Okada Yukiko (岡田有希子) was a Japanese pop singer, actress, and winner of the talent show Star Tanjo! in Tokyo, Japan.
History[]
Early life[]
Okada was born as Sato Kayo (佐藤佳代) on August 22, 1967, the second daughter of the Satō family. The family later moved to Nagoya. In elementary school, Okada loved to read, especially comic books, and she was a talented artist. In junior high school, Okada wanted to become a singer and applied for every possible audition. She was rejected every time until she was finally accepted to a TV talent program, Star Tanjō! on Nippon Television, singing Kitahara Sawako's MY BOYFRIEND for the audition, and Nakamori Akina's Slow Motion for the final round, which she won in March 1983.
Career[]

Yukiko during the production of the drama, The Forbidden Mariko.
On April 21, 1984, Okada released her first single, First Date. That same year, Okada won Rookie of the Year and was awarded the 26th Japan Record Awards Grand Prix Best New Artist Award for her third single, -Dreaming Girl- Koi, Hajimemashite. After this, she developed a very dedicated fanbase, as most of her music sold very well, and some even speculated she was to become the next ultra-orthodox idol similar to Matsuda Seiko.
Okada played the leading role in her first television drama Kinjirareta Mariko (The Forbidden Mariko), in 1985. The drama did remarkably well, both establishing Okada's credit as an actress and boosting her popularity. Her 1986 single Kuchibiru Network, written by Matsuda Seiko (who at the time was on a hiatus from entertainment due to maternity leave) and composed by Sakamoto Ryuichi, reached number one on the Oricon weekly singles chart dated February 10, 1986, beating out Kokusho Sayuri's long awaited solo debut single, which caused a huge media stir, again boosting her popularity. Around this time Okada was preparing for an image change from a cutesy princess type to a more mature, avant-garde style, made evident in what ended up being her final album release Venus Tanjou.
Death[]
She died on April 8, 1986, at the age of 18.

Yukiko Okada on April 7. 1986, one day before her death. (The film poster is for the movie Rocky IV)
Around 10 o'clock in the morning on April 8, 1986, Fudaka Tokuo, the manager of the Sun Music building went Okada's apartment to check on her after she did not answer an important phone call. At the same time, residents of the apartment building were complaining of a gas odor coming from the sixth floor, which was the floor Okada lived on. Upon arrival to the building, Fudaka discovered that the odor was coming from an unattended gas stove in Okada's apartment. After checking the apartment he found Okada in her crouched down and crying inside of her bedroom closet with slashed wrists, along with what appeared to be suicide notes. The notes were vague, but are thought to be about Okada's one sided romantic feelings for her married Kinjirareta Mariko costar, actor Minegishi Tohru (1943-2008). The notes ended with the words "I wanted to see him again. I'm sorry for being so selfish. My heart has nowhere else to go.", implying Okada had at some point confessed her feelings to Minegishi, but was rejected.
Fudaka then took her to a nearby hospital where her wrist injuries were treated. When she was released from the hospital he asked Okada where she wanted to go next to discuss what had happened. Okada chose to go to their office, the Sun Music Building. He had then had asked why she tried to commit suicide, to which she replied "I thought of someone...I felt that I had done something so horrible, that I wanted to die."
While Fudaka and the staff were discussing how to avoid a media scandal, Okada exited the office space, ran up the stairs to the roof, took off her shoes, and jumped off the roof of the front side of the building, resulting in her instant death. She was declared deceased at the scene at 12:15 PM, JST.
Okada's sudden death came as a shock to the media as well as the entertainment industry. It was widely reported in extreme detail, which resulted in many copycat suicides among young people in Japan. This became known as "Yukko Syndrome". Interestingly, it is suspected that Okada emulated Endou Yasuko's suicide which occured only one week earlier and was also widely covered by the media.
Discography[]

Yukiko in 1984.
Studio Albums[]
- [1984.09.05] Cinderella (シンデレラ)
- [1985.03.21] FAIRY
- [1985.09.18] Jyuugatsu no Ningyo (十月の人魚)
- [1986.03.21] Venus Tanjou (ヴィーナス誕生)
Best Hits Albums[]
- [1984.11.28] Okurimono (贈りもの)
- [1985.12.05] Okurimono II (贈りものII)
- [1999.03.17] Memorial BOX (メモリアルBOX)
- [2002.05.15] YUKIKO OKADA * ALL SONGS REQUEST
- [2002.12.18] 84-86 Bokura no Best SP YUKIKO OKADA CD/DVD-BOX (Okurimono III) (84-86 ぼくらのベスト SP 岡田有希子 CD/DVD-BOX 「贈りものIII」)*
- [2012.11.21] The Premium Best Okada Yukiko (ザ・プレミアムベスト 岡田有希子)
- [2014.07.30] GOLDEN☆IDOL OKADA YUKIKO (ゴールデン☆アイドル 岡田有希子)
- [2019.10.16] Mariya's Songbook
. *Re-Released on September 11, 2019.
Hi-Res Albums[]
- [2015.09.16] Present Okada Yukiko (プレゼント 岡田有希子)
- [2015.09.16] Hi-Res Gentei Joukyuushamuke Rare Ongen Okada Yukiko (ハイレゾ限定 上級者向けレア音源 岡田有希子)
Singles[]
- [1984.04.21] First Date (ファースト・デイト)
- [1984.07.18] Little Princess (リトル プリンセス)
- [1984.09.21] -Dreaming Girl- Koi, Hajimemashite (-Dreaming Girl- 恋、はじめまして)
- [1985.01.16] Futari Dake no Ceremony (二人だけのセレモニー)
- [1985.04.17] Summer Beach
- [1985.07.17] Kanashii Yokan (哀しい予感)
- [1985.10.05] Love Fair
- [1986.01.29] Kuchibiru Network (くちびるNetwork)
- [1986.05.14] Hana no Image (花のイマージュ)
- [2002.12.04] Believe In You (2002 Strings Version)
Video Releases[]
- [2002.12.18] Memories in Swiss
Gallery[]
Trivia[]
- She designed one of her own dresses for a concert. [2][3]
- She was in the same class as Honda Minako, Minamino Yoko, Morina Miharu, Kurasawa Atsumi and Okamura Yukiko at Horikoshi High School.
- Tanaka Kumi was her best friend at Horikoshi.
- She was good friends with Sakai Noriko before Sakai's official debut.
- Okada's favorite food was ice cream, and her favorite colors were pink and yellow.
- She often practiced ballet.
- Okada loved wearing star earrings, and wore them because she saw them to be lucky.
- Okada was nearsighted and wore thick glasses in her private life.
- She had two idol catchphrases:
- "I'll always be with you, ok?"
- "I'm the little princess who comes from a wonderful land."
- Due to the circumstances of her death, many recordings featuring Okada were promptly cancelled or discontinued very soon after release, and imagery of her in public settings or on television was very rare. Her work did not receive any rereleases or remasters until fifteen years after her debut in 1999 with the release of Memorial BOX. After that the ban seemed to be lifted and there have been many new "greatest hits" albums and videos released. She has also been shown or mentioned on television following 1999.
- However, there are still some works that have never seen a physical release, such as Kinjirareta Mariko and video footage from any of Okada's live tours.[1]
References[]
- Interview of Minegishi speaking about Okada's suicide.
- https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qx8oQemjyN4
- https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MRIZiRC5vEc
External Links[]
- ↑ In 2024, a limited edition box set was announced that will contain live recordings of audio from some of her concerts, however, the footage remains unreleased.