Leon Lai is one of the Four Heavenly Kings of '90s Cantopop. Born in Beijing and brought up in Hong Kong, Lai started out as an actor in the mid-'80s. When his singing career had taken off by the early '90s, he was winning awards left, right and centre—more than 200 awards in that decade alone. His slightly androgynous boy-next-door image was winning hearts all over Asia, while the quiet gravitas in his delivery demanded attention. It was these understated qualities that informed his portrayal of Beijing opera legend Mei Lanfang in Chen Kaige's award-winning film Forever Enthralled.