I prefer Japanese women with natural dark/black hair the most. :yes

Daite is one of my all-time favorites from her Citron album. I agree, the performance is brilliant, just too bad that it has audio sync issues. Unfortunately, I do not have it in my video collection either. :(

SEIKO RELEASE SCHEDULE:

→ 2010.03.31: Seiko Matsuda Count Down Live Party 2009-2010 DVD. Limited edition features three-fold box, and includes a deluxe booklet. I have not watched her summer concert tour yet. Soon there will be two concerts that I miss a copy of.

→ 2010.04.21: "アイドルみたいに歌わせて" (Idol Mitai ni Utawasete) featuring Princess Seiko. Fifth single release from Yazima Beauty Salon. As mentioned in my previous post, it's the "Yazima Beauty Salon The Movie ~Yume Tsukama Nevada~" theme song. Doesn't sound that special to me when I listened to the previews, but excited for it nonetheless. It does have a PV. Let's hope they will air it on M-ON! or SSTV before its release. I will put it up for download if they do.

→ 2010.05.26: Seiko Matsuda Single Collection 30th Anniversary Box ~The voice of a Queen~. Sony Records releasing all Seiko singles in one box (yes, that's 73 discs in total). All tracks have been 2010 remastered. How they got permission to include the Universal releases is beyond me. The price? It's yours for merely 69,800 JPN. Not that cheap, huh? Gotta love the name, but not purchasing... Please Seiko, release brand new music.

http://img706.imageshack.us/img706/8329/seiko0708.jpg
from 1987 "five seasons" photobook

Sorry for double post...

Count Down Live Party 2009-2010
DVD covers and tracklist are out ( :heart ):

http://img169.imageshack.us/img169/9...0212104389.jpghttp://img242.imageshack.us/img242/9...0212104389.jpg

1　チェリーブラッサム
2　青い珊瑚礁
3　風は秋色
4　Rock'n　Rouge
5　流星ナイト
6　風立ちぬ
7　マイアミ午前5時
8　渚のバルコニー
9　瞳はダイアモンド
10　時間旅行
11　セイシェルの夕陽
12　あなたに逢いたくて～Missing You～
13　Kimono　Beat
14　赤いスイートピー
15　ever since　（神田沙也加）
16　上弦の月（神田沙也加）
17　時間の国のアリス
18　裸足の季節
19　硝子のプリズム
20　Eighteen
21　天使のウインク
22　夏の扉
23　SQUALL
24　20th　Party
25　涙がただこぼれるだけ

This concert seems awesome!

---


ESSE 2010 April issue has a Seiko interview:
(click to enlarge)　Credit to Daisuki.

http://img176.imageshack.us/img176/725/essecover.jpg

http://img294.imageshack.us/img294/2546/essemag.jpg

Wish I had a proper scan. Impossible to read any of it.


---


March, 10th is coming up. Seiko turns 48 years old.

http://img121.imageshack.us/img121/7306/happybdayi.jpg
from "The Best Ten", 1983.03.10

HAPPY BIRTHDAY in advance!

^48 years old?!?!?!!?
wow...she looks like in her 30s or something that a lot younger than her real age...

Wowww, 48 O_O

omg if only I could buy her concert but I don't have money enough T_T.
Ayu is first in my heart so I buy her stuff before others but even for her I miss some concert dvd's.
The covers are really pretty and the outfits are so simple and so nice.

The covers are great!! Seiko looks very beautiful!! I hope someone rip the concert because I really wanna watch it

This pic is so beautiful.
And I agree with you, she looks much younger then she is

Summer Concert 2010
title to be determined at a later time!

2010.06.06 @ Saitama Super Arena
2010.06.13 @ Nagano Big Hat
2010.06.19 @ Nippon Gaishi Hall (Nagoya)
2010.06.20 @ Nippon Gaishi Hall (Nagoya)
2010.06.27 @ Sekisui Heim Super Arena (Rifu, Miyagi)
2010.07.03 @ Osaka-Jo Hall
2010.07.04 @ Osaka-Jo Hall
2010.07.10 @ Nippon Budokan
2010.07.11 @ Nippon Budokan
2010.07.24 @ Yokohama Arena
2010.08.01 @ Hiroshima Green Arena
2010.08.05 @ Kagoshima Arena
2010.08.07 @ Marine Messe Fukuoka

SS seat: 21,000 JPY (includes gifts).
S seat: 8,400 JPY.

You have to be a Fanticlub member to apply for SS seat.

Did you Seiko fans here about her being in Yazima Beauty Salon's movie!?

