From the age of six He Yong began learning music from his father He Yusheng (何玉声), a professional
sanxian (three-string snakeskin banjo) player. In 1980, he appeared in the children's movie
Four Little Friends (四个小伙伴). Other songs, however, such as "Pretty Girl" and "Drum and Bell Tower", explore issues including
materialism,
environmentalism,
gender issues and
heritage conservation. Around this time He Yong became known as one of the "Three prominents of Moyan" (魔岩三杰) along with Dou Wei and
Zhang Chu, after their record company Moyan Culture (魔岩文化). His "Bell and Drum Towers", a nostalgic remembrance of life in the old quarter of Beijing, appeared in the soundtrack of the
Zhang Yuan movie
Beijing Bastards (1993). On 17 December 1994, He Yong performed at a groundbreaking concert in
Hong Kong with Chinese metal-prog rock harbingers
Tang Dynasty and others. Interviewed before the concert, he was antagonistically critical of
Cantopop music, saying: "Hong Kong only has entertainment, it has no music. Out of the "
Four Heavenly Kings" only Zhang Xueyou (
Jacky Cheung) can be considered a singer, the rest are all clowns". In response Jacky Cheung is said to have retorted: "
Mainland musicians all live in caves." The death of Tang Dynasty bass guitarist
Zhang Ju (张炬), one of He Yong's best friends, on 11 May 1995 affected him in a terrible way. He Yong fell out over a record deal and sank into depression and alcoholism. In 1999, He Yong spent three months in
France and the
Netherlands, playing and recording music. Since his first album, He Yong has not produced any new material, which prompted one Chinese newspaper to question: "He Yong, do you still have energy to rock?". He Yong has made isolated performances in Beijing clubs since the 1994 Hong Kong concert but has performed few large concerts. In 2002, he attempted to set himself alight in his Beijing apartment and was subsequently incarcerated and has been receiving medical treatment. Between 6–8 August 2004, he attended a concert entitled the "Glorious Road of Chinese Rock" (中国摇滚的光辉道路) held near the Helan Mountains (贺兰山) in
Ningxia. Accompanied by his father and band, He Yong again performed beside the veterans of Chinese rock. He Yong has hinted that the concert will signal his re-emergence into the Chinese music scene. ==Discography==