Only three people, including Shizuka Ijuin, have achieved this… “Unexpected person” who is likely to win the “Naoki Award and the Record Award” next

On November 24, writer Shizuka Ijuin passed away. He was 73 years old.

In his 20s, he was busy as a commercial director, and also wrote “Summer Champion” (Yuko Asano) and “Ye! Yes! (Ikue Sakakibara), “Do Your Best” (Pink Lady), “Feel It Night” (Lazy), etc. Under the pen name “Date Ayumi,” he wrote lyrics mainly for idols, and in his 30s, “Gingira Gingira Gin Sarasagashi” became a big hit, which he provided to Masahiko Kondo. In his thirties, he had a big hit with “Gingiraginnen nasirinashi,” a song he wrote for Masahiko Kondo. He has written eight singles for Masahiko Kondo, second only to Takashi Matsumoto, including “Jounetsu ☆ Natsufu ☽ Serenaade” and “Manatsu no Ichisoku,” and also directed Yumi Matsutoya’s concerts and was the brains behind the release of her albums.

I first heard of Shizuka Ijuin on “Tunnels’ All Night Nippon. The reason why the name “Ijuin-san” came to be used in the program’s free talk was that the Tunnels’ mini-album “Gonenga” released on New Year’s Day in 1988 had all of its lyrics written by Ijuin-san.

After “Ano no Carnation,” released in 1989, he shifted to full-fledged writing in his 40s. He has established himself as a writer with works that have been made into films, such as “Nippo” and “Kikansha Sensei,” and in recent years he has released a succession of high-profile works, including “Nagisa Hotel” and “Otona no Ryugi” (Adult Style). He was a man of many facets and activities, easily transcending genres such as advertising, entertainment, and the literary world, and could be appropriately called a “child of the industry.

There is no question that his death marks the end of an era, but it is not often mentioned that he was, in fact, the final holder of a certain record. During the heyday of the songwriting world in the 1970s and 1980s, many of the world’s songwriters secretly or openly aimed for that record, some publicly declaring it, and some even suddenly changing their life plans as they wrote. The record is the record of winning both the Naoki Award and the Record Award.

Although the “Japan Record Award” now seems to have lost its authority, there was a time when lyricists of the past were told that they were “on their own when they wrote the lyrics for a RECODAI song,” and there was definitely a time when lyricists, singers, and composers worked in tandem to win the RECODAI. In addition to this, winning the Naoki Prize meant being a double crown winner in the literary and entertainment worlds, as well as being a top-notch writer. As mentioned above, Shizuka Ijuin, who was also active as a lyricist, won the Japan Record Award in 1987 for “Idiot,” which he provided to Masahiko Kondo, and the Naoki Prize for the first half of 1992 for “Ukezuki,” which he published in 1992. She was the proud holder of the “double crown” record.

Only three people, including Shizuka Ijuin, have ever won this “double crown,” and the first to pass through this narrow gate was Yoko Yamaguchi. The first to pass through this narrow gate was Yoko Yamaguchi, the madam of the Ginza club “Hime” in the past. She won the Japan Record Award in 1973 for “Yozora” (Night Sky), which she provided to Hiroki Itsuki, and shifted her focus to novels in the 1980s. She won the Yoshikawa Eiji Literary Award for New Writers for “Private Live,” and was nominated for the Naoki Award twice, for “Gongu Onna” and “Yajirobei,” but both were unsuccessful; her third attempt, “Enka no Mushi/Old Plum” won the Naoki Award for the first half of 1985, making her the first ever winner of both awards. As a Naoki Prize-winning author, Yoko Yamaguchi was also selected as a judge for the Kohaku Uta Gassen (Red and White Singing Contest) for the first time that year. She was followed by Shizuka Ijuin.