Akina Nakamori, the Showa-era diva, lost consciousness due to overwork and went to the hospital with a sprained right knee during rehearsals… “Kohaku” of Akina Nakamori, the Showa-era diva
Michito Goda, "Kohaku Doctor," writer and president of the Singer's Association of Japan, talks about the behind-the-scenes story of the Kohaku Uta Gassen.
It all started with a collaboration with Shingo Katori
Whether or not Akina Nakamori would perform at the “Kohaku Uta Gassen”? was a big topic of conversation at the end of the year.
No, since her appearance in the “Kohaku” in ’14, 10 years ago now, live from a studio in the U.S., Akina Nakamori’s return has been desired every year. This became a reality with her collaboration with Shingo Katori in the latter half of this year. Akina sang “Tattoo” in a sequined bodycon mini as her 21st single, released in May 1988. Katori loved this song and had always wanted to cover it.
The album “Circus Funk” was released on November 27 this year, and Akina recorded the song together with Katori, who reported the recording on her official YouTube channel.
Akina said, ‘I want to see what it’s like, so I want to sing with you first,’ and we sang together, facing each other. I was nervous, but it was like a dream. When I told her, ‘I’m really happy,’ she put her hand on my cheek and said, ‘Of course. Good luck.’ ……”

In the year when many female idols appeared on the scene, the “1982 group of flowers” and “post-Makie” idols appeared on the scene one after the other.
In 1981, Akina Nakamori was a member of the “Star Birth” audition program on Nippon Television. She passed the audition by singing “Yume Sentakujin” by Momoe Yamaguchi, a senior member of the “Star Birth” group who had retired from show business the previous year due to marriage. The following year, at the age of 16, she took off in the singing world with “Slow Motion. It was an excellent ballad provided by Etsuko Raise and Takao Raise, sisters of Hiroko Yakushimaru’s “Sailor Suit and Machine Gun” and Junko Ohashi’s “Silhouette Romance,” which had just become big hits.
At the time, young female idols were appearing one after another as “post-Momoe” singers. The year Momoe retired, Seiko Matsuda made her debut with the same record company, successfully filling the gap.
The year of Akina’s debut also saw the emergence of a succession of next-generation idols, including Iyo Matsumoto, Yu Hayami, Kyoko Koizumi, Chiemi Hori, and Hidemi Ishikawa, who were dubbed the “1982 group of flowers” and were considered the next stars after Momoe and Seiko.
In the “Japan Song Awards,” the race for the Best New Artist Award, all male singers, including Shibukitai and Daisaku Ogata, and all female singers were selected, but the problem was the “Japan Record Awards. However, the problem was the “Japan Record Award.” There were only five nominees for the “Japan Record Award. Although Shibuki and Iyo Matsumoto were considered sure-fire winners due to their hit power, the other three nominees were in doubt.
As a result, Akina and Kyonkyung were omitted, and Ishikawa, Hayami, and Hori were chosen as the five nominees. Akina’s debut song “Slow Motion” had not been the hit she had hoped for, and she was dashing down the hit road with her second song, “Shojo A,” which was released at the end of July. In fact, however, the result was the same as Momoe’s.
Momoe, too, was selected as one of the top nominees for the “Song of the Year” award, but failed to reach the five groups for the “Record Award. Her debut song “Toshikoro” did not grow to the level of a hit, and her second hit, “Aoi no kajitsu (Blue Fruits),” followed it up, but did not make it.
A slightly naughty milky new girl
Both “Shojo A” and “Blue Fruits” were poems that were a bit extreme and erotic for girls their age. Akina’s catchphrase at the time was “a little naughty milky new girl.
In interviews, she was often asked, “Are you really naughty, Akina?” Akina was often asked in interviews, “Are you really naughty? In fact, “ecchi” was meant to express a slightly grown-up, mature atmosphere, and Momoe’s start also corresponded to this.
