Top 7 Chinese Social Celebrities (KOL)

Source: China Hush

Those celebrities get their success in China, and are strategic for Brands to target communities.

The most famous online Chinese celebrities

China has one of the most connected countries in the world with about ten times more Internet users than French population.

The concept of being an online celebrity and earning huge amount of revenue through Internet is widely known in western countries. For example, if we take YouTube there are self-made millionaires such as Michelle Phan, discovery of artists (Justin Bieber) or even comedians (Lilly Singh) or game players. However, for China it is pretty new and this phenomenon is becoming less and less unusual.

“Chinese Millennial get used to follow their stars, that are different from previous generation. These young people like to read news about their interest and follow interesting people that know how to communicate online” explains Franck, expert in Chinese culture.

Earlier this month, Baidu realized the top Online Chinese celebrities ranked in terms of followers online. Let’s get right into it and see who are the top 7 online stars.

安妮宝贝 – Anni baobei 12 M followers

Annie Baobei originally named in Chinese, Li Jie励婕, was born in Ningbo, in Zhejiang province in 1974. She is now 42 years and is a famous writer. She is now living in Beijing. As she was 24 years old at that time, she started to publish her own written stories online back in 1998.

In her books and stories she mainly focus on young women issues, struggles and worries. She published her first paper book in 2000 titled Goodbye, Vivian. It was a huge success and she sold about 500,000 copies. A nickname was created based on her work which talks a lot about the fact of being lonely and a loner : « The flower in the dark ». She appeared in several magazines as well.

Some of her work

Goodbye, Vivian
Lotus
Endless August
Qizhao: Lonely Island

芙蓉姐姐 – Furong Jiejie 11 M Followers

FuRong JieJie (FRJJ in short), with as a real name Shi Hengxia 史恒侠 is a famous blogger. She was born in Wugong, Shaanxi province in 1977. She is now 39 years old. Her nickname means lotus « furong » sister « jie jie ».

In 2005, She gained popularity when she was struggling to enter university. She posted her feeling on the university bulletin boards and then went on writing posting on her blogs. Her posts are usually pictures of herself, her story but also her dance abilities. She also appeared several times on TV.

王思聪 Wang Si Cong– 10,7 M followers

Wang Si Cong, 28 years old, was born in 1988 in Dalian. He is the only son of one of the richest entrepreneurs in China : Wang JianLin. His father is the CEO of Dalian Wanda, a real estate giant and movie theater.

His son Wang Si Cong, is now an internet celebrity thanks to his use of freedom of speech and love adventures. He studied in the UK, is part of the board member of Wanda Group and has its own private equity fund called Prometheus Capital.

郭美美 Guo Mei Mei – 9 M followers

Guo Mei Mei is 25 years old and was born in 1991. She gained popularity online after a scandal during which she claimed being a manager of Red Cross China. She used this opportunity to expand her follower pool. She posted several pictures showing off her wealth. She has been recently doomed to go to jail for 5 years because of illegal activities (casino). Here you can read more about: KOL in China

凤姐 Feng Jie – 8,47 M followers

Luo YuFeng known as Feng jie (sister Feng) was born in 1985 and became internet famous in 2009. She gained fame after handing out flyers about looking for the perfect husband with extraordinary requirements in Shanghai. She didn’t stop there and even started to brag about her brain abilities. Bad criticism and comments helped her to rise. She is now living in NYC, US.

桐华 Tong Hua– 8,4 M de followers

Tong Hua’s real name is Ren Haiyan. She lives in NYC, US. She is a writer and known as one of the “four young queens of Chinese romance novels”. Many of her novels were adapted on TV like for example her novel “Startling by Each Step,” (Chinese: 步步惊心).

She was also a very good student. She graduated from Beijing University and then became a financial analyst in Shenzhen.

奶茶妹妹 Nai Cha Mei Mei – 5,4 M de followers

The last of the 7 most famous online Chinese celebrities in terms of followers is Nai Cha Mei Mei, which literally means: Milk Tea Little Sister.

She became famous in 2009 at 19 years old, literally because of a photo of her posted online (title photo)  Her nickname came from the fact that she usually poses on photos holding milk tea in her hands. Since 2015, She has been married to one of the e-commerce industry main players, the CEO of JD.com. Finally, she is still greatly involved in Internet activities.

Engage KOL in your Digital Marketing Strategy !

In China, brands have to engage these influencers in their Marketing campaign to really get trust from Chinese Consumers. These online Stars have a real impact on Branding , and help to boost the reputation of Brands.

Olivier VEROT from Gentlemen Marketing Agency