Enka Hopeful Ryoo Suga Lands Major Debut After Two Years of Street Performances in Kawasaki

In front of Kawasaki Station, which has produced artists like Macaroni Enpitsu and Yuri.

“People often call me Ryo-kun,” he says with an innocent smile.

That fresh-faced young man is enka singer Ryo Suga (Suga Ryoo, 25), who made his major debut on May 21 with the song Furusato Shunjū.

Born in Higashimatsushima, Miyagi Prefecture, Suga developed a love for enka under the influence of his grandparents. He entered his first karaoke competition in the first grade of elementary school. Singing Kiyoshi Hikawa’s Ikken, he won the contest—and continued winning numerous competitions thereafter.

After graduating university, he moved to Tokyo. Though he first took a regular job, he couldn’t let go of his dream to become an enka singer like his idol Saburō Kitajima. At age 23, he made the decision to give up a stable life and pursue a music career.

“It was a steady job, but I just couldn’t let go of my desire to become a singer. As for my parents? Well, they already knew I loved enka. My mom especially just said, ‘I figured you’d quit right away,’ and instead of getting angry, she supported my decision.”

Though he quit his job, he had no record label or management agency lined up. He simply dove into the music world driven by the urge to sing.

“I wasn’t sure what to do at first. After a lot of thought, I decided to try street performing.
I wanted as many people as possible to hear my singing.”

The place Suga chose was the area in front of Kawasaki Station, known as a “sacred spot” for street musicians. Artists like Macaroni Enpitsu and Yuuri once performed there before rising to fame.

However, Suga sang enka—a stark contrast from the usual J-POP or rock acts who belt out songs with a guitar in hand.

“It’s true—there probably aren’t any other street musicians singing enka out there (laughs). The hardest part was getting that first passerby to stop and listen.
It felt like I was just singing into empty space, but I treated it like practice and kept going.
I had nothing to lose, so I thought, ‘As long as I can sing, I’m happy,’
and I kept showing up on the street.”

With a small amp and speaker, he would connect his smartphone and sing passionately into the microphone day after day. Gradually, his powerful voice and the rarity of a street enka singer began to draw a crowd.

A song written from a grandson to his grandfather

“For the first six months or so, there were just a few people who would stop and listen briefly. Honestly, I could’ve said there were zero audience members. But then, one person started coming regularly then two and once a few people were standing around, others would get curious and start to gather too.”

Because he sings enka, Suga typically began his street performances around 1 p.m. The audience skewed older, but over time, around 30 to 40 people would regularly gather—eventually making Suga one of the more popular street musicians in the area.

It was during one of these passionate performances that a representative from his current agency spotted him and scouted him on the spot. Things moved quickly from there, leading to his major debut with Columbia Records.

Reflecting on the nearly two-year journey from street performer to professional singer, Suga says:

“It felt short, but also long, I think. There were no signs that I would debut anytime soon, and not being able to see the future was really hard. But I made it this far because I had fans who supported me. When I look back at each step, each day was incredibly meaningful.”

He spoke with deep emotion on his face.

His debut song, Furusato Shunjū, was born out of those years spent singing on the street. It’s an enka ballad from a grandson to his beloved grandfather.

“My grandpa, who’s now 94, was the chief engineer on deep-sea fishing vessels. He spent decades at sea. In the song, the grandpa works in the fields, but the lyric ‘the warmth of Grandpa’s pitch-black hands’ really hits home. It reminded me exactly of my grandpa’s rough, weathered hands. When I first saw the demo melody and lyrics, it struck me so deeply—I just broke down in tears. The opening line, lived life with all his might, overlaps so perfectly with him. I’m truly proud of my grandfather.”

When Suga told him about the debut, his grandfather smiled and said:

“You’ve been given a good song.”

There have been hit songs like Itsuro Oizumi’s Mago that express a grandfather’s love for his grandchild, but a song expressing a grandchild’s love for their grandfather is much rarer. Suga’s heartfelt voice, singing for the grandfather he loves so dearly, is sure to bring hope and warmth to many older listeners.