Tae Jin Ah, ”Farewell, eternal rival”... A tearful tribute to the late Song Dae Kwang

Singer Tae Jin Ah said a sorrowful farewell to her eternal rival and the late Song Dae Kwang whom she adored like an older brother. On the 9th, at the Seoul National University Hospital funeral hall in Jongno-gu, Seoul,
The funeral of the late Song Dae-kwang was held. In attendance were the family of the deceased, Tae Jin Ah, Lee Ja-yeon, Kim Gwang-jin, Bae Il-ho, Sol Un-do, Kim Chang-ryul, Kang Jin,
Many fellow and junior members of the entertainment industry, including Park Sang-cheol, Kim Soo-chan, Yang Ji Won, and actor Kim Sung-hwan, attended the funeral to see the deceased off.
The ceremony was conducted by singer Yeom Jung-hoon, chairman of the association, and the eulogy was delivered by Lee Ja-yeon, president of the Korea Singers Association, with eulogies read by Tae Jin Ah and Kang Jin.
Tae Jin Ah said with a haggard face, “I thought about what to say, but… My brother went to America in 1980.
He went to Washington, D.C., and the following year, in 1981, I also went to the United States. My brother lived in Washington, D.C., and I lived in New York, but he came to New York and opened an Italian restaurant.
"I was really jealous and proud. I thought, 'Oh, maybe one day I'll open a restaurant like you.' You've always been my role model," he said.
"My brother told me, 'If you follow me, everything will go well for you. You understand? Follow me.' So I followed him. After I heard the bad news, I couldn't eat anything for three days. I was drinking a lot.
As I filled my stomach, I thought to myself, "If my brother goes to heaven, I won't have any fun appearing on TV anymore," I said sadly. "It was fun appearing on TV with my brother. That's how I made money.
But now that Dae Kwang is gone, I don't know what to do," he said, slumping his shoulders. "As you all know, my wife has dementia. Even though she has dementia, she still says, 'Dae Kwang has passed away.'
I said, "I've lost my memory," and she said, "What? Why? Why?" I hugged my wife and cried. My wife, who no longer remembers many things, remembered my brother. Let's go out.
When I was about to go, my wife asked me, "Where are you going?" I replied, "It's the day my brother's funeral is being held," and she said, "Have a nice trip," which surprised me again. I thought, "She remembered well."
Tae Jin Ah also shared an episode with his wife before she came to the funeral hall, saying, "My brother and I have performed overseas many times. We have made many records. We filled a big venue with just the two of us.
We were so satisfied that we even did an encore performance afterwards," he said. "We even exchanged New Year's greetings last January. It hasn't even been a month since then. My brother said to me, 'Let's be kind to each other.
That's going to be tough,' and when I said to him, 'Brother, let's do a show for the first time in a while, on May 8th,' he said, 'Okay, let's do it,'" I was at a loss.
She continued, "The day before he passed away, I was at work with my coworkers looking at the order of the songs I had played with my brother and deciding on the set list.
But the next morning, I heard the news that he had passed away. To be honest, I still can't believe it. No matter how much I think about what to say to him, all I can say is that he must rest in peace in heaven.
Please take care of me. And make a place for me to go next to you. I will come to you one day." Tae Jin Ah added, "Taegwang hyung! Farewell! You will always be my hyung.
He greeted him, saying, "We're rivals," and waved in front of the portrait of his father.