Masayu Sono, the lyricist of “Shojo A,” was a new lyricist who had just debuted that year. He said, “I wrote ‘Shojo A’ thinking that a throwaway line like Momoe’s ‘Playback Part 2’ would work for her. On the other hand, Seiko Matsuda was an overwhelming presence who sold “shoujo” (girlishness), so Akina brought her “badness” to the forefront.
When I presented this work to Akina, her response was “No, I don’t want to sing like this! But the people around her forced her to record the song. Akina was discouraged and sang it angrily. But it was good. Although she did not win the “Record Grand Prize” New Artist Award or the “Kohaku” award that year, she made her first appearance in the “Kohaku” the following year with “Forbidden Zone,” which was a “delinquent” song.
In fact, however, there is a document here that shows that the “Kohaku” appearance in the same year of her debut was highly anticipated.
The title “Girl A” was deemed unsuitable for broadcast on NHK.”
At that time, on the day of the announcement of the participating members, “Kohaku” announced the results of a questionnaire asking 3,600 viewers aged 7 to 60 across Japan to name their three favorite singers, 15 pairs each for Kohaku and 15 pairs each for Kohaku.
According to the results, the top male singer was Itsuki Hiroshi, followed by Kitajima Saburo and Mori Shinichi. In contrast, female No. 1 was Masako Mori, with Seiko Matsuda already in second place, and Aki Yashiro in third. Akina Nakamori’s name was in 13th place in the red group.
Matsumoto and Hayami, who competed for the newcomer award, were not named. The only newcomers were Shibukitai and Akina, who placed 15th in the white group. Those who were ranked 15th in each group but did not participate were Hibari Misora, Miyuki Nakajima, and Chiharu Matsuyama, who withdrew from the competition.
Newspaper articles at the time stated, “In parallel with this questionnaire, a questionnaire of 167 broadcast managers and sales directors (average age of 45) of NHK’s regional stations was also conducted, and overall, they did not receive the entry,” and further, “The title of ‘Girl A’ was deemed unsuitable for NHK’s broadcast. In any case, it was a good result for the first year of their debut.
The following year, the Raiu duo returned to the “quiet” world with “Second Love,” which was a big hit. The following year, they returned to the “quiet” world with “Second Love,” which was a big hit. “The Myth of 1/2,” “Twilight,” and “Forbidden Zone” followed in a series of “stillness, movement, and stillness,” selling 6.7 billion yen in records, and rising to a respectable 4th place in the “3,600 person survey.
Despite a series of troubles Akina’s first appearance in Kohaku… “Akina withdrew from Kohaku! and a hoax called ……
She made her first appearance without complaint, but on the day of the announcement, she coolly commented, “I still don’t feel it yet. However, 10 days before the show, she lost consciousness after the show due to overwork and was diagnosed with acute bronchitis. He managed to recover during rehearsals for “Kohaku. However, she sprained her right knee during a dance scene during the night rehearsal and again went to the hospital for a thorough examination. For a while, there was even a rumor that “Akina withdrew from Kohaku! Akina withdrew from Kohaku!
Then came the big New Year’s Eve. She received the “Golden Idol Award,” a newly established award given to singers in their second year, at the “Record Awards,” which she had not been able to attend the previous year, and went to the NHK Hall, the venue of the “Kohaku” event.
Young singers usually sang in the first half of the show, but Akina was in a good position to sing at the top of the second half of the show.
The following year, she continued to boast the No. 1 record sales record, and her song “Jukkai-1984” was nominated for the “Song of the Year Award,” while “North Wing” was nominated for the “Record Award” and passed as the No. 1 song in the Gold Award nominations. The song “Jukkai-1984” was nominated for the “Song of the Year Award” and “North Wing” was nominated for the “Record Award”. In the “Kohaku” contest, she sang “Jukai-1984,” which finally placed second to Masako Mori in the year’s survey results, surpassing Seiko Matsuda, who placed third.
Around this time, the media began to report that Seiko Matsuda was in love with Hiromi Go and Akina Nakamori with Masahiko Kondo. and so on. The media had also been reporting that Seiko Matsuda was in love with Hiroko Goh and Akina Nakamori was in love with Masahiko Kondo.
