'Betrayed': Angela Chang opens up on 2009 fallout with mum

HANGZHOU - Taiwanese singer Angela Chang has opened up in public for the first time about her fallout with her mother, describing the betrayal she felt then.

In 2009, Chang's parents accused her in a magazine interview of not taking care of them, but she countered the claim, saying that her mother had made off with her savings of NT$100 million (S$4.7 million).

On Chinese variety show Ace Vs Ace on Friday evening (April 15), Chang, 40, made revelations she said had never been shared on any other platform.

She said that her family was not well-to-do, and she was very happy when she entered the entertainment industry as she was able to buy them a house.

She rose to prominence after starring in the idol dramas My MVP Valentine (2002) and At The Dolphin Bay (2003), and released her debut studio album Over The Rainbow in 2004.

"I suffered some health issues later, especially with my heart," said Chang, who was diagnosed with a heart condition called mitral valve prolapse in Canada in 2008. "My mum said they had no money when I asked for help to pay for the treatment."

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This was impossible, she added, as her finances were managed by her mother and she at most spent on daily expenses.

Later, when she returned to Taipei, she recalled that she saw her house being sealed up as it was about to be seized. "Can you imagine how shocked I was?"

When she went to the payment centre, a female employee showed her a stack of certificates and told her that all her assets were under her mother's name and that she owned nothing.

She said on the show that she felt betrayed by her family, but fortunately her younger sister returned from overseas to help her manage her affairs.

Chang's image was affected and her career in Taiwan nosedived after the incident. She went to China later and found a second wind with a rendition of the song A Diao after taking part in singing reality show Singer 2018.

She said she has been asked many times why her relationship with her mother deteriorated so badly, but she has no answers.

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She added that at the time, she wondered why this had happened to her, but her godsister told her: "When one door closes, another opens."

She thanked her younger sister and godsister for standing by her, saying that she would have been sleeping by the roadside if not for them.

This article was first published in The Straits Times. Permission required for reproduction.