[Sportschosun Lee Woo-joo] Singer Cheon Rok-dam, also known as Lee Jung, revealed what led him to give up emigration and settle in Jeju Island.
On the 3rd, the YouTube channel "Yoon Joo-mo, a chef who brews traditional Korean liquor and cooks Korean cuisine" uploaded a short video titled "Jeju's son-in-law Cheon Rok-dam! Because of his cousin Lee Jae-hoon?"
Cheon Rok-dam said he had even considered retiring from singing after completing his military service. "After I got discharged from the military, I had finished all the preparations to move to Hawaii. I was going to quit singing, move to Hawaii, and live there while doing Korean radio or something like that. I told Jae-hoon about it, and he said, 'Okay, I understand,'" he recalled. Cheon Rok-dam and Cool's Lee Jae-hoon are relatives.
Cheon Rok-dam explained how he ended up settling in Jeju Island, saying, "A little later, he told me we should go to Jeju Island together. When I asked why, he said I would understand once I went. It was just empty land, and he said, 'That will be your house, and this will be my house.' I laughed it off at the time. Then I forgot about it, but when I went back a few months later, actual civil engineering work was underway." He added, "The weather and temperature that day were so nice. My brother said, 'Why Hawaii? Just live in Jeju for a year first. Let's try one year,' so I went there first."
His close friend Jingu said, "That was the right choice. He was a lifesaver. If you had gone to Hawaii, it could have been a disaster," while Yoon Jumo agreed, saying, "A life with friends is a good life." Cheon Rok-dam also said he was satisfied with life in Jeju, adding, "Thanks to moving to Jeju, I even got married."
wjlee@sportschosun.com
