Kyu Sakamoto
Kyu Sakamoto, a fan of Elvis, made his stage début as a member of the band The Drifters at the Nichigeki Western Carnival in 1958. His 1961 song "Ue wo Muite Arukō" ("Let's Look Up and Walk"), known in other parts of the world as "Sukiyaki", was released to the United States in 1963. It was the first Japanese song to reach the Number One position in the United States, spending four weeks in "Cash Box" and three weeks in "Billboard". It also received a gold record for selling one million copies. During this period, female duo The Peanuts also became popular, singing a song in the movie "Mothra". Their songs, such as "Furimukanaide" ("Don't Turn Around") were later covered by Candies on their album "Candy Label". Artists like Kyu Sakamoto and The Peanuts were called .