“That’s right, I have a dream. I believe in that dream so just watch me,” sings the 58-year-old legendary singer, professional bodybuilder, and a mother of one, Insooni, in her popular song “Goose’s Dream.” Often quoted as Korea’s Madonna, Insooni is one of the most influential figures in the Korean music industry of her generation.
「沒錯，我有一個夢想，我相信我的夢想」，58歲的Insooni這樣唱道。這幾句歌詞出自她的著名曲目〈鵝之夢〉。Insooni不僅是一位充滿傳奇色彩的歌手，還是一位專業的健美人士、一個孩子的母親。Insooni在她成名的那個時代，對韓國音樂產業有著舉足輕重的影響，被譽為「韓國的麥當娜」。
As a biracial female singer
Born to an African-American father and a Korean mother in 1957, Insooni faced racial and gender discrimination during her upbringing. When she finally made her debut as a singer, she had to hide her afro with a hood to comply with the ban on curly hair appearing on stage. However, she never blamed her color on the hardships she faced. “I have always thought that there are no flowers that bloom without having to go through a storm. This is my fate that I was given with, and I’m going to make my way through it,” says Insooni, on her difficulties as a woman of color. Drawing from her struggles in the past, Insooni has been a sponsor of Pearl S. Buck Foundation for more than 20 years to support multiracial children, as well as operating an alternative school, Hae Mil School, where mix-raced children attend.
Insooni於1957年出生，父親是非裔美國人，母親是韓國人。在成長過程中，Insooni受到了來自種族和性別的雙重歧視。當她終於作為歌手出道時，她不得不用頭巾罩住自己那一頭象徵著黑人血統的曲髮，因為曲髮的人被禁止登上舞台。然而，她從來不抱怨血統給自己帶來的麻煩。Insooni如此回應她因血統和性別而面對的困境：「我一直堅信只有經歷過風雨的花朵才能開得更絢爛。命運如此，我一定要盡自己努力去改變它。」由於自己早年受過血統的困擾，Insooni後來一直都是賽珍珠基金會的贊助人，超過20年致力於幫助混血兒童；同時還建立了一所非傳統學校──Hae Mil School，專門接收混血孩子。
Explore your opportunities
Marking her 38th anniversary this year as a singer since her debut as a member of Hee Sisters in 1978, Insooni is one of the few veteran singers that still appears on stage and holds regular solo concerts, in such an industry where young idol stars are dominating the scene. Starting off her career as a trot singer, she jumped out of her comfort zone to try different genres of music, including but not limited to soul, jazz, dance and pop.
自1978年作為Hee Sisters組合的一員出道後，今年是Insooni出道38年紀念。像她這樣在出道這麼多年後還經常登台，定期舉辦個人演唱會的歌手為數不多，尤其是在年輕偶像明星當道的韓國音樂界。Insooni以 Trot歌手這個身份出道（按：Trot是韓國80年代一種流行音樂，特色是拍子穩定，以七五音節寫成），後來勇於嘗試更多新的東西，挑戰不同類型的歌曲，比如：騷靈樂、爵士、舞曲以及流行樂。
Last year, she hit the headlines with a rather interesting topic: bodybuilding. “Due to MERS, my concerts got cancelled one by one. I was sitting on the couch, watching TV, and then I had an epiphany that made me think I shouldn’t live like this. That’s why I started working out to test my limits,” says Insooni, on her motives. After three months of strenuous training and following a strict diet, she proudly strutted down the stage flaunting her toned body as the oldest participant at 2015 NABBA/WFF Korea Championship, at the age of 58. Although she failed to make the top 10 category, she was crowned with second place in the performance category, taking her music career to her advantage by dancing to hip hop music.
去年，她因為另外一件很有趣的事上了頭條：健美。對於為什麼去健美，Insooni是這樣回答的：「去年因為MERS（中東呼吸綜合徵）的爆發，我的演唱會都被迫取消。我因此成天窩在家裡的沙發上看電視。後來我意識到不能這樣放縱下去，因此我開始（健美）挑戰自己」。經過三個月高強度的訓練和嚴格的飲食控制後，58歲的她在2015年韓國健美比賽NABBA/WFF Korea Championship上以最年長參賽者的身份昂首闊步走在舞台上，秀出健美的好身材。儘管沒能打入最終比賽的前十，她依舊憑藉一段hip hop舞蹈獲得了表演類第二名的獎項。
As a Loving Mother
Although she might be one indomitable woman in her professional career, she becomes a gentle mother when it comes to her daughter. When asked for the most memorable moment of her life, she picked having her daughter Jasmine without hesitation. “It was a moment when my life completely switched from being a woman to being a mother. It felt as if the world was revolving around her,” says Insooni on her 22-year-old daughter Jasmine Park, who is a soon-to-be Stanford University graduate.
雖然在事業上作風頑強，在轉換角色為媽媽後，她對女兒卻有著無限的溫柔。當別人問她你生命中最難忘的時刻是什麼，她說就是當她毫不猶豫地決定生下女兒Jasmine的時候。「在那個時刻，我的人生角色從一個女人變成一個母親，似乎全世界從此都是圍繞著女兒而運轉」。Insooni的女兒Jasmine Park現在已經22歲了，很快將從斯坦福大學畢業。
Insooni was also not afraid of disclosing the fact that she had given birth to her daughter outside Korea to grant her a U.S. citizenship, knowing the difficulties of living in Korea as a woman of color. “Fortunately, Jasmine was born with a lighter skin color than mine, along with more Asian facial features, so now she holds a Korean passport. I gained confidence in the fact that I am Korean after giving birth to her. I am proud to be Korean,” says Insooni, on her national identity.
她還坦誠地說在美國生女兒就是為了讓女兒有美國身份，她非常清楚作為一個混血女孩在韓國生活的不易。對於國籍，她還說：「幸運地是，Jasmine的膚色不如我這麼深，面部的亞裔特徵較多，所以現在她也有韓國護照。我在生完她後更覺得我是一個韓國人，我因自己是韓國人而感動自豪」。
On her next personal goal, Insooni aims to hike along Baekdudaegan, which is a 690-kilometer mountain range that runs through most of the length of the Korean peninsula. As Insooni keeps making strides, there seems to be nothing that’s going to stop her from throwing herself into challenges.
Insooni的下一個目標是去白頭大幹山脈徒步。這座山脈海拔690千米，跨越幾乎整個朝鮮半島。不過照著Insooni現在這種大步前進的氣勢，應該沒有什麼可以阻擋她不斷挑戰自己的決心。
Insooni – 鵝之夢
