How a Japanese ballad became an international hit under a completely unrelated food name.

Music · Published 3 October 2026 Swipe more like this →

In short: In 1963, Kyu Sakamoto became the first Asian artist to top the Billboard Hot 100. His song, Ue o Muite Arukō, was renamed Sukiyaki by a British executive simply because the original Japanese title was deemed too difficult for English speakers to pronounce, despite the name having no connection to the lyrics.

Born in 1941, Kyu Sakamoto rose from a turbulent childhood in Kawasaki to become a Japanese pop icon. After early stints in bands like The Drifters and Paradise King, he launched a solo career with the 1961 release of Ue o Muite Arukō. The song, written by Rokusuke Ei and Hachidai Nakamura, became an immediate domestic sensation, dominating Japanese charts for months after its October release.

The song's international trajectory was accidental. During a visit to Japan, Pye Records executive Louis Benjamin heard the track and sought to bring it to the UK. Fearing the Japanese title would alienate Western audiences, he rebranded it Sukiyaki, naming it after a popular Japanese beef dish. While the title was catchy, it bore no thematic relation to the song's actual meaning, which translates to I look up when I walk.

The strategy proved remarkably effective. Capitol Records released the track in the United States, where it held the number one spot on the Billboard Hot 100 for three weeks in June 1963. It remains the only Japanese-language song to ever reach the top of the American pop charts. Sakamoto’s success led to a world tour and appearances on American television, including The Steve Allen Show, though his career was tragically cut short in 1985 when he died in the crash of Japan Air Lines Flight 123.

Decades later, the song’s legacy persists through countless covers and cultural references. Artists ranging from A Taste of Honey to Snoop Dogg have utilized its melody or lyrics, and it was featured during the 2020 Tokyo Olympics closing ceremony. Today, Sakamoto is remembered not just as a pioneer of Japanese pop, but as a global bridge-builder whose music transcended language barriers, even when marketed under a completely unrelated name.

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