For the last several years, Xiao Jiguo has been making good money with appearances at company openings, corporate parties and private events.
According to 29-year-old Xiao, the first time he realized his face was something of a money-maker was after Obama's election in 2008.
"One day I cut my hair due to the hot weather and one of my colleagues who followed all the Obama stories at the time said to me, 'You look like Obama so much!'" he told NBC News. "I didn't even know who Obama was at the time!"
As much as he may look like the US president, he struggles a bit to sound like him.
"I don't speak English very well so I speak in fake English," Xiao said. " It sounds like English to those who don't speak English, but it's not English… even I don't know what I'm saying!"
If American mimics sound of Chinese, it's racist. If Chinese mimic English, no problemo. http://t.co/WkhHGgZrE5 @Gavin_McInnes @scrowder
— Just One Smithereen (@newwaveisoldnow) October 18, 2015
The US president certainly has his critics, who'd likely say Xiao's gibberish isn't so far off the mark.
Xiao expressed the hope that if he met President Obama one day, he'd be able to express his gratitude.
"If one day I could have the chance to meet President Obama, I would say thanks so much to him," he said. "I think there is some bond between us as we share the same blood type and our birthdays are close."
Resembling U.S. president #BarackObama, Xiao Jiguo said all his facial features are original without any need to undergo plastic surgery. http://on.china.cn/1G8w39n
Posted by China.org.cn on Thursday, October 15, 2015
Xiao rose to fame online after participating on the country's television talent show "Chinese Dream Show" in 2012. That exposure led to his casting in a Chinese-language comedy film Funny Fellows, to be released in 2016.
Before his career as an actor and impersonator, Xiao worked for nearly a decade as a security guard at a factory.
