I’m fairly certain Taiwanese-American singer-songwriter-actor Leehom Wang is talented and considered handsome in some quarters. I wouldn’t know because I don’t find him the least bit handsome or his projects interesting. With my disinterest I had to play catch up understand why he was the hottest topic in the Chinese entertainment pages for the last few days. Leehom has been plagued with being gay rumors since his debut and those rumors turned to pretty serious evidence for the last two years that he was dating Chinese classical pianist Li Yun Di. They met performing together at the 2012 Lunar New Year show for a major Chinese network and apparently it was love at first sight. Since then they have been photographed watching a movie together (Life of Pi), posting pictures of the two of them hanging out alone or with respective family members, seemingly holding hands behind A Mei in a picture when they visited her new nightspot, posting romantic cryptic Weibo messages that the other would seemingly respond to hours later, and on and on. Both guys have emphatically stated they are totally NOT gay and just really good friends. Then this week the hellgates opened on what might be the most ridiculous revenge breakup in the history of entertainment dating – or those two guys seriously have a psychic connection in finding girlfriends. Leehom went first and posted a Weibo shocker – a picture of him with a girl he introduced as his girlfriend, a grad student at Columbia. Hours later, Li Yun Di posted an update on his Weibo of a picture of a girl that he said was his girlfriend, a grad student at Columbia. And no, it wasn’t the same girl. Magically Leehom and Yun Di both happened to find pretty Chinese-American grad students at Columbia, not to mention revealing the relationship on the same day! What are the odds? C-netizens went crazy and said that Leehom dumped Li Yun Di to go straight, and in revenge Yun Di flashed a similar background girlfriend to go tit-for-tat. Leehom has since raised the stakes and a day after revealing his girlfriend he then revealed that they were actually legally married already having registered as husband-and-wife. I watched this all while holding back my snorts of laughter and shaking my head at how makjang if all felt.
This is Leehom’s girlfriend-turned wife (all in the span of a day) – 27 year old Li Jing Lei, a graduate student at Columbia University.
This is Li Yun Di’s girlfriend – 25 year old Tian Fei, a graduate student at Columbia University. Li Yun Di revealed his “girlfriend” on his Weibo literally hours after Leehom’s Weibo about his “girlfriend”. The last name Tian is simply the character for Wang with two additional strokes added to the side to close up the character. Pretty funny, huh? Now let’s look at the picture history of the extremely close friendship between Leehom and Li Yun Di.
I think all the pictures of Leehom with his “good friend” Li Yun Di speaks for itself. No additional commentary from me is necessary. You can draw your own conclusions. I guess I should say a congrats to Leehom for tying the knot, if only all the other stuff wasn’t way more entertaining.
OMG!!! y don’t anyone make a k-drama based on this leehom wang-li yun di drama….. kim woo bin and lee jong suk shud play the leads….
AGREED!!!!!!! If for some reason they can’t do it Jung Il-woo and Lee Min-ho would be nice substitutes.
Yah!!! Love Jung il woo and Lee min 🙂
I literally cracked up reading this post. Doesn’t get any more makjang than this. Everything about this is so sketch…except maybe for Leehom’s sexuality. Just disappointed that people still find the need to hide that stuff.
I stared and stared at that pic of them with A Mei to see whether they were holding hands…my eyes hurt
oh oh…:) 🙂 :)…
No they didn’t, I could see Lee Hom’s hands on his waist and Amei’s hands covered or in her pant’s pocket.
If we find out later it’s a contract marriage, I’m going to snort ginger ale out my nose while laughing my head off. Not at him, per se, but at the total drama-cliche it would be.
Wow, this is so crazy! I’ve only read news about Leehom’s gf/wife, who was said to be introduced to Leehom by his parents and who had gotten his parents’ approval. With the missing piece of his history with Lee Yun Di, the part linking his wife to his parents now make a lot of sense. Seriously, is Columbia University the place to go to for pretty Chinese-American girls? There’s just so many coincidences between these two guys for it not to be true…
Crazy speculations (not a fan/don’t know either of them): May be they met the girls at the same place.. And from an outsider’s perspective, if they were so close, they could’ve easily planned to reveal their gfs together. Also, based on the pics, I don’t see anything to suggest more than close friends(but that’s just me).
