Coco Lee

Coco Lee
Ferren "Coco" Lee (17 January 1975 – 5 July 2023) was a Chinese-American singer and songwriter. Her career began in Hong Kong and later expanded to Taiwan and internationally. She released 18 studio albums, two live albums, and five compilation albums, including her first English-language album, Just No Other Way.
Lee voiced the lead character Fa Mulan in the Mandarin version of Mulan, a 1998 animated Disney film, and sang its theme song, "Reflection". She was the first Chinese singer to break into the American market. Her English single "Do You Want My Love" received international attention, appearing on the US Billboard Hot Dance Breakouts chart at No 4 and entering the top 50 of the US Billboard Dance Club Play chart and the Australian Singles Chart. Lee performed "A Love Before Time" from Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon at the 73rd Academy Awards, becoming the first, and so far only, Chinese to perform at the Academy Awards. She was also the first Chinese American singer to sing at an NBA game, the first Asian to have concert at Walt Disney Concert Hall in Los Angeles, the first non-mainland Chinese singer who win the Chinese reality show I Am A Singer, and the first Chinese ambassador for Chanel. She died at a hospital in Hong Kong at the age of 48.
Lee was described as "an enormously influential Chinese American singer and actress" by CNN.
Early life
Ferren Lee was born on 17 January 1975, the daughter of a Hongkonger mother whose ancestral home is Wuhan. She had two elder sisters, Nancy, a Hong Kong actress who later also became her manager, and Carol. Nancy often assisted her with wardrobe, makeup, and public relations, including suggestions for the moniker "Coco" and preparations for the Oscar night. Lee′s father died before she was born. When she was 10, her family moved from Hong Kong to San Francisco, where she attended Presidio Middle School and Raoul Wallenberg Traditional High School. She was crowned Miss Teen Chinatown San Francisco in 1991 when she was 16.
Lee won a local singing contest twice at 17. The first time, she joined to pay for the damage she made to her mom's car. The second time, she entered it again just because it was so enjoyable. After graduating from high school in 1993, she entered a TVB competition in Hong Kong and was offered a recording contract. Lee attempted to juggle her singing career in Hong Kong with her pre-medical studies at the University of California, Irvine but eventually left after her first year to concentrate on her pop career. During an interview in 1997, Lee said she never intended to become a star. Her goal in life was to become a surgeon because her mother was a successful doctor, although completing all of her medical training might take another decade.
Career
Career beginnings and Sony Music: 1993–1998
In 1993, Lee returned to Hong Kong to see her sisters, who had participated in the Miss Hong Kong Pageant in 1992. While there, she took part in the 12th Annual New Talent Singing Awards (1993) and was the first runner-up, singing Whitney Houston's Run to You. The following day, Capital Artists offered her a recording contract.
Lee made her debut on compilation albums including Red Hot Hits '93 Autumn Edition (火熱動感93勁秋版). In 1994, she released her first solo albums in Mandarin, Love from Now On (愛就要趁現在) and Promise Me (答應我), with Fancy Pie Records. Her English language cover album, Brave Enough to Love, and her third Mandarin album, Woman in Love (被愛的女人), were released the following year.
In 1996, Lee signed with Sony Music Entertainment. Her next album, Coco Lee, became the best-selling album of 1996 in Asia. The following year, she released her Mandarin album Sincere as well as a self-titled Cantonese album. In 1998, the Mandarin album Di Da Di was released, selling 1 million copies in less than 3 months.
International collaborations and English debut: 1998–2005
From her next album Sunny Day, "Colors of the World" (颜色) was used for the opening of the 1998 FIFA World Cup, and the song "The Answer" (答案) for the Chinese movie Bishonen (美少年之戀). In 1998, she was hired by Walt Disney Pictures to sing the theme song "Reflection" (自己; translation: Myself) and voice Fa Mulan in the Mandarin version of Mulan. In the same year, she sang "Missing You in 365 Days" (想你的365天), one of the theme songs of the film Lotus Lantern (寶蓮燈), the first commercial animated feature film in Mainland China.
