Sizzle Ohtaka

Japanese singer (1952–2022)

Sizzle Ohtaka

おおたか 静流

Birth name| Shizuko Ōtaka
Also known as| Shizuko Konishi
Born| (1952-04-11)11 April 1952
Nakano, Tokyo, Japan
Died| 5 September 2022(2022-09-05) (aged 70)
Occupation| Singer
Years active| 1980s–2022
Labels| Teichiku Records
Formerly of| Dido
Spouse|

Tokuo Konishi

(died 2022)​

Musical artist

Shizuko Konishi[1] (Japanese: 小西 静子, Hepburn: Konishi Shizuko, née Ōtaka; 11 April 1952 – 5 September 2022), known by the stage names Sizzle Ohtaka (おおたか 静流, Ōtaka Shizuru) and Shizuko Ōtaka (大高 静子, Ōtaka Shizuko), was a Japanese singer and television personality. After going to a jazz school, she had a prolific career in commercial songs, including her 1990 cover of Shoukichi Kina's song "Hana (Subete no Hito no Kokoro ni Hana o) [ja]", which won the Japan Advertising Music Association's 1991 Best Vocalist Award of Commercial Music. She also performed music for anime and live-action works, including I'm Gonna Be An Angel!, Spirited Away, .hack//Legend of the Twilight, and Hotarubi no Mori e, and she was a regular cast member on the NHK Educational TV show Nihongo de Asobo [ja].

## Early life and education

[edit]

Shizuko Ōtaka was born on 11 April 1952 in Nakano, Tokyo, and was educated at the Musashi University Faculty of Humanities.[2] She began studying classical voice as a young child, and while studying at Musashi, she decided upon a singing career instead of becoming a manga artist, and she was part of a global traveling band, attended a jazz school, and worked the night shift at Kokusai Denshin Denwa.[3][2]

## Career

[edit]

She started a career in commercial songs during the 1980s, and with her diverse voice styles and a rate of ten songs per month, earned the nickname "Queen of Commercial Songs" (コマソンの女王, Komason no Joō).[2] In 1989, she and Michiaki Katō [ja] began releasing music as part a duo called Dido.[4][1]

Ohtaka's solo debut came in 1990, when she covered the Shoukichi Kina song "Hana (Subete no Hito no Kokoro ni Hana o) [ja]" for commercials promoting Fujifilm's magnetic media brand Axia, and she later won the Japan Advertising Music Association's 1991 Best Vocalist Award of Commercial Music for said cover.[1][5][2] She became affiliated with Teichiku Records after the success of her "Hana" cover.[2] In 1992, she covered The Folk Crusaders's song "Kanashikute Yarikirenai [ja]" as part of the film Sumo Do, Sumo Don't, and her album "Return" later won the Adlib Best Record Award for New Age Music and World Music.[3][6] She also appeared as a vocalist for Nubian musician Hamza El Din's 1999 album A Wish.[7][8] A compilation album, Otozure (おとづれ), was released in May 2022, four months before her death.[9] She had entered into non-genre music due to a newfound interest in folk, jazz, and world music,[10][5] and CDJournal describes her musical style as "full of Japanese spirit and [...] influenced by classical, jazz, and folk music".[1]

Ohtaka's song "Ai wa Umi" was the ending theme of I'm Gonna Be An Angel! (1999).[11] She also performed music for several other works, such as Tettō Musashinosen [ja] (1997), Spirited Away (2001), .hack//Legend of the Twilight (2003), and Hotarubi no Mori e (2011).[5][10] In 2003, she became a regular cast member on the NHK Educational TV show Nihongo de Asobo [ja], where she performed improv music and interacted with children.[5][3]

## Personal life

[edit]

Ohtaka advocated for nuclear disarmament, performed worldwide at memorial concerts in response to the 2011 Tōhoku earthquake and tsunami, and organized the improv workshop Koe no Oekaki (声のお絵描き).[3][10] She was also known by the nickname "Nanairo no Koe" (七色の声).[3]

Ohtaka was married to Tokuo Konishi until her death.[3]

## Death

[edit]

She was diagnosed with cancer, and in March 2022, she started a career hiatus for treatment.[10] She died on 5 September 2022 from the disease, aged 70.[5][3]

## References

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1. ^ a b c d "おおたか静流". CDJournal (in Japanese). Retrieved 27 June 2024.
2. ^ a b c d e 新訂現代日本人名錄 98 (in Japanese). 日外アソシエーツ. 1998. p. 1153\. ISBN 978-4-8169-1468-3.
3. ^ a b c d e f g Jozuka, Ryo (7 September 2022). "歌手・おおたか静流さん死去 「にほんごであそぼ」、「花」のカバー". Asahi Shimbun (in Japanese). Retrieved 27 June 2024.
4. ^ "didoのプロフィール". Oricon News. Retrieved 27 June 2024.
5. ^ a b c d e Suzuki, Miki (10 September 2022). "Shizuru Ohtaka Beloved Anime Theme Song Performer Passes Away". CBR. Retrieved 27 June 2024.
6. ^ "プロフィール". Sizzle Ohtaka Official Website. Archived from the original on 4 April 2023. Retrieved 27 June 2024.
7. ^ "Music's reach spans old world and new". The Toronto Star. 17 April 1999. pp. J9. Retrieved 27 June 2024 - via Newspapers.com.
8. ^ Weideman, Paul (14 November 2003). "Hamza El Din keeps Nubian traditions". The Santa Fe New Mexican. p. 63. Retrieved 27 June 2024 - via Newspapers.com.
9. ^ "Discography". Sizzle Ohtaka Official Website. Archived from the original on 4 April 2023. Retrieved 27 June 2024.
10. ^ a b c d "おおたか静流さん死去 69歳 Eテレ『にほんごであそぼ』出演、映画『千と千尋』の「神々さま」など". Oricon News. 6 September 2022. Retrieved 27 June 2024.
11. ^ "あいは海 | おおたか静流". Oricon News. Retrieved 27 June 2024.

Authority control databases

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