"Empress Han" - The Story of Mila Konomos

Speak Out World: Arts, Activism & More!

Mila Konomos is a wife, mother, artist, poet and activist. She is also an transracial and international adoptee. Mila was adopted as a baby in South Korea by a military family and brought to the United States. As she grew and began school, she quickly realized that she was not like the other children.

Mila gives us unique insight into what it feels like to be an international, transracial adoptee. She shares her struggle of feeling like she didn’t fit in, and her extreme loss of identity. Even though her parents loved her they could not understand or help her work through this pain. She turned to writing poetry as a way of trying to make sense of what she was feeling.

This is Mila’s story of coming to terms with being adopted, connecting with her Korean heritage and the search for her birth mother. Her latest project “Empress Han” is a testament to that journey. It is an experimental exploration where Mila adapts her poetry to music and vocals. Inspired by the traditional Korean art form of storytelling called Pansori, "Han" is a direct reference to the Korean cultural concept of han, which has been defined as "a traumatic loss of identity," both collectively and individually. It has also been described as an intense angst and longing due to unresolved injustice, pain, and suffering.

Mila expects to launch Empress Han early next year. To learn more about Mila, and to get updates on release dates visit: https://theempresshan.wixsite.com/empresshan

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