Mitsuko Mori asks Akina, “So how would you like the match inside?” and ……
As Akina gazed at Match, dressed in an ancient costume designed by Itchiku Kubota and wearing 20 cm thick pokkis, host Mitsuko Mori turned to Akina and asked, “How do you like Match’s fashion?” Akina said, “He looks like a god. Akina said, “He looks like a god. Then, how do you like the match inside? Akina laughed and tried to cover it up, but Mori immediately said, “That was a foolish question.
In January of the following year, Seiko held a tearful separation press conference, saying, “We promised each other that if we were reborn again, we would definitely be together,” and “We loved each other and parted ways. She returned to singing four months later with “Kohaku.
Akina and Match duo shared the “Song of the Year” award with Match for “Daisho” and the “Record Award” with Akina for “Mi Amore”. In the “Kohaku” competition, under the catchphrase “Brilliant Young Elegance,” Akina sang against Match’s colleague Toshihiko Tahara, aka Toshi-chan.
The following year, 1986, was the fourth Kohaku. The popularity polls showed that Masako Mori, who had been the top-ranking singer until last year, had retired after getting married, so Sayuri Ishikawa, who had sung “Amagi koshi” the year it was released, took the top spot for the first time. Akina remained in second place, followed by Sachiko Kobayashi and Hibari Misora in fourth place. Among the male group, Itsuki Hiroshi remained No. 1, followed by Mori Shinichi (No. 2), Hosokawa Takashi (No. 3), and Kitajima Saburo (No. 4). Checkers and Safety Zone followed, and Match came in at No. 7.
Akina won the “Song of the Year Award” with “Fin” and the “Record Award” just before the “Kohaku” with “Desire” for the second year in a row, and continued to rank first among all singers in terms of record sales.
Akina headed to the “Kohaku” venue from the “Record Grand Prize”. In the opening procession that year, men and women appeared from the back center of the stage in the order in which they were to sing, and shook hands firmly at the center of the stage. That year, Akina was sixth from the front to sing against veterans Julie and Kenji Sawada. The top performers, Shonen-tai and Yoko Oginome, appeared first, but Akina, who had won the Grand Prize, was not able to make it in time. When announcer Masaho Senda said, “Akina Nakamori hasn’t arrived yet,” Akina ran from the top sode and managed to slip in next to Julie.
She was called the “Queen of the Top Ten.” ……
In the following year (1987), she won the “Japan Cable Awards” Most Requested Singer Award for five consecutive years, and her three songs “Tango Noir”, “Blonde”, and “Shipwreck” all made the Top Ten on the Oricon singles chart that year, and her total sales as an artist were the fourth highest in her career. The song also topped the Oricon singles chart for the fourth time (1983, 1985, 1986, and 1987), the most in its history.
She was also ranked No. 2 in the “Kohaku” popularity poll, and performed her famous song “Shipwreck” for the fifth time against the Checkers, and sang it with great dignity.
Furthermore, in May of 63 (1988), yes, the newly revived “TATTOO” was released this year. It also reached No. 1 on the Oricon Chart. It was the 15th song to reach No. 1 in a row, and it had been No. 1 for 69 weeks on the TBS program “The Best Ten,” the most in the program’s history. She was also called the “Queen of the Best Ten” for boasting the highest number of No. 1 songs in the program (17).
Then, in 1989. I MISSED “THE SHOCK”” was released in November following “TATTO,” and she made her sixth appearance in Kohaku, but her highest ranking song on the Oricon chart was No. 3. However, its highest position was No. 3 on the Oricon chart, finally breaking the record for the top position. The next generation of idols, including Shizuka Kudo, who appeared in the Kohaku for the first time that year, and Miho Nakayama, who passed away the other day, were rising to prominence.
At that time, the mass media was writing about Akina’s poor health and her depression. Chieko Kishi, a minyo singer who performed with Akina in Kohaku that year, said, “People are saying that, but she was totally different. She was polite and kind. Because I was a minyo singer, I felt like I was standing alone in the Kohaku, but Akina took care of me and talked to me. But Akina-chan was alone, too,” said Kishi, who remained unwavering in her praise of Akina until her death. The following year, the Showa era became the Heisei era.