That's going to be amazing ( :laugh ). Her character's name is "Princess Seiko" or something.

http://www.yazima.jp/

wow she still held that much concert in the big venue?

:happybday

お誕生日おめでとう

http://img54.imageshack.us/img54/282...0480104448.jpg

聖子ちゃん。

@Strobe: Yeah, pretty much. Posted about it a few posts back!

@AyuGAME: Seiko never stopped. It must be a great business, otherwise she wouldn't be doing it annually. Still manages to attract enough fans, also to the bigger venues. She might age but the loyal core fanbase won't disappear. 1986 and 1990 are still the only years in her whole career she hasn't hold a tour.

She holds the female record for most performances in the Nippon Budokan. She has been there every time since 1982. Which totals it up to an impressive 91 times. A few more years and the 100 will be broken. The all time record is 102 times, by both Eikichi Yazawa and Fumiya Fujii.


I found these today:

http://img215.imageshack.us/img215/8...ackson1sma.jpg
http://img442.imageshack.us/img442/9...eljackson2.jpg

Seiko together with Michael Jackson? At least that woman looks a lot like she did in the early 90s.
Brilliant that she got to meet him. Seiko has always been a huge MJ fan. :thumbsup

^ That's crazy! I wonder if they were friends. I wonder what a collaboration between them would have been like.

So Seiko Matsuda being one of the most popular/loved acts of all time, I kind of feel bad I've never given her music a chance. I've enjoyed music by older artists like Yuming and Happy End so she must have something good too.

Suggestions? Oh and does she do mostly ballads? It's the kind of impression I've gotten.

Oh, wow. Don't know how I missed to check out Happy End before. Strange considering that I like Japanese music from the Shouwa era. That band seems kind of legendary if you ask me. Haruomi Hosono, Takashi Matsumoto and Eiichi Ohtaki. Huge names. All of which have been more or less connected to Seiko's music (in terms of lyrics and composing) as well.

As for Seiko, try one of her best albums. She sings "idol pops". :P

---

New promo pictures for the new Yazima Beauty Salon single:

http://img638.imageshack.us/img638/9...zimaseiko1.jpg
http://img8.imageshack.us/img8/1786/yazimaseiko2.jpg

There is supposed to be a Yazima Beauty Salon + Seiko interview on "Tunnels no Minasan Okagedeshita" today. About the upcoming movie and song collaboration. It airs in less than four hours from now. I won't be at home during that hour, so I can't watch it. Doubt that I will be able to share the show at D-Addicts this time either. I believe they have begun filming the PV already.

---

So, Seiko turned 48 yesterday. She might look young for her age... but how did she look as a child? Here are a few rare photos from the 1960s and 1970s:

http://img502.imageshack.us/img502/7994/seikochild1.jpg http://img121.imageshack.us/img121/647/seikochild3.jpg
http://img215.imageshack.us/img215/5070/seikochild2.jpg http://img704.imageshack.us/img704/7...1ef1abe7c5.jpg

the pics for the new single are so funny. But seiko is really cute.

She was so adorable when she was young *.*

Does anyone know if Seiko went through some scandals in her career? Just curious...

Sure, Seiko still has had more tabloid coverage than any other celebrity in Japan (source: NHK documentary). Countless of those are about scandals. Some have said that she has had an equal amount of scandals as success. Most of the time it is about her "unstable" private life where she had love affairs while being a married woman. Nothing major though. Usually, idols are caught smoking or something, which they can't afford because of their perfect and pure image. Nothing like that for Seiko. A few examples:

• According to rumours Seiko and Hiromi Go were supposed to marry in early 1985. However, she dumped him because, in return, he "demanded" her to quit the show business. There was a press conference held to announce the breakup. Instead she went to marry actor Masaki Kanda only a half year later. Got pregnant during the peak of her career. For idols, it's common to settle down and have children when their career is at its end, not when it's on going. She was back on stage less than three months after giving birth (for 1986 Japan Record Awards and Kouhaku Uta Gassen).

• In 1987, she decided to return to the music industry despite having a young child. This shocked conservative Japan, but made her an icon for ambitious young women. At that time, she had received a new nickname: mamadoru (short for mama + idol).

• 1989, a dark year for rival Akina Nakamori. Seiko and Masahiko Kondo (Akina's boyfriend at the time) were spotted together in New York by the media. They were said to have a relationship behind Akina's back. Three months later and Akina attempted suicide in her lovers apartment. Hardcore Akina Nakamori fans still blame and dislike Seiko today because of this.

• She quit her management company (Sun Music) only to create her own (Fantic). Which was said to be a scandalous and disrespectful move against the music industry.

