120 million likes: Ailing (Eileen) Gu and Chinese superstar Lay Zhang talk about recording a song together - "We can try rap!"

Double Olympic champ Gu and megastar singer/actor Lay Zhang talked live on Douyin (China's original TikTok) about recording a song together. The video was 'liked' 120 million times.

Eileen Gu and Lay Zhang (Zhang Yixin) to record a song together
(2022 Getty Images)

Fresh from rocking the Beijing 2022 Olympics, Ailing (Eileen) Gu is already on to her next world-beating, chart-topping adventure.

The freeski phenomenon appeared live on Douyin (China's TikTok precursor) with superstar singer and actor Lay Zhang (Zhang Yixing) - formerly of K-Pop megaband Exo - and they talked about recording a song together.

"I want to sing a song with Gu," said Zhang on the '冠军驾到' (Champions Arrive show) on a Douyin live.

"We can try rap," Gu responded. "The snowy mountains can be the background for the music video.

"We can also try some ski jumping in the snow. Would you like to try snowboarding or skiing?" The Olympic champ asked Zhang.

"Actually, I’m not so great at either sport," admitted the Chinese megastar, laughing.

"It doesn’t matter," Gu continued, "We can try skiing first, I'll make the choice for you in advance!"

As Gu and Zhang talked on the show hosted by Liu Yuxi, one of China's most famous TV sports hosts, the views and the likes racked up in their millions: Eighteen million were watching live at the peak with the video racking up over 120 million likes.

Gu picked up 17.6 million followers in 15 days on the platform, with that number still rising fast.

Eileen Gu: Writing a book, writing songs, winning at life

After her historic haul of two golds from three medals at Beijing 2022, California-born Gu has the world in the palm of her hand, and now looks ready to slide from the Olympic podium into the recording studio with one of China's biggest stars.

Writing the song should come naturally too - Gu is already writing a book, and says she's kept journals since she was five years old about her childhood and growing up between two cultures.

"Growing up is a precious process for me," she said on the Douyin live, "I started writing diaries when I was around five years old. I wanted to record the moments.

"The content in my book comes from my dairies, which are about my experiences growing up, not only my experiences as an athlete."

And the music side will be no problem either - she's an accomplished piano player too.

Gu has said she uses piano and song composition as a way to "stay in my own head," saying she's an introvert at heart and that it helps her keep out all the noise from outside.

Eileen Gu: The girl with the dragon ski suit

Gu's ski suit also caught Lay Zhang's attention:

"I noticed the Chinese elements in Gu’s uniform. Did you design that yourself?

"I did," said Gu, "Exactly!"

"It’s great!" compliments Zhang, before Gu is asked where the inspiration for the suit came from.

"There is a Chinese dragon on the back of the uniform," she says.

"The Chinese dragon is the symbol of energy, confidence, and sometimes magic, which will bring me fortune during the competition.

"Through the image of the Chinese dragon, I can share my feeling about skiing with the whole world."

(2022 Getty Images)

Ailing (Eileen) Gu: On dealing with hype and becoming an icon for millions

At just 18, Gu has become an icon and instantly recognisable for millions of Chinese people across the world.

But she's coping well with the attention and sees "stress" as neutral rather than negative.

She says, "Sometimes stress is energy, and you can choose how you use it. If you see stress as something bad, then sometimes you cannot do your best.

"If stress is changed into energy, you can do better when competition time comes.

"When I practise my runs, my coach told me that stress was not different from excitement in your brain. What matters is what you do with it, that's your own choice.

"Everything I know about stress comes from myself (my experience), not from other people. I always want to achieve better so I set goals and try to use the stress, the pressure."

So how does it feel to be an idol?

"I want to say thanks to the people who treat me as an idol. However, being an idol doesn’t have such a big impact on me.

"My life belongs to me, I just do what I love. It's great if people support me, as I can encourage more children to get into in winter sports or to do whatever they want."

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