She entered the Pyongyang Movie College in 1955, but left in 1957 to give birth to a daughter.

She became a popular actress in the 1960s, appearing in movies including Onjŏngryŏng (온정령) and Baek Il-hong (백일홍).

[2][3][4][5] Song began dating Kim Jong Il in 1968, after divorcing her first husband; she is believed to have been his first mistress.

[6] Starting in the early 1980s, Song travelled to Moscow frequently for medical care.

In 1996, Song was reported to have defected to the West, but intelligence officials in South Korea denied the story.