'Faye Wong once said she'd never hire me again': Make-up artist Zing recalls working with celebs
Tripping up on the job happens to the best of us – even if we’re a celebrated make-up artist like Zing.
The Hong Kong-based Singaporean has worked with superstars like Shu Qi and Sammi Cheng, and while mostly revered, he has had run-ins with a few bigwigs.
In an interview with Chinese YouTuber Aha Lolo recently, Zing, who has worked in the beauty industry for 20 years, told a story of his first encounter with Hong Kong singer-actress Faye Wong in the early 90s.
Zing recalled how his first make-up look for her was "unsuccessful" and "beautiful people are not necessarily easy to work on".
"At that time, I was too concerned about make-up skills. What should the make-up be, what should the standard beauty look like?" he explained.
"Faye Wong said she would never hire me again. But in the end she still did."
He said he continued to work with Wong after the incident, even creating the iconic "sunburnt" look for her Sing And Play (1998) album cover, a look he didn't expect to be so well-received.
Needless to say, Wong changed her opinion of him as she also introduced him to Leon Lai.
When working with Lai, known as one of Hong Kong's Four Heavenly Kings, Zing was already established and influential enough to decide whether the singer should wear make-up or go barefaced for a performance.
When asked about who looks the most “different-looking” without make-up, he hesitated before mentioning Cheng and veteran actress Carina Lau.
"I hadn't met Carina Lau in real life before. I had seen her in movies and magazines with make-up on and people called her a great beauty, but I thought she was just okay," said Zing.
"That was until the first time I worked on her as a make-up artist and she came in barefaced. Wow, I was so shocked. She's so beautiful."
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