Eiko Hiraiwa

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Eiko Hiraiwa
平岩 英子
Born(1971-02-17)17 February 1971
Hiroshima, Japan
Died31 March 2021(2021-03-31) (aged 50)
GenresPop
OccupationSinger-songwriter
InstrumentVocals
Years active1995–2000
Labels
Spouse
Akiro Arishima

Eiko Hiraiwa (平岩 英子, Hiraiwa Eiko; 17 February 1971 – 31 March 2021) was a Japanese singer-songwriter. After studying Dalcroze eurhythmics as a child and college student, she made her major-label debut in 1995. She released several singles and albums with Epic Records Japan and Village Records until 2000, entering into a hiatus afterwards.

Biography

Eiko Hiraiwa was born on 17 February 1971[1] in Hiroshima,[2] and started studying eurhythmics and piano as a young child.[2] She graduated from Hiroshima Music High School and the Kunitachi College of Music, where she continued her eurhythmics studies.[3][2] Following an audition where a demo tape of hers reached the attention of Japan's record industry, she joined Epic Records Japan and made her major label debut with the single "Watashi ga Watashi de aru Toki" (私が私である時), released on 21 July 1995;[4][1] she also released her debut album Deep Breath[3] with that same label the same day.[5] Asahigraph called it "a refreshing album that revitalizes the listener's heart", remarking that it "showcases her talents not only as a vocalist but also in songwriting and vocal arrangement".[3]

Hiraiwa released three more albums with Epic Records - Airium (1997),[6] Eureka (1998),[7] and Vesta (1998)[8] - as well as six singles: "Kaze ni Fukarete" (1995),[4] "Cara Cara",[9] "Snow Field: Kowareru hodo Omotteita" (both 1996),[10] "Sotsugyō" (1997),[11] and "Natsu no Kōsui" (1998).[12] In 2000, she released an album Nudy Camera and a single "Naiteiru Hito" under a different label, Village Records,[13][14] and afterwards her musical career entered into a hiatus.[1] CDJournal remarked that she became known for a "clear, crystalline vocal style", as well as "refreshing vocals and a sound characterized by acoustic textures".[1]

In addition to her singing career, Hiraiwa wrote two songs: Hiraiwa's "Kinō Mita Yume no yō ni" and Ryōko Hirosue's "Aoi Sora ni Ukabu Tsuki no Yō ni".[15]

Hiraiwa was married to Akiro Arishima.[16] She died on 31 March 2021.[16][17] Her 1997 song "Kinō Mita Yume no yō ni" appeared in the 2024 city pop compilation City Pop Groovy '90s: Girls & Boys.[18]

Discography

Albums

Title Details
Deep Breath[5]
  • Released: 21 July 1995
  • Label: Epic Records Japan
Airium[6]
  • Released: 21 May 1997
  • Label: Epic Records Japan
Eureka (ユリイカ)[7]
  • Released: 21 January 1998
  • Label: Epic Records Japan
Vesta
(stylized in all-caps)[8]
  • Released: 18 July 1998
  • Label: Epic Records Japan
Nudy Camera
(stylized in small-caps)[13]
  • Released: 22 November 2000
  • Label: Village Records

Singles

Title Details
"Watashi ga Watashi de aru Toki" (私が私である時)[4]
  • Released: 21 July 1995
  • Label: Epic Records Japan
"Kaze ni Fukarete" (風に吹かれて)[4]
  • Released: 21 October 1995
  • Label: Epic Records Japan
"Cara Cara" (カラカラ)[9]
  • Released: 21 September 1996
  • Label: Epic Records Japan
"Snow Field: Kowareru hodo Omotteita" (Snow Field～こわれるほど想っていた～)[10]
  • Released: 21 November 1996
  • Label: Epic Records Japan
"Sotsugyō" (卒業)[11]
  • Released: 21 February 1997
  • Label: Epic Records Japan
"Natsu no Kōsui" (夏の香水)[12]
  • Released: 21 June 1998
  • Label: Epic Records Japan
"Naiteiru Hito" (泣いている人)[14]
  • Released: 21 September 2000
  • Label: Village Records

References

  1. "平岩英子". artist.cdjournal.com (in Japanese). Retrieved 25 June 2026.
  2. "gozo gozo - biography". www.eikohiraiwa.net. Archived from the original on 13 March 2005. Retrieved 25 June 2026.
  3. Asahigraph Volumes 3816-3823 (in Japanese). 1995. p. 7.
  4. "私が私である時 | 平岩英子". Oricon News (in Japanese). Retrieved 25 June 2026.
  5. "Deep Breath | 平岩英子". Sony Music Japan (in Japanese). Archived from the original on 16 October 2021. Retrieved 25 June 2026.
  6. "平岩英子 / エアリウム". artist.cdjournal.com (in Japanese). Retrieved 25 June 2026.
  7. "ユリイカ | 平岩英子". Oricon News (in Japanese). Retrieved 25 June 2026.
  8. "VESTA | 平岩英子". Oricon News (in Japanese). Retrieved 25 June 2026.
  9. "カラカラ | 平岩英子". Oricon News (in Japanese). Retrieved 25 June 2026.
  10. "Snow Field～こわれるほど想っていた～ | 平岩英子". Oricon News (in Japanese). Retrieved 25 June 2026.
  11. "卒業 | 平岩英子". Oricon News (in Japanese). Retrieved 25 June 2026.
  12. "夏の香水 | 平岩英子". Oricon News (in Japanese). Retrieved 25 June 2026.
  13. "nudy camera | 平岩英子". Oricon News (in Japanese). Retrieved 25 June 2026.
  14. "泣いてる人 | 平岩英子". Oricon News (in Japanese). Retrieved 25 June 2026.
  15. "平岩英子作詞の歌詞一覧". www.uta-net.com. Retrieved 25 June 2026.
  16. Arishima, Akiro [@aaarishima1] (20 April 2021). "平岩英子が本年3/31逝去致しました。生前の御礼とご報告をと思い、このような場所に失礼いたしました。平岩英子夫　有島明朗" (Tweet). Retrieved 25 June 2026 – via Twitter.
  17. "平岩英子さん。". Tsuki Amano (in Japanese). 17 April 2022. Archived from the original on 16 March 2026. Retrieved 25 June 2026.
  18. "キリンジ、NONA REEVESも収録! 究極のシティポップコンピ第2弾『CITY POP GROOVY '90s』CD版の詳細が決定". Mikiki (in Japanese). 4 June 2024. Retrieved 25 June 2026.