• In 1998, she was sued for sexual harassment. An unsuccessful 350,000 USD suit was filed against her by one of her American dancers. I can sort of understand why he did it. If you have watched a certain concert tour and a Music Station performance you will know what I am talking about.

• She married her 11-year-old daughter's dentist in 1998. It was her second marriage. The previous year she had a divorce. Her first marriage was far from ideal, as far as the media is trusted. According to them Seiko have had affairs with more than 30 men during the 12 years she was married to Kanda. It should be noted that the media has always been horrible against her. Privacy has been impossible. So, most of these "affairs" are undoubtedly blown out of proportion. Many respect Seiko because she has always overcame and got stronger despite scandal after scandal.

Here are some tabloid headline examples from June/July, 1996 ( :no ):

1996.07.11 @ Josei Jishin - "The Secret of Seiko's breast-up is exercise of foot boxing!"
1996.07.09 @ Josei Jishin - "Seiko make up her face as Mariah Carey's!"
1996.07.04 @ Josei Seven - "What does Seiko's Husband think about Seiko?"
1996.07.04 @ Josei Seven - "The secret of Seiko's advertisement"
1996.07.02 @ FLASH - "Seiko-looking Actress walked nude at Shibuya downtown"
1996.07.02 @ Shukan Josei - "Is Seiko's husband embarrassed her photos on magazine?"
1996.06.28 @ FRIDAY - "Queen of Scandals: Seiko Japan Tour '96"
1996.06.25 @ FOCUS - "Seiko Matsuda. Lovers and Nude"
1996.06.25 @ Shukan Josei - "Is Seiko nude really so nice?"
1996.06.22 @ Shukan Gendai - "Scoop! This is Seiko Nude"
1996.06.21 @ Shukan Post - "Japanese People are surprised at nude of Seiko"

Poor idols :( It must have been really hard for her... :(

Wha... O.O

I dont wanna see that price of complete cd 30th anniversary thingy..
anyway she has been 30 years in music industry but she didnt sell that much,right? she isnt in top 30 best selling artist,is she?
she must have sold alot if she has actived for 30 years like mr.Children, B'z, DVT or Southerr all star

I think she is in the TOP 30..don't remember which position exactly

As female solo artists only Ayu, Yumi Matsutoya, ZARD, and Utada have sold more. Whereof, only Yuming should be directly compared to. Acts who had their peak in 90s and later had an advantage. Sales were much better than 70s and 80s. Here below is a ranking, slightly outdated, but proves that she is definitely in the Top 30.

Artist Total Sales Ranking @ MUSIC STATION 2005.04.01:

01　B'z　75,614,000
02　Mr.Children　50,635,000
03　Southern All Stars　47,083,000
04　Hamasaki Ayumi　45,528,000
05　DREAMS COME TRUE　40,893,000
06　Matsutoya Yumi　37,790,000
07　GLAY　35,800,000
08　ZARD　35,450,000
09　Utada Hikaru　32,160,000
10　CHAGE & ASKA　31,220,000
11　Matsuda Seiko　29,260,000
12　GLOBE　28,600,000
13　SMAP　28,400,000
14　L'Arc~en~Ciel　25,760,000
15　Amuro Namie　25,750,000
16　Nakamori Akina　25,100,000
17　TUBE　23,880,000
18　Ohguro Maki　21,890,000
19　Every Little Thing　21,630,000
20　TRF　21,500,000
21　Nakajima Miyuki　21,310,000
22　KinKi Kids　20,790,000
23　Nagabushi Tsuyoshi　20,380,000
24　Makihara Noriyuki　19,830,000
25　SPEED　19,280,000
26　Fukuyama Masaharu　18,760,000
27　Itsuki Hiroshi　18,700,000
28　Kome Kome CLUB　18,320,000
29　Spitz　18,290,000
30　MISIA　17,150,000
31　Yamaguchi Momoe　16,190,000
32　Himuro Kyosuke　15,710,000
33　Inoue Yosui　15,670,000
34　Sawada Kenji　15,660,000
35　Go Hiromi　15,620,000
36　Morning Musume.　15,470,000
37　Mori Shinichi　15,400,000
38　The Checkers　15,300,000
39　Imai Miki　15,220,000
40　Nakayama Miho　14,970,000
41　Kudou Shizuka　14,820,000
42　Koizumi Kyoko　14,230,000
43　Kuraki Mai　14,220,000
44　JUDY AND MARY　14,130,000
45　Matsuyama Chiharu　14,030,000
46　Yazawa Eikichi　13,930,000
47　WANDS　13,730,000
48　T-BOLAN　13,610,000
49　Mariah Carey　13,460,000
50　Takeuchi Mariya　13,400,000