Hello", mistaking the question as one asking how he would greet his fans. As a result, his fans became known as Hellosss, although Chan later remarked that he did not know when that name had become official.
2019–present: Solo activities
On 9 June 2019, Chan debuted as a solo artist with his first single "二期大樓" (Phase II Building) and held his first solo mini concert called "Ian Chan Better Me Mini Concert". His fellow group members came out to support him in celebration of his 26th birthday.[14]
On 2 September 2019, Chan released his second solo single "另一個諾貝爾" (Another Nobel), coinciding with the release of Keung To's "亞特蘭提斯" (Atlantis). The two also worked together for their music film Love Before Birthday [yue], released on 6 September.[15]
Chan was asked if there was competitive pressure releasing music at the same time as Keung, since the two were often compared, being the top two finalists of Good Night Show — King Maker. Chan responded that he and Keung instead believed that promoting together was mutually beneficial, hoping that it could get more fans to discover and listen to both their songs. In addition, he felt their styles were different and did not necessarily compete.[16]
Chan participated in the songwriting for "另一個諾貝爾" (Another Nobel), working with Cousin Fung and Lam Bo [zh]. Chan suggested that when one hears the word "nobel" (Chinese: 諾貝爾; Jyutping: nok6 bui3 ji5), one might first think about the Nobel Prize rather than Chernobyl, in Chinese: (Chinese: 諾貝爾獎; Jyutping: nok6 bui3 ji5 zoeng2) and (Chinese: 切爾諾貝爾; Jyutping: cit3 ji5 nok6 bui3 ji5), respectively.[16] This bias is analogous to when a person only looks at the positive side of things without also considering the negative. Conversely, when a person loses someone or something precious, they may come to realise and to appreciate its value only after it has been lost.[16] Chan expressed that these two possible readings can be applied to the song's central theme about relationships. He also noted that it was difficult getting the feel for the song when he first started recording, but later got a better grasp of the intended emotion after watching Battle Angel (OVA).[16]
In December 2019, Chan and fellow group members began filming for We are the Littles [zh], portraying volleyball players who work together to overcome adversity and become the best team. Chan stated it was like destiny that the first drama he got to act in was one similar to his past life as a volleyball player. His past volleyball experience also allowed him to be a body double for his fellow cast members.[17]We are the Littles began airing on ViuTV in November 2020.
On 14 February 2020, Chan released "正式開始" (Officially Begin) as a Valentine's Day present for fans. In the music video, Chan brings the fans on a trip in Japan, as if filmed from first-person perspective. Chan noted that the hand in the music video was not his manager Wong but another crew member.[7]
On 29 July 2020, Chan released "鯨落" (Whale Fall), his first song where he is credited for both the music and the lyrics.[18] Chan drew inspiration from an article he read about whale fall, a phenomenon where when a whale dies far away from land, many organisms come along and feed off its body for years as it slowly sinks into the depths of the ocean. Chan expressed that although it is unfortunate that a whale dies in such a way, it is extraordinary it can still support other organisms in its habitat after death. Chan creates the imagery of using water as a coffin and converting one's body into dessert as an analogy for one's willingness to self-sacrifice if it means it will help others succeed.[18] Coincidentally, Chan wrote the song by the ocean while he was filming We are the Littles.
Chan participated in writing the music for "蝸牛" (Snail), performed by his group member Anson Kong. In September 2020, the duo released their duet version with an accompanying music video.
