Enka is Japan's soul music—a deeply emotional vocal genre born from the collision of traditional Japanese melodies and Western influences in the postwar era. Characterized by pentatonic scales reminiscent of min'yō folk songs, vibrato-heavy singing styles (kobushi), and orchestral arrangements blending shakuhachi flutes with strings and electric guitars, enka emerged as the soundtrack of working-class Japan during the nation's rapid modernization. Its lyrics often explore themes of longing, lost love, and nostalgia for rural life, delivered with theatrical intensity by singers like Hibari Misora, who elevated the form to high art in the 1950s-70s. Unlike the polished commercial sheen of J-pop or the global fusion experiments within broader Japanese music, enka remains deliberately anchored in nationalist sentiment and traditional aesthetics—its performers often wear kimonos on stage, and its melodies prioritize emotional authenticity over Western pop structures.
Though critics sometimes dismiss it as sentimental or kitsch, enka's technical demands are staggering: mastering its vocal ornamentations requires years of training in traditional Japanese singing techniques. Modern practitioners like Sayuri Ishikawa and Kiyoshi Hikawa have updated the sound with contemporary production while preserving its core pathos, proving the genre's adaptability. Even iconoclasts like Meiko Kaji and Akina Nakamori have dabbled in enka-influenced work, revealing its hidden influence on Japanese rock and kayōkyoku.
Listen to enka to understand the emotional architecture of postwar Japan—its ache for vanished landscapes, its pride in endurance, and its refusal to abandon beauty in an accelerating world.
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List updated:
| #45 | By石川さゆり | Released:1960-07 | |||
| #98 | By石川さゆり | Released:1960-07 | |||
| #20 | By松村和子 | Released:1960 | |||
| #37 | By香西かおり | Released:1960 | |||
| #89 | Byちあきなおみ | Released:1960 | |||
| #18 | By川中美幸 | Released:1965-11 | enkaj-pop | ||
| #81 | ByCrown Orchestra | Released:1968-03 | enka | ||
| #93 | By都はるみ | Released:1968-04-20 | |||
| #28 | By最上川 司 | Released:1970-11 | enkavisual kei | ||
| #59 | Byいしだあゆみ | Released:1970-11 | |||
| #46 | By中尾ミエ | Released:1970 | enka | ||
| #76 | By森進一 | Released:1970 | |||
| #96 | By長山洋子 | Released:1971-11 | |||
| #34 | By石川さゆり | Released:1971 | enka | ||
| #27 | By浅川マキ | Released:1972-12-01 | |||
| #5 | By美空ひばり | Released:1972 | enka | ||
| #65 | By坂本冬美 | Released:1972 | |||
| #97 | By森田童子 | Released:1972 | |||
| #73 | By坂本冬美 | Released:1972 | |||
| #30 | By石川さゆり | Released:1973-08-10 | enka | ||
| #78 | By石川さゆり | Released:1973-08-25 | |||
| #4 | By梶芽衣子 | Released:1973-10-25 | enka | ||
| #22 | ByEiji Miyoshi | Released:1974-06-25 | popenka | ||
| #25 | By石川さゆり | Released:1974 | |||
| #35 | By宇津木なつみ | Released:1974 | tangoenka | ||
| #31 | By石川さゆり | Released:1975-04-25 | enka | ||
| #80 | By八代亜紀 | Released:1975 | |||
| #60 | By石川さゆり | Released:1976-11-25 | enka | ||
| #10 | By石川さゆり | Released:1977-12-25 | enka | ||
| #91 | By藤圭子 | Released:1977 | j-popenka | ||
| #13 | By石川さゆり | Released:1978-02 | enka | ||
