William Hung

William Hung
Hung in St. Cloud, Minnesota in July 2008
Background information
Chinese name	孔慶翔 (traditional)
Chinese name	孔庆翔 (simplified)
Pinyin	Kǒng Qìngxiáng (Mandarin)
Jyutping	Hung2 Hing3 Cheung4 (Cantonese)
Born	(1983-01-13) January 13, 1983 (age 34) Hong Kong
Occupation	Civil engineering university student, singer, actor, technical crime analyst
Genre(s)	Pop
Label(s)	Koch
Years active	2004–2011

William James Hung (born January 13, 1983), also known as Hung Hing Cheong, is a Hong Kong-born American former singer who gained fame in early 2004 as a result of his off-key audition performance of Ricky Martin's hit song "She Bangs" on the third season of the television series American Idol.

At the time of his audition, Hung was a civil engineering student at UC Berkeley. After his spirited audition to be the next American Idol, he inadvertently won the support of many fans. Hung voluntarily left university to pursue a music career. His recording career was marked by constant negative critical reaction, and his fame became the subject of much controversy as both he and his fans were accused of promoting and endorsing racial stereotypes against Asians, as he was perceived to lack musical talent and be celebrated only for embodying these stereotypes. In spite of the criticism and the implications of his success, he only showed signs of thoroughly enjoying his celebrity, believing he was living his dream.

He brought his own career as a musician to an end when in 2011 he accepted a job opportunity as a technical crime analyst for the Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department, and decided to pursue law enforcement instead of music. Since then, Hung has reflected positively on his pop music career.

Originally from Sha Tin, Hong Kong, Hung moved to Camden, New Jersey in 1993 and graduated from the John H. Francis Polytechnic High School in Los Angeles. He was a student at University of California, Berkeley, and later dropped out to pursue his music career.

He is a 73rd generation descendant of Confucius.