Musicians remember late singer-composer Kim Min-ki

“I couldn’t believe it even though I was getting a lot of phone calls in the morning, but then it really hit me that I had no one to ask anymore.”

Singer Park Hak-gi expressed his disbelief and sorrow at Kim Min-ki's funeral on Sunday afternoon “I had no idea he would leave us this suddenly. I thought he had more time,” Park said. “I’ve been contacting him once a week to ask how he’s doing. What should I do now?” He had been updating the public on Kim's deteriorating health.

Park Ki-young of the band Dongmulwon arrived at the funeral, visibly distressed. “It’s similar to when my parents passed away,” he said. “You know it might happen someday, but when it does.” Folk singer-songwriter Kwon Jin-won, overwhelmed with emotion, said, “I didn’t know he would be leaving this year,” and buried her face in a handkerchief. Mourners continued to gather at Kim Min-ki's funeral at Seoul National University Hospital in Jongno-gu, Seoul.

Condolences also poured in through social media. Singer Lee Juck shared a photo taken with the deceased and wrote, “Brother, I believe you will be at peace in heaven, having a glass of beer. My hero, thank you.” Kim Gwang-jin of the duo The Classic wrote, “We are grateful for your music, which guided us through many aspects of our college days.” Lee Cheong-yeol, the owner of Haklim Cafe in Daehakro, where Kim loved to visit, expressed his regret, saying, “When I saw him at his home in Ilsan a month ago, he went for a walk with his sons and his complexion was fine.”

“History will remember you as an eternal young man with infinite affection for art and the world," President Yoon Suk Yeol said on Facebook. "He made the world brighter with his ‘pure passion’ to see the obvious in a new way.”

The funeral is held without any condolence money or formal arrangements. “Everyone must have helped Mr. Kim a lot by cheering him on and raising a lot of spare money on his trip to the other side,” Hakchon said. Various donations made to the theater, which faced financial difficulties, seem to be ‘receipts of condolence money in advance.’


사지원 4g1@donga.com