Queenzy Cheng (left) suffered a brain aneurysm while Ko Chen-syun’s cause of death was listed as “cardiovascular disease”.
PHOTOS: QUEENZYCHENG/INSTAGRAM, KO CHEN-SYUN/FACEBOOK
KUALA LUMPUR/YILAN – Malaysian singer Queenzy Cheng, 37, and Taiwanese singer Ko Chen-syun, 20, died suddenly earlier this week in separate incidents.
The news of Cheng’s death on Nov 28 was announced in a statement on her social media pages the same day.
According to a report by Malaysian newspaper China Press, Cheng – a member of Malaysian girl group M-Girls – suffered a brain aneurysm while filming in Damansara, Selangor.
Malaysian artiste Chai Zi, who was present at the time of Cheng’s passing, said Cheng was filming for the social media channel Squad Sekawan when she collapsed.
“We arrived at Damansara around 8am and started filming at 8.30am after having breakfast. She seemed perfectly fine at the time,” he told China Press.
He said that while preparing to film the second episode at around 10.30am, Cheng said she felt dizzy and nauseated, and that her head hurt.
Chai Zi – who co-founded Squad Sekawan with Cheng and a few other friends – also told China Press that the staff on set called for an ambulance after Cheng vomited.
At the time, the singer was still conscious and gave the staff the passcode to her mobile phone so they could contact her boyfriend for her medical records.
“The staff with first aid knowledge attended to her. Queenzy was still breathing when she lost consciousness,” Chai Zi said. “However, her heart was beating very fast. Soon after, her lips, hands and feet turned purple.”
The ambulance reportedly arrived within five minutes, but despite efforts to resuscitate her, Cheng died.
The memorial service for Cheng will take place from Nov 29 to Dec 1, with a funeral service set for Dec 2.
Cheng is best known in Malaysia for her renditions of Chinese New Year songs. She joined M-Girls in 2000 alongside Angeline Khoo, Crystal Ong and Cass Chin.
The group debuted in 2001 and have been on hiatus since 2017.
Meanwhile, in Taiwan, Ko’s death on Nov 27 was announced by his mother on his Facebook page the following day.
The singer rose to fame in the Taiwanese reality singing show Top Singers (2010 to present).
According to Taiwanese media, he was found lying motionless in the early hours of Nov 27 in the employees’ toilet of the Yilan hotel where he was working.
It is not known what his job was at the hotel.
In a statement, the hotel said he reported for work as usual on Nov 26, and worked until 10pm that day. He then went to the employees’ cafe for supper before going to the staff locker room at 10.31pm.
When he did not return home, his family called the police in the small hours of Nov 27. Together with the police, they arrived at the hotel at around 3.30am, and found him motionless in a toilet in the staff locker room.
He was sent to hospital and was pronounced dead at 4.20am on Nov 27.
Ko’s mother told the Taiwanese media that the autopsy listed his cause of death as “cardiovascular disease”. THE STAR/ASIA NEWS NETWORK
