was a popular Japanese musician. He is ranked at No. 23 in a list of Japan's top 100 musicians by

HMV Sunrise Records and Entertainment, trading as HMV (for His Master's Voice), is a British music and entertainment retailer, currently operating exclusively in the United Kingdom. The first HMV-branded store was opened by the Gramophone Company ...

Biography

He was born in Tokyo Setagaya Ward SDF Central Hospital to Kinue and Kenichi Ozaki. He has one older brother, Yasushi. Early in life, he was hospitalized with intestinal torsion and

bronchitis Bronchitis is inflammation of the bronchi (large and medium-sized airways) in the lungs that causes coughing. Bronchitis usually begins as an infection in the nose, ears, throat, or sinuses. The infection then makes its way down to the bronchi. ...

which subsequently weakened his internal organs. In 1973 he began studying

martial arts Martial arts are codified systems and traditions of combat practiced for a number of reasons such as self-defense; military and law enforcement applications; combat sport, competition; physical, mental, and spiritual development; entertainment; a ...

and continued training throughout his life. In January 1975 he began playing piano and in March of that year, he wrote his first poem. His first live performance was in 1978 at his school's cultural festival. He was discovered by producer Akira Sudo and signed to

CBS Sony , often abbreviated as SMEJ or simply SME, and also known as Sony Music Japan for short (stylized as ''SonyMusic''), is a Japanese music arm for Sony. Founded in 1968 as CBS/Sony, SMEJ is directly owned by Sony, Sony Group Corporation and is ...

in 1983. He debuted in December 1983 while he was still in high school with his hit single and his album . He gained tremendous support from his younger fanbase with his devastating live performances along with his unique lyrics that expressed dreams and love or the meaning of life. He represented the angst of adolescence, and a lot of the times attacked what he felt was unfair in society or schools. On April 25, 1992, Ozaki was found naked, drunk and unconscious in a Tokyo alleyway. He was taken by ambulance but was soon dismissed from the hospital. He died several hours later. The cause of death was reported as

pulmonary edema Pulmonary edema, also known as pulmonary congestion, is excessive edema, liquid accumulation in the parenchyma, tissue and pulmonary alveolus, air spaces (usually alveoli) of the lungs. It leads to impaired gas exchange and may cause hypoxemia an ...

but many theories have arisen as to the actual cause of death, the most popular being

homicide Homicide occurs when a person kills another person. A homicide requires only a volitional act or omission that causes the death of another, and thus a homicide may result from accidental, reckless, or negligent acts even if there is no inten ...

. He was survived by his wife, Shigemi, and his son, Hiroya Ozaki.

Tribute covers

Relief of Yutaka Ozaki at Shibuya Cross Tower in Shibuya, Tokyo

Thelma Aoyama is a Japanese pop and R&B singer. She is part Afro-Trinidadian and Japanese. She is known for her collaboration song with SoulJa, "Koko ni Iru yo" and her answer song "Soba ni Iru ne". In September 2008, the Guinness World Records certified ...

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 ...

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Ryuichi Kawamura is a Japanese singer, songwriter, record producer, actor and author. He is best known as lead singer of the rock band Luna Sea since 1989. He started a solo career in 1997, three years before Luna Sea disbanded in 2000. In 2005, Kawamura form ...

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and many other Japanese artists have covered Ozaki's song, "I Love You". American singer-songwriter

Debbie Gibson Deborah Ann Gibson (born August 31, 1970) is an American singer-songwriter, record producer and actress. Gibson released her debut album '' Out of the Blue'' in 1987, which spawned several international hits, later being certified triple plati ...

recorded an English-language cover of "I Love You" in her 2010 album '' Ms. Vocalist''. In addition, American guitarist

Marty Friedman Marty Friedman (born December 8, 1962) is an American guitarist, best known for his tenure as the lead guitarist for thrash metal band Megadeth from 1990 to 2000. He is also known for playing alongside Jason Becker in Cacophony from 1986 until ...

recorded an instrumental cover of "I Love You" in his 2011 album Tokyo Jukebox 2.

Nanase Aikawa is a Japanese singer. She publishes her music under the Motorod label, a division of Avex Group. Biography Early life Nanase Aikawa was born on February 16, 1975, in Osaka, Japan. Throughout her school years, Nanase had sung and participate ...

, Goto Maki,

MINMI Michiko Evwana (born December 8, 1974), better known by her stage name , is a Japanese hip-hop and reggae musician,, United Daily News (in Chinese), August 22, 2008 as well as a singer-songwriter and record producer. She is the first soca ar ...

and

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have covered "Oh My Little Girl".

