Liu Huan, one of China’s best-known singers, composers and music educators, has died in Shanghai at the age of 63.
The obituary said Liu died at 9:52 a.m. on Friday, September 25, 2026.
The announcement was issued on Saturday by the University of International Business and Economics, where he was a longtime professor and retired in September 2023.
The university described Liu as a widely recognized musician whose work combined music education, composition and performance.
It said he had made a significant contribution to university music education and to China’s wider music community.
Table of Contents
Liu Huan’s teaching career
Liu Huan was born in Tianjin in August 1963 and joined the University of International Business and Economics in July 1991.
He taught there for more than 30 years, including the course Western Music History, which became one of the institution’s best-known arts and culture classes.
Archived university material describes his lectures as highly popular, with students filling classrooms to hear him explain the development of Western music.
Liu often emphasized that teaching was his professional foundation, even as his recording and television career made him a household name.
He also composed the university song, known in English as the UIBE Song.
The school said the piece became a familiar part of major ceremonies and an enduring symbol of campus identity.
A defining voice in Chinese popular music
Liu Huan became widely known after performing theme songs for Chinese television dramas in the 1980s, including “The Sun in My Heart” and “Youth Should Have No Regrets.”
His broad, resonant voice and formal musical training helped make him one of the most recognizable performers in Chinese-language popular music.
Over the following decades, he moved between pop, television, stage performance and music education.
His work reached audiences through major broadcasts and televised music programmes, while his university teaching gave him a second public identity as an educator.
Liu also served as a mentor and judge on music programmes, including the original-music competition The Voice of China Songs, known in Chinese as 中国好歌曲.
The programme helped introduce emerging songwriters and performers to a national audience.
His support for original music
A major part of Liu Huan’s later legacy was the Liu Huan Original Music Public Welfare Fund, which he helped establish in 2019 with the Mango V Foundation and other partners.
The annual programme was designed to support young Chinese-language singer-songwriters.
It provided financial assistance for original composition and production while also connecting developing artists with established figures in the music industry.
The fund announced its seventh recipient in January 2026, continuing a project Liu had helped build around the principle that original music should receive sustained support.
Following Liu’s death, the fund said it would continue the annual programme and complete the work he had left unfinished.
The announcement described Liu as both the initiative’s founder and donor and said his contribution to original music would continue through the artists it supports.
Health challenges and a quieter public life
Liu had faced significant health challenges for years, including avascular necrosis of the femoral head.
University material from earlier in his career said the condition led him to pause his teaching before he later returned to the classroom.
In later years, he appeared less frequently in public and devoted more attention to teaching, mentoring and supporting younger musicians.
Public accounts of his work increasingly focused on his role as an educator and advocate for original music rather than on regular commercial performances.
No detailed medical cause of death was included in the university obituary or the public statements reviewed for this report.
Funeral arrangements
The university said Liu’s funeral arrangements would be kept simple in accordance with his wishes.
It said there would be no formal funeral committee, public farewell ceremony or memorial service.
For many listeners, Liu Huan’s legacy will rest on the combination of a distinctive singing voice, a long career in composition and performance, and a commitment to treating music education as a serious public responsibility.
His influence also extends through the students he taught and the younger songwriters supported by the original-music fund. That combination of performance, teaching and mentorship shaped a career that reached well beyond the recording studio.
Frequently Asked Questions
Who was Liu Huan?
Liu Huan was a celebrated Chinese singer, composer and music educator who also taught at the University of International Business and Economics.
How old was Liu Huan when he died?
He was 63 years old.
When did Liu Huan die?
The public obituary said he died at 9:52 a.m. on September 25, 2026, in Shanghai.
What was Liu Huan known for besides singing?
He was known for teaching Western music history, composing the UIBE Song and supporting younger original-music artists.
What will happen to the Liu Huan Original Music Public Welfare Fund?
The fund said it would continue its annual programme and complete the work Liu had begun.
Fact-Checked: Key facts were checked against the University of International Business and Economics, its archived institutional material and public information from the Liu Huan Original Music Public Welfare Fund. ([news.hsw.cn](https://news.hsw.cn/system/2026/0926/1962769.shtml?utm_source=openai))
Disclaimer: This report reflects the public announcements available on September 26, 2026; further details about Liu Huan’s death may be released later.