Mizutani Chieko was once known as the “Hokuriku Skylark” and is a favorite enka singer of Futaba Shojin. Recently, after 50 years in show business, she announced her move to Columbia Records, a long-established enka label that is celebrating its 115th anniversary since its founding from Futaba Shojin Music Publishing. On Friday, August 2nd, her first releases from Columbia Records will be the legendary duet “Maso no Tsuki” with her ally Hama Rose and the popular song “Amaetattet Damesa,” which will mark a new chapter for Mizutani Chieko.
“Maso no Tsuki” was scheduled to be released at the height of the bubble economy about 30 years ago, but the release was canceled due to the influence of the “Akasaka Rebellion,” which caused Chieko Mizutani and Hama Rose to distance themselves from each other. It became a phantom duet song. After performing together at Chieko Mizutani’s Meijiza performance in 2021, they broke their silence and started moving again, and after three years, it was released digitally on August 2nd. “Amaetattete Damesa” is the latest song by Futaba Shojin’s top disciple, Futaba Keitaro, and is a pop song that will bring light to modern society and is a new frontier for Chieko Mizutani.
Now, on Saturday, August 3rd, Mizutani Chieko held the “Mizutani Chieko’s Banquet Join Concert” at Meijiza in Tokyo, where she sang “Maso no Tsuki” with Hama Rose for the first time in three years.
Mizutani appeared on stage in a monogram-style kimono with “BAKAITTERU” written on it, which is also the cover of “Amaetattete Damesa”, and greeted the audience with “Welcome today!” She started the stage with her original song “Chieko no Wink”. She continued singing “Kumori no Chi…” while moving left and right on the stage.
“Welcome everyone. It’s great. Thank you very much. This is the first Utage join concert at Meijiza Theater, and we wanted to hold a concert that was like a Utage, so this is the first one,” she said after greeting the audience, and then she sang “Happy Boogie,” the theme song to the morning drama “Boogie Woogie,” in which her friend Tomochika appeared.
After that, she introduced the new song, “Well, next I’d like to perform ‘Amatettatte Damesa’, which was released yesterday. This song is about a very strong woman, and it contains the message that if you complain about things behind the scenes, you should stand up and live in the world properly.” Then she sang the newly released “Amatettatte Damesa”. “It’s a pretty cool tune, isn’t it? I asked Futaba Keitaro-sensei to write a song about a strong woman, and he wrote a song that was just as I imagined, so I’d like to sing it with care.” After that, she sang KUWATA BAND’s “Skip Beat” with dancers, and the first half ended. After enjoying joining Masashi Sada in the middle of the show, she called out, “I’d like to sing the new song that was released yesterday and released, so I’d like to call you in. Hama Rose, please come in,” and Rose, who looks like Matsuko Deluxe, appeared on stage in a black silk outfit. Mizutani said, “It’s amazing that Hama Rose came to see Chieko,” to which Rose replied, “That’s right, we hadn’t spoken to each other for 30 years,” and together they explained the trouble that occurred at Mizutani’s 20th anniversary party, the “Akasaka Rebellion.” Hama Rose came to the party in a bad mood, mistaking the venue, the Akasaka Prince Hotel, for the New Otani, and Mizutani got angry and hit her over the head with the microphone. Rose explained how they came to perform together, saying, “And so she invited me on the occasion of the 50th anniversary.” Afterwards, Hama Rose introduced “Mayonaka no Door ~Stay with me~” as “the first song I’ve sung in public.”
When Mizutani reappeared, Hama Rose called on the audience to turn their penlights orange, and when all the penlights in the audience were orange, Mizutani introduced the song, saying, “It’s only just started streaming, so please listen to it. It’s a duet with Hama Rose-chan.” The two then sang “Maso no Tsuki” in perfect harmony. Mizutani commented, “But it feels good to be able to sing it after it’s been released, because everyone knows it a little bit.” Hama Rose also urged, “If you haven’t listened to it yet, as soon as you get home today, ask your daughter, son, or grandchild how to do it and listen to it.”
The main part of the show then came to an end, with a joint appearance by Man Mikio, who resembles Sandwichman’s Date Mikio.
After that, Mizutani Chieko appeared for an encore to thunderous applause and said, “Chieko is from Fukui Prefecture, and there is a joyful dance called Echigo-mae dance. I will dance holding grilled tofu. After that, I would like to open the tofu.” After performing the Echigo-mae dance with grilled tofu, she performed the tofu opening ceremony, praying for the health and happiness of the audience.
After the encore, he expressed his gratitude, saying, “If you all continue to support us, we would like to continue these concerts two or three more times. And we would like to come back to Meijiza again. Our motto is, ‘I’ll be back!’ Thank you all so much today,” and closed the show to a thrilling audience of 1,500.
The “Mizutani Chieko’s Banquet Join Concert” will be held the following day, August 4th (Sunday) at the Meijiza in Tokyo, on August 31st (Saturday) and September 1st (Sunday) at the Shin Kabukiza in Osaka, and on October 26th (Saturday) and 27th (Sunday) at the Aichi Prefectural Arts Theater Main Hall.
◆ Song information
2024.08.02. 2 songs released simultaneously
“Maso’s Moon”
Chieko Mizutani x Hama Rose
Lyrics and composition: Keitaro Futaba
COKM-45272https://MizutaniChieko.lnk.to/masoonotsuki
“There’s no point in being spoiled.”
Chieko Mizutani
Lyrics and composition: Keitaro Futaba
COKM-45281https://MizutaniChieko.lnk.to/amaetattedamesa
◆Profile
Chieko Mizutani
As a child, he made a spontaneous appearance on the show “Uta Imitation Live,” where he became the grand champion, catching the eye of Futaba Shojin, who was also the chairman of the show’s judges, and he entered the entertainment industry.
As a young girl, Mizutani Chieko was nicknamed the “Hokuriku Skylark” for her outstanding singing voice and became a sensation at numerous competitions.
Their debut song “Banpaku Sasanishiki” became a huge hit, and they went on to win numerous music awards for songs such as “Scotch ga Osuki Desho” and “Mizuchierumba.”
Currently, he is active in a wide range of fields as a bridge between Enka and J-POP. In addition to the “Thank You Concert” in all 47 prefectures, he also hosts the music festival “Keypon Shining Song Festival.”
2019: “Chieko Mizutani 50th Anniversary Performance” at Meijiza (first performance as leader).
2021: “Chieko Mizutani 50th Anniversary Performance” Meijiza/Hakataza (first performance as leader).
2023: “Chieko Mizutani 50th Anniversary Performance” Meijiza and Hakataza.
Hama Rose
A big name in the world of enka, she has a connection, ties, friendship, and feud with Chieko. She debuted at the same time as Chieko as a super newcomer, and her catchphrase “Nanisa” took the world by storm.
During the height of the bubble economy, she distanced herself from Chieko during the “Akasaka Rebellion.” Thirty years have passed since then… Their joint performance at the Meijiza Theater in 2021 was reported as a major event in the enka world.
Chieko Mizutani Nippon Columbia Official Website
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