Minayo Watanabe | |
---|---|
Born | September 28, 1969 |
Origin | Nishiharu, Aichi Prefecture, Japan |
Genres | J-pop, pop |
Occupation(s) | Idol, singer |
Years active | 1985–present |
Minayo Watanabe (渡辺 美奈代, born September 28, 1969) is a Japanese idol and singer.She debuted as member number 29 of the idol group Onyanko Club. [1] [2] As she was one of the most popular members, in 1986 she started releasing solo songs. Her solo career continued after the group disbanded in 1987. [1]
She has an elder brother, an elder sister, and a younger sister. [3] She was born in Gifu Prefecture, but moved to Nishikasugai District in Aichi Prefecture when she was two years old. [4] Her father owned a construction company. [3] Once she enrolled at Tenjin Junior High School ( 天神中学校), she became obsessed with table tennis. [5]
In April 1985, she enrolled at Inazawa Girls' High School ( 稲沢女子高校) in the local area and also attended a celebrity training school in Nagoya. [6] This led to her being scouted by CBS Sony Records. [6] [7] She also joined Burning Production ( バーニングプロダクション), a leading entertainment agency, thus she quit high school and moved to Tokyo. [8] [9] [10] Note that since Burning Production had limited the number of celebrities belonging to the agency, Megumi Mori ( 森恵), who was waiting for her debut as a singer, was released to its affiliate agency after Watanabe, who was highly favored by Ikuo Suhō ( 周防郁夫), the president of Burning Production, joined the agency. [10] In November 1985, she auditioned for the variety show Yūyake Nyan Nyan("Sunset Meow Meow") ( 夕やけニャンニャン) on Fuji TV and was accepted along with Mutsumi Yokota ( 横田睦美), Chiaki Mikami ( 三上千晶), and Yūko Yajima ( 矢島裕子). [7] [11] [12] Unlike usually, the audition at this time was a joint project with the popular radio program Young Paradise ( ヤングパラダイス), featuring comedian Yūji Miyake ( 三宅裕司) as DJ, and they were also looking for a poster girl for the radio program. [7] [11] In December 1985, she and Yokota became regular performers on a radio program called Onyanko no Abunai Yorudayo ( おニャン子のアブない夜だよ), featuring Sonoko Kawai and Sayuri Kokushō as DJs. [13] [14]
In February 1986, when Kokushō made her solo debut with the song Valentine Kiss, she and Mako Shiraishi served as backing vocalists. [15] [16] In March 1986, Kawai and Kokushō left the radio program, and Shiraishi was joined as a new DJ. [13] [14] [17] Shortly thereafter, Watanabe caused controversy by saying on the program that "the old ladies were no longer here". [13] [17] In response, Kawai retorted, "When Minayo-chan turns 20, will you be able to maintain your youthfulness like I have?" [13] [17] In April 1986, she enrolled at Horikoshi High School, where many celebrities have attended. [8] In July 1986, a large-scale Handshake Event (握手会, Akushukai) was held at the Nippon Budokan, and she shook hands with 12,000 fans who gathered there. [15] [18] [19] Shortly thereafter, she made her solo debut with the song Hitomi ni Yakusoku ( 瞳に約束), which ranked No. 1 on the Oricon in its first appearance. [20] [21] As a result, she had five consecutive No. 1 songs since her debut as a solo singer. [6] [22] [23] In November 1986, she released her debut album called Alfalfa ( Alfalfa). [24] [25]
