Yao Beina

Yao Beina
姚贝娜
Yao Beina in 2014
Born	(1981-09-26)September 26, 1981 Wuhan, Hubei, China
Died	January 16, 2015(2015-01-16) (aged 33) Shenzhen, Guangdong, China
Resting place	Shimenfeng Memorial Park, Wuhan, Hubei, China 30°30′52″N 114°29′03″E / 30.514562°N 114.484081°E / 30.514562; 114.484081
Education	China Conservatory of Music (BMus) The Affiliated High School of Wuhan Conservatory of Music (high school)
Occupations	Singer songwriter producer
Musical career
Genres	Mandopop Chinese folk rock R&B jazz Chinese opera
Instrument	Piano
Years active	2005–2014
Website	yaobella.com
Musical artist
Chinese name
Traditional Chinese	姚貝娜
Simplified Chinese	姚贝娜
Transcriptions Standard Mandarin Hanyu Pinyin Yáo Bèinà

Yao Beina (simplified Chinese: 姚贝娜; traditional Chinese: 姚貝娜; pinyin: Yáo Bèinà; September 26, 1981 – January 16, 2015), also known as Bella Yao, was a Chinese singer and songwriter. She debuted as a professional singer with her portrayal of the diva of the musical Jin Sha (金沙) in 2005.^[1] After graduating from China Conservatory of Music in the same year, she started her singing career in the Song and Dance Ensemble of the Political Department of the People's Liberation Army Navy.

Yao won the champion of pop singing in the 13th CCTV National Young Singer Contest in 2008 by earning the first and the only full score throughout the history of the contest.^[2] She performed at the Beijing 2008 Summer Olympics closing ceremony.^[3] In June 2009, she retired from the military and transformed into a pop singer. Her first album Yao Beina (姚贝娜), named after herself, was released on June 8, 2012.

Yao was best known for recording the soundtracks and theme songs of movies and TV shows, such as Empresses in the Palace, Painted Skin: The Resurrection, and Back to 1942. She also recorded the Mandarin version of "Let It Go" from Disney's Frozen. In 2013, she was invited to compete in The Voice of China Season 2 and gained great popularity.