Continuing from the previous article about music that you might hear around kaido racers, we continue with more artists of the 80s-90s. Mind you that this isn’t all of the artists and also that many people who are into kaido racers listen to other music besides Japanese artists. In fact, Auto Produce Bellezza’s mix CD contains a lot of disco songs and other American artists. I made a Spotify playlist of the tracks on that mix CD.

Here is the Spotify playlist of a few of the songs found on this article.

Boowy – BOØWY

Boøwy (pronounced BOH-ee) was a very influential rock/punk band in the 1980s. In 1981, guitarist and vocalist Kyosuke Himuro and guitarist Tomoyasu Hotei formed the band Bōi (暴威) as a flip of the British hard rock band “Girl.” The kanji for Bōi was already taken, so they changed their name to BOØWY. They had several chart-topping albums and singles making them a legendary band for Japanese Rock, further cemented in history by selling out nearly 100,000 tickets within ten minutes for their 2-night farewell concert “Last Gigs” at the Tokyo Dome in 1988. Their influence is also apparent in how many cars and scooters sported their stickers through the years. Himuro and Hotei both continued to have successful careers in music after Boowy disbanded, with Kyosuke Himuro launching a solo career and Tomoyasu Hotei forming the duo “Complex” before his solo career under “Hotei”.

BUCK-TICK – バクチク

Buck-Tick is a Japanese Rock band that blends gothic, punk, and rock into their unique sound. The group was formed in 1983 in Fujioka, Gunma, where all 4 members attended the same high school. In the late 1980s, they started to gain in popularity with their album “Seventh Heaven”. Throughout the years they experimented with different sounds in their music like electronic and industrial. Credited as one of the founders of the visual kei movement, Buck-Tick has influenced many in both fashion and music. This comes as no surprise considering their long-running presence in music with their latest album being released in April 2023.

BARBEE BOYS – バービーボーイズ

BARBEE BOYS was formed in 1984 and had many hits in the late 1980s and early 1990s. Their breakthrough album was “Konya mo Cocktail” with the hit single “Shojo A”. After a few more successful albums, they disbanded in 1992.

Miho Nakayama – 中山 美穂

Miho Nakayama debuted at 15 years old in 1985 with the chart-topping song “C“. By the late 1980s and early 1990s she released several popular albums and songs that would solidify her as a pop star. At the same time, she started her acting career with a drama called “Sukeban Deka II”. She also made the theme song for the live-action movie of Be-Bop High School.

Minako Honda – 本田美奈子

Minako Honda was also a famous singer-turned-actress in the mid-80s. She debuted as an idol singer with the song “Satsui no Vacance” (“Murderous “Vacation”). She followed this with other popular singles such as “Temptation” and “Marilyn 1986.” In 1988 she formed a female rock band called “MINAKO with WILDCATS”. In 2005 she passed away from acute myeloid leukemia after undergoing many treatments.

Akina Nakamori – 中森明菜

Akina Nakamori is probably one of the more popular female singers on this list, next to Seiko Matsuda. Someone once described the competition of pop icons of the 1980s between Akina Nakamori and Seiko Matsuda as similar to the American pop stars Cyndi Lauper and Madonna. Akina debuted in 1982 at the age of 16 with the single “Slow Motion”. She continued to release hit songs and won the Japan Record Award two consecutive years for “Meu amor é” and “Desire”.

Shizuka Kudo – 工藤 静香

Shizuka Kudo made her debut in 1985 with two others in the group “Seventeen Club”, however, the group didn’t sell well and disbanded after only two singles. In 1986 she auditioned for Fuji TV’s Yuyake Nyan Nyan and became the 38th member of Onyanko Club. In 1987 she made her solo debut with “Kindan no Telepathy”. By 1988 she started her work as an actress in the Fuji TV drama series “Kimi no Hitomi wo Taiho suru!” In 1989 she had a run of 3 bit hit songs “Koi Hitoyo”, “Arashi no Sogao”, and “Kousa ni Fukarete”.

Rebecca – レベッカ

Rebecca was formed in 1982 and led by guitarist Takehiko Kogure. The name came from the American novel “Rebecca of Sunnybrook Farm”. They debuted in 1984 but struggled with record sales. By 1985 their drummer and Kogure left the band after disputes in musical direction. Along with changing members, they also switched their sound from a rock style to more of a synth-pop comparable to Madonna. By 1985 their third album came out and they had a string of hits including “Friends”. A 12-episode TV drama called “Half Potato Oretachi” included three of their songs, two of them being the opening and ending themes.

Seiko Matsuda – 松田 聖子

Seiko Matsuda is one of the most famous artists on this list. With the amount of chart-topping singles and albums in her career along with TV shows, commercials, movies, and radio broadcasts she was given the title of “Eternal Idol”. In 2011 it was reported she was the 2nd best-selling idol of all time with almost 30 million records sold, with Akina Nakamori in 3rd place. She once held the record for 25 number-one hits from 1983-2000. She was born on March 10th, 1962 in Chikuho, Fukuoka Prefecture. There used to be a rumor that she was a yankii (delinquent) growing up, which made other yankii interested in her.

The Checkers – チェッカーズ

The Checkers was a Rock & Roll / Doo Wop band that saw popularity in the 1980s. They debuted in 1983, but didn’t see success until their second single, Namida no Request. The band’s name was inspired by other bands they listened to at the time that started with “C” and ended with “S”, “COOLS” and “CHANELS” (both in the previous article).

Onyanko Club – おニャン子クラブ

Onyanko Club or “Kitty Club” is a large pop idol group that made their debut on the variety show Yūyake Nyan Nyan (“Sunset Meow Meow”). Their debut single was “Sailor Fuku o Nugasanai de” which translates to “Don’t Make Me Take Off My Sailor Uniform.” Many of the members would go on and become solo artists.

Sailors (セーラーズ) is a popular 80s apparel brand from Shibuya that Onyanko Club would often wear.

Yutaka Ozaki – 尾崎 豊

Yutaka Ozaki was a rock/folk singer from the 1980s. Many of his songs revolved around being rebellious towards typical societal norms and anti-establishment. The single “15 no Yoru” was released around the same time as his first album Juunanasai no Chizu (Map of the Seventeen Year Old). His death was unexpected at the age of 26 when he was found naked and intoxicated in an alleyway. Some suggest it might have been a homicide.

Princess Princess – プリンセス プリンセス

Princess Princess was a 5 person all-female rock band that had a string of popular songs in the 1980s. By 1989 their third album and seventh single release “Diamonds” brought them into number 1 song status while also becoming the first CD single to reach 1 million sales in Japan.