(born February 4, 1966) is a Japanese singer and actress. She is signed to

Victor Entertainment , also known as in Japan, is a subsidiary of JVCKenwood that produces and distributes music, movies and other entertainment products such as anime and television shows in Japan. It is known as JVC Entertainment in countries where Sony Music Ent ...

Career

In 1981, Kyoko Koizumi participated and won the Star Tanjo! programme and released her 1st single in March 1982. She gained her first number one hit in 1984 and thereafter established herself as one of Japan's most popular pop idols, alongside rivals

Seiko Matsuda , known professionally as , is a Japanese pop singer and songwriter, known for being one of the most popular Japanese idols of the 1980s. Since then, she is still actively releasing new singles and albums, doing annual summer concert tours, win ...

and

Akina Nakamori is a Japanese Singing, singer and Actor, actress. She is one of the most popular and best-selling artists in Japan. Akina achieved national recognition after winning the 1981 season of the talent show ''Star Tanjō!''. Her debut single "Slow M ...

. Her biggest hit (あなたに会えてよかった) came in 1991, which sold more than a million copies in Japan alone. Koizumi went on to release another single (優しい雨) which is also over a million copies in total sale in 1993. Koizumi had singles reach the Top Ten for 12 consecutive years between 1983 and 1994, a female solo artist record, until this was broken by

Namie Amuro Namie Amuro ( ; ja, 安室奈美恵, Amuro Namie, label=none; born September 20, 1977) is a Japanese former recording artist, producer, songwriter, dancer, model, actress and entrepreneur who was active between 1992 and 2018. A leading figure of ...

. In the 1990s, she released a few dance remixes on vinyl only under the Koizumix Production moniker. She has worked with

Yoko Kanno is a Japanese composer, arranger and music producer best known for her work on the soundtracks of anime series, television series, live-action films, video games, and advertisements. She was born in Sendai, Miyagi Prefecture, Japan. She has wri ...

who composed the music for Koizumi's 1996 album, '' Otoko no Ko Onna no Ko''. She had her first hit single in 18 years when her version of the song "Shiosai no Memorī" from the 2013

NHK , also known as NHK, is a Japanese public broadcaster. NHK, which has always been known by this romanized initialism in Japanese, is a statutory corporation funded by viewers' payments of a television license fee. NHK operates two terrestr ...

morning television drama ''

Amachan is a Japanese television drama series. It debuted on April 1, 2013, and was broadcast until September 28, 2013. It was scripted by Kankurō Kudō and starred Rena Nōnen as Aki Amano, a high-school girl from Tokyo who moves to the Sanriku Coast i ...

'', in which Koizumi also acted, reached number 2 on the

Oricon Singles Chart The Oricon Singles Chart is the Japanese music industry-standard singles popularity chart issued daily, weekly, monthly and yearly by Oricon. Chart rankings are based on physical singles' sales. Until 2017, Oricon did not track download sales. In J ...

. With that, Koizumi made her 6th appearance (as a special guest performer) in the annual Red and White Song Festival, having previously participated from 1984 to 1988. From mid 90s onward, Koizumi shifted her focus onto acting. As an actress, she played in numerous dramas and movies, most notably, she was cast in two of the most successful movies in Japan ever: as the serial killer in '' Bayside Shakedown: The Movie'' (1998) and as the witch in '' Onmyoji'' (2001). She starred in

Toshiaki Toyoda is a Japanese film director and screenwriter. Career Born in Osaka Prefecture, Toyoda was first a prodigy in the game of shogi or Japanese chess. He attended the Japan Shogi Association's apprenticeship (Shōreikai) from age 9 with the aim of be ...

's 2006 film ''

Hanging Garden A hanging garden is a sustainable landscape architecture, an artistic garden or a small urban farm, attached to or built on a wall. They are mainly found in areas where land is scarce or where the farmer is mobile or not permanent. History The m ...

'' and

Kiyoshi Kurosawa is a Japanese film director, screenwriter, film critic and a professor at Tokyo University of the Arts. Although he has worked in a variety of genres, Kurosawa is best known for his many contributions to the Japanese horror genre, his honorific ...

's 2008 film ''

Tokyo Sonata is a 2008 Japanese film directed by Kiyoshi Kurosawa. It won the award for Best Film at the 3rd Asian Film Awards and received 2008 Asia Pacific Screen Awards nominations for Achievement in Directing and Best Screenplay. At the 2008 Cannes Film Fe ...

''. She starred in Kurosawa's 2012 television drama ''

Penance Penance is any act or a set of actions done out of Repentance (theology), repentance for Christian views on sin, sins committed, as well as an alternate name for the Catholic Church, Catholic, Lutheran, Eastern Orthodox, and Oriental Orthodox s ...

