Taiwan singer Denny Tsao found dead at 66

Taiwanese singer and television host Denny Tsao Hsi-ping, who was popular in Singapore and Malaysia during the 1980s, has died suddenly at age 66.

Taiwanese media reported on Dec 30 that he was found dead by his godson at his residence in Sanchong, New Taipei City, on Dec 29 around 10pm.

The police and paramedics confirmed later that Tsao had been dead for some time. Preliminary investigations showed he died from an internal medical condition.

Tsao released his first album Wild Youth in 1982 and rose to fame with the title song. He also starred in the 1982 film of the same name, alongside actors such as Kenny Bee, Sylvia Peng and Chu Hai-ling.

With his unique visual style and dynamic voice, Tsao quickly became an idol singer, earning him the nickname “Taiwan’s Hideki Saijo”. He cemented his popularity with another hit, Passionate Girls (1983).

He also ventured into hosting. Tsao was a regular cast member on the variety show Dragon Tiger Variety King (1998 to 2000), and hosted a late-night show whose Chinese title can be translated as Hot Girls Unite.

Tsao was a hugely popular singer in Singapore and Malaysia during the 1980s, visiting the region frequently to promote his albums, according to Chinese-language Shin Min Daily News.

Beyond television appearances, he also interacted with fans at autograph sessions held at malls. His longest stay was over 50 days – to promote the album Love Trap (1985) – which reportedly included a trip to Thailand.

Tsao’s last performance in Singapore was in 2005, when he took part in two concerts to raise funds for the Kidney Dialysis Foundation.

Having been away from Singapore for more than 10 years at that point, he told the now-defunct evening daily Lianhe Wanbao then that he had to cut back on performances to care for his 83-year-old father, who suffered from kidney disease. His participation in the charity concert was partly due to his father and his wish to do his part for kidney patients in Singapore.

Tsao was born into a family of doctors. He had three older brothers and one younger brother. As the fourth child, he was affectionately called “Fourth Brother” by fans. He was involved in a property dispute with his brothers in 2002, when he accused them of abandoning their father.

He stepped back from entertainment after his father died in 2005 and relocated to Thailand. He did not start appearing on Taiwanese variety shows again until after 2010.

His last post on Facebook was on Dec 28, after a 7.0-magnitude earthquake struck off Taiwan’s north-eastern coastal city of Yilan the previous day.

Posting a picture of his breakfast, he said he would leave everything to fate. He added that he had been taking things in his stride since experiencing the massive 1999 earthquake in Taiwan.