[7][8] Her swan-song "Kawa no Nagare no Yō ni" (川の流れのように) is often performed by numerous artists and orchestras as a tribute to her, including notable renditions by The Three Tenors (Spanish/Italian), Teresa Teng (Taiwanese) and Mariachi Vargas de Tecalitlan (Mexican).

It featured numerous musicians such as Ai, Koda Kumi, Ken Hirai, Kiyoshi Hikawa, Exile, AKB48 and Nobuyasu Okabayashi amongst others, paying tribute by singing her most famous songs.

[13] Later that year, she appeared on another NHK broadcast, and this time impressed Japanese composer Masao Koga with her singing ability.

Over the next few years, Misora became an accomplished singer and toured notable concert halls to sold-out crowds.

[16] Her performance in Tokyo Kid (1950), in which she played a street orphan, made her symbolic of both the hardship and the national optimism of post-World War II Japan.

Although NHK did not acknowledge any connection, Misora was excluded from Kōhaku Uta Gassen for the first time in 18 years.

Misora appeared occasionally on other NHK programs, but felt she no longer had a reason to perform on Kōhaku.

[29] Misora's health improvement was to be temporary, as her liver weakened from decades of heavy drinking and her condition worsened.

On February 7, 1989 (less than a month after the Heisei period began), Misora held her final concert in Kokura.

[31] The major television networks had to cancel their regular programming that evening to bring the news of her death and instead aired various tributes.

[32] In 1993, a monument depicting Misora's portrait with an inscribed poem was erected in her memory near Sugi no Osugi in Ōtoyo, Kōchi.

While recovering from her injuries, she remained in the town and reportedly visited Sugi no Osugi and wished to become the top singer in Japan.

The young Misora responded “If I can’t sing, then I will die.” [34] She eventually returned to Tokyo, where she began her recording career in 1949 at the age of 12.

This multi-story museum complex traced the history of Misora's life and career in various multimedia exhibits, and displayed various memorabilia.

The brand new Hibari Misora Theater opened in its place on April 26, 2008, and includes a CD for sale of a previously unreleased song.

[37] Beginning in 1990, television and radio stations play Misora's song "Kawa no Nagare no Yō ni" (川の流れのように) annually on her birth date to show respect.

The song is still prominently performed by numerous artists and orchestras as a tribute to Misora, including notable renditions by The Three Tenors (Spanish/Italian),[9] Teresa Teng (Taiwanese),[10] Mariachi Vargas de Tecalitlan (Mexican)[11] and Twelve Girls Band (Chinese).

It featured numerous musicians such as Ai, Koda Kumi, Ken Hirai, Kiyoshi Hikawa, Exile, AKB48 and Nobuyasu Okabayashi amongst others, paying tribute to Misora by covering her most famous songs.