Shunsuke Kiyokiba (born January 11, 1980 in Ube, Yamaguchi) is a Japanese pop singer who debuted in 2001 with the then six-member vocal and dance group, Exile, as their vocalist under the name, Shun. In 2004, he participated in the tribute album for Yutaka Ozaki ...

also has covered two of his songs, and .

Shimizu Shota is a Japanese singer-songwriter and musician from Yao, Osaka, Japan, who debuted in 2008. On June 1, 2008, Shimizu performed at Central Park in New York City, USA, during the annual Japan Day Festival. Shota Shimizu went to a local Christian scho ...

covered his song, "Forget-Me-Not" and

Mr. Children , commonly referred to by their contracted nickname , are a Japanese pop rock band formed in 1989. Consisting of Kazutoshi Sakurai, Kenichi Tahara, Keisuke Nakagawa, and Hideya Suzuki, they made their major label debut in 1992. They are one of t ...

has covered on "ap' bank fes. 2010". In 2013, K-pop artist and main vocalist of

Big Bang The Big Bang event is a physical theory that describes how the universe expanded from an initial state of high density and temperature. Various cosmological models of the Big Bang explain the evolution of the observable universe from the ...

, Daesung (known in Japan as "D-Lite") covered "I Love You" and it was used as the theme song for the drama ''I Love You''. In 2014, Tamai Shiori of Momoiro Clover Z, sang a cover of "Graduation" for a special concert.

Discography

Singles

*"Jugo no Yoru" - ''The Night'' (15の夜, 1983) *"Junanasai no Chizu" - ''Seventeen's Map'' (十七歳の地図, 1984) *"Hajimari-sae Utaenai" - ''Can't Sing Even the Beginning'' (はじまりさえ歌えない, 1984) *"Sotsugyou" - ''Graduation'' (卒業, 1985) *"Driving All Night" (1985) *"Kaku" - ''Core'' (核, 1987) *"Taiyō no Hahen" - ''Scratch of the Sun''(太陽の破片, 1988) *"Love Way" (1990) *"Tasogare-yuku Machi-de" - ''57th Street'' (黄昏ゆく街で, 1990) *"Eien no Mune" - ''Eternal Heart'' (永遠の胸, 1991) *"I Love You" (1991) *"Kegareta Kizuna" - ''Bond'' (汚れた絆, 1992) * (1994) – posthumously released

Albums

*''Juunanasai no Chizu'' - ''Seventeen's Map'' (十七歳の地図, 1983) *''Kaikisen'' - ''Tropic of Graduation'' (回帰線, 1985) *''Kowareta Tobira kara'' - ''Through the Broken Door'' (壊れた扉から, 1985) *''Gairoju'' - ''Trees Lining a Street'' (街路樹, 1988) *''Tanjou'' - ''Birth'' (誕生, 1990) *''Hounetsu e no Akashi'' - ''Confession for Exist'' (放熱への証, 1992)

Compilations

*''Aisu-beki Mono Subete-ni'' - ''For All My Loves'' (愛すべきものすべてに, 1996) *''Artery & Vein – The Very Best of Yutaka Ozaki'' (1999) *''13/71 – The Best Selection'' (2004)

Live albums

*''Last Teenage Appearance – The Myth of Yutaka Ozaki'' (1987) *''Yakusoku no Hi Vol.1'' – ''The Day vol.1'' (約束の日 Vol.1, 1993) *''Yakusoku no Hi Vol.2'' – ''The Day vol.2'' (約束の日 Vol.2, 1993) *''Missing Boy'' (1997) *''Osaka Stadium on August 25 in 1985 Vol.1'' (1998) *''Osaka Stadium on August 25 in 1985 Vol.2'' (1998)

Movie

A 2011 TV-drama called ''Kaze no Shounen'' portrayed his life and in depth early career, from meeting his manager Sudo to his death. He was played by

Hiroki Narimiya (born September 14, 1982), better known as , is a former Japanese actor. Early life He was born and raised in Tokyo, Japan. His parents are from Okinawa Prefecture. His parents divorced when he was young, and in his third year of junior high sch ...

References

External links

Yutaka Ozaki Official Site

Yutaka Ozaki - Sony Music Records

Yutaka Ozaki English Site
{{DEFAULTSORT:Ozaki, Yutaka 1965 births 1992 deaths Japanese male singer-songwriters Japanese male rock singers People from Setagaya 20th-century Japanese male singers 20th-century Japanese singers