* seems like

I agree! With him working so much, it also means that his team/staff is working just as much to a degree, so to be able to do something fun like this even when it’s still “work” (because fan service is still work— completely unplugging and taking time off for himself and for his family is what I consider as real time off) seems like their work collective version of a “break” or “mini vacation” depending on where this was taken (I’ve since forgotten LOL)

I am watching The Producers at the moment and Cindy is falling asleep standing up because she is tired and gets injured. She said she was grateful for the time in hospital as it was the first time since her trainee days she got some down time and could sleep more than three hours at a time. She then goes into hiding for 3 days as that is the only way she can get a proper break without being harassed by her Company CEO. The CEO was telling her, while she was in hospital that she had cancelled some appointment due to hospital stay which resulted in a financial loss but she knew Cindy would feel bad about it so had booked her in for an event even though she still had a cast on her foot. I know they exaggerate some of the elements for the show but I bet this is not far off for some of the big names. 2 weeks off in a whole year when he spent the other 50 weeks travelling across the world, switching between acting and modelling is ridiculous. I think they waste a lot of time on set etc where they can’t really switch off and relax in between scenes etc.

Yea, in the earlier days of Kpop— the early 2000s when 2nd Gen. Kpop was just starting out, every few weeks could read about X artist going to the hospital getting an IV drip because of exhaustion, you could read about X actor/actress getting tired out and needing to be rushed to the ER once their drama wrapped sigh
And it’s not gotten any better, imo, with escalating struggles in mental health. The health crisis is still there, it’s just taken on a different form.

On the flip side, it might be because of it not being reported (because there is a need by the government to “keep up appearances”) or because C-celebs are struggling with other aspects, or maybe they just don’t go through the same struggles— but are still struggling about SOMETHING— behind the scenes as K-celebs, and are all just worried and so uptight and basically tied to their jobs (yes, celebrity-hood is just a job, some fans need to get this fact through their thick skulls) because competition is just SO HIGH because there’s just THAT MUCH MORE celebs and overall population in China, and the celebs don’t even have the time to breathe, let alone have a moment to sit down and ponder, “Hmmmmm, what do I feel like I am struggling with right now in my life?”

… Both situations and circumstances scare the heck out of me

I just hope he is able to go though these demanding career requirements peacefully because as we all know now is the time to work while he’s still young.

Luckily he is trained and talented enough to earn money even after the job of a celebrity is over. I hope after he graduates those mature roles the pressure would be less, but that won’t be for some decades.

@seeker
Yea, I worry about him a lot, but I am also comforted because I know he has a good and smart head on his shoulders. I also believe that he has a better foundation in handling things because before he became a celebrity, he was already working (office job as a graphic designer) and was his own part-time boss with his own photography studio. He has that experience of real life before being a celebrity, so he is not easily influenced by what he sees from the entertainment industry and he knows how to think for himself and isn’t easily influenced (which is the fear for celebs who became celebs at a very young age, because that’s all they know). A part of the reason why his former agency (he is now on his own, just XZ Studio, with his own staff) didn’t give him any opportunities— and even actively blocked them from him— is because they actually didn’t like him and thought that he’s too old to be joining the entertainment industry and was past his prime age being a newbie (he was 24/25 years old when he made his entertainment debut— 9 to 10 years older than some of the members who are a part of the same idol group as him).
I have a feeling that he has been trying to move onto more serious and less “idol” roles/dramas for a while now, but it might be because of the timing in which he signed the contracts for those idol dramas (earlier in his career) so he has to still fulfill the contract obligations even though he is past that stage in his entertainment career. Let’s hope that his upcoming movie with renown Hong Kong director, Tsui Hark, will finally be the thing he needs in his career to make the transition into serious roles that will actually challenge him and improve his career and has acting craft for the future 😊

Why ever did the agency sign him in the first place if they were not interested in promoting him. Glad at least it gave him a foothold in the industry and thankful that he had the wherewithal to have his own set up.

@seeker He was the fan favourite and voted into the final debuting lineup for the group, and then when the group was beginning to look at other opportunities—like, solo activities and entertaining the idea that their existing idol group is just going to be temporary—and the agency caught wind of it, they made sure to hinder him while trying really hard to give more opportunities to the other—younger, some of them 9 years younger than Xiao Zhan, i.e. More years for the agency to work with to ensure more money— members of the group. Who knew that XZ gave them the biggest slap in the face and has come out as being the most successful one out of all of the members (if you haven’t guessed it yet, including Xiao Zhan, there’s 9 of them in total lol) and that age isn’t what people look at nor is it what they see when they search up XZ Studio to try to get an opportunity to work with XZ. It is his strong principles and strong work ethic and his good reputation with his existing and former co-stars and co-workers who have all vouched for him over the years—and continue to do so at every opportunity when asked— that draw new people and new opportunities to XZ, which he deserves

If the agency had any foresight they should have realised who most connected with the audience. 😊

I didn’t know he was originally an idol😮 He has never presented as an idol turned actor. Also his graphic design and photography background have been great foundations for his current job. He was brave to make the leap into the entertainment industry and well done him for forming his own agency and growing his own staff. He will continue to do well and prove the doubters wrong through his outstanding achievements.

@reply1988
Yea! He’s always loved singing—he was even in his university choir, where he met his bff who now works as his assistant at XZ Studio— but his parents wanted him to finish his education, and so he did. After finishing university and getting his degree and working for a year or 2 and opening up his own photography studio, he still felt a very strong love for singing, so he entered himself into that idol competition show just to see if he could do it, and he could! Not only could he do it, he came out on top, despite things working against him, most of which, was his age— making his debut in a showbiz career at 24/25 years old. His own work studio and staff actually was a result of a settlement after he had actually sued his former agency for hindering him from getting work. The court case was settled out of court, but he technically lost, and the deal in the settlement was that a separate team would be established for him in order for him to do his own work but a portion of his profits would be going to the agency, that was how XZ Studio was born and established. It was last year that his contract with the agency finally expired, and he was able to completely and legally separate from the agency and be on his own, AND he was able to keep XZ Studio and all of his own staff 😊 It was actually in the midst of the court case that he went out on auditions on his own—without any staff or help from his agency—for drama roles because he wasn’t getting much luck nor resources for the music side of things, and that is how he got to where he is now in his acting career, truly by his own determination and grit. I’m surprised he doesn’t appear to be phased by how dark the entertainment industry is, having experienced some of the dark stuff himself by the very people he entrusted—his own agency whom he started his showbiz career with— or maybe he’s just good at hiding it, or maybe he’s just over it and knows how to look at things so that it truly doesn’t bother him anymore. Like, being betrayed and cooped by your own agency, and then being cyber-bullied by crazy “fans” not long after and being soft canceled for almost a year?? Scary stuff to happen for someone working in China’s entertainment industry