Cho Young-nam
Overview
Cho Young-nam (趙英男, born February 25, 1945 – ) is a South Korean singer, television personality, painter, and writer. He began his career performing on U.S. 8th Army stages and in the popular music scene during the 1960s and 1970s, and left behind numerous hit songs including "Delilah" (딜라일라), "Hwagaejangteo" (화개장터), and "Life of a Water Mill" (물레방아 인생). With his distinctive sly manner of speech and wit, he was also a long-running host and regular panelist on television variety programs. In the late 2010s, he became the focus of intense public attention amid a prolonged legal battle over the so-called "artwork proxy-purchase (daejak) allegations."
Key Details
Birth and Upbringing
He is known to have been born in Seoul in 1945. It is said that from childhood he had a strong interest in both painting and music, and he nurtured a dream of majoring in fine art and working as a painter. He studied art during his university years and would go on to have the unusual career of pursuing painting alongside his music activities. It is known that his start as a singer came in the late 1960s, when he began singing on U.S. 8th Army stages.
Musical Career
"Delilah," released in the early 1970s, won great popularity and brought him public recognition. He subsequently released a string of songs such as "Life of a Water Mill," "You're Too Much" (너무합니다), "What Is Love" (사랑이 무엇이관데), and "Swallow" (제비), displaying a broad musical style that moved freely between folk, trot, and popular music. In particular, "Hwagaejangteo," released in the late 1980s, was a song about the Hwagae Market at the foot of Mount Jiri and received great love, and it has since been remade and rediscovered across multiple generations. He was evaluated not only for his singing ability but also for his witty hosting and storytelling on stage, earning him the description of a "singing storyteller."
Broadcasting and Entertainment Career
Cho stood out in television entertainment no less than in music. From the 1990s onward, he worked as a host and regular cast member on numerous terrestrial variety programs, building a persona through his characteristic "sly acting" and blunt, direct way of speaking. His wit that spanned generations and his self-deprecating humor were among the representative codes of variety television at the time, and he influenced younger broadcasters as well. In his later years, he expanded his range of activities to radio, lectures, and YouTube.
Artwork Proxy Purchase (Daejak) Controversy
Around 2016, allegations arose that Cho had acquaintances purchase artworks and then resold them to collect commissions — the so-called "proxy purchase" or "daejak" allegations — sparking a major social controversy. In early 2017, prosecutors indicted him on fraud charges, and the trial was overturned several times, including a first-instance ruling in which some charges were found guilty. It is known that, after an appellate trial and a remand by the Supreme Court, he was ultimately confirmed not guilty. The case triggered social debate over art transaction practices and the issue of trust in entertainers, and Cho himself had to suspend his broadcasting activities for a time.
Work as a Painter and Writer
Cho was not only a singer and television personality but also steadily pursued painting, holding solo exhibitions as a painter. He also published several books and essays, leaving behind his views on life and art in writing. As an art lover and collector, he also had deep ties to the art world.
Recent Developments
After the legal disputes were settled, Cho appeared to communicate with the public mainly through YouTube channels and internet media rather than traditional broadcasting. In 2024–2025, as an elderly veteran singer around the age of eighty, he continued retrospective interviews, performances, and music releases, and a trend emerged of reevaluating him as a "living witness to the history of popular music." At the same time, as his past hits spread once again through cross-generational remakes and short-form content, attempts to reassess his musical legacy apart from the controversy have also increased. In the broadcasting world, he is frequently mentioned in discourse concerning the continued activity of elderly entertainers.
Related Topics
- [[Delilah]]
- [[Hwagaejangteo]]
- [[Popular Music of South Korea]]
- [[Artwork Proxy Purchase Controversy]]
- [[Lee Kyung-kyu]]