In August 1998, Coco performed in Taiwan to a concert audience of more than 50,000 fans, the second-largest concert audience in Taiwan, exceeded only by Michael Jackson. She also performed in Michael Jackson's "Michael Jackson and friends" charity concert. In 1999, under 550 Music, Lee made her debut Just No Other Way, which included the hit, "Do You Want My Love". The song reached No 4 on the US Billboard Hot Dance Breakouts chart in December 1999, marking her success as the first Chinese singer to break into the American market. Her love song "Before I Fall in Love" (originally performed by Canadian female singer Joanna Pennock in 1995 on her self named only album, Joanne) was included in the soundtrack of the movie Runaway Bride. She also recorded a duet called "Can't Get Over" with singer Kelly Price. Lee recorded the charity singles "We meet the future" and "Hand in hand" for SARS with other artists including Wang Leehom, Stefanie Sun, Elva Hsiao, and Jolin Tsai. In Asia, she released a Mandarin album You & Me. By 2000 she had released 20 albums in Asia and had sold 7.5 million copies of her albums on that continent.
In 2001, Lee sang the song "A Love Before Time" for the movie Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon, which she performed at the Oscars. Her album Promise Coco was released in October 2001. She recorded a Mandarin Chinese cover titled "Baby, I'm Sorry" (Baby 對不起) as the lead single of the album. Her version's lyrics were co-written by Lee along with Lou Nanwei while the music is still the same original composition by Alfanno. A music video was released on the same year by Sony Music Entertainment Her version placed at number 35 on the Taiwan Yearly Singles Top 100 chart in 2001. In 2002, Lee released her remix album D. Is Coco (Dance Is Coco). She sang an anti-tobacco song called "From the Beginning 'til the End" (煙絲萬縷) with singer Jacky Cheung. In the same year, at the NBA (National Basketball Association) debut of Yao Ming Lee performed the US national anthem and became the first Chinese-American singer to sing at such an important international sporting occasion. She also sang the anti-racism song "A Dream of One" with Korean singer Jin Young Park. In 2003, she performed with Shaggy at the "MTV Asia Awards" in Singapore and also presented the show with him.
Lee co-starred in the Chinese comedy movie Master of Everything (自娱自乐) with John Lone, which won the Best Foreign Film award in the 2005 Beverly Hills Film Festival.
Second English album and Warner Music: 2005–2011
In 2005, Sony BMG released her second English album, Exposed. The album was banned in Mainland China for sexy lyrics in a few songs such as " Touch" or "So Good". Lee's next Mandarin album, Just Want You (要定你), was released on 22 September 2006. In 2008, Lee was chosen to sing one of the 2008 Summer Olympics' songs, "Forever Friends", opposite Sun Nan.
As the first Asian singer to perform at Walt Disney Concert Hall in Los Angeles, Lee had a solo concert there in July 2009, singing some of Michael Jackson's songs in homage to her idol. On 14 August 2009, she released her new Mandarin album East to West (CoCo的東西) with Warner Music Group. It contains the songs "Party time", "Turn" (流轉) which is on the soundtrack of the movie The Legend of Silk Boy (世博总动员-湖丝仔) for the Shanghai World Expo 2010 and "BYOB" ("Bring Your Own Bag") a song to encourage people to bring and recycle their own shopping bags to save the environment. She recorded the song "Smile Shanghai" (微笑上海) with other artists including JJ Lin, Andy Lau, Jam Hsiao, and Jane Zhang for Shanghai World Expo 2010. On 27 March 2010, Lee began her East2West World Tour Concert in Taipei at Taipei Arena. She performed at the Encore Theatre in Wynn Casino in Las Vegas on 3 and 4 July, then in Singapore Indoor Stadium in Singapore on 2 October, and in Nanning on 16 December. In March 2011, Lee was one of many artists who participated in the recording of Artistes 311 Love Beyond Borders (愛心無國界311燭光晚會) official theme song called "Succumb not to sorrow" (不要輸給心痛) for the Cantonese version. On 7 April 2011, her song "Dreams on oriental seas" (梦在东方的海上) featuring Sun Nan was broadcast. It was named as the theme for the 14th FINA world championships, which took place in Shanghai on 16 July 2011.
