Mina Aoe

Mina Aoe
Native name	青江 三奈
Birth name	Shizuko Ihara (井原 静子)
Born	7 May 1941 Tokyo, Japan
Died	2 July 2000 (aged 59)
Genres	Enka, jazz
Years active	1966–1999
Labels	Victor Entertainment

Shizuko Ihara (井原 静子 Ihara Shizuko, 7 May 1941 – 2 July 2000), professionally known as Mina Aoe (青江 三奈 Aoe Mina), was a Japanese female enka singer who had a series of popular hits in the late 1960s and continued charting late into her career.

With her distinctive husky voice, she acquired the nickname "Queen of the Blues". She appeared 18 times on the annual Kōhaku Uta Gassen show. After her death, a memorial to Aoe was established in the Isezakichō shopping area in Yokohama.

Selected discography

• "Isezakicho Blues" (伊勢佐木町ブルース), 1968, one million sold
• "Ikebukuro no Yoru" (池袋の夜 One night at Ikebukuro) 1969, 1.5 million sold

References

• Obituary