Who Is This Woman and, More Importantly, Who Is Her Husband?

Ri Sol-ju
@MALUSE (69388)
Germany
May 4, 2020 1:58pm CST
You may see this headline as sexist. Why should a woman be defined through her husband? Can't she be seen as an independent entity who is, firstly, the woman who she is with a name of her own and, secondly, married and the wife of someone? I agree with you on principle. Yes, of course, this is the way it should be. But no rule without exception. The name of this woman is Ri Sol-ju. Does this ring a bell? I bet it doesn't. Now, wake up and harken: Her husband is North Korean Supreme Leader Kim Jong-un. Hah! Does this name ring a bell? I bet it does! Not only 'a' bell but several, a whole glockenspiel so-to-speak. Furthermore, I bet you didn't even know that he was married. The couple is believed to have three children whose gender is not known to the public, though. She has accompanied her husband on travels abroad, but besides that not much else is known about her. The First Lady of North Korea was born c. 1985-90 (no exact date is known). "Ri's family is reportedly from the political elite; her mother is the head of a gynecology ward and her father is a professor. She is said to have graduated from Geumsung 2 Middle School in Pyongyang and studied abroad in China majoring in vocal music." (WIKIPEDIA). I'm not an expert when it comes to music. I'm more for the visual arts. Yet, I must confess that I think she has a beautiful voice. "In September 2012, Kenji Fujimoto, the former personal sushi chef of Kim Jong-il, said he met Ri on a recent trip to North Korea. He described her as "just so charming... I cannot describe her voice, it's so soft..." (ibidem) I'm adding a video of one of her performances so that you can render your own judgement (the singing lasts a bit more than two minutes). Look at the English translation of the lyrics. The topic of the song is definitely different from what is sung in other countries!
9 people like this
9 responses
• Bucharest, Romania
9 May 20
She does have a good voice. And you were right, I never heard of her. As for the idea that women should not be defined only through their man, that is definitely true. As a society we should move on from our ancient beliefs to more progressive and modern ones.
1 person likes this
• Bucharest, Romania
9 May 20
@MALUSE Sorry. I had some full 2019 and 2020 years so far. And I have been using certain social media sites too much in my spare time which was very few anyways. I admit I kinda chose chatting elsewhere than here but you know that I will never forget or leave this site like forever.
@MALUSE (69388)
• Germany
9 May 20
@Cristi_Ichim No need to apologise! There are certainly things in life which are more important than myLot. But it's nice to have another European in the community which is dominated by US Americans and Asians.
1 person likes this
@MALUSE (69388)
• Germany
9 May 20
Hello and welcome back! Where and why were you hiding for so long?
1 person likes this
@xFiacre (12559)
• Ireland
4 May 20
@maluse I was going to guess his sister rather than his wife so I wasn't too far wrong. It sounds like a Eurovision entry! She does have a good voice, but it could be put to better use I think.
1 person likes this
@MALUSE (69388)
• Germany
4 May 20
What would that 'better use' be? Songs from operas instead of songs praising the soldiers of North Korea?
@xFiacre (12559)
• Ireland
4 May 20
@MALUSE I’d like to hear her singing Verdi.
@MALUSE (69388)
• Germany
4 May 20
@xFiacre I see. You may want to get into contact with the North Korean embassy and ask how you can propose this to her.
1 person likes this
@marlina (154163)
• Canada
4 May 20
I thought that it was his sister.
@MALUSE (69388)
• Germany
4 May 20
@xFiacre @marlina Why would I mention the husband of Kim Jong-un's sister?
@DianneN (247204)
• United States
6 May 20
Nice voice. Boring communist song. I never heard of her.
1 person likes this
@MALUSE (69388)
• Germany
7 May 20
I guess that noone outside North Korea and China has heard of her. All communist songs are boring.
1 person likes this
@DianneN (247204)
• United States
7 May 20
@MALUSE Exactly! No interest in her or communism.
@thelme55 (76664)
• Germany
5 May 20
I didn't know her or heard about her until you mentioned her husband. She is beautiful and has a pleasant voice. Thanks for sharing.
@MALUSE (69388)
• Germany
6 May 20
You're welcome. I thought my post would attract more readers, but, unfortuantely, this is not the case. All readers must be surprised because nobody outside Korea seems to know about her.
1 person likes this
@thelme55 (76664)
• Germany
6 May 20
@MALUSE I thought it would attract readers, too. Yes, I was indeed surprised. Enjoy your day.
@LindaOHio (161373)
• United States
4 May 20
Her voice was quite a surprise as was the tone of the song...soldiers and the motherland!
1 person likes this
@MALUSE (69388)
• Germany
4 May 20
Well, these are the topics hardcore communists sing about. :-)
1 person likes this
@LindaOHio (161373)
• United States
4 May 20
@MALUSE Absolutely!
• Midland, Michigan
9 May 20
She's beautiful. I'm not surprised that her existence is kept silent. Many Asian women have to walk behind their husbands even in America and one customer kept slapping his wife until a cashier told him to stop. I rarely see them her and more unless they come in early.
@JudyEv (328822)
• Rockingham, Australia
5 May 20
I knew he was married but thought it happened quite recently. She is certainly lovely.
@NJChicaa (116642)
• United States
4 May 20
Never heard of her
@MALUSE (69388)
• Germany
4 May 20
I think that nobody on this site has heard of her.
1 person likes this