Actress Ouyang Nana makes list of ‘Forbes 30 Under 30 Asia 2019’

TAIPEI: Taiwanese actresscellist Ouyang Nana has been named one of the most outstanding young leaders in the Entertainment and Sports category of the “Forbes 30 Under 30 Asia”.

She was the only Taiwanese to make the list this year.

Ouyang, 18, plays the guitar, piano, and cello. In 2012, she became the youngest cellist to stage a solo recital at the Concert Hall of Taiwan, and in 2013 she started attending the Curtis Institute of Music in Philadelphia.

Ouyang has released two albums since 2015 including the classical album 15 and Cello Loves Disney.

Lauding the actress as one who “manages to do the impossible,” Forbes noted that Ouyang is serious about pursuing her career as a musician, while also gaining in popularity as an Asian actress in films such as Secret Fruit and Bleeding Steel.

Last September, she resumed her studies at Berklee College of Music.

Nevertheless, the rising star has recently experienced negative publicity. Last month, she became a target of online trolling by Chinese netizens who blasted her for supporting Taiwan independence, which prompted her to respond by declaring herself Chinese – a move that drew even more criticism from both sides of the Taiwan Strait.

“Forbes 30 Under 30 Asia” is an annual list that presents the “brightest young entrepreneurs and innovators” in the region, selected by a group of reporters and judges.

The 2019 edition honours 300 game- changers out of more than 2,000 entries, representing 23 countries and areas in the Asia Pacific.

Eleven of the game- changers — mostly pioneers in tech startups — are from Malaysia.