If this theory is true then it I will realize that all the makjang have at least some basis lol
I know, right? I liked Wang Leehom as an actor but I never heard of gay rumors. I wouldn’t care if he were gay, but I just don’t see it in these pictures. Seriously, this is tamer than 80% of the pics my male friends post with their friends on fb.
It’s not the pictures, it’s their interviews and Weibos gushing about each other and lots of other things. There is even a very active Couples Bar for them on Baidu.
Yeah i don’t see how it makes them gay either. Korean idols kiss each other, hold hands, wear women clothing all the time but i don’t hear gay rumors there. Maybe they’re just making fun of paparazzis and netizens. Giving them something to talk about. And gushing? If you showed respect or a like for a certain artist of your own sex does that make it gay?just wonderong..
Actually, him being gay is a open secret for years. Nothing unknown in the Far East. So his marriage did come as a surprise for everyone.
Well now reading Koala’s comments about the concert and all I am beginning to doubt myself. But who knows if it’s true or not. Maybe he experimented and decided he the other way. Gwen Steffani’s husband was gay a long time ago.
Yep, I mean, they could very well be gay or bi, but the pics aren’t really telling me anything. Eh, whatevs.
whatever happens, i feel envy to li jing lei ;p
I squealed so much when I heard Lee Hom got married. Aside from WuZun, I think he’s a perfect male specimen from taiwan ent. And I’m so happy for him. I never did believe all those gay rumours but I wasn’t opposed to them either. It’s his choice and I hope he’s truly happy. I think I prefer his music than his acting though. LOL. But he’s a workaholic and I admire that. Heh. two of my bias favourites married this year (Vanness). What are the odds?
As for Lee, maybe they met the girls from the same circle of acquaintance? LOL. And better yet, maybe they plan the weibo posts together?
They just look like good mates. I imagine that if he were gay, he would find someone better looking than the other guy.
Leehom has gone on record as saying on he was so dazzled by Li Yun Di’s talent, he was the youngest pianist to win the International Frédéric Chopin Piano Competition, in 2000, at the age of 18. I don’t think it’s about looks for him.
I thought this was up there as one of the most romantic love declarations I have seen: http://youtu.be/MXemdSDwO0M
I was smitten with LYD as a Chopinist on radio when he was just out in the classical music scene and can not recall him ever playing pop music and singing at his concerts.
OMO the collective gasp when he switched song
ok this is so sad…
Thank you, been looking for that video.
If ever one celebrity ever went public with a love declaration, what Li Yun Di at his performance was IT.
He is a classical pianist, yet for his closing song at the concert he performing Leehom’s pop song “落叶归根” (Falling leaves returning to roots), and sang about how his love is like a leave falling to its roots, always there for him. GAH.
No wonder the audience gasp OUT LOUD when he switched songs. And all the pictures of him and Leehom flashing across the screen? With falling roses? LMHO, he decided to go all out.
But then Leehom went batshit insane and they unfollowed each other Weibo and then more drama and then maybe getting back together, and then this big double bombshell last week.
I thought these two were about as public as it could get, and I loved how C-fans embraced them and urged them to go public and was so supportive. That was the sweetest thing ever.
Apparently the public opinion is that Leehom is a major douchebag in the way this whole thing ended. I am inclined to agree.
I don’t understand it either. I don’t follow C-ent news very much, but even I knew about Leehom’s open secret. If he’s truly happy with this girl then I wish him the best, but it’s so sketch. Gay, straight, or bi, that’s his choice. I just hope it’s not of those things that he felt the need to cover up.
Exactly my opinion as well. I do see both as not minding the attention, but if was LeeHom posting that YunDi spending thankgivings with his folks in NYC, him ‘outing’ them in every sense of the word except saying out loud he’s gay, well, him making such a fuss to emphasize he’s heterosexual AND YUNDI LOVES GIRLS TOO, is about as close to me a confession of yup I am gay. But when YunDi got this serious with this performance and what transpired just a few days after was so douchy on LH’s end. It is like he loved the basking in the limelight, enjoying all the blessings, attention and publicity, but when he is officially stuck with the label of ‘gay’ being opening romancing as famous a classical musician can get as LYD in greater CN, he wanted to stepped back in the closet.