Kohaku,” which became a two-part show, and its back program, “Kinkyaku’s Return to the Golden Screen.”
Although “Oricon” No. 1 was restored with “LIAR” released in April 1989, on July 11, she attempted suicide at the apartment where her boyfriend, Masahiko Kondo, lived. He decided to suspend his entertainment activities. It was in this year that there were calls for the “end of Kohaku” due to the new era name and the death of Hibari Misora.
The first part was called “Kohaku in the Showa Era,” and featured a VTR of Hibari, her best friend Izumi Yukimura singing “Ai San,” Harumi Miyako (who had retired), the Tigers (who had disbanded), Pink Lady, and others. The revival of “Kohaku” was planned, and from 9:00, “Heisei no Kohaku” was held as usual, focusing on the hits of the year.
Before the announcement of the members, there were rumors that Akina, who had been on a leave of absence, would make a comeback in “Kohaku,” but in the end, Akina’s name, along with Match’s, was not on the list.
However, Akina held a press conference at 10:00 a.m. on TV Asahi’s “New Year’s Eve Live TV Special,” which was the program behind the “Kohaku” event. Despite the fact that a gold folding screen had been erected at the venue, she stated that “nothing happened between the two of us. The instantaneous viewership rating was 19.7%, which was a blow to “Kohaku”.
Time passed and in 2002, Akina returned to “Kohaku”. It was the 20th anniversary of her debut.
She moved to Universal Music Japan, the record company to which she still belongs, and released the album “-ZEROalbum- Utahime 2”. The album, which covered works such as Momoe Yamaguchi’s “Akizakura”, Seiko Matsuda’s “Ruri-iro Chikyu”, Saki Kubota’s “Heterojin”, and Sakiko Ito’s “Otome no Waltz”, made the Top Ten for the first time in seven years, and was included in the best album “Akina Nakamori – Utahime” released in December in the “Kohaku” series. In the “Kohaku” show, Akina Nakamori performed a new version of “Tears Are Not Decorations” from her best album “Akina Nakamori – Utahime Double Decade,” which was released in December. Akina Nakamori sang her signature song for the first time in Kohaku, and it was the first time in 14 years that she sang it in Kohaku in a glamorous and glamorous manner.
The baton of the “diva” had been passed from Akina to Namie Amuro and then to Ayumi Hamasaki, and this was the memorable “Kohaku” year when the three of them stood on the same stage.
In August, two albums with new songs were released, and in November, she appeared on NHK’s “SONGS” as a surprise guest for the first time in 12 years on “Kohaku”. In November, she appeared as a surprise guest on NHK’s “SONGS” and performed her new song “Rojo -Tierra-” from a studio in the U.S., resuming her singing career for the first time in four years and two months.
We can’t wait to see Akina in singing form. The “diva” who ran through the Showa era is still a “dream” for those who lived through that era, and for young people who don’t know what she was like in her active days, the “legendary star” herself is Akina Nakamori. ……
Text: Michito Goda
In 1979, while still in high school, Nakamori made her debut as a singer-songwriter with Watanabe Productions. Since then, in addition to composing and directing music programs, hosting TV shows, and supervising and commentating on CDs, he has also written for newspapers and magazines, composed poetry, and served as a radio DJ, demonstrating his versatility in a variety of fields. His books include "The Mystery of Doyo", "The Mystery of the Shrine", "The Mystery of Showa Songs" (Shodensha), "The Truth of the Monster Program Kohaku Uta Gassen" (Gentosha), "The Mystery of the Doyo that Sang the Seasons" (Kasama Shoin), and "Uta wa yoroshite♪ Ryuukutta de Fukeru Showa 100-nen" (Kasama Shoin), which is scheduled for release in January. In December, he won the Special Jury Prize at the Japan Poetry Grand Prize for "Koshi no Miyako" (Koshi no Miyako), a song he wrote for Hiroki Itsuki.
PHOTO: Keisuke Nishi