Aki Yatsushiro and the Beginning of Showa Songs - February 1975

Aki Yatsushiro and the Beginning of Showa Songs - February 1975

In the mid-1970s, television was having a tremendous impact on the Japanese music scene, and the success or failure of a singer depended on his or her television appearances. In this context, Aki Yashiro emerged as an enka singer. Behind her was "Oida Mitsunori," who emphasized not only her singing ability but also her sense of rhythm and pitch. The article describes the process of her development and emphasizes the role of producers in the music industry at that time.

His masterpiece "Funauta" depicts the melancholy of a port town, and deeply expresses the loneliness of the common people. Ame no Moyo (Love Affair in the Rain)," a vivid song about a woman who entrusts her heart to the rain, won the 22nd Japan Record Award and made her a nationally known singer. These songs helped her gain popularity nationwide, and became a symbol of the era that connected the urban and the rural areas.

In the industry of the time, singers with limited singing ability were made into stars by the strategies of television and record companies, while singers with solid ability like Yashiro were the mainstay of enka. With the end of rapid economic growth and the increasing demand for enka that reflected the sentiments of the masses, Aki Yashiro's voice represented the emotions of the times and marked the beginning of the Showa era of enka.