In January 1987, she suddenly started crying while singing her new song Too Adult ( Too Adult) on Yūyake Nyan Nyan. [17] [26] The reason was that she was emotionally unstable due to a poor rehearsal for a popular singing show called Yoru no Hit Studio ( 夜のヒットスタジオ). [17] [26] In April 1987, she started a radio program called Senobishite Rouge (背のびしてルージュ, Senobishite Rūju). [13] [14] She remained with the group until September 1987, when Onyanko Club disbanded. [15] [27] She was positioned as a new leader of Onyanko Club. [7] [9] [28] She was considered a legitimate beauty among the Onyanko Club members, many of whom were said to be not very good looking. [27] In addition, Yasushi Akimoto, who was deeply involved with Onyanko Club, described her as "like she was born to be an idol." [29] Since her debut as a solo singer in July 1986, she remained one of the most popular members of the group. [15] [27] She and another popular member, Marina Watanabe, were referred to as W Watanabe (W渡辺, Daburu Watanabe), and the two were frequently compared. [15] [27] [28]
After the disbandment of Onyanko Club, she often appeared not only as a singer but also on variety shows such as Ken Shimura's I'm All Right ( 志村けんのだいじょうぶだぁ). [6] [15] In the mid-1990s, she released several semi-nude photo books. [28] [30] In 1996, she married Masaki Yajima (矢島昌樹, Yajima Masaki), a member of the rockabilly band Hot Sox, and had two children. [6] [15] [28] When she gave birth to her first son in 1997, she released a video of the birth. [28] In 2002, she participated in the reunion of Onyanko Club. [31] She has since continued her entertainment career while also being involved in a nail salon and an interior design store. [6] [15] In addition, her two sons also made their debut in the entertainment industry. [6]
No | Title | Release date |
Oricon Weekly Singles Chart [1] |
Album |
---|---|---|---|---|
1 | "Hitomi ni Yakusoku" (瞳に約束) | July 16, 1986 | 1 | Alfalfa |
2 | "Yuki no Kaerimichi" (雪の帰り道) | October 15, 1986 | 1 | |
3 | "TOO ADULT" | January 15, 1987 | 1 | Hopping |
4 | "PINK no CHAO" (PINKのCHAO) | April 15, 1987 | 1 | |
5 | "Amaryllis" (アマリリス) | July 29, 1987 | 1 | Frill |
6 | "Girls on the Roof" (ガールズ・オン・ザ・ルーフ) | November 18, 1987 | 2 | |
7 | "Ryote Ippai no Memory" (両手いっぱいのメモリー) | February 26, 1988 | 10 | Kiss! Kiss! Kiss! |
8 | "Chotto Fallin' Love" (ちょっとFallin’Love) | May 18, 1988 | 6 | My Boy |
9 | "Daite Ageru" (抱いてあげる) | August 3, 1988 | 6 | The Heart of Love |
10 | "Ii ja Nai" (いいじゃない) | November 9, 1989 | 13 | |
11 | "Ai ga Nakucha, ne!" (愛がなくちゃ、ネッ!) | January 21, 1989 | 14 | Kiss! Kiss! Kiss! |
12 | "Winter Spring, Summer Fall" (Winterスプリング、Summerフォール) |
June 14, 1989 | 14 | |
13 | "Romance Kōitten" (恋愛紅一点) | November 22, 1989 | 34 | |
14 | "Pizzicato Princess" (ピチカートプリンセス) | August 22, 1990 | 43 | Will |
15 | "Hanako no Kekkon" (Hanakoの結婚) | August 23, 1991 | 90 | |
16 | "Ofuro de GO!" (オフロでGO!) | April 26, 1995 | — | |
17 | "Iroiro Attakedo" (いろいろあったけど) | April 24, 1996 |
No | Title | Release date |
---|---|---|
1 | Alfalfa (アルファルファ) |
November 29, 1986 |
2 | Hopping (ホッピング) |
May 28, 1987 |
3 | Frill (フリル) |
December 21, 1987 |
— | Sweet Little Songs
|
July 1, 1988 |
4 | My Boy: Utae! Taiyō - a summer place (My Boy -歌え! 太陽- a summer place) |
August 19, 1988 |
5 | The Heart of Love: Koishiteru to, Ii ne (the Heart of Love ~恋してると、いいね~) |
February 10, 1989 |
Title | Release date |
Oricon Weekly Albums Chart [1] |
---|---|---|
Kiss! Kiss! Kiss!: Minayo Watanabe Best (KISS! KISS! KISS! -MINAYO WATANABE BEST-) |
December 21, 1989 | 31 |
Will: Minayo Selections (WILL ~MINAYO SELECTIONS~) |
October 21, 1991 | |
Watanabe Minayo Best Collection (渡辺美奈代ベスト・コレクション) |
July 21, 1997 | |
Golden Best - Watanabe Minayo Singles (GOLDEN☆BEST 渡辺美奈代 SINGLES) |
November 20, 2002 |
