Chinese-American singer Coco Lee has died by suicide, her siblings Nancy and Carol confirmed on Instagram on Wednesday, July 5. She was 48. The Hong Kong-born singer and songwriter raised in San Francisco, who voiced the lead character in the Mandarin version of Disney's hit film Milan, had been suffering from depression for "a few years but her condition deteriorated drastically over the last few months", Lee’s sisters revealed. Sharing a video featuring photos of their times together since their childhood, the siblings wrote, "With great sadness, we are here 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. Although, CoCo sought professional help and did her best to fight depression, sadly that demon inside of her took the better of her. On 2 July, she committed suicide at home and was sent to the hospital. Despite the best efforts of the hospital team to rescue and treat her from her coma, she finally passed away on 5 July, 2023. (sic)"
Carol and Nancy also spoke about how the ongoing marks the 30th anniversary of CoCo’s career as a singer, while adding that she worked hard to rise up and create a name for herself on the international scene. They said, "2023 marks the 30th anniversary of CoCo’s singing career, in the past 29 years, she’s won countless international acclaims with top selling songs and has left audience w an astounding impression of her excellent live performances. CoCo is also known to have worked tirelessly to open up a new world for Chinese singers in the international music scene, and she went all out to shine for the Chinese. We are proud of her! As a family of CoCo, we are very grateful and honored to have such an excellent and outstanding sister. We are thankful to God for giving us such a kind angel. We know now she has gone to a happier place and no longer suffers from depression; we trust God has her best interest looked after! Now, our greatest responsibility is to take good care of our elderly mother. I hope everyone will pray for this poor old lady & allow us time & privacy in healing. (sic)"
Concluding their statement, Carol and Nancy extended their gratitude to the hospital staff for their dedication in taking care of Coco Lee, while also thanking all the people for their support throughout the years. They wrote, "Finally, we would like to thank the medical staff again for their dedication to care throughout the whole process. At the same time, we hope that everyone will not only miss CoCo, but also share her bright smile, treat people with sincerity, and convey kindness and love to everyone around us, and continue CoCo’s wish to let everyone around feel her love and happiness. Although CoCo stays in the world for not long a time, her rays of light will last forever! (sic)".
Coco Lee garnered international fame during the 2001 Oscars ceremony when she performed a song from the soundtrack of Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon. In 2011, she tied the knot with Bruce Rockowitz, a Canadian businessman and former chief executive of Hong Kong supply chain company Li & Fung, and had two stepdaughters from her marriage.
