Veteran singer Lee In-ja (stage name Lee Mie-kyung) will appear on Human Theater with her daughter Kim Eun-ju, who has been a singer for 14 years.
Today (the 6th), KBS 1TV's Human Theater features Lee In-ja and Kim Eun-ju, the mother-and-daughter singers, revealing their recent lives.
# eighty-three-year-old mother's song sung again
Eighty-three-year-old Lee In-ja (83) still does not give up household chores. A mother who says she can't bear to see her daughter, who is almost 60, get her hands dirty and does not want a drop of water on her daughter's hands. When that mother rolls hair in her hair rollers and acts determined, it means there is a special event.
In fact, Ms. In-ja was a first-generation exclusive singer of Seoul Television Broadcasting Station, the predecessor of KBS. While a high school student studying vocal music, she received scholarships throughout and, at 19, performed nationwide under the stage name "Lee Mie-kyung." She then met her husband at a performance in Goseong and left her brief singing career behind to live as a wife and mother.
Their 50 years together were harmonious, but 11 years ago she suddenly had to see her husband go. Ms. In-ja still always greets the photo of her husband kept carefully in a corner of the room whenever she goes out. The longing remains, but she regained her smile thanks to her daughter. Pushed on by her daughter, she even entered silver singer competitions. Singing while going with her daughter, since 2019 she has been on stage as silver singer Lee In-ja. At eighty-three, she performs old songs with delicious taste, not missing a beat or pitch. Cheers follow her wherever she goes, and tips from seniors over ninety make the eighty-three-year-old mother smile.
# be strong, Kim Eun-ju
Daughter Kim Eun-ju (58), who inherited her mother's talent, is now in her 14th year as a singer. It was after her father's business went bankrupt that the life of Ms. Eun-ju, who had been a successful academy instructor, began to change. Scraping by to repay that debt, her married life was not always smooth.
Finding life in Seoul too hard, 21 years ago Ms. Eun-ju came to Geoje alone with just 100,000 won. She lived and ate in a small academy room, taught piano, worked as a singing instructor and performed at events. At 44, somewhat late, she began full-fledged singing activities and has worked as a livelihood singer who goes wherever she is called.
When she recalls the past, tears flow, but her mother is there to soothe those years. After her father died 11 years ago, she lives with her mother, who was depressed. Whether going to singing class or to events, she is always with her mother. For several years they have been mother-and-daughter singers, performing on stage together and doing volunteer work together.
# singer Lee In-ja's stage begins
Ms. Eun-ju, who always regretted not fully using the talent of her mother who had worked as an exclusive singer, gives her mother her life's first new song as a gift. The song, which captures her mother's life as it is, is titled "life." Coincidentally, the daughter also released a new song, so the mother-and-daughter singers are preparing a new song showcase. These days, most songs are unfamiliar to Ms. In-ja. By contrast, Ms. Eun-ju strictly directs her mother's stage. On a day of intense practice, tension flares between mother and daughter.
It is spring, the time singers stretch the wings they had folded. Events start coming in one by one and the mother-and-daughter singers began to get busy. At a university alumni hall she freely shows off the skills of a former exclusive singer, and at nursing home volunteer events she even receives tips from a grandmother over ninety. Her mother's songs are like a tonic; it's truly good that she sang again.
For Ms. In-ja, this is her first new song showcase. Under the pressure of the stage she keeps making mistakes even during rehearsal. Finally, people flocked to see the mother-and-daughter's stage. The eighty-three-year-old mother's stage now begins.
Human Theater, featuring the story of mother-and-daughter singers Lee In-ja and Kim Eun-ju, will air daily at 7:40 a.m. from today (the 6th) through the 10th.
[Photo] Provided by KBS.
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