Hebe Tien wins Best Female Singer at Golden Melody Awards on Saturday Photo: VCG

As the Golden Melody Awards (GMA) wrapped up on Saturday, Best Female Singer winner Hebe Tien (known as Hebe) from Taiwan won applause and support from a massive number of Chinese mainland fans, showing the strong ties across the Straits when it comes to music.

On Saturday evening, the 32nd GMA was held in Taipei, the island of Taiwan, after a nearly two-month delay due to a sudden outbreak of COIVD-19 in late May. Solo singer Hebe Tien won the Best Female Mandarin Singer of the Year for her new album Time Will Tell.

Fans from Chinese mainland showed their support for the singer on social media with posts of "well deserved" and "congratulations," showing their love for the singer who has had quite a high profile in the mainland for years.

Hebe was once a member of S.H.E., a popular female singing group from Taiwan that gained many fans on both sides of the Taiwan Straits with songs like "Superstar" and "Chinese" after their debut in 2000. 

The group, which contained three female singers from Taiwan, split up in 2018, with each of the members pursing solo careers and furthering their already good reputation among fans in Chinese mainland with numerous performances and appearances on variety shows in both Taiwan and the mainland.

Founded in 1990, the GMA is the biggest music awards in Taiwan, as well as a music event with a positive reputation and influence in Asia. The awards are regarded as a good channel to promote exchanges between both sides of the Straits, as mainland singers have been nominated for the award over the past few years.

In 2001, singer Na Ying became the first mainlander in GMA history to win Best Female Mandarin Singer, beating other popular singers such as A-Mei from Taiwan, Hong Kong singer Faye Wong and Singaporean Stefanie Su.

In 2014, even more mainland artists appeared at the awards, including famous musicians such as singer-songwriters Li Jian and Li Ronghao and sing Qu Wanting, who is famous for her English songs "Drenched,"  "Jar of Love" and "Best Single Producer."

Global Times