By kissing Agnelli heir, a Chinese starlet is born

Zhu Zhu and Lapo Elkann at a fashion show 2 months ago.
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A relatively unknown Chinese celebrity has shot to wider stardom after being photographed kissing Lapo Elkann, one of the heirs to the sprawling Agnelli family empire that owns automobile giant Fiat and Italian soccer club Juventus.

As Juventus finished its unbeaten season as champions of Serie A on Sunday, a mysterious dark-haired woman in the stands was stealing headlines for looking especially close to Elkann, the 34-year-old playboy and manager of brand promotion at Fiat.

The woman — who wore large sunglasses and a cream-colored coat — has been identified as Zhu Zhu, a Chinese television host, VJ, actress and singer whose career is likely to get a boost from pictures of her and Elkann locking lips that went viral. The photos sparked a flurry of internet searches for her background and photos.

Zhu, whose grandfather was a Communist Party general, was born and raised in Beijing. She began learning piano at age three and is said to have had a flair for English since junior high. She went on to study electronics and information engineering at Beijing Technology and Business University before being admitted to Parsons School of Design in New York. She instead chose to return to China to work for MTV.

Since 2005, Zhu has hosted a variety of shows on MTV's international Chinese-language channel and in 2007 she became a VJ on the station's English-language shows. She reportedly became good friends with Paris Hilton when she interviewed and chaperoned the Manhattan socialite during the 2007 MTV Super Festival in Shanghai.

Those who know Zhu say she is an intelligent, hardworking and versatile career woman. She has been a host or special guest for many international brands such as Louis Vuitton, Chanel, Ferrari, Audi and Mercedes-Benz, and has been a spokesperson for Land Rover's Evoque series and cosmetics company Olay.

As a singer, Zhu has signed with local label Mbox since 2007 and released her debut self-titled album in July 2009. As an actress, she had a supporting role in the 2011 Chinese remake of Mel Gibson and
Helen Hunt's 2000 film What Women Want.

Despite her achievements, Zhu was not a well-known celebrity in China until being spotted with Elkann, who is nicknamed "Lapo of luxury" and has featured on Vanity Fair magazine's best-dressed hall of fame. Zhu has reportedly signed with a Hollywood agency and is looking to take her career global.