Seiko Matsuda
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Seiko Matsuda (Matsuda Seiko, 松田聖子, born Kamachi Noriko, 蒲池法子, on March 10, 1962) is a Japanese pop singer-songwriter. Born in Kurume, Fukuoka, she rose to fame in 1980 as a teen idol, making her debut with the song "Hadashi no Kisetsu". Later in the same year, "Kaze wa Aki-iro" became the first of her 24 consecutive #1 hits in Japan.
Seiko used to hold the record for the most number 1 singles by a female singer until March 2006 when Ayumi Hamasaki's Startin' / Born To Be... reached number 1, making it her 26th single to top the charts. Nevertheless Seiko still holds the record of the most consecutive No.1 singles for a female artist, a record that she has been holding for two decades and not likely to be broken anytime soon (Ayumi has only 14 consecutive number 1 singles as of April 2006).
Seiko is also on the Top 3 list of Most No.1 albums, Most Top 10 singles and Most Top 10 albums. Widely recognised as one of the most influential artists in J-pop history, HMV Japan ranked her No. 10 Top Japanese Artist of All Time, and No. 7 Top Singer of All Time. Her unusual staying power gives her the title of 'Forever Idol'. Nobody in Japanese history (including royalty, politicians and sports stars) got more news coverage than Seiko.
Sony will be releasing a deluxe box set for Seiko in July 2006 that will set another record. This box set will contain 55 CDs, 860 songs costs 100,000 yen and has a play time of over 80 hours. It is definitely a tribute to Seiko's amazing music career.
Seiko still holds annual concerts, Christmas dinner shows and New Year's Eve Countdown shows. Despite of the high ticket price (her dinner show tickets are the most expensive among female artists), she always performs to a sold out crowd.
Married to actor Masaki Kanda from 1985 to 1997, she has a daughter, herself a singer, who performs under the name SAYAKA.
In addition to music, her career includes appearances in television, film, commercials, and radio. Two books of photos of Matsuda, and two books about her, have been published.
Appearances
TV
- The Big Easy (1997, USA Network)
- Partners (2000): Lin
- King of the Hill (May 12 2002, FOX): Dance Dance Girl
Movies
- Final Vendetta (1996): Naomi Nomura
- Armageddon (film) (1997): Asian Tourist
- Drop Dead Gorgeous (1999): Tina/Seiko Howard
- Gedo (2001): Saemi
External links
- [Seiko Matsuda Forever] (fan site, in English)
- [Official Website] (in Japanese)
- [Sony Music public site] (in Japanese)
- [Universal Music public site] (in Japanese)
- [HMV Japan - Top 100 Japanese pop artists] (in Japanese)
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