Minayo Watanabe | |
---|---|
Born | September 28, 1969 |
Origin | Nishiharu, Aichi Prefecture, Japan |
Genres | J-pop, pop |
Occupation(s) | Idol, singer |
Years active | 1985–present |
Minayo Watanabe (渡辺 美奈代, born September 28, 1969) is a Japanese idol and singer.She debuted as member number 29 of the idol group Onyanko Club. [1] [2] As she was one of the most popular members, in 1986 she started releasing solo songs. Her solo career continued after the group disbanded in 1987. [1]
She has an elder brother, an elder sister, and a younger sister. [3] She was born in Gifu Prefecture, but moved to Nishikasugai District in Aichi Prefecture when she was two years old. [4] Her father owned a construction company. [3] Once she enrolled at Tenjin Junior High School ( 天神中学校), she became obsessed with table tennis. [5]
In April 1985, she enrolled at Inazawa Girls' High School ( 稲沢女子高校) in the local area and also attended a celebrity training school in Nagoya. [6] This led to her being scouted by CBS Sony Records. [6] [7] She also joined Burning Production ( バーニングプロダクション), a leading entertainment agency, thus she quit high school and moved to Tokyo. [8] [9] [10] Note that since Burning Production had limited the number of celebrities belonging to the agency, Megumi Mori ( 森恵), who was waiting for her debut as a singer, was released to its affiliate agency after Watanabe, who was highly favored by Ikuo Suhō ( 周防郁夫), the president of Burning Production, joined the agency. [10] In November 1985, she auditioned for the variety show Yūyake Nyan Nyan("Sunset Meow Meow") ( 夕やけニャンニャン) on Fuji TV and was accepted along with Mutsumi Yokota ( 横田睦美), Chiaki Mikami ( 三上千晶), and Yūko Yajima ( 矢島裕子). [7] [11] [12] Unlike usually, the audition at this time was a joint project with the popular radio program Young Paradise ( ヤングパラダイス), featuring comedian Yūji Miyake ( 三宅裕司) as DJ, and they were also looking for a poster girl for the radio program. [7] [11] In December 1985, she and Yokota became regular performers on a radio program called Onyanko no Abunai Yorudayo ( おニャン子のアブない夜だよ), featuring Sonoko Kawai and Sayuri Kokushō as DJs. [13] [14]
In February 1986, when Kokushō made her solo debut with the song Valentine Kiss, she and Mako Shiraishi served as backing vocalists. [15] [16] In March 1986, Kawai and Kokushō left the radio program, and Shiraishi was joined as a new DJ. [13] [14] [17] Shortly thereafter, Watanabe caused controversy by saying on the program that "the old ladies were no longer here". [13] [17] In response, Kawai retorted, "When Minayo-chan turns 20, will you be able to maintain your youthfulness like I have?" [13] [17] In April 1986, she enrolled at Horikoshi High School, where many celebrities have attended. [8] In July 1986, a large-scale Handshake Event (握手会, Akushukai) was held at the Nippon Budokan, and she shook hands with 12,000 fans who gathered there. [15] [18] [19] Shortly thereafter, she made her solo debut with the song Hitomi ni Yakusoku ( 瞳に約束), which ranked No. 1 on the Oricon in its first appearance. [20] [21] As a result, she had five consecutive No. 1 songs since her debut as a solo singer. [6] [22] [23] In November 1986, she released her debut album called Alfalfa ( Alfalfa). [24] [25]
