Coco Lee Dies: ‘Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon’ & ‘Mulan’ Singer Was 48

Liz Shackleton
·2 min read
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Hong Kong singer-songwriter Coco Lee died Wednesday after trying to take her own life at the weekend, according to a Facebook post by her sisters.

Lee sang the Mandarin version of the theme song “Reflection” from 1998 Disney movie Mulan, and also became the first Chinese American to perform at the Oscars, singing the Best Original Song-nominated “A Love Before Time” from Ang Lee’s Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon.

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Lee’s sisters, Carol and Nancy, said she had been in a coma since making the suicide attempt over the weekend. “With great sadness, we are here to break the most devastating news: Coco had been suffering from depression for a few years but her condition deteriorated drastically over the last few months,” the Facebook post stated.

“Although, Coco sought professional help and did her best to fight depression, sadly that demon inside of her took the better of her,” they continued. The sisters said she had attempted suicide at home July 2 and had been rushed to hospital, where she had remained in a coma until her death.

Lee was born in Hong Kong in 1975, then moved to the U.S. where she attended middle school and high school, before embarking on a successful career in Asia as a pop singer. Initially a Mando-pop singer, she also released albums in Cantonese and English over her 30-year career.

She was the first Chinese singer to be signed by Sony Music globally and voiced the heroine Fa Mulan in the Mandarin version of Disney’s Mulan, on which she also sang the theme.

In 2001, Lee sang “A Love Before Time,” the end-credit title song of Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon, which picked up an Oscar nomination for Best Music, Original Song. She performed the song, which was composed by Jorge Callandelli and Tan Dun with lyrics by James Schamus, at the ceremony.

Lee also acted in three films – Stanley Kwan’s No Tobacco (2002), Lee Xin’s Master of Everything (2004) and He Jiong’s Forever Young (2015) – and appeared regularly as a judge on mainland Chinese talent shows including Chinese Idol and Come Sing With Me.

In 2011, Lee married Canadian businessman Bruce Rockowitz, the former CEO of supply chain company Li & Fung, and had two stepdaughters from the marriage.

If you or anyone you know is having thoughts of suicide, please call the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline by dialing 988 or go to SpeakingOfSuicide.com/resources.

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