On 18 November 2020, Chan released his second self-written song "背伴" (Betrayal). Chan combines the word betrayal (Chinese: 背叛; Jyutping: bui3 bun6) with the homophonous first character of companion (Chinese: 伴侶; Jyutping: bun6 leoi5) to portray a love story where one's companion secretly betrays them behind their back (Chinese: 背; Jyutping: bui3).[19]
On 29 March 2021, Chan shifted away from his usual dark and serious music style with the release of his upbeat love song "DWBF".[20]
In April 2021, Chan starred in Generation Slash [zh] on ViuTV with co-stars Amy Lo [yue] and Himmy Wong [yue]. The drama centres around three young adults struggling to figure out what they want in life in the face of uncertainty. Chan's character embodies the "generation slash" [zh], having the desire for flexibility and freedom, taking up many different jobs, such as becoming an actor / artist / cook / delivery courier.[21] The trio start up a small detective business to solve miscellaneous problems (as Chan's character says, they will do pretty much anything, as long as it does not break the law). The drama touches upon topics such as abandonment, grief, honesty, integrity, self-determination and choosing one's chosen family.[22] It was during the drama production when Chan started dating his co-star Amy Lo,[23] but the couple has since broken up as of November 2022.[24]
On 18 April 2021, Chan attended the 2020-2021 Chill Club Awards [zh] and was awarded the bronze award for Male Artist of the Year. In addition, his duet with Kong, "蝸牛" (Snail), was chosen as the 6th Top Song of the Year.[25]
In June 2021, Chan appeared in Be a Better MIRROR [zh], where the members of MIRROR attended a teamwork-building camp to learn more about themselves and each other. Chan's manager Wong expressed her desire for Chan to open up more. Chan expressed that he is quite introverted and felt that he did open up more and became more talkative since becoming a performer. At the same time, he felt he has also become more guarded about his inner thoughts.
On 14 February 2022, Chan released his solo "留一天與你喘息" (A Day To Breathe With You). This song marked his second release on the Valentine's day following the solo "正式開始". The music video of the song in YouTube reached 1 million views 29 hours after its release and reached 10 million views within 2 months of its release.[26][27][28] The song was later awarded the 7th place of the Top 10 Songs of the Year category in theUltimate Song Chart Awards Presentation 2022.[29] Chan released 3 more songs in 2022, named "Got U", "Distance" and "地球上的最後一朵花" (The Last Flower on Earth) respectively.
In 2023, Chan released 5 solo songs and a theme song for Sparks, including his first dance song "夜視鏡" (Night Version).[30] Chan collaborated with Anson Poon and Anson Kong this year, composing "天黑時想跟你到白頭" and "Blue Monkey".[31] This was the second collaboration between Ian Chan and Anson Kong after their collaboration of "蝸牛".
In 2024, Chan released a series of songs that are related together, with him being the main character (Teddy Bear) and Natalie Hsu being the heroine. The first chapter of the series of songs is called "Lost at First Sight", which was released again on Valentine's Day for the 3rd time.[32] The second chapter "Thank you Postman" was released on 24 April.[33] The third chapter "Solitude" was released on 2 July.[34] The fourth and fifth chapter "Sculp" and "Interlude" was released on 4 September and 20 November respectively. Chan later announced that all 5 chapters would be in his first album "Interlude". The album was released on 20 December.
Chan held his first solo concert IAN CHAN "TEARS" IN MY SIGHT SOLO CONCERT 2024 in July in AsiaWorld–Arena for a total of 7 shows.[34]
On 20 December 2024, the film Last Song for You was officially released with Chan playing as young So Sing-Wah, the adult version was played by Ekin Cheng.
^亞洲東區男子排球錦標賽代表隊名單公佈. Volleyball Association of Hong Kong (in Chinese (Hong Kong)). 14 June 2013. Archived from the original on 5 June 2019. Retrieved 22 June 2021.
^Kung, Kevin (15 September 2011). "Unsung heroes". South China Morning Post. Archived from the original on 13 August 2020. Retrieved 22 June 2021.
^彭, 形影 (6 December 2020). 【獨家】男神之煉成 Ian百毒不侵. Sing Tao Daily Canada (in Chinese (Hong Kong)). Archived from the original on 23 June 2021. Retrieved 23 June 2021.
^2011–2012年度全港學界精英排球比賽結果(PDF). Hong Kong Schools Sports Federation (in Chinese (Hong Kong)). Archived from the original(PDF) on 14 February 2017. Retrieved 9 January 2020.
^林, 蘊兒 (19 December 2019). 陳瀅聲演肥公主易投入 陳卓賢曾脹爆自嘲似墨魚丸. Ming Pao Canada (in Chinese (Hong Kong)). Archived from the original on 22 June 2021. Retrieved 22 June 2021.
