Lu Han, Yang Mi: Chinese celebrities who make lots of money from social media
From pop idols to wanghong – a phrase used to refer to internet celebrities – China’s most popular influencers share one thing in common: they’re raking in a lot of money. The online celebrity economy was projected to be worth around 58 billion yuan (US$8.4 billion) in 2016, according to data company CBNData. That made the sector more valuable than the domestic film industry, which brought in 45.7 billion yuan in revenues during the same year. Among the most popular of those celebrities is actor-singer Lu Han, a former member of South Korean-Chinese pop group EXO, who has appeared in commercials endorsing everything from luxury Cartier accessories to flavoured milk from local dairy brand Yili. Chinese actor and singer Lu Han wears a pair of Golden Goose Deluxe training shoes. Actress Yang Mi, with more than 77 million fans on social media platform Weibo, is another bankable name who works with brands such as Estée Lauder and Michael Kors. Regarded as a fashion icon, Yang...