In January 1987, she suddenly started crying while singing her new song Too Adult ( Too Adult) on Yūyake Nyan Nyan. [17] [26] The reason was that she was emotionally unstable due to a poor rehearsal for a popular singing show called Yoru no Hit Studio ( 夜のヒットスタジオ). [17] [26] In April 1987, she started a radio program called Senobishite Rouge (背のびしてルージュ, Senobishite Rūju). [13] [14] She remained with the group until September 1987, when Onyanko Club disbanded. [15] [27] She was positioned as a new leader of Onyanko Club. [7] [9] [28] She was considered a legitimate beauty among the Onyanko Club members, many of whom were said to be not very good looking. [27] In addition, Yasushi Akimoto, who was deeply involved with Onyanko Club, described her as "like she was born to be an idol." [29] Since her debut as a solo singer in July 1986, she remained one of the most popular members of the group. [15] [27] She and another popular member, Marina Watanabe, were referred to as W Watanabe (W渡辺, Daburu Watanabe), and the two were frequently compared. [15] [27] [28]
After the disbandment of Onyanko Club, she often appeared not only as a singer but also on variety shows such as Ken Shimura's I'm All Right ( 志村けんのだいじょうぶだぁ). [6] [15] In the mid-1990s, she released several semi-nude photo books. [28] [30] In 1996, she married Masaki Yajima (矢島昌樹, Yajima Masaki), a member of the rockabilly band Hot Sox, and had two children. [6] [15] [28] When she gave birth to her first son in 1997, she released a video of the birth. [28] In 2002, she participated in the reunion of Onyanko Club. [31] She has since continued her entertainment career while also being involved in a nail salon and an interior design store. [6] [15] In addition, her two sons also made their debut in the entertainment industry. [6]
No | Title | Release date |
Oricon Weekly Singles Chart [1] |
Album |
---|---|---|---|---|
1 | "Hitomi ni Yakusoku" (瞳に約束) | July 16, 1986 | 1 | Alfalfa |
2 | "Yuki no Kaerimichi" (雪の帰り道) | October 15, 1986 | 1 | |
3 | "TOO ADULT" | January 15, 1987 | 1 | Hopping |
4 | "PINK no CHAO" (PINKのCHAO) | April 15, 1987 | 1 | |
5 | "Amaryllis" (アマリリス) | July 29, 1987 | 1 | Frill |
6 | "Girls on the Roof" (ガールズ・オン・ザ・ルーフ) | November 18, 1987 | 2 | |
7 | "Ryote Ippai no Memory" (両手いっぱいのメモリー) | February 26, 1988 | 10 | Kiss! Kiss! Kiss! |
8 | "Chotto Fallin' Love" (ちょっとFallin’Love) | May 18, 1988 | 6 | My Boy |
9 | "Daite Ageru" (抱いてあげる) | August 3, 1988 | 6 | The Heart of Love |
10 | "Ii ja Nai" (いいじゃない) | November 9, 1989 | 13 | |
11 | "Ai ga Nakucha, ne!" (愛がなくちゃ、ネッ!) | January 21, 1989 | 14 | Kiss! Kiss! Kiss! |
12 | "Winter Spring, Summer Fall" (Winterスプリング、Summerフォール) |
June 14, 1989 | 14 | |
13 | "Romance Kōitten" (恋愛紅一点) | November 22, 1989 | 34 | |
14 | "Pizzicato Princess" (ピチカートプリンセス) | August 22, 1990 | 43 | Will |
15 | "Hanako no Kekkon" (Hanakoの結婚) | August 23, 1991 | 90 | |
16 | "Ofuro de GO!" (オフロでGO!) | April 26, 1995 | — | |
17 | "Iroiro Attakedo" (いろいろあったけど) | April 24, 1996 |
No | Title | Release date |
---|---|---|
1 | Alfalfa (アルファルファ) |
November 29, 1986 |
2 | Hopping (ホッピング) |
May 28, 1987 |
3 | Frill (フリル) |
December 21, 1987 |
— | Sweet Little Songs
|
July 1, 1988 |
4 | My Boy: Utae! Taiyō - a summer place (My Boy -歌え! 太陽- a summer place) |
August 19, 1988 |
5 | The Heart of Love: Koishiteru to, Ii ne (the Heart of Love ~恋してると、いいね~) |
February 10, 1989 |
Title | Release date |
Oricon Weekly Albums Chart [1] |
---|---|---|
Kiss! Kiss! Kiss!: Minayo Watanabe Best (KISS! KISS! KISS! -MINAYO WATANABE BEST-) |
December 21, 1989 | 31 |
Will: Minayo Selections (WILL ~MINAYO SELECTIONS~) |
October 21, 1991 | |
Watanabe Minayo Best Collection (渡辺美奈代ベスト・コレクション) |
July 21, 1997 | |
Golden Best - Watanabe Minayo Singles (GOLDEN☆BEST 渡辺美奈代 SINGLES) |
November 20, 2002 |