Jeanette Aw

Jeanette Aw Ee-Ping (born 28 June 1979), better known by her stage name Ou Xuan (欧萱), is a Singaporean actress and author.
She has been a full-time Mediacorpartist for 14 years and is managed by Artiste Networks, a subsidiary of Hype Records.Through her television career, Aw has established herself as one of the most popular and high-profile celebrities in Singapore. She has received several awards, including "Best Actress" and "All-Time Favourite Artiste" at Mediacorp's Star Awards. Aw has published two books – the best-selling Jeanette Aw: Definitions in 2012 and Sol’s World: Somebody to Love in 2015 – and starred in musical Beauty World in 2015.

While in college, Aw entered Route to Glamour, in which she placed first. She signed on with SPH Mediaworks and made her acting debut in the 2001 drama Touched. Aw then switched to Mediacorp in 2002 and played Mo Jingjing in Holland V (2003). Aw was named as one of the Mediacorp 7 Princesses in 2006, after which she achieved wider success with her leading role in acclaimed drama The Little Nyonya (2008). Aw garnered critical appreciation for portraying flawed actress, Zhao Fei Er, inThe Dream Makers (2013) and its 2015 sequel. She won her first "Best Actress" award at the Star Awards for her performance in the latter drama.

Aw's off-screen roles include duties as a brand ambassador for several Singapore and international companies.

Early Life

Aw was born in Singapore to parents with ancestry from Fujian, China. She has an elder sister and an elder brother. Coming from an English-speaking family, Aw rarely used Mandarin in their conversations. She considered her childhood blessed and fortunate because her parents provided for everything that she needed. Growing up with a carefree nature, she was an introvert and was "the kind of girl who loved reading, writing and drawing". Aw wanted to be a dancer, an artist or a child psychologist.

Attending Raffles Girls' Primary School ,  Crescent Girls' School,  National Junior College, and  National University of Singapore. Aw was a school prefect and a model student. Her best subjects were English Literature and English, and she scored an A for art at the O Levels. Aw did gymnastics in primary school, dance in secondary school, and swimming in junior college. She started ballet training at 13, and Aw went on to dance almost everyday before signing her first acting contract. She also played the saxophone in her secondary school concert band and trained for a girl group in junior college. In university, Aw was President of the NUS Dance Ensemble. Though she considered majoring in child psychology because of her love for children, Aw planned to pursue a career on stage and eventually graduated with a Bachelor of Arts (Honours) Degree in Theatre Studies.

Personal Life

When her close friend passed away soon after giving birth to a set to triplets, Aw stepped in and played mother to them. She has nurtured the children and cared for their emotional and mental growth since then, calling them every day, and visiting them as often as three times a week. The father, who was working in an events company, traveled often, and the children were often in her care.

As of 2015, Aw is in a relationship with her Caucasian boyfriend of nine years.

Aw's interests include reading and writing. As a personal project, she has also been working on a script for a short film. Comparing acting with writing, Aw said: “In terms of better expression of myself, it’s definitely through writing... Well, I do hope to develop my own scripts in future – that is really the next step for me.”

In the media

Aw is one of the most popular actresses in Singapore, and she keeps her personal life well-guarded. Aw has appeared on the covers of lifestyle magazines, ranging from Mediacorp publications like 8 Days, Elle Singapore, iWeekly, Style:Weddings and uWeekly as well as SPH magazines like Cleo Singapore, Female, Her World, ICON, Nuyou, Nuyou Time and Simply Her to others like #313Foodie, Citta Bella,Ezyhealth and LiveWell (all Singapore), Citta Bella, Feminine, My Wedding, Oriental Cuisine and Sisters (all Malaysia) and Ladies (Cambodia). From 2007 to 2009, FHM Singapore ranked her among the Top 100 Sexiest Women.

Aw is also the only Singapore television actress with at least a million Facebook fans. Along with seven triumphs at the Singapore Blog Awards and the "Social Media Award" at Star Awards in 2014 and 2015, Aw is popularly referred to as Caldecott Hill’s social media queen.

Often pitted against fellow Singaporean actress Rui En by local television audiences, the pair had swept popularity awards like "Favourite Female Character" and "Favourite Onscreen Couple" throughout the history of these categories at the annual Star Awards. Aw has clarified that there is no personal rivalry, something Rui En also describes as having "outgrown the whole princesses thing". Ken Lim, owner of Hype Records which manages both actresses, added, "Rui En and Jeanette appeal to different fans, and this is why they are both at the top of their game. Rui En is the one with the attitude, while Jeanette is relatable."