It is a rare fact that he is still singing so elegantly at the age of 75, and that he is still creating and singing new, elegant songs. The album title “75” proudly points to this fact.
The title “75” is intuitive and has many implications. One cannot help but think of the comeback album 「37 Years」, which announced a new start for the great vocalist Jeong Mi-jo. “37 Years” was truly an amazing album. It was the fact that he maintained his elegant voice even during the 37-year gap after retiring from the music industry, and the music that suited that elegant voice was like that. The number ‘37’ contained the years and story of singer Jeong Mi-jo.
「75」 is an album released 8 years after the release of 「37」. During that time, Jeong Mi-jo has consistently released albums that show what the dignity of an adult is. I dare say that that music was something that had never existed in Korea before. It was music that did not exist in the reality of the music industry, where people in their 50s sing trot-style songs for ‘events’ and package them as ‘is it adult?’ Jeong Mi-jo sang a song for those who did not fit in with the established adult music. In other words, Mijo Jeong is someone who has expanded new territory in the Korean pop music world that no one could easily access.
「75」 is a shining result that confirms this once again. It shines in that it confirms what music for real ‘adults’ is, and shines once again in the 75-year-old’s voice that embraces the beauty of time. Lee Joo-yeop, who is also a producer and an excellent lyricist, and Son Seong-je, who wrote most of the album's songs as the album's music director, were still by Jeong Mi-jo's side. They were proud members of the territory that Jeong Mi-jo had expanded. For eight years, we have been thinking, exploring, and attempting to create quality adult music together.
The first thing that catches your eye in the album is the Roman letter ‘feat’. It is somewhat unfamiliar that the abbreviation for ‘featuring’ is often written next to the title of Jeong Mi-jo’s song. Choi Baek-ho is the only singer that Jeong Mi-jo sang with another singer in his album. So it’s new to sing with so many junior singers on one album like this. Son Tae-jin, Yoo Chae-hoon, Kim Min-seok (Melomance), John Park, Lee Hyo-ri, Harim, and Kang Seung-won, who sang together, each have their own world and the music they are currently making is also different. The voices of different genres meet the unique world of Jeong Mi-jo and create elegance.
Jeong Mi-jo's voice is amazing. This is even more true when you think about the number 75. When he confesses his love in ‘Tongyeong’, he seems like a lover trying to start a new love, and when he becomes a narrator who has lived a long life and conveys comfort in ‘Nora’, you can’t help but sympathize with that exquisite song. What is the vitality like in ‘Leave’ and ‘Yangyang’? Jeong Mi-jo conveys her singing experience to the younger singers she sings with, and gains youth in return. Without the slightest excess, these voices intersect, mix, and blend together.
The album even serves as a rediscovery of the singers who sang together. It makes us realize what a great vocalist John Park was with a great mid-bass voice, and introduces a unique musician named Kang Seung-won and shows us the charm of his indifference. Harim's voice is also full of earnestness. Producer Son Seong-je is responsible for maintaining the charm of each voice while not losing Jeong Mi-jo's unique color. He further expanded Jeong Mi-jo's world with a new form of music with a prominent programming sound, such as 'Your Eyes', while maintaining quality. So the album is new yet familiar. Familiar yet new. This seemingly contradictory expression best explains 「75」.
You can't leave out Joo-yeop Lee's lyrics in Mi-jo Jeong's music. Since Jeong Mi-jo's return, Lee Joo-yeop has been responsible for Jeong Mi-jo's lyrics. His desire to create proper ‘adult contemporary’ music for a long time was able to be realized through Jeong Mi-jo’s album. Many of the stories of love and separation he tells are about life, not just between men and women. Lyrics such as ‘Time’, ‘Mom’s Spring’, and ‘Home’ can only be empathized with more deeply when you become an adult. Jeong Mi-jo's heart, which he said cried a lot while practicing, became a song like that.
An album released at the age of 75. There are probably many people who think of it as the last thing. I confess that I too have thought that way. But the more I listen to the album, the more those thoughts disappear. The voice that impressed me when I first heard “37 Years” made me gasp again in “75.” This voice contains countless stories and time. I feel relieved and excited that I can continue to hear this ‘adult’s’ voice. Many people worked together to create high-quality adult music. It is a precious thing. This is a precious album.
[Kim Hak-seon / Popular music critic]