New album and final projects before death: 2011–2023
On 8 June 2011, Lee announced that had she set up her own studio. On 25 June, her song ″Four seas alliance″ (四海盟約), the theme song for the 2011 China television drama All men are brothers (水滸傳), was broadcast. On 17 December 2011, she performed at "Booey Lehoo Concert" in Beijing with will.i.am and apl.de.ap from The Black Eyed Peas, John Legend, and Shunza. On 9 February 2012, she performed at the TRANS4M Boyle Heights benefit at Hollywood Palladium in Los Angeles with will.i.am, apl.de.ap and Taboo from The Black Eyed Peas.
Her album Illuminate (盛開) was released on 31 May 2013 with Universal Music. She was a judge on the 2015 version of Dancing with the Stars in China.
In 2016, she competed in the fourth season of the Chinese reality show I Am A Singer, although she admitted that losing her voice to bronchitis in 2014 had affected her singing ability. However, she recovered and participated, going on to win the competition, making her the first non-mainland Chinese singer to do so. Lee later returned as a guest singer for two more seasons (now rebranded with the new title Singer); on the fifth season during the biennial concert, and on the sixth season as with a guest performer for Jessie J, the eventual winner of that season. In 2020, Coco Lee announced that she was going to re-record the Mandarin end-credits version of the song Reflection for the live adaptation of Mulan, as she had already done in 1998.
Personal life
Lee married Hong Kong-based Canadian businessman Bruce Rockowitz on 27 October 2011 in Hong Kong in a Jewish ceremony. The wedding included performances by Bruno Mars, Alicia Keys, and Ne-Yo. For her wedding, she recorded the song "I Just Wanna Marry U" (Chinese and English version), which was released on 24 October 2011. In June 2016, she told the press in Taipei that in May she thought she was pregnant, but it turned out to be a false alarm. She was so upset that she cried a lot. In March 2018, she mentioned in a brand event that she was undergoing IVF in New York and it was a laborious experience for her. She had no biological children but had two adult stepdaughters from her husband's previous marriage. Rockowitz is alleged to have cheated on Lee. There were reports saying they had separated before Lee died and were due to sign the divorce papers in July 2023.
Health issues
Lee was born with an abnormality in her left leg. At the age of two, she underwent surgery which failed to correct the problem, causing her to rely more heavily on her right leg for most of her life. It was understood that Lee received a diagnosis of depression in 2019. Her sister said the condition deteriorated drastically the few months before her death although she had sought professional help. She was diagnosed with breast cancer in 2022 and had a tumour removed. In December 2022, the singer reported her own weight as 42 kg, sparking concerns for her health. On 8 March 2023, she disclosed on social media that she had surgery on her pelvis and thigh in Hong Kong the previous month, after triggering an old leg injury during a dance rehearsal in October 2022. She shared videos of herself learning to walk again with the aid of a walker as well as a nurse. Lee had to take muscle relaxant medication after the surgery and at the time "she did not appear to have suicidal tendencies", an insider said.
Death
Lee had been staying in a hotel in Central since October 2022. She had reportedly attempted suicide on 29 June 2023 and was rushed to Queen Mary Hospital from the hotel, but was discharged the next day. She then moved to her sisters' house at the Peak. Lee's sister Nancy told the press in an phone interview on 6 July that Lee had been unwell and was very slow on everything since a week ago. Her eyes became empty as well.
On 2 July 2023, Lee posted an audio message on the social media platform Weibo thanking her fans. Later on the same day the Hong Kong police received information about an attempted suicide at the place she lived. Lee was rushed to Queen Mary Hospital and died at the hospital three days later, on 5 July 2023, at the age of 48. A blood-stained nail clipper was reportedly found near the bathroom sink and there were 13 antidepressants in her belongings. The news of her death received much attention in China, getting almost 1.4 billion views on Weibo in one day. "Coco Lee was conscious and able to speak as ambulance took her to hospital after suicide attempt on July 2, but fell into coma upon arriving there" and "Bruce Rockowitz is expected to press for legal proceedings so the circumstances of Lee's death can be publicly examined" according to a report on 7 August 2023 from SCMP. In an interview on 6 September 2023, Jenny Tseng, a close friend of Lee, mentioned that Lee had hallucinations after taking her prescribed medication.
