# Yū Aku

Yū Aku (阿久 悠, Aku Yū), occasionally credited as You Aku (February 7, 1937 – August 1, 2007), was a Japanese lyricist, poet, and novelist.

## Early life

Yū Aku was born as Hiroyuki Fukada (深田公之, Fukada Hiroyuki) in Awaji Island, Hyogo, Japan. His parents both originated from the town of Kawaminami in Miyazaki Prefecture, Kyūshū, Japan. His father worked as a police constable in Hyogo prefecture. His father's career necessitated moving every few years, resulting in Aku attending three separate junior high schools. Yū Aku graduated from Meiji University.

## Career

Originally, Yū Aku desired to screenwrite for movies, specifically the then up-and-coming Moonlight Mask series. Aku started his career in advertisement production, which provided the foundation for his work as a lyricist. Aku worked on commercial production from 1959 to 1966. In 1964, he also took up broadcast writing. After his 1966 retirement from advertising, he continued to work as a broadcast writer and also as a lyricist. His first published work as a lyricist was the 1965 song 'Monkey Dance.'
Yū Aku was famous for contributing lyrics to many recording artists since 1967. He was a prolific lyricist, writing more than 5,000 songs. Mainly during the 1970s, more than 20 of them reached #1 on the Japanese Oricon chart, and seven singles sold more than a million copies. Over 500 of his compositions which were released as singles have entered the Japanese record chart, and they sold in excess of 68 million copies from 1968 to 2007, making him the most commercially successful Japanese lyricist up to that point. As of 2015, total sales of the singles he has written exceed 68.3 million copies, making him the second best-selling lyricist in Japan behind only Yasushi Akimoto. In 1977, he wrote the lyrics to The TV Asahi Song for the occasion of the television channel's most recent name change.
Throughout his 40-year career as a lyricist, Aku won the Japan Record Award five times. He was also acclaimed as a novelist, and produced several award-winning works. In 1999, Aku received the Purple Ribboned Medal of Honor from the Government of Japan, in honor of his long-term contributions to the Japanese entertainment industry.
On September 12, 2001, Aku underwent surgery to remove his kidney cancer. He continued to work while undergoing chemotherapy until he died of ureteral cancer on August 1, 2007.

