CoCo Lee is dead. This was announced by her sisters on their social media accounts. The Chinese-American singer and actress died on Wednesday, July 5, in a Hong Kong hospital after attempting suicide. Lee was 48 years old.
It is with great sadness that we are here to share the devastating news: CoCo has been suffering from depression for a number of years, but her condition has deteriorated drastically in recent months. Although CoCo sought professional help and did her best to fight the depression, her inner demons got the better of her. On July 2, she attempted suicide at her home and was then hospitalized. Despite the hospital staff’s best efforts to rescue her and wake her from her coma, she finally passed away on July 5, 2023.
Born in 1975 in then-British Hong Kong, Lee, her mother and two sisters moved to San Francisco when she was nine years old. After graduating from high school, she returned to her native city and competed in various talent shows. Not long after, she got a record deal and released her pop songs in Hong Kong, Mainland China and other countries in Asia. Released in 1996, Coco Lee became the continent’s best-selling album of the year.
Since Lee not only sang in her mother tongue Mandarin and Cantonese, but also in English, she soon became known internationally. In 1998, she sang the song “Reflection” for Disney’s “Mulan” soundtrack. She also lent her voice to the protagonist Fa Mulan for the Mandarin Chinese version of the animated film.
She also rose to prominence after recording the song “A Love Before Time” for Ang Lee’s Oscar-winning martial arts film Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon. In fact, with her performance of the song at the 73rd Academy Awards in 2001, she became the first Chinese-US artist to perform at the gala. CoCo Lee has been married to Canadian entrepreneur Bruce Rockowitz since 2011.
Despite her numerous successes and a seemingly fulfilling personal life, the singer has struggled with depression. Her sisters confirmed that Lee’s condition had worsened in recent months, although she sought professional help. On Sunday, July 2, she is said to have attempted suicide. After she was found unconscious, relatives took her to a hospital. Doctors could no longer help her, and so the singer passed away just three days later.