''. Koizumi was given the Best Actress award at the 1989

Yokohama Film Festival The is an annual awards ceremony held in Yokohama, Japan. Ten films are chosen as the best of the year and various awards are given to personnel. The first festival, held on February 3, 1980, was a small affair by fans and film critics. In 1994, ...

for her work in the film ''Kaito Ruby''. She won the award for best actress at the 26th

Hochi Film Award The are film-specific prizes awarded by the ''Hochi Shimbun , previously known as , is a Japanese-language daily sports newspaper. In 2002, it had a circulation of a million copies a day. It is an affiliate newspaper of ''Yomiuri Shimbun''. ...

s for ''Kaza Hana''. She also won the award for Best Actress at the 66th

Mainichi Film Awards The are a series of annual film awards, sponsored by Mainichi Shinbun (毎日新聞), one of the largest newspaper companies in Japan, since 1946. It is the first film festival in Japan. History The origins of the contest date back to 1935, ...

for ''

Mainichi Kaasan is a Japanese comedy manga series written and illustrated by Rieko Saibara, based on her experiences as a housewife and mother. It was serialized on a weekly basis in the newspaper's morning edition from October 2002 to 26 June 2017. The ...

''. She recently featured in the French-Japanese film, ''Umami'', directed by Slony Sow and starring

Gerard Depardieu Gerard is a masculine forename of Proto-Germanic origin, variations of which exist in many Germanic and Romance languages. Like many other early Germanic names, it is dithematic, consisting of two meaningful constituents put together. In this ca ...

, production of which took place in Hokkaido, Japan and Saumur, France.

Personal life

She married actor

Masatoshi Nagase is a Japanese actor. He is best known in the West for his roles in Friðrik Þór Friðriksson's ''Cold Fever'' and Jim Jarmusch's ''Mystery Train''. Nagase was described by Todd Brown of Twitch Film as "one of the great unsung heroes of Japane ...

in 1995, and divorced in 2004.

Discography

Studio albums

* ''My Fantasy'' (1982) * ''Utairo no Kisetsu'' (1982) * ''Breezing'' (1983) * ''Whisper'' (1983) * ''Betty'' (1984) * ''Today's Girl'' (1985) * ''Flapper'' (1985) * ''Kyoko no Kiyoku Tanoshiku Utsukushiku'' (1986) * ''Liar'' (1986) * ''Hippies'' (1987) * ''Phantasien'' (1987) * ''BEAT POP ~Koizumi Kyoko Super Session'' (1988) * ''Natsumelo'' (1988) * ''Koizumi in the House'' (1989) * ''No. 17'' (1990) * ''Afropia'' (1991) * ''Travel Rock'' (1993) * '' Otoko no Ko Onna no Ko'' (1996) * ''Kyo'' (1998) * ''Atsugi I.C.'' (2003) * ''Nice Middle'' (2008) * ''Collaborakyon'' (2011) * ''Koizumi Chansonnier'' (2012)

Remix albums

* ''Master Mix Party'' (1993) as Koizumix Production * ''89–99 Collection: Koizumix Production'' (1999)

EPs

* ''Separation Kyoko'' (1983) * ''Kyon Kyon Club'' (1984) * ''Fade Out: Super Remix Tracks'' (1989) * ''Super Remix Tracks II'' (1990) * ''Bambinater'' (1992) as Koizumix Production * ''Inner Beauty'' (2000) * ''Kyō 2'' (2001)

Soundtrack albums

* ''Boku no Onna ni Te wo Dasuna'' (1987) * ''Kaitou Ruby'' (1988)

Compilations

* ''Super Best: Thank You Kyoko'' (1983) * ''Celebration'' (1984) * ''Melodies: Kyoko Koizumi Song Book'' (1985) * ''Do You Love Me'' (1985) * ''The Best'' (1986) * ''Ballad Classics'' (1987) * ''CD File vol. 1 (Singles A & B)'' (1987) * ''CD File vol. 2 (Singles A & B)'' (1987) * ''CD File vol. 3 (Singles A & B)'' (1987) * ''Best of Kyong King'' (1988) * ''Ballad Classics II'' (1989) * ''CD File vol. 4 (Singles A & B)'' (1989) * ''K2 Best Seller'' (1992) * ''Anytime'' (1994) * ''Kyon 3, Koizumi the Great 51'' (2002) * ''K25 Kyoko Koizumi All Time Best'' (2007)

Filmography

Film

* ''

The Adventures of Milo and Otis is a 1986 Japanese adventure comedy-drama film about two animals, Milo (an orange tabby cat) and Otis (a pug). The original Japanese version, narrated by Shigeru Tsuyuki and with poetry recitation by Kyōko Koizumi, was released on July 12, ...

