Oshi-Katsu Chronicle 1998: Music Sales Peak, Morning Musume and Hikaru Utada Debut, and Fans Mourn hide

In 1998, the CD was Japan’s everyday way to listen to music. Albums by GLAY and L’Arc-en-Ciel were hits, and production of CDs and other music software hit its statistical peak.

Morning Musume made their major debut, and at year’s end a 15-year-old Hikaru Utada arrived. In May, though, hide, known as a guitarist of X JAPAN, died.

CD Production Value Hits About ¥607.5 Billion: Hearing Your Oshi’s Songs on Albums

According to the Recording Industry Association of Japan, audio records produced that year were worth about ¥607.5 billion (roughly $4 billion). The figure includes cassettes and vinyl as well as CDs, and it was the biggest year for music software production. Recording Industry Association of Japan (in Japanese)

CDs accounted for about ¥587.9 billion of that. The value of 12-centimeter CDs, a format that covers singles as well as albums, rose from the previous year, while 8-centimeter CDs declined. These figures measure production, not the amount spent or the number of people buying in stores.

¥607.5B

All audio records

¥587.9B

CDs alone

Source: Recording Industry Association of Japan

L’Arc-en-Ciel released HEART on February 25 and GLAY released pure soul on July 29, and both took No. 1 on Oricon’s weekly album ranking. ORICON NEWS: L’Arc-en-Ciel (in Japanese) / GLAY (in Japanese)

hide Dies: Fans Keep Listening to the Music He Left

On May 2, hide died at age 33. The X JAPAN guitarist had kept up solo and other activities since the band’s breakup at the end of the previous year. About 52,000 fans attended the funeral and farewell service at Tsukiji Hongwanji temple in Tokyo. ORICON NEWS (in Japanese)

On May 2, 2018, the 20th anniversary of his death, a flower-laying ceremony was held at Club Citta in Kawasaki. It was a weekday, yet more than 5,500 fans came. ORICON NEWS: flower-laying ceremony on the 20th anniversary (in Japanese)

Morning Musume Goes From Five to Eight, and Hikaru Utada Debuts Too

Morning Musume made their major debut on January 28 with “Morning Coffee.” It entered Oricon’s singles chart at No. 6. Hello! Project official site (in Japanese) / Morning Musume activity record (in Japanese)

In May, Kei Yasuda, Mari Yaguchi and Sayaka Ichii joined, making an eight-member lineup. “Daite HOLD ON ME!,” released on September 9, gave the group its first weekly No. 1 on Oricon. At year’s end they won Best New Artist at the Japan Record Awards. Morning Musume activity record (in Japanese) / Japan Composers Association (in Japanese)

1. 01Hand-selling"Ai no Tane" the year before
2. 02Major debut"Morning Coffee" on January 28
3. 03Three joinEight members from May
4. 04Best New ArtistJapan Record Awards at year's end

Fans who followed the challenge from the start saw it reach the awards stage.

SPEED had hits with “my graduation” and “ALIVE,” the theme song of the film Andromedia, which starred the members. In July they began their first national tour, which ended at Tokyo Dome on October 10. SPEED official site (in Japanese)

On December 9, Hikaru Utada debuted with “Automatic / time will tell.” She was 15 at the time and wrote her own lyrics and music. The single came out in two formats, an 8 cm CD and a 12 cm CD. Billboard JAPAN (in Japanese) / Universal Music (in Japanese)

Bayside Shakedown and Pokémon: Meeting TV Characters in the Theater Too

In October, Bayside Shakedown: The Movie (Odoru Daisosasen THE MOVIE), the film that continued the TV drama, opened. It ranked No. 1 among Japanese films of 1998 in distribution revenue, the share of box-office takings that goes to the distributor, at ¥5 billion. Motion Picture Producers Association of Japan (in Japanese)

The year’s top four Japanese films by distribution revenue all grew out of TV programs. No. 3 was a Doraemon film and No. 4 the film version of Kindaichi Shonen no Jikenbo (The Kindaichi Case Files). Motion Picture Producers Association of Japan (in Japanese)

In July, the first Pokémon theatrical film, Mewtwo Strikes Back, and the short Pikachu’s Vacation opened, ranking No. 2 among Japanese films in distribution revenue at ¥4.15 billion. The TV anime had been suspended after a broadcast accident at the end of the previous year, but after checks of its images and other steps it resumed broadcasting in April. Motion Picture Producers Association of Japan (in Japanese) / Chugoku Broadcasting’s announcement from the time (in Japanese)

No. 1Bayside Shakedown: The Movie

¥5 billion. A film continuing a TV drama.

No. 2The first Pokémon film

¥4.15 billion. Mewtwo Strikes Back, shown with a short.

Nos. 3 and 4Doraemon and Kindaichi Shonen no Jikenbo

Both were film versions of TV series.

That same April, Toei Animation’s Yu-Gi-Oh! also began on TV, a separate series from the later Yu-Gi-Oh! Duel Monsters. Toei Animation (in Japanese)

Dreamcast Launches: Using the Web and Email on a Game Console

On November 27, Sega released the home console Dreamcast. It came with a modem, the device that connects to a phone line. Sega (in Japanese)

Launch

Released by Sega on November 27 as a home game console.

Modem

A device for connecting to a phone line came with the console, so players could look up game information and write email.

Later

Network games played with people far away followed.

