Sumi Jo called every day and sang a song… Dementia mother dies

Soprano Jo Su-mi (59)’s mother, Kim Mal-soon, passed away on the morning of the 8th. 85 years old.

The deceased dreamed of becoming a singer when he was young, but failed to achieve it. Instead, he discovered the talent of his daughter and raised her into a world-class soprano. Jo Sumi used to express her deep affection for such a mother. When releasing the album ‘Mother’ dedicated to my mother in 2019, I said, “My mother is the one who made me who I am today, and I miss her the most.” In an interview with the JoongAng Ilbo in 2003, he said, “When I was in school, I dreamed of becoming a vocalist, but I gave up my dream when I failed the high school choir audition. I am happy that I made that dream come true.” Sumi Jo held a performance ‘My Mother’ at the Seoul Arts Center on May 8, this year on Mother’s Day.

Born in Changwon, Gyeongsangnam-do, the deceased graduated from Masan Girls’ High School and was a music lover. Jo Young-joon, the younger brother of Jo Sumi, the CEO of SMI Entertainment, remembered that “the opera Ariana songs were always playing at home.” He added, “He made me learn not only music but also many other fields and judged what I was good at. My sister did everything she asked me to, but my life went toward singing.”

She was a strict mother in her daughter’s education. Jo Sumi said, “When I was young, I had a lot of resentment for locking the door to practice the piano for 8 hours a day.” After her husband passed away in Korea in 2006, the deceased told her daughter, who was performing in Paris, France, “to finish the stage to the end.” At that time, Sumi Jo sang on stage announcing the news of her father’s death to the audience. The deceased used to beg Jo Sumi, “Don’t get married and become a world-class singer.” In 2003, she received the ‘Artist’s Long Mother Award’ by the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism.

The deceased lost his memory from Alzheimer’s 10 years ago. Sumi Jo didn’t even recognize me. CEO Jo Young-joon said, “My sister called my mother almost every day and sang me a song.

Mortuary Room 19, Funeral Home of Samsung Seoul Hospital No condolences due to COVID-19.

By Kim Ho-jeong, staff reporter wisehj@joongang.co.kr