Naoko Ken（研ナオコ, Ken Naoko, born July 7, 1953）is a Japanese singer and actress. She is well known for her comedy roles featuring

idiosyncratic An idiosyncrasy is a unique feature of something. The term is often used to express peculiarity. Etymology The term "idiosyncrasy" originates from Greek ', "a peculiar temperament, habit of body" (from ', "one's own", ', "with" and ', "blend ...

looks, and a string of successful

torch song A torch song is a sentimental love song, typically one in which the singer laments an unrequited or lost love, either where one party is oblivious to the existence of the other, where one party has moved on, or where a romantic affair has affect ...

s that gained popularity in the late 1970s and early 1980s.

Biography

In 1971, Ken debuted as an enka-oriented singer with a single "Daitokai no Yasagure On'na". In 1975, after the release of several charted singles, she gained the first outstanding commercial success with a song "Guzu", which was written by Ryudo Uzaki and his wife

Yoko Aki is a Japanese songwriter, actress, novelist and essayist. With her husband, Ryudo Uzaki, she has written many songs for other singers, with Aki as lyricist and Uzaki as composer. They are especially famous for a series of hit songs of Momoe Yama ...

. "Abayo", a song written by

Miyuki Nakajima (born February 23, 1952, Sapporo, Hokkaidō, Japan) is a Japanese singer-songwriter and radio personality. She has released 44 studio albums, 48 Single (music), singles, 6 live albums and multiple compilations as of January 2020. Her sales have ...

became the most successful single for Ken, selling more than 600,000 copies. In 1976, the prize-winning song reached number-one spot on the Oricon, Japan's most eminent chart. In addition to the success as a musician, she also obtained popularity as a ''

tarento Television personalities in Japan, known as in Japanese, are celebrities who regularly appear in mass media in Japan, especially as panelists on variety shows. During the Golden Age of Hollywood, bankable stars in the United States were descri ...

'' in the mid 1970s, through her comical acts on multiple TV shows including ''Kakkurakin Daihousou!!''. After a temporary hiatus in 1977 owing to her arrest on suspicion of possession of

marijuana Cannabis (), commonly known as marijuana (), weed, pot, and ganja, List of slang names for cannabis, among other names, is a non-chemically uniform psychoactive drug from the ''Cannabis'' plant. Native to Central or South Asia, cannabis has ...

, she returned to the Japanese entertainment industry with the hit tune "Kamome wa Kamome". The melancholic ballad written by Nakajima became known as one of her

signature song A signature (; from , "to sign") is a depiction of someone's name, nickname, or even a simple "X" or other mark that a person writes on documents as a proof of identity and intent. Signatures are often, but not always, handwritten or styliz ...

s, finally sold in excess of 300,000 units. In 1982, she gained huge commercial success as a singer again with a cover version of the

Southern All Stars , also known by the abbreviations and SAS, are a Japanese rock band formed in Kanagawa in 1974. The band is composed of Keisuke Kuwata (lead vocals and guitars), Yuko Hara (vocals and keyboards), Kazuyuki Sekiguchi (bass), (drums) and (pe ...

' song "Natsu wo Akiramete", winning several Japanese music prizes. The song is her last top-ten hit solo single so far. Due to her songs’ popularity, Ken was selected for the annual Red and White Song festival every year from 1976 to 1986 except 1977, the year that she went hiatus due to her drug case, and made another return to the prestigious programme on 1993 for her 11th and last appearance so far. Through her long-term career as a comedic TV personality, she has released several novelty singles with other performers such as

Ken Shimura , known professionally as , was a Japanese comedian. He was born in Higashimurayama, Tokyo. He started his career as an assistant to the comedy band The Drifters, led by Chōsuke Ikariya. In 1974, He joined the group, replacing Chū Arai. H ...

. The song "Natsuzakari Ho no Ji Gumi" recorded with an idol singer Toshihiko Tahara in 1985 is the last top-40 hit single for Ken on the Japanese record charts. To date, her last single was released in 1985.

Discography

Singles

Collaboration singles

Albums

Studio albums

Compilations

Box sets

Filmography

Film

Kōhaku Uta Gassen Appearances

References

External links

Official site (Japanese)
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{{DEFAULTSORT:Ken, Naoko 1953 births Living people Japanese women singers Japanese actresses Singers from Shizuoka Prefecture