Lee Mee-Ja to perform in Pyongyang next month

Songstress Lee Mee-Ja, 60, known as the ¡°queen of elegy,¡± will perform in Pyongyang next month with other top South Korean ¡°trot¡± singers such as Song Dae-Gwan and Ju Hyun-Mi, an MBC official said Sunday.

The concrete schedule for the performance will be confirmed shortly, he said, noting that MBC has sent a plan for the performance to North Korea¡¯s Asia Pacific Peace Committee.

MBC has contacted the Northern side twice in Beijing, China, regarding the performance, he said.

According to the plan, Song and Ju will sing in the first half of the performance and Lee in the second, each for 60 minutes. They will stage concerts once on Dec. 12 and twice on both Dec. 13 and 14.

MBC plans to invite Kim Jong-Il, chairman of the North Korean National Defense Commission, to the first day¡¯s performance, the official added.

The three singers¡¯ Pyongyang concert has been promoted since Chairman Kim, clarifying the name of Lee Mee-Ja, asked for her to perform in Pyongyang at Christmas this year during a luncheon meeting with presidents of South Korean media organizations Aug. 12 in Pyongyang.

Heo Yeub heo@donga.com