The family has asked Hong Kong authorities to investigate Lee's death, and an autopsy has been requested to determine the cause.
Services and tributes
Lee's sister Nancy has urged the government of Hong Kong to officially recognise the late star's contributions. A vigil for Lee was held on 31 July at Hong Kong Funeral Home in North Point, with a public memorial service from 6pm to 10pm. There were eight pallbearers for the funeral, including her brother-in-law Billy Ho; singer Jenny Tseng; lyricist and music producer Chien Yao; Jonathan Serbin, the co-president of Asia at Warner Music; fan and television host Yang Yang; Grace Lee, Lee's high school classmate in San Francisco; Lily Pang and Colleen Yu Fung, Lee's good friends. The private funeral service was held at 9am on 1 August.
Rockowitz's name was missing from multiple announcements made by Lee's sisters. It was reported that towards the end of the funeral service on 31 July, Nancy suddenly became emotional when hugging a friend and was heard shouting repeatedly in Cantonese: "He took my sister away!" Carol, the eldest sister, was also heard shouting: "She's saying he caused my sister to die!" Their cries did not name any person and lasted for some time before the audio was muted. On 1 August, when asked to say something to Coco outside the crematorium, Rockowitz, who was being mobbed by Lee's angry fans, said, "I love her. My whole life." He has come under criticism after Lee's death and has sought to dispel various allegations against him.
On October 21, 2023, Lee's ashes were buried at the Shimen Peak Memorial Park in Wuhan, China. According to her sister, it was their mother's wish that the ashes of Lee, who had never met her father when she was little, is laid to rest next to his.
Aftermath
Leaked clips and Sing! China
On 17 August 2023, a nine-minute audio clip featuring Lee, a coach during the season 7 of the show Sing! China, came to light. In the recording she commented her experience of humiliation at the hands of the production team during the show's final episode in October 2022. This humiliation followed her questioning of the competition format in September 2022.
Lee, who was about to undergo surgery on her left leg, alleged that she was subjected to a sudden placement change during a performance with Wang Zepeng, a contestant on her team. Wang, who was supposed to accompany Lee on stage to assist her due to her fragile condition, had his back turned to her, causing Lee to stand alone and fall during their duet. She described this experience as "humiliating," especially since her health issues had been largely concealed from the public.
Wang later supported Lee's claims by sharing screen captures of their private text messages, where Lee accused the director of intentionally undermining her. More leaked clips emerged, including one showing Lee leaving the show venue with assistance, struggling to walk. There was also a leaked video of a staff member on set attempting to remove Lee from the stage as she repeatedly said, "Don't touch me."
In the nine-minute audio clip, Lee mentioned that the production team threatened her, stating they won’t give contestant Feige a chance to return to the stage unless she wrote a Weibo post. She complied to ensure Feige had an opportunity to showcase his talent.
'Jammy' Li Jiajie, one of the contestants in season 8 (2023) also showed his agreement with Lee after the clips' leakage. He said in his Weibo post that "the price of 500,000 yuan per seat, in his opinion, is certainly not a baseless rumor... the top ten places in the finals are all available for purchase." His posts were mysteriously removed, and Li later said that his allegations were made without basis. People were surprised by the posts' removal and his "apologies". They left comments asking him if he was threatened.
The controversy led to a significant debate among netizens, with calls to boycott the show's sponsors. By 25 August 2023, the stock price of Star China Media, the parent company of "Sing! China," plummeted by more than 50 percent, resulting in a loss of approximately $3 billion in value. On the same day (25 August), Zhejiang Satellite TV announced that the program had been frozen from broadcasting briefly pending an investigation over the alleged mistreatment of Lee and other issues raised by netizens and viewers.
In September, Sing! China’s producer Can Xing Media (a subsidiary of Star China Media) filed a suit against the management company of Lee, Warner Music China (HK) Limited. The company was accused of being shameless by some netizens for filing the suit.
Legacy
Lee is remembered by millennials who grew up during a time when Mandopop boomed and enjoyed listening to her songs in English and Mandarin. She is considered ‘Asian Mariah Carey’ due to her impressive voice and dance. She was one of the first Asian singers to be widely recognized on both sides of the Pacific. Because of her multilingual and multicultural background, she has been compared to Ricky Martin and has been credited for breaking down international barriers and bridging the gap between East Asia and the West.
