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Ikue Asazaki (born November 11th, 1935) is a Japanese folk singer that hails from the Amani Islands. As she grew up, her father influenced her early music. With music similar to New Age, her most famous albums are Utabautayun and Minya, the former having traditional songs from her home region.
She lived in Yokohoma for about ten years, serving from 1984 in the National Theatre of Japan. In 1990, she performed in Carnegie Hall in New York, L.A., and Cuba, along with performing in a concert at a temple in 2007. Currently, she lives in Tokyo.
Ikue Asazaki provides examples of the following tropes:
- Anime Theme Song: Not exactly, however, Obokuri-Eeumi was played as background in about two episodes of Samurai Champloo
- Bilingual Bonus: If one knows Japanese, especially since, besides the abovementioned "Obokuri-Eeumi", her other songs don't really have English translations.
- Double Meaning: "Tokunoshima-setsu" (or "Unada Uta") has something like this, according to the Japanese Wikipedia site.
- Folk Music: Generally, her songs are usually traditional songs from the region in which she grew up.
- Kimono Is Traditional: Rather downplayed. Probably as an allusion to much of songs being traditional in nature, her album covers tend to have her wearing a kimono.
- Lonely Piano Piece: Not so much a piece but, rather, it's a piano solo. This is most prominent with the songs "Yoisura" and "Obokuri-Eeumi"
- New Age: What some of her music teeters on.
- One-Woman Wail: Her trailing vocals act as this.
Discography:
With Major Labels[]
- Utabautayun (2002)
- Uta Ashiibi (Uta Asobi) (2003)
- Obokuri (2005)
Independent[]
- Amami (1997)
- うたじま「詩島」(2002)
- Shimayumuta (2006)
- Hamasaki (2007)
Ikue Asazaki has appeared in these works:
- Samurai Champloo: Her song, Obokuri-Eeumi was used in the background