Hyon Song-wol (; born 1977) is a North Korean singer, band leader, and politician. She is the leader of the

Moranbong Band The Moranbong Band (, lit. " Tree Peony Peak Band"), also known as the Moran Hill Orchestra, is a North Korean girl group. The original members were selected by the country's supreme leader Kim Jong-un. Performing interpretive styles of pop, ...

and of the

Samjiyon Orchestra The Samjiyon Band () is a North Korean classical music ensemble. The Samjiyon Band performs traditional European classical music, instrumental, percussion, and sung pieces, ranging from orchestral to solos. It has been said that calling the "band ...

. She was formerly a featured vocalist for the

Pochonbo Electronic Ensemble The Pochonbo Electronic Ensemble is an orchestra from North Korea. It is famous for its performances of revolutionary and folk songs. They have been reported to be one of the country's most popular groups.

in the early 2000s, a pop group which found fame in

North Korea North Korea, officially the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK), is a country in East Asia. It constitutes the northern half of the Korean Peninsula and shares borders with China and Russia to the north, at the Yalu (Amnok) and T ...

in the late 1980s and 1990s. She has been a member in the

Central Committee of the Workers' Party of Korea The Central Committee of the Workers' Party of Korea ( ko, 조선로동당 중앙위원회) is the highest party body between national meetings of the Workers' Party of Korea (WPK), the ruling party of North Korea. According to WPK rules, the ...

since 2017.

Early career

Hyon was a vocalist for the

. Her biggest hit was the song "A Girl on a Steed", a 2005 song extolling the virtues of a

Stakhanovite The term Stakhanovite () originated in the Soviet Union and referred to Workforce, workers who modeled themselves after Alexey Stakhanov. These workers took pride in their ability to produce more than was required, by working harder and more effic ...

textile factory worker. The accompanying music video stars Hyon in the role of "the heroine, dashing around a sparkling factory with a beatific smile, distributing bobbins and collecting swatches of cloth at top speed." The lyrics include:

Our factory comrades say in jest, Why, they tell me I am a virgin on a stallion, After a full day's work I still have energy left... They say I am a virgin on a stallion, Mounting a stallion my Dear Leader gave me. All my life I will live to uphold his name!

Hyon's other best known songs include, "Footsteps of Soldiers", "I Love Pyongyang", "She is a Discharged Soldier" and "We are Troops of the Party".

Marriage and rumors of involvement with Kim Jong-un

Hyon disappeared from public view in 2006 when, according to reports in the

Japanese media The mass media in Japan include numerous television and radio networks as well as newspapers and magazines in Japan. For the most part, television networks were established based on capital investments by existing radio networks. Variety shows, ...

, she married a North Korean army officer with whom she had a child. She was reported to have known Kim Jong-un, the youngest son of former North Korean leader Kim Jong-il, since they were both teenagers.

South Korean government The Government of South Korea is the union government of the Republic of Korea, created by the Constitution of South Korea as the executive, legislative and judicial authority of the republic. The president acts as the head of state and is the ...

sources told the media that Hyon and Kim Jong-un had been romantically involved in the early 2000s after he returned to North Korea from his studies at a public school in Switzerland. His father reportedly disapproved of the relationship and the younger Kim and Hyon broke it off. Following Kim Jong-il's death in December 2011, Kim Jong-un was thought to have resumed the relationship. According to South Korean intelligence sources, "rumors about the two having an affair have been circulating among Pyongyang's top elite". In early July 2012, public interest in Kim Jong-Un's personal life increased when Korean Central Television, North Korea's state-run media station, released footage of Kim sitting next to a then-unidentified woman who frequently appeared with him in public events. South Korean intelligence officials initially identified the woman as Hyon. However, on 25 July 2012, North Korean media announced that the woman was

Ri Sol-ju Ri Sol-ju (; born 1985–1989) is the current First Lady of North Korea as the wife of Supreme Leader Kim Jong-un. Little is known about her from official North Korean sources, but outside sources have speculated more about her background. ...

Execution rumor

On 29 August 2013, ''

The Chosun Ilbo ''The Chosun Ilbo'' (, ) is a daily newspaper in South Korea and the oldest daily newspaper in the country. With a daily circulation of more than 1,800,000, the ''Chosun Ilbo'' has been audited annually since the Audit Bureau of Circulations w ...

'' reported that Hyon had been

executed Capital punishment, also known as the death penalty, is the state-sanctioned practice of deliberately killing a person as a punishment for an actual or supposed crime, usually following an authorized, rule-governed process to conclude that t ...

by firing squad on the orders of Kim Jong-un along with eleven other performers, including violinist

Mun Kyong-jin Mun Kyong-jin (문경진; born 1981) is a possibly deceased North Korean violinist who was formerly the head of the Unhasu Orchestra. He was reported to have been executed in August 2013 along with the singer Hyon Song-wol and others. However, i ...

, both of whom had allegedly made illegal

pornographic video Pornographic films (pornos), erotic films, sex films, and 18+ films are films that present sexually explicit subject matter in order to arouse and satisfy the viewer. Pornographic films present sexual fantasies and usually include erotica ...

s. According to a source quoted by the newspaper, "They were executed with machine guns while the key members of the

Unhasu Orchestra The Unhasu (Milky Way) Orchestra () was a musical group based in Pyongyang, North Korea. It performs primarily with Western instruments, sometimes performing alongside traditional Korean soloists. The orchestra has a concert hall, the ''Unhasu T ...

, the

Wangjaesan Light Music Band The Wangjaesan Light Music Band () is a light music (''kyŏngŭmak'') group in North Korea. It is one of two (with Pochonbo Electronic Ensemble) popular music groups that were established by North Korea in the 1980s, both named after places where ...

and the

as well as the families of the victims looked on". Pyongyang's state news agency KCNA denied claims that the singer was executed, and a Japanese news magazine reported that she was seen subsequently. On 16 May 2014, Hyon appeared on North Korean television participating in the National Convention of Artists, disproving the rumors.

Later career

Hyon is the leader of the

and of the

. In December 2015, Hyon travelled to Beijing to perform with the Moranbong Band in a series of private concerts. In 2017, she was appointed to the

. She participated in talks with South Korea to prepare for North Korea's participation in the 2018 Pyeongchang Winter Olympics. During the Games, she organized concerts by North Korean performers. Hyon's visibility in North Korean politics increased in 2020, when she made multiple appearances, including her inspection of typhoon-ravaged areas with Kim Jong-Un, in their country. She was re-elected to the Central Committee at the 8th Congress of the WPK.

Notes

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Hyon, Song-wol Living people North Korean women singers Place of birth missing (living people) 21st-century North Korean women politicians 21st-century North Korean politicians 1977 births Korean-language singers 21st-century North Korean women Members of the 8th Central Committee of the Workers' Party of Korea 21st-century women singers