| #16 | BySayuri Ishikawa | Released:1978-05-25 | enka | ||
| #42 | By石川さゆり | Released:1978-07 | enka | ||
| #36 | By氷川きよし | Released:1982 | |||
| #44 | By森進一 | Released:1984-08-05 | enkaasian pop | ||
| #19 | By中澤裕子 | Released:1985 | j-popenka | ||
| #72 | By坂本冬美 | Released:1987-11-25 | j-popenka | ||
| #52 | By坂本冬美 | Released:1988-09-21 | |||
| #49 | By坂本冬美 | Released:1988-09-21 | |||
| #99 | By石川さゆり | Released:1989-02-01 | |||
| #38 | By岩佐美咲 | Released:1989 | |||
| #58 | By長山洋子 | Released:1993 | |||
| #14 | ByViolent Onsen Geisha | Released:1996 | enkapop rock | ||
| #55 | By石原裕次郎 | Released:1998-02-21 | |||
| #51 | By高山厳 | Released:1998-05-21 | |||
| #47 | By氷川きよし | Released:1998-12-18 | |||
| #84 | By西郷輝彦 | Released:2002-09-19 | |||
| #63 | By中森明菜 | Released:2002-11-27 | |||
| #92 | By坂本冬美 | Released:2003-09-10 | enka | ||
| #50 | Byカレン | Released:2004-02-27 | enka | ||
| #1 | By梶芽衣子 | Released:2004-03-24 | enka | ||
| #2 | By梶芽衣子 | Released:2004-03-24 | |||
| #6 | By梶芽衣子 | Released:2004-03-24 | enkasoundtrack | ||
| #67 | By水森かおり | Released:2004-04-14 | |||
| #69 | By石川さゆり | Released:2004-09-22 | |||
| #64 | By飯田圭織 | Released:2004-12-29 | |||
| #90 | By飯田圭織 | Released:2005-12-21 | |||
| #66 | By坂本冬美 | Released:2006-04-05 | enka | ||
| #7 | By中澤裕子 | Released:2006-09-27 | enka | ||
| #23 | Byすぎもとまさと | Released:2007-02-21 | |||
| #11 | By中森明菜 | Released:2007-06-27 | |||
| #3 | Byジェロ | Released:2008-02-20 | enkaj-pop | ||
| #40 | By三波春夫 | Released:2008-04-14 | |||
| #9 | Byジェロ | Released:2008-06-25 | enkaj-pop | ||
| #88 | By八代亜紀 | Released:2008-11-19 | |||
| #48 | Byジェロ | Released:2008-12-03 | |||
| #56 | By坂本冬美 | Released:2009-01-07 | |||
| #17 | ByYuzo Kayama | Released:2010-04-07 | enka | ||
| #57 | By坂本冬美 | Released:2011-09-28 | |||
| #21 | Byわたしのココ | Released:2012-06-20 | |||
| #8 | By岩佐美咲 | Released:2013-01-09 | j-popenka | ||
| #26 | By岩佐美咲 | Released:2013-10-06 | j-popenka | ||
| #24 | By岩佐美咲 | Released:2014-01-08 | |||
| #71 | By坂本冬美 | Released:2014-05-07 | |||
| #53 | By岩佐美咲 | Released:2016-11-30 | |||
| #41 | By岩佐美咲 | Released:2017-01-10 | j-popenka | ||
| #74 | ByUsurabi | Released:2021-04-29 | rockenka | ||
| #68 | By石川さゆり | Released:2022-05-04 | |||
| #87 | By北島三郎 | Released:2022-05-04 | enka | ||
| #12 | Byジェロ | Released: | |||
| #15 | By坂本冬美 | Released: | enka | ||
| #29 | By中澤裕子 | Released: | enka | ||
| #33 | ByAiko Moriyama | Released: | enka | ||
| #32 | By坂本冬美 | Released: | enka | ||
| #39 | ByNatsuko Godai | Released: | enka | ||
| #43 | ByKiyoshi Nakajou | Released: | enka | ||
| #54 | ByAiko Moriyama | Released: | enka | ||
| #61 | ByNatsuko Godai | Released: | enka | ||
| #62 | By藤あや子 | Released: | enka | ||
| #75 | By渡哲也 | Released: | enkaj-pop | ||
| #77 | ByMiyuki Nagai | Released: | enka | ||
| #79 | By氷川きよし | Released: | enka | ||
| #70 | By松平健 | Released: | |||
| #82 | Byテレサ・テン | Released: | enka | ||
| #83 | Byオルリコ | Released: | enkaj-pop | ||
| #85 | By五木ひろし | Released: | enka | ||
| #86 | Byオルリコ | Released: | |||
| #94 | Byオルリコ | Released: | |||
| #95 | By美空ひばり | Released: | j-popenka | ||
| #100 | Byテレサ・テン | Released: |