'' (1986) * ''

Kaitō Ruby is a 1988 Japanese film directed by Makoto Wada. Cast *Kyōko Koizumi - Rumi Kato (Ruby) *Hiroyuki Sanada - Toru Hayashi *Kumi Mizuno - Toru's mother *Hideyo Amamoto *Masumi Okada * Takanori Jinnai - Rumi's friend *Taisaku Akino - Detective *Aki ...

'' (1988) * '' Bayside Shakedown: The Movie'' (1998) * ''Kyohansha'' (1999) * ''Kaza Hana'' (2000) * '' Onmyoji'' (2001) * '' Blue Spring'' (2001) * ''Rockers'' (2003) * ''

What the Snow Brings is a 2005 Japanese drama film directed by Kichitaro Negishi and based on a novel by Shō Narumi. Synopsis Manabu Yazaki had left his family's home in Hokkaidō years before to go to Tokyo to earn a degree, start a company and get married. Now, ...

'' (2005) * ''

Survive Style 5+ ''Survive Style 5+'' is a 2004 Japanese film directed by Gen Sekiguchi and produced by Hiroyuki Taniguchi. It stars Tadanobu Asano, Kyōko Koizumi, Reika Hashimoto, Jai West, Sonny Chiba and Vinnie Jones. Synopsis The film follows five simult ...

'' (2005) * '' Tears for You'' (2006) * '' Love My Life'' (2006) * ''Yajikita Dochu Teresuko'' (2007) * ''

Sakuran , is a Japanese manga series by Moyoco Anno. The manga is about a girl who goes through different names throughout the story and becomes a , or high ranking (courtesan). North American publisher Vertical Inc published it in English in July ...

'' (2007) * '' Tokyo Tower: Mom and Me, and Sometimes Dad'' (2007) * '' Adrift in Tokyo'' (2007) * '' Gu-Gu Datte Neko de Aru'' (2008) * ''

'' (2008) * ''Mother Water'' (2010) * ''

'' (2011) * ''Kako: My Sullen Past'' (2016) * ''

Before We Vanish is a 2017 Japanese science fiction film directed by Kiyoshi Kurosawa. It is based on a stage play by Tomohiro Maekawa's Ikiume Theatre Company and the novel adaptation written by Maekawa. It stars Masami Nagasawa, Ryuhei Matsuda, Mahiro Takasu ...

'' (2017) * ''Eating Women'' (2018), Atsuko * ''Umami'' (2021), Taya

Television

* ''Toge no Gunzo'' (1982) * ''Ato wa Neru Dake'' (1983) * ''Anmitsu Hime'' (1983) * ''Shojo ni Nani ga Okotta ka'' (1985) * ''Hanayome Ningo wa Nemuranai'' (1986) * ''Aishiatteru Kai'' (1989) * ''Ashita wa Atashi no Kaze ga Fuku'' (1989) * ''Papa to Natchan'' (1991) * ''Anata Dake Mienai'' (1992) * ''Chance'' (1993) * ''Aisuru to Iu Koto'' (1993) * ''Boku ga Kanojo ni Shakkin wo Shita Riyu'' (1994) * ''Mada Koi wa Hajimaranai'' (1995) * ''Melody'' (1997) * ''Kamisan Nanka Kowakunai'' (1998) * ''Owari no Nai Dowa'' (1998) * ''Renai Kekkon no Rule'' (1999) * ''Koi wo Nannen Yasundemasu ka'' (2001) * ''Shiritsu Tantei Hama Mike'' (2002) * ''Kawa, Itsuka Umi e'' (2003) * ''Manhattan Love Story'' (2003) * ''Sensei no Kaban'' (2003) * ''Suika'' (2003) * ''Yasashii Jikan'' (2005) * '' Sailor Suit and Machine Gun'' (2006) * ''Hatachi no Koibito'' (2007) * ''

Saigo Kara Nibanme no Koi ''Second to Last Love'', or , is a Japanese television drama series, starring Kyōko Koizumi and Kiichi Nakai. The series aired Thursdays at 22:00 - 22:54, on Fuji Television from January 12, to March 22, 2012. A second season entitled was br ...

'' (2012) * ''

'' (2013), Haruko Amano * ''Zoku – Saigo Kara Nibanme no Koi'' (2014) * ''Totto TV'' (2016), narrator * ''Kangoku no Ohimesama'' (2017), Kayo Baba * '' Idaten'' (2019), Mitsuko * ''First Love'' (2022)

References

External links

* * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Koizumi, Kyoko 1966 births Living people Japanese idols Japanese women pop singers Japanese film actresses Japanese television actresses People from Atsugi, Kanagawa Actresses from Kanagawa Prefecture Musicians from Kanagawa Prefecture Singing talent show winners 20th-century Japanese actresses 21st-century Japanese actresses 20th-century Japanese women singers 20th-century Japanese singers 21st-century Japanese women singers 21st-century Japanese singers