What’s so great about “Momusume” and “SPEED”? Let’s talk about “Idol Songs of the ’90s”!

The concept of “idol group

In contrast to the 80’s, when Seiko Matsuda (64), Akina Nakamori (60), and other national idols appeared like glittering stars, the 90’s were called the “Idol Winter Era. Popular music programs such as “Night Hit Studio” (Fuji Television) and “The Best Ten” (TBS) were terminated one after another, depriving idols of their active roles. However, even in such times, superstars were born that charmed men and women of all ages. They have been selling million-seller albums in a row, surpassing those of the 1980s.

This time, FRIDAY invited idol critics Akio Nakamori and Fuminori Takakura, and freelance announcer Naoki Yoshida, who is well versed in idol songs, to a roundtable discussion on the theme of “Idol Songs of the ’90s. After a heated discussion, they selected the top 10 best songs of the decade.

Nakamori: First, let’s review the overall picture of ’90s idols. At the beginning of the ’90s, there was still a ″leftover scent″ of the ’80s.” There were still idol groups like “Onyanko Club,” which debuted in 1985.

Takakura: ” ribbon” and ” CoCo,” which debuted in ’89, and ” Tokyo Performance Doll, ” which debuted in ’90, were active.

Nakamori: “Tokyo Performance Doll “ is a symbol of the early 1990s. Ryoko Shinohara (52), who later made great strides as an actress and singer, was also a member of this group. The girls were athletic, with no lip-synching and required muscle training, and their appearance established the “female idol group that can sing and dance” style that continues to this day.

Yoshida: ” Kiss wa Shonen wo Nani wo Sasu ” released in 1993 is their most famous song. The lyrics were written by Masayu Sono and composed by Tetsuya Komuro, a gorgeous combination.

Takakura The catchy chorus starting with “Kiss wa kiss wa kiss wa” was impressive.

Nakamori: ” CATCH! and ” Diamonds Are Not Hurt “, but the sales and response have not been good. The best song “Tokyo Performance Doll” is “Kiss wa shonen wo nai shosetsu” (Kiss Wastes a Boy).

Takakura: When it comes to idol groups that symbolize the ’90s, I would have to go with ” Morning Musume。 I would like to recommend “Morning Musume. LOVE Machine,” released in 1999, became a million-seller and a social phenomenon.

Nakamori: I heard directly from producer TSUNKU♂ (57) that when they released their debut song ” Morning Coffee “, only male fans came to the event. So, he arranged the song in a disco style from his second single ” Summer Night Town ” in order to “win a wider range of fans”. This led to the big hit of “LOVE Machine. The amazing thing about TSUNKU♂ is that he tried to make music that would reach women as well as men.

Yoshida In the ’90s, there were not as many female idol fans as there are now. However, if you were too conscious of attracting female fans, male fans would leave. It was “LOVE MACHINE” that successfully found the right balance between the two and attracted both male and female fans.

Special songs by the four members of SPEED

Takakura: Another group that cannot be overlooked when talking about the 1990s is ” SPEED. For those of us of the generation who did not know them in real time, it may seem strange to define them as idols.

Nakamori: I think “SPEED” was definitely an idol group. Many fans were attracted to them not only by their songs but also by their looks and fashion. I believe that an idol is not something that calls itself an idol, but something that is named by the fans. They are idols because there are a lot of fans who are pushing “SPEED” as an idol.
They had a string of million-seller hits, including ” STEADY, ” a song about a young woman’s faint love , and ” my graduation,” a classic graduation song.

Takakura: The most famous song is ” White Love” released in 1997. It was SPEED’s biggest hit (1.84 million copies), and the girls also made their first appearance on the NHK Kohaku Uta Gassen with this song. White Love” was also performed at the “Kohaku Uta Gassen” in 2008 after the group’s complete revival following its breakup. It must have been a special song not only for the fans but also for the group.

Nakamori: When talking about idols of the ’90s, one cannot avoid talking about Ryoko Hirosue (45). She was like a savior in the ‘winter period,’ when there were fewer and fewer idols who were active as solo artists.’ When she gave a stage greeting for the 1997 film in which she starred, “20th Century Nostalgia,” 2,000 fans flooded Theatre Shinjuku, causing a commotion that resulted in the police being dispatched to the scene. The police had to be called to the scene.

Yoshida: She was definitely an idol. She was different from “actress-type idols” like Rie Miyazawa (53), who released songs after becoming successful as an actress.

Takakura Her debut songs ” Maji de Koi suru 5sumae ” ( 5 seconds before Koi in Maji ) and ” Daisuki! are representative songs, but I like their third single ” Kaze no Prism ” written and composed by Yuko Hara. The refreshing lyrics are perfect for the Hirosue of that time.

Nakamori: Reluctant!　Indeed, it is a song that embodies the world view of Hirosue, who were purists, more so than “Maji de Koi suru 5 seconds before”.

Yoshida At the time, the purist Hirosue and the gyaru-type Namie Amuro (48) were like rivals, weren’t they? In my sense, the next idol after Hirosue was Ami Suzuki (44), who debuted in ’98.

Precious solo idols

Ami~go Takakura was a member of “Morning Musume。 and CHEMISTRY, among others. Their first single, ” love the island,” immediately sold nearly 300,000 copies.

Yoshida The following ” alone in my room” sold 350,000 copies, and the third single ” all night long” sold 390,000 copies, and they quickly became stars.

Nakamori: I was impressed by ” BE TOGETHER,” which sold 800,000 copies in 1999. It was a cover song by TM NETWORK, and Norihiro Akaboshi, formerly of the Hanshin Tigers, used it as his entrance song when he was a youngster.

Takakura: The Ami~go song I would like to include in the ranking is “love the island”. The key is set at a high level that she could barely sing from that time, but it matches well with the sadness and strength of the theme of the song.
Also, Chisato Moritaka (57) should be included as one of the ’90s idols.

Nakamori: I remember Moritaka’s manager saying to me when she first debuted in 1987, “She’s just another Kyoko Koizumi. I think the point was that she was seen as beautiful and stylish, but without individuality, but that was outrageous. Today, she is the one and only.

Yoshida She has many hit songs, such as ” Watarase-bashi ” (1993) and ” Kaze ni Fukarete ” ( Blowin’ in the Wind), but the impact of ” Watashi wa Obasan ni Surarimete ” ( Even if I Become an Obasan ), released in 1992, is tremendous.

Nakamori: I agree. In terms of sales, “Watarase-bashi” and “Kaze ni Fukarete (Blowin’ in the Wind)” are better than “Watarase-bashi,” but “Watashi wa Obasan ni Natte (Even if I Become an Obasan)” is synonymous with Moritaka. It is a classic song that has been covered by many idols and artists, including Nozomi Tsuji (38) and Maki Goto (40).

The second part is here】 A roundtable discussion on idol songs of the 1990s: Akio Nakamori, Naoki Yoshida, and Fuminori Takakura selected the 10 best songs of the decade!

From the May 15-22, 2026 issue of “FRIDAY