Privy's Teddy Zee spent some time chatting with one of our members, Sara Sohn, after she sang the National Anthem at the Dodger game this past week...
Sara Mibo Sohn -- singer, TV host, philanthropist. Check, check, and check. Born in Spain to Korean missionary parents, Sara is a woman of three languages and even more talents. Privy got to hear straight from Sara about her unique background, her faith and philanthropy, and her stint in Korean girl group S. Blush, whose debut single, "It's My Life," reached #2 on the U.S. Billboard charts in the Hot Dance Club Play category in 2007.
I was born in Madrid, Spain and moved to Guatemala City when I was seven years old. The transition had its awkward moments; I would say "que coche tan lindo," which means "what a beautiful car" in Spain but in Guatemala means "cute pig." After graduating from UCLA I lived in Seoul for three years, and I've lived in Los Angeles for six years since then. I really love traveling! Recently, I went to Haiti, and last year I visited Petra, Cairo, Agra, and Tokyo. My fav so far are the pink-stone mountains in Petra!
On Facebook, I belong to the Guatemala network; it really is my hometown...but home is where the heart is, and right now it's in LA. I love LA because when I feel homesick, I can bust out my Spanish with random Latinos on the street and it's all good. Plus at El Taurino I get free guacamole for it.
Remembering dreams is tricky. I think I do most of my dreaming in English, but I write my journal in Spanish. It's comforting and more personal - I've been doing it since middle school. I love languages and just picked up French this year for a trip to Haiti.
The truth is being part of a girl group can be glamorous but only if you are willing to sacrifice it all. Being a member of S. Blush was a learning experience - how clich é! LOL. Despite the hardships, the girls made it all worthwhile - we are still very close.
Faith is just one of the many elements that complete me. It isn't difficult to balance my faith as I pursue my goals in entertainment; on the contrary, my beliefs make me a more loving and open-minded person
For the past two years, I have been involved with Compassion International, a non-profit organization that provides one-on-one sponsorship to children in developing countries. I just went to Haiti with a group of 30 Compassion Band members, and we were shocked at the level of poverty. The food crisis has kids eating "clay cookies," and most women sit on the street begging or selling home trinkets. Haiti is heavily affected by HIV/AIDS, and I saw a family of nine living in a house the size of most laundry rooms in mid-size homes, with no clean water or electricity.
Currently, Compassion International is sponsoring about 64,000 kids in Haiti, providing education, skills, and hope. Compassion Band was formed by Korean actor Cha Im Pyo to raise awareness and funds for the organization. We perform mostly in Seoul throughout the year, and we just got back from an LA-DC tour.
I love love covering red carpet and doing one-on-one interviews because I get to meet people personally and have a good time with them. At the last red carpet I did, I met actor Aaron Yoo, and we had a very serious discussion about our favorite Mexican telenovela!
A couple of the hottest new clubs in LA are ECCO and My House. ECCO is a boutique night club with some eco-friendly features. It's basically a lounge with a small dance floor. I love the fun décor and great DJs at My House!
social entrepreneur...