Singer Lee Mi-ja signaled her retirement, announcing her final stage.
On the 5th, Lee attended a press conference to commemorate the traditional music tribute concert "Connecting the Pulse" held at the Stanford Hotel Seoul in Sangam-dong, Mapo District, Seoul, where she said, "I don’t like the word retirement," yet added, "I think it's definitely a time to say that this is the last."
This meant that the concert "Connecting the Pulse" with junior singers Joo Hyun-mi and Jo Hang-jo will be her final stage on April 26-27 at the Sejong Center for the Performing Arts in Jongno District, Seoul. Lee noted, "I think it’s not advisable to step down. I thought it would be better to quietly stop when I can’t sing, so I didn’t use the word retirement. However, I can say that this will be the last."
Regarding the reason for suggesting retirement, she stated, "It's because I could hand down beautiful traditional music to my juniors and set the stage to continue through generations." She explained, "I thought the pulse would be cut off, but the opportunity to continue came. With that, I thought I could sufficiently conclude with this performance."
Lee Mi-ja, who debuted in 1959 with "Nineteen's Innocence," has since hit songs like "Camellia Lady," "A Woman's Life," and "The Teacher from the Island," maintaining the roots of traditional music for 66 years.