Wen Hsia was born Wang Jui-ho[1] in 1928,[2][3] in present-day Madou District, Tainan,[4] and studied music in Japan.

[7] From the 1950s to the 1960s, Wen Hsia was known for his covers of Japanese melodies featuring Taiwanese Hokkien lyrics,[8] a practice that began in the 1930s.

[3] During martial law in Taiwan, Hokkien pop was heavily censored and Wen Hsia became known as the "king of banned songs.

[10] His 1961 work, "Mama, I’m Brave" was banned for thirty years, setting a record for the longest period a Hokkien pop song was prohibited.

[2][13] As an actor, Wen Hsia starred in Joseph Kuo's remakes of the Japanese Wataridori film series, in which the protagonist was originally portrayed by Akira Kobayashi.