Momoe Yamaguchi

Overview

Momoe Yamaguchi (山口百恵, born 17 January 1959), now known by her married name Momoe Miura, is a Japanese former singer, actress and lyricist, and one of the defining idols of 1970s Japan. Her career ran from 1972 to 1980 under Hori Productions and CBS Sony. She released 32 singles, including three number one hits, and 21 studio albums, and starred in 15 feature films. Today she works as a freelance quilt artist. As a singer she wrote lyrics for her own songs under the pen name Kei Yokosuka. Her husband is actor Tomokazu Miura; their sons are Yutaro Miura and Takahiro Miura.

Career

Born in Ebisu, Shibuya, Tokyo, she grew up in Yokohama and then Yokosuka. At the end of 1972 she appeared on the talent show Star Tanjō! singing Yumi Makiba's "Kaiten Mokuba", finished second, and received offers from around 20 companies before signing with Hori Productions and CBS Sony. She was promoted alongside Masako Mori and Junko Sakurada as the "Hana no Chūsan Torio".

She appeared in the film Toshigoro in April 1973 and debuted as a singer with the title song that May. The debut sold below expectations, so her second single, "Aoi Kajitsu", shifted her image toward daring lyrics. The 1974 hit "Hito Natsu no Keiken" brought this "blue sexuality" approach to full bloom and made her enormously popular. Asked in interviews what a girl's most precious possession was, she consistently answered "magokoro" (sincerity).

In 1974 she also starred in the literary film Izu no Odoriko, winning acclaim as an actress. Her co-star Tomokazu Miura had already appeared with her in a Glico commercial, and the pair became known as the "golden combi"; she headlined 13 films, 12 of them with Miura. On television she made her first regular appearance in Kao de Waratte (October 1973) and from October 1974 starred in the Akai (Red) series of dramas, ending with Akai Sensen.

From the 1976 single "Yokosuka Story" she sang works by the husband-and-wife team Ryudo Uzaki and Yoko Aki, who contributed 69 songs across singles and albums; Yamaguchi herself chose them. In 1977 she won the bronze prize at the 6th Tokyo Music Festival with "Yume Saki Annainin", and in 1978 she closed the 29th NHK Kōhaku Uta Gassen for the red team, the first teenager to do so, a record for youngest still unbroken. She ranked first among women in portrait-card sales in 1976.

In October 1979 she announced her relationship with Miura at a recital in Osaka, and on 7 March 1980 she announced her engagement and retirement together. Her autobiography Aoi Toki, published in September 1980, sold over two million copies. At her final concert at the Nippon Budokan on 5 October 1980 she sang "Sayonara no Mukōgawa" and then set her microphone down at center stage before walking off. She married Tomokazu Miura on 19 November 1980 and has not appeared publicly since.

Musical Style

Her work is classified as kayokyoku, enka and J-pop. The contrast between her innocent look and suggestive lyrics gave her a distinctive appeal, the result partly of careful image strategy by her agency and record label. Her early songs came from the team of composer Shunichi Tokura and lyricist Kazuya Senge; later the Uzaki–Aki collaboration defined her world. Signature songs include "Yokosuka Story", "Yume Saki Annainin", "Imitation Gold", "Cosmos", "Playback Part 2" and "Ii Hi Tabidachi".