## Awards

| Year | Award | Song | Category | Singer |
| 1970 (Shōwa 45) | 12th Japan Record Awards | Manatsu No Arashi | Composer Award | Teruhiko Saigō |
| 1970 (Shōwa 45) | 12th Japan Record Awards | Waratte Yurushite | Arranger Award | Akiko Wada |
| 1971 (Shōwa 46) | 13th Japan Record Awards | Mata Au Hi Made | Japan Record Award | Kiyohiko Ozaki |
| 1971 (Shōwa 46) | 13th Japan Record Awards | Moeru Koibito | New Artist Award | Naoki Hongou |
| 1972 (Shōwa 47) | 14th Japan Record Awards | Ano Kane Wo Narasunowa Anata | Best Vocalist | Akiko Wada |
| 1972 (Shōwa 47) | 14th Japan Record Awards | Sensei | New Artist Award | Masako Mori |
| 1972 (Shōwa 47) | 14th Japan Record Awards | Dounimo Tomaranai | Composer Award | Linda Yamamoto |
| 1972 (Shōwa 47) | 14th Japan Record Awards | Namida | Composer Award | Jun Inoue |
| 1972 (Shōwa 47) | 14th Japan Record Awards | Pin Pon Pan Taisou | Children's Song Award | Suginami Junior Chorus & Zei Kanamori |
| 1973 (Shōwa 48) | 15th Japan Record Awards | Watashi No Aoi Tori | Best New Artist | Junko Sakurada |
| 1973 (Shōwa 48) | 15th Japan Record Awards | Coffee Shop De | New Artist Award | Shizue Abe |
| 1973 (Shōwa 48) | 15th Japan Record Awards | Johnny He No Dengon | Lyricist Award | Pedro & Capricious |
| 1973 (Shōwa 48) | 15th Japan Record Awards | Jinjin Sasete | Lyricist Award | Linda Yamamoto |
| 1973 (Shōwa 48) | 15th Japan Record Awards | Machi No Akari | Composer Award | Masaaki Sakai |
| 1974 (Shōwa 49) | 16th Japan Record Awards | Koi No American Football | Young Idol Award | Finger 5 |
| 1975 (Shōwa 50) | 17th Japan Record Awards | Romance | New Artist Award | Hiromi Iwasaki |
| 1975 (Shōwa 50) | 17th Japan Record Awards | Juushichi No Natsu | General Public Award | Sakurada Junko |
| 1975 (Shōwa 50) | 17th Japan Record Awards | Geshukuya | Composer Award | Kouichi Morita & Topgalant |
| 1975 (Shōwa 50) | 17th Japan Record Awards | Uba Guruma | Lyricist Award | Sugawara Yoichi |
| 1976 (Shōwa 51) | 18th Japan Record Awards | Kita No Yado Kara | Japan Record Award | Harumi Miyako |
| 1976 (Shōwa 51) | 18th Japan Record Awards | Wakaki Shishi Tachi | Vocalist Award | Hideki Saijo |
| 1976 (Shōwa 51) | 18th Japan Record Awards | Yome Ni Konaika | New Artist Award | Kenji Niinuma |
| 1976 (Shōwa 51) | 18th Japan Record Awards | Pepper Keibu | New Artist Award | Pink Lady |
| 1977 (Shōwa 52) | 19th Japan Record Awards | Katte Ni Shiyagare | Japan Record Award | Kenji Sawada |
| 1977 (Shōwa 52) | 19th Japan Record Awards | Katte Ni Shiyagare | Arranger Award | Kenji Sawada |
| 1977 (Shōwa 52) | 19th Japan Record Awards | Shishuki | Vocalist Award/Shinpei Nakayama Award (Composer Award) | Hiromi Iwasaki |
| 1977 (Shōwa 52) | 19th Japan Record Awards | Tsugarukaikyou Fuyugeshiki | Vocalist Award/Shinpei Nakayama Award (Composer Award) | Sayuri Ishikawa |
| 1977 (Shōwa 52) | 19th Japan Record Awards | Wanted | General Public Award | Pink Lady |
| 1978 (Shōwa 53) | 20th Japan Record Awards | UFO | Japan Record Award/Gold Award | Pink Lady |
| 1978 (Shōwa 53) | 20th Japan Record Awards | LOVE (Dakishimetai) | Best Vocalist/Gold Award | Kenji Sawada |
| 1978 (Shōwa 53) | 20th Japan Record Awards | Cinderella Honeymoon | Gold Award (Vocalist Award) | Hiromi Iwasaki |
| 1978 (Shōwa 53) | 20th Japan Record Awards | Tasogare My Love | Gold Award (Vocalist Award) | Junko Oohashi |
| 1978 (Shōwa 53) | 20th Japan Record Awards | Blue Sky Blue | Gold Award (Vocalist Award) | Hideki Saijo |
| 1978 (Shōwa 53) | 20th Japan Record Awards | Shitsuren Kinenbi | New Artist Award | Mako Ishino |
| 1979 (Shōwa 54) | 21st Japan Record Awards | Casa Blanca Dandy | Gold Award | Kenji Sawada |
| 1979 (Shōwa 54) | 21st Japan Record Awards | Funa Uta | Gold Award | Aki Yashiro |
| 1980 (Shōwa 55) | 22nd Japan Record Awards | Ame No Bojou | Japan Record Award/Gold Award | Aki Yashiro |
| 1980 (Shōwa 55) | 22nd Japan Record Awards | Ginga Densetsu | Gold Award | Hiromi Iwasaki |
| 1980 (Shōwa 55) | 22nd Japan Record Awards | Sakaba De DABADA | Gold Award | Kenji Sawada |
| 1981 (Shōwa 56) | 23rd Japan Record Awards | Moshimo Piano Ga Hiketanara | Gold Award | Toshiyuki Nishida |
| 1982 (Shōwa 57) | 24th Japan Record Awards | Chigiri | Gold Award | Hiroshi Itsuki |
| 1982 (Shōwa 57) | 24th Japan Record Awards | Answer Song Wa Aishuu | New Artist Award | Yū Hayami |
| 1983 (Shōwa 58) | 25th Japan Record Awards | Nihon Kai | Special Gold Award | Aki Yashiro |
| 1984 (Shōwa 59) | 26th Japan Record Awards | Kita No Hotaru | Gold Award | Shinichi Mori |
| 1984 (Shōwa 59) | 26th Japan Record Awards | Natsu Zakari Hono Jigumi | Lyricist Award | Toshihiko Tahara & Naoko Ken |