He shares similar experiences with Joan Chen, who portrayed his mother in Mao's Last Dancer (2009): both were born in 1961, they were picked at a young age to pursue an artistic career and they both came to the United States in 1981.
He defected to the United States after getting the opportunity for a summer scholarship with the Houston Ballet.
The first ballet he ever danced was the Chinese revolutionary ballet "The Red Detachment of Women".
He is portrayed by Chi Cao in Mao's Last Dancer (2009). Li recommended Cao to portray him. Cao's parents were two of Li's former teachers at the Beijing Dance Academy.