Philanthropy
Lee was actively involved in the work of UNICEF as a youth ambassador, promoting children's right and their well-being. She supported the Make-A-Wish Foundation, which grants children with critical illness their wishes. She was also an ambassador for the Organisation for World Peace in China, Cancer Fund's Pink Ambassador at Hong Kong's first breast cancer survivors' fashion show in 2016 and Youth AIDS ambassador at a global AIDS conference in Bangkok, Thailand in 2004. As the Youth AIDS ambassador, she attended the conference as the representative of the Asian artists to meet various youth groups discussing what she could do to educate them about AIDS.
Artistry
Lee was inspired by musicians such as Whitney Houston, Madonna, Michael Jackson and Mariah Carey. Because techniques employed by R&B singers in English would change the pitch and meaning of words in Cantonese, she taught herself Mandarin, which allows for more tonal flexibility.
Honors and awards
Awards 1994Top 10 Most Popular IdolBest New Artist awards (Taiwan)the Golden Dragon Chart Awards 1996Best-selling album (Coco Lee) of 1996Best MV (Yesterday's passion)Awards 1997Best Female Artist by the Best 10 ArtistsMTV Asia Music Awards 1998Best Album (DiDaDi)Best Music Video (DiDaDi)MTV/CCTV Chinese Music Awards 1999Artist of the yearRadio Music Awards 1999 (Singapore)Best international newcomerYale and Harvard Universities 2000Asian-American of the yearBest Performer of the yearAwards in Hong Kong 2001Best Mandarin Female ArtistTop 10 Artist of the YearInternational Golden Melody Awards Malaysia 2001Most Popular Stage Showmanship FemaleM'sia Awards 2002best songMTV/CCTV Chinese Music Awards 2002Best female artist of the yearMTV Style Awards China 2003Breakthrough International Artist of the YearAsia's Most Outstanding PerformerLycra Style Awards 2004Asian Style Artist10 Best dressed of 2004Changchun festival 2004Best new talent (Master of everything)QQ Star Awards 2010Female Singer of the Year 2009Album of the Year 2009Hit Music Awards 2010Best song of the year 2009 (BYOB)Best female artist in Taiwan and Hong Kong area of the year 2009Awards 2010China's Top 10 Barbie Dream Girls
Discography
Studio albums
Live albums
Compilation albums
Remix albums
Extended plays
Maxi-singles
Digital singles
Compilation appearances
Videography
Filmography
Film
Television
Tours
See also
Elva Hsiao
Han Hong
Jay Chou
Jin Xing
List of best-selling albums in Taiwan
Michelle Yeoh
Wang Leehom
References
Further reading
Remembering Coco Lee: 7 highlights from her 30-year career
Celebrating Coco Lee: Honouring the Hong Kong icon through 5 of her career-defining achievements
Stars share their memories of CoCo Lee
《壹週刊》 第1263期 - 娛樂名人 香港女 李玟 (Cantonese) - Interview of Lee in 2014
蘋果人物 - 李玟淚訴 聽不清的母女情話 (Mandarin) - Interview of Lee in 2013, in which she cried when talked about the hearing problems of her mother
Interview With Coco Lee (English) - Lee interviewed in Beijing soon after she won "I am a Singer"
Media coverage of the death of Lee
External links
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1975 births
2023 deaths
2023 suicides
550 Music artists
Actresses from the San Francisco Bay Area
Dancers from California
Record producers from California
Cantopop singers
English-language singers from Hong Kong
Epic Records artists
Hong Kong emigrants to the United States
20th-century Hong Kong women singers
Hong Kong film actresses
Hong Kong hip hop musicians
Hong Kong Mandopop singers
Hong Kong record producers
Hong Kong songwriters
Hong Kong television actresses
Hong Kong mezzo-sopranos
Musicians from the San Francisco Bay Area
New Talent Singing Awards contestants
Sony BMG artists
Hong Kong Buddhists
University of California, Irvine alumni
Warner Music Group artists
Mezzo-sopranos
Songwriters from California
Suicides in Hong Kong
Female suicides