Who is Kris Wu? Meet the millennial idol bringing Chinese hip hop to a global stage

You can love or hate Kris Wu, but you can’t ignore him. With over 27 million Weibo followers and another 5.6 million Instagram fans, the 27-year-old actor-singer-songwriter is one of the most influential superstars in China. His ambition is to achieve worldwide fame.

Wu met me for our interview in London’s Hotel Café Royal during Fashion Week. Dressed in Burberry’s new interpretation of its classic checked trench coat hours before it hit the runway, his hair braided and tied into a topknot, and his eyes hidden behind retro, tinted round glasses, Wu truly lives up to his name as the pop king who has been influencing the millennial generations in China and beyond.

“I don’t want to follow in anyone’s footsteps,” Wu says. “I want to follow my own path and do something unique.”

Many Asian celebrities have made their global breakthroughs with kung fu/action films, but Wu is definitely not confined to this category. He already has an impressive portfolio of box-office hits, chart-topping EPs and ambassador deals with luxury brands the likes of Burberry and Bulgari. Wu is keen to be known as an all-round Asian star with a specific edge in hip-hop music.

“I want people to look at me in the future and feel that there’s this Asian hip-hop artist who’s fresh and hot,” Wu says. Despite Wu’s strong following in China, he is set to woo global fans with his music and influence.

Last month, Wu’s EP, Deserve, has made him the first Chinese artist to top the chart on US iTunes. Wu’s unexpected yet smooth transition from teen pop idol to Chinese hip-hop advocate owes its success to The Rap of China – a reality show produced by and aired on Chinese streaming site iQiyi, which he headlined. The show has gathered 2.7 billion views online and has been dubbed a cultural phenomenon. The 12-episode show, which took a whopping 250 million yuan (HK$295 million) to produce, has elevated hip hop from underground to mainstream centre-stage.