Born in Pingyao, Shanxi, China on December 31, 1929, Guo Lanying is an operatic soprano and former delegate to the National People’s Congress. She is best known for recordings of patriotic songs including "My Motherland", “Song of Emancipation”, and “The Song of Women’s Freedom”. Born into a poor family, she began studying opera at the age of 6. Before she hit her teens, she was already performing with a local theatrical troupe. While attending North China United University in the 1940s, she was performing dance drams with the school’s song and dance troupe. In 1948, while a member of the North China University Cultural and Art Troupe, her starring role in the opera The White-Haired Girl brought her to prominence. At the end of the Chinese Revolution in 1949, she began her rise to international popularity including performances in high profile operas including The Marriage of Little Er Hei, The Marriage of Two Blacks , The Injustice of Dou E, Spring Thunder, and others. Guo Lanying was one of the first Chinese artists to train overseas and she spent time in Italy, Poland, Romania, Japan, and other countries. She also gained acclaim for her recordings of songs such as "People Say Shanxi is Beautiful", "Embroidered Golden Plaque", “Song of Emancipation”, “The Song of Women’s Freedom”, and her most popular recording, “My Motherland”. and many others. Guo Lanying retired from singing in 1982 and turned her attention to teaching. She established the Guo Lanying Art School in Panyu, Guangdong in 1987. She has performed sporadically since then on special occasions. There have been many compilations of her recordings released over the years including five separate volumes of Collection of Hits by Guo Lanying released between 2003 and 2007.
