33 Facts About Huang Zitao

Huang Zitao, known by his stage name Tao, is a Chinese rapper.

Huang Zitao is a former member of the South Korean-Chinese boy band Exo and its Chinese sub-unit, Exo-M.

Huang Zitao ranked 25th on Forbes China Celebrity 100 list in 2017,35th in 2019, and 37th in 2020.

Huang Zitao was born in Qingdao, Shandong on May 2,1993.

On December 27,2011, Huang Zitao was formally introduced as the third member of Exo.

Huang Zitao featured in two songs from Zhou Mi's album Rewind, which he penned the rap lyrics to; and appeared as a cast member of the Solomon Islands edition of the SBS reality television program Law of the Jungle in 2014.

Huang Zitao left the show early due to a foot injury on a coral reef during filming and other scheduled commitments.

Huang Zitao claimed the 10-year contract had unjust terms and said he lacks freedom due to the long contract period.

The exclusive contract between SM Entertainment and Huang Zitao was considered valid until his contract's conclusion in 2022.

In China, SM Entertainment filed a lawsuit against Huang Zitao regarding his solo activities.

Chinese courts ruled that Huang Zitao was entitled to use his name and image for solo activities in China, and dismissed the lawsuit.

On July 23,2015, Huang Zitao made his solo debut with a digital EP titled TAO, which sold 670,000 digital copies in its first week.

Huang Zitao performed the stunts and martial arts sequences for the action scenes in the music video.

At the 2015 Migu Music Awards, Huang Zitao won the "Best Stage Performance" award and performed the single.

On January 12,2016, Huang Zitao won the "Most Influential Male Singer" award at the 2016 Mobile Video Festival.

Huang Zitao was later invited to perform as a headliner for the SoYoung 2016 Live Concert Tour on January 29, which featured young rising musicians in China.

In 2018, Huang Zitao joined the dance-oriented variety show, Street Dance of China.

Huang Zitao is involved in songwriting and composition, drawing inspiration from his experiences.

Huang Zitao's music combines elements of hip hop, EDM, and Chinese musical instruments.

Huang Zitao cites Jay Chou as his musical inspiration, having listened to his music growing up.

Huang Zitao made his film debut in romance film You Are My Sunshine alongside Huang Zitao Xiaoming and Yang Mi.

In 2016, Huang Zitao starred in the action comedy Railroad Tigers directed by Ding Sheng, alongside Jackie Chan.

In 2017, Huang Zitao starred in the martial arts film The Game Changer, directed by Gao Xixi, as well as the romantic thriller Edge of Innocence.

In 2018, Huang Zitao starred in Negotiator, a spin-off of the 2016 hit drama The Interpreter.

In June 2017, Huang Zitao collaborated with Jonathan Anderson, Loewe's creative director, on the "Fire of Youth" campaign, becoming the first Asian artist invited to collaborate with LOEWE.

In September 2017, Huang Zitao was named Yves Saint Laurent's beauty ambassador and participated in the second season of YSL's web series Before the Light.

In January 2018, Huang Zitao began promoting a China phone brand, Sugar Phone, and attended the press conference for Sugar Phone S11.

Huang Zitao has been appointed as brand ambassador for YSL Eyewars in January 2018.

In second half of the year, Huang Zitao has endorsed KFC, EVISU, Tuborg, Skechers, and Baidu mobile application, as their brand ambassador.

In 2021, Huang Zitao cut ties with Lacoste because the company had not issued a global statement affirming that they were not boycotting Xinjiang cotton.

TAO's Man, a comic and 2D animation character that represents many elements of Huang Zitao, was launched in April 2019.

TAO's Man is a superhero character whose power is C-pop, the music genre Huang Zitao has been promoting and pursuing since the beginning of his solo debut.

In May 2020, Huang Zitao joined Produce Camp 2020 as a mentor, while Xu Yiyang, an artist signed to his company, participated as a contestant.