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Roman Tam

Hong Kong singer (1945–2002)

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Roman Tam Pak-sin (Chinese: 譚百先; pinyin: Tán Bǎixiān; 12 February 1945– 18 October 2002), known professionally by his stage name Law Man (Chinese: 羅文; pinyin: Luó Wén), was a Hong Kong singer. He is regarded as the "Grand Godfather of Cantopop".^[1]

Born in Baise, Guangxi, China, with family roots in Guiping, Guangxi. He moved to Guangzhou (Canton) in 1947 at the age of 2. He later emigrated to Hong Kong in 1962 at the age of 17 because his mother fell ill and was only able to get better medical treatment in Hong Kong.^[2] He was poor and was only able to sleep with a sleeping bag and a radio on the floor of a banking building. His musical interests started from listening to the radio. After forming a short-lived band known as Roman and the Four Steps to emulate The Beatles and winning a talent contest in Japan,^[3][4] he became a contract singer under studios term at TVB. He briefly switched to Asia Television in the early 1990s. His stage name was actually a transliteration of his English name, Roman.

During the 1990s, he accepted many budding singers as his students.^{[citation needed]} Some of whom that became famous included Shirley Kwan, Joey Yung and Ekin Cheng. He had sung many well-known solos and duets for various TV series including Below the Lion Rock, and the famous 1983 TVB TV series The Legend of the Condor Heroes main theme duet with Jenny Tseng.^[5]

Tam was also known for bending and breaking gender norms, with a "flamboyant" on-stage persona. He was the first Hong Kong pop star to perform in drag and was featured in a magazine while posing in the nude. Although the latter was controversial at the time, Tam "'got away with his on-stage flamboyance because of his off-stage discretion' and was accepted 'in mainstream Chinese culture at a time when homosexuality was outlawed'".^[6] He never married and maintained a high degree of privacy in his personal life.^[4]

Tam officially retired in 1996, but continued to perform occasionally with other artists.^[4]

On 19 October 2002, Tam died in Hong Kong at Queen Mary Hospital from liver cancer at the age of 57. Then-Secretary for Home Affairs Patrick Ho expressed his condolences.^[7][8]

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Roman Tam.

• Applauding Hong Kong Pop Legend: Roman Tam – About the collection, Hong Kong Memory