Seiko Matsuda (born Noriko Kamachi on March 10, 1962) is—in a nutshell—the definition of a J-Pop Teen Idol of the 1980s. Dubbed as the "Eternal Idol" because of her long career.
Needless to say, she is the most well-known artist of her day and even now. She was consecutively receiving no. 1 hits with the songs she sang. Twenty-four consecutive no. 1 hits, to be specific. With that in her arsenal, it's no surprise that she'd became famous not only in Japan anymore. Ask any of the adults who grew up in the 80s about Japanese Pop music and they'll most likely bring her name up, whether they were fans of her or not.
Her first ex-husband, Masaki Kanda, is an actor in his own right, while the late actress and singer Sayaka Kanda was her only child.
Seiko Matsuda's works provide examples of:
- '80s Hair: That poofy, flippy, mushroom-shaped, hair that all girls wore back then? No surprise she also sported it, and maybe even popularized it for everyone else.
- Award-Bait Song:
- Glass no Ringo and Kitto... mata aeru.
- She contributed two of of these to Japanese dubs of Western films: "I'll Fall In Love" and "Eien no Motto Mate Made", from Bewitched and Pan respectively.
- Cute Little Fangs: It's there but not distracting or as extreme as the "yaeba".
- Girl Next Door: Her famous persona at the time.
- Idol Singer: Maybe at the start. But she's far from having outlived how much she is beloved by everyone and became successful even in the midst of having gotten married and having a child, Sayaka Kanda. In fact, she's one of the most successful examples of an idol singer who was able to keep herself together.
- Let's Duet: With Donnie Wahlberg. The song itself, "The Right Combination", was kind of a hit.
- Long Runner: She started way back in 1980 and is still a star.
- Silly Love Songs: Many of her songs are upbeat and about romance.
- Teen Idol: She managed to transition to an equally successful artist in her adult years, though.
