05. Nature Speaks Simply (UMI // Seiko Matsuda)

Episode notes

Seiko Matsuda, Japan’s “Eternal Idol”, started her career way back in 1980 with her debut record Squall. The album and accompanying singles saw massive success, selling hundreds of thousands of copies within a week of release and it’s easy to see why. Squall perfectly encapsulated the summery, bouncy, fun side of city pop.

Singer-songwriter UMI joins us to talk about Matsuda’s prolific career, how city pop influences UMI’s work, and the joys of karaoke.

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In this episode...

Christian Dueñas

Host

Yosuke Kitazawa

Host

Kevin Ferguson

Senior Producer

Richard Robey

Producer

Guests

About the show

Primer is a music podcast about translation and illumination. Host Christian Dueñas is joined by a different co-host each season to explore a genre of music from outside the English-speaking world. In its debut season, music writer Yosuke Kitazawa (PBS SoCal, Light in the Attic, Temporal Drift) joins Christian and special guests to explore Japanese City Pop. They celebrate the lives of its artists, explore the cultural and historical context of the songs, and reflect on the impact that music had on listeners everywhere – including personally, as fans. Primer invites both newcomers and crate diggers alike to find their next favorite album and learn more about the music they already love.

Podcast art by Geoff Tice.