Whatever way he swings I honestly do not have a opinion, but this can be handled so much normally without all my rolling of eyes, if they are close friends who just so happen to both have met their love who so happens to both study at the same college and about the same time ready to announce it to the world for our blessing, they can say it without all the weird timing and wording. Both of them are obviously actively using their weibo and must know a thing of the other party’s big announcement but there is no nice words exchanged. Now that WLH has to post a weibo picture of his ‘family pic’ where everything is so crudely PS’d to just stick his now new Mrs in between him and his Mom is nowhere near normal behavior.
LOL thanks for the laugh. I read my friend going nuts yesterday and Google who he was. I didn’t realize that he was famous. And also that is rumoured to be gay.
But the tit for tat, that is seriously hilarious. And it’s real life right? Not even in a movie.
I have to ask- did any of them study at Columbia? Why Columbia? Hahahaha…
Nope! Leehom went to Cal. Yundi studied in China.
But he did perform at Carnegie Hall and extensively in the US.
Didn’t Leehom go to William’s college and Berklee College of Music? I don’t think he went to Cal… Cal is UC Berkeley, not Berklee.
Wang Lee Hom was born and raised in New York. And he didn’t go to Cal, he stayed on the east coast.
I never heard rumours of Leehom being gay. Ever. And those pictures is so far from suspicious I’m actually laughing that anyone’s claiming they are. LOL! I not a fan but I like his music – his acting though, is as bad as taecyeon and yunho’s. I’m so shocked he’s married!! I have so many gazillion friends who worship him so I’m sure I’m gonna hear news about a mini flood soon lol.
Anyway, I’m thinking both the guys ended up meeting these girls when they were in Columbia together or something. And it went on from there, later deciding to declare their relationships together. Anyways, hope they both have a successful marriage! Congrats guys!
It’s not just the pictures, it’s all their Weibo posts and written notes to each other.
And neither guy attended Columbia. Ever.
Man, this world is CRAZY..
I don’t know this guy but lol.
😀
this is so kdrama-ish! Hahaha.
Good friends are supposed to rejoice over their friends’ wedding/dating announcement. Therefore the lack of congratulatory posts on their respective Weibo accounts, if true, speaks volume.
I do not get why netizens speculate on the sexual preferences of their fave celebs as being straight OR gay. They may as well be bisexual yet “frankly I don’t give a dear my dame”. <– a very old reference to a SNL skit around 1994 that might be a sweet walk down memory lane.
No one is speculating, this is might one of those “they are in love, go for it!” responds from all the netizens. I’ve never heard anyone bash them for being gay. Leehom is getting shit now for the way he handled the breakup.
Thru the pictures alone, one could not tell that these two were in a relationship. However after reading the latest comments, including yours, well indeed their love story was indeniable and deeply-rooted. Too bad that it went that sour. How sad, too.
I think Li Yun Di does have a hot for Lee Hom, that’s why he behaved like a bitter jilted admirer. As far as i scanned the photos, i couldn’t see not even a teeny bit that these two are more than good friends. No indication of the so called ridiculous gay claim and i’m not even a fan (since i don’t listen to chinese songs) and my opinion is totally not bias. Nahhh….in my opinion, Lee Hom is totally not gay but not the same can be said about Li Yun Di and boy, he is angry that Lee Hom didn’t reciprocate his affection the way he wanted it to be…
Ok, now you’ve got me doubting again.
Never got the appeal of LH……He’s the Chinese Danial Henney. Mediocre talant and very vanilla.
I think Mr LeeHom got scare and on the other hand he might just be using her for babies purposes!!!
It is also possible that Yundi is just riding on Leehom’s coat-tails to drum up publicity. Leehom and his wife/ then-girlfriend have been pictured together on multiple occasions, it’s just that people assumed that she was an assistant. Leehom has known his wife for more than 10 years. Trust Apple Daily to dig up old pictures. http://ent.appledaily.com.tw/enews/article/entertainment/20131130/35473521
Guys, please don’t assume everything.Gals hold hands,buddies can hold hands too. Besides, it’s their choice (of who they want to be),not yours. Don’t get too nosylah!