Looking up game information and writing emails to friends no longer required a PC. Network games for playing with people far away followed later. Sega (in Japanese)

The summer Comic Market 54 drew a combined 380,000 people over three days, and the winter 55th a combined 300,000 over two days. Corporate booths numbered 51 companies at the summer 54th. Comic Market Preparation Committee (in Japanese)

380,000

Summer 54th

300,000

Winter 55th

Source: Comic Market Preparation Committee

Nagano Olympics, the First World Cup, Yokohama’s Title: A Year of Watching Athletes to the End

In February the Nagano Olympics were held, and Japan won 5 gold, 1 silver and 4 bronze medals. Ski jumper Kazuyoshi Funaki, women’s moguls skier Tae Satoya, speed skater Hiroyasu Shimizu and others won gold. Japanese Olympic Committee (in Japanese)

February: Nagano Olympics

A Winter Games held in Japan, where you watch athletes' challenges event by event.

June: World Cup

The national team plays in the finals for the first time. Cheer on the matches in France.

October: Japan Series

The Yokohama BayStars beat Seibu to become national champions for the first time in 38 years.

Japan’s national soccer team played in the World Cup finals in France for the first time. Just before the tournament, Kazuyoshi Miura and Tsuyoshi Kitazawa, who had played through the qualifiers, were left off the final squad. Japan lost all three matches, but against Jamaica Masashi Nakayama scored the country’s first goal in a World Cup finals. Japan Football Association (in Japanese)

In pro baseball, the Yokohama BayStars beat Seibu four games to two to become Japan Series champions for the first time in 38 years, since 1960 in the Taiyo Whales days. The pitcher entrusted with the end of games, Kazuhiro Sasaki, was nicknamed “Hama no Daimajin” (“the Demon God of Yokohama Bay”). Club’s official history (in Japanese) / Jiyu Kokuminsha (in Japanese)

Key Events of the Year

1. Jan. 28Morning Musume. debuts with "Morning Coffee"Idols
2. Feb.FM Tokyo launches the "Listeners Club"Media
3. Feb. 7–22The Nagano Olympics are held (5 gold, 1 silver, 4 bronze)Sports
4. Feb. 25L'Arc~en~Ciel releases "HEART"Music
5. Apr. 4The Toei version of Yu-Gi-Oh! begins broadcasting (TV Asahi network)Anime
6. Apr. 16Pocket Monsters returns to the airAnime
7. May 2hide of X JAPAN diesMusic
8. Jun.Japan's national soccer team plays in the World Cup finals for the first timeSports
9. Jul. 1SPEED releases "ALIVE"Music
10. Jul.The film Mewtwo Strikes Back opens (distribution revenue of 4.15 billion yen)Anime
11. Jul. 29GLAY releases "pure soul"Music
12. Aug. 14–16Comic Market 54 (380,000 total visits over 3 days)Fan works
13. Oct. 26In the Japan Series, the Yokohama BayStars win their first title in 38 yearsSports
14. Oct. 31Bayside Shakedown: The Movie opens (distribution revenue of 5 billion yen)Media
15. Nov. 27Sega releases the DreamcastGames
16. Dec. 9Hikaru Utada debuts with "Automatic / time will tell"Music
17. Dec. 31At the 40th Japan Record Awards, Morning Musume. wins Best New ArtistMusic

1. Jan 28Morning Musume debut"Morning Coffee"
2. FebNagano Olympics5 golds for Japan
3. May 2hide diesFans keep his music alive
4. JunFirst World CupJapan plays in France
5. OctBayStars winFirst title in 38 years
6. Nov 27DreamcastA console with a modem
7. Dec 9Hikaru Utada debutsAt 15 years old

A year of peak CD production and shared moments in front of the TV.

The Year’s Buzzword Awards

Grand PrizeHama no Daimajin ("the Great Demon God of Hama," Yokohama's closer)

Kazuhiro Sasaki (Yokohama BayStars)

Grand PrizeBonjin, gunjin, henjin ("an ordinary person, a soldier, a weirdo," Tanaka's description of LDP rivals)

Makiko Tanaka (member of the House of Representatives)

Grand PrizeDacchu-no (the Pirates' comic catchphrase and pose)

Yoshimi Asada, Haruka Nishimoto (Pirates)

Top 10Kankyo hormone ("environmental hormones," endocrine disruptors)

Taisen Iguchi

Top 10Kashi-shiburi (banks' "reluctance to lend")

—

Top 10Rojinryoku ("senior power")

Genpei Akasegawa

Top 10Shomuni (comedy manga and TV drama about office ladies)

Hiroyuki Yasuda and others

Top 10Moral hazard (moraru hazaado)

Kohei Nakabo

Top 10Cold pizza (a metaphor for the neglected Japanese economy)

John Neufer

Top 10Nihon retto so-fukyo ("a recession across the whole Japanese archipelago")

Taichi Sakaiya

Special AwardSmiling Communist

Tetsuzo Fuwa

Special AwardBokyabin ("poor vocabulary")

Keizo Obuchi

The grand prizes went to “Hama no Daimajin,” “Dacchuuno” and “Bonjin, Gunjin, Henjin” (“an ordinary person, a soldier, an eccentric”). A baseball player’s nickname, a comedy duo’s signature routine and a political phrase sit side by side. Jiyu Kokuminsha (in Japanese)

In 1999, Hikaru Utada’s First Love comes out and GLAY play to 200,000 at Makuhari. It is also the year i-mode, which lets you use email and websites on a mobile phone, begins.