BREAKING: Did Airi Kijima Just Announce Her RETIREMENT During Concert?

Look, I knew we had this coming. As the year is about to end, another senior actress from the industry has decided to quit. Any guesses?

Ideapocket’s very own, Airi Kijima! The 36-year-old former pop idol announced at a concert yesterday that she will "graduate from AV" in August 2025 while she reflected upon her career. "This month will mark the 12th anniversary of my debut, but I have been in this industry for so long that it would take a thousand years for the tree to circle around it. I have had so many wonderful experiences and seen so many wonderful sights."

Having debuted a decade ago, Airi has come a long way and has seen most facets of life in these 10 years, whether it be on a JAV film set or sharing the stage with her former Ebisu Idols until the group disbanded. No wonder why she reflected upon her past: "I was searching for my place in the world, and by chance, I stepped into this industry. To be honest, I thought I would lose more than I gained. I entered the AV industry with that in mind. Because I really wanted to change. I thought I would never find a new me unless I was in an environment where I could change my life 180 degrees."

"If I'm going to die anyway, I want to live for something. It's not a pretty story, but I've been working with that thought for the past 12 years. Because I met people who needed me, I started to feel like I wanted to try different things, and I started to like myself quite a bit," stated the actress.

Before diving into the nitty-gritty of her retirement, let us just briefly rewind to her past. As per her Wikipedia page, she used to be a beautician before her debut. Like most JAV babes, she started off as a gravure model in 2011 and joined Ebisu Muscat the following year, in 2012. Following the disbandment of Ebisu Muscats, Airi joined IdeaPocket as an exclusive actress.

Over the years, she has appeared in JAVs produced by major studios like Madonna, Attackers, & Premium. Moreover, her appearance has also significantly changed over the years from that of a lanky idol to that of a seductive mature woman. Her SNS also has significantly grown in the past to 1.25 million followers on X, coupled with the fact that she is an industry-recognized artist who frequently holds her concerts; perhaps now it can be said that Airi is one of the leading ladies in the industry.

Recommended Read; Actress Spotlight: Airi Kijima

Now addressing the main issue, i.e., Airi’s retirement, she mentioned over X that it had been close to 12 years since her debut, and she felt like it was time to exit the JAV industry. "I couldn't be happier to have everyone support me and love me as Airi Kijima. I'm sure I could have continued as an AV actress, but when I looked at myself, I felt that I had done enough! Not only that, but a lot of things came together, and I thought that now was the right time to leave, so I decided to graduate." Notice how she emphasizes the word 'graduation' rather than 'retirement'? Could be an easter egg in there.

In a further tweet, the actress confessed to have been emotional over her decision, as she literally had tears in her eyes while reading through her fan comments. One could make from the tweet that she is determined but quite reluctant to leave. Honestly, I feel like Airi will have a hard time getting over it even though she might contemplate changing her mind. So for her fans, it means that from now on, they should start counting the days in reverse. It’s sad to fathom that Airi is here with us for a couple of months.

Nevertheless, those yearning to catch a glimpse of her in person can still do so if they go by Airi's words, "I will be holding a graduation solo live on July 31st! I will run at full speed until my graduation so that you will continue to support me until the very end, saying that Airi Kijima is the only one who can win! Please need me a little longer."

For fans of the first generation of the idol group, Ebisu Muscats, it’s hard to digest the fact that in a matter of months, Ai Sayama and now Airi have quit the JAV industry.

But I'd like to leave our readers with her statement that might be comforting: "If I say I'm retiring, it will make everyone sad. I want everyone to say "congratulations" as well as "thank you for your hard work," so let me put an end to it with the word "graduation." I've finished filming my final work. All of the works that will be released next year are works that have been close to my feelings, so I hope you will continue to cherish each one as you have done. There will still be many opportunities to meet next year."

Readers should be glad that there are still plenty of her JAVs to be enjoyed during the holidays. Let us know in the comments which one of her titles you are looking forward to purchasing. Also, what do you think of this retirement?

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