Akina Nakamori will be the subject of three television specials airing on NHK General, NHK BS4K, and NHK BS between October and November, marking the broadcaster’s biggest tribute to the veteran singer in years. The specials were put together after Nakamori successfully completed her first concert tour in 20 years, “AKINA NAKAMORI LIVE TOUR 2026,” and come as she approaches the 45th anniversary of her debut next year.
The centerpiece is “SONGS Special: Akina Nakamori ‘Akina All-Time Best,'” airing October 24 on NHK General. The episode revisits songs she released in the five years following her 1982 debut, paired with archival NHK footage. As part of the special, Nakamori performed live in an NHK studio for the first time in 17 years, and sat for a new interview reflecting on each song and the stories behind them.
A second program, “Akina Nakamori Live 2026,” will broadcast footage from added tour dates held on September 19 and 20, airing on NHK BS4K on October 31 and on NHK BS on November 7. The special captures Nakamori performing her hit songs in arrangements close to their original versions. A third installment, “SONGS Special: Akina Nakamori ‘Songs I Want to Deliver Now,'” airs November 12 on NHK General and focuses on how her outlook has shifted over the past three years, along with a message to fans and behind-the-scenes footage from the tour.
Nakamori commented on returning to the NHK studio, saying it felt like nothing had changed since she regularly appeared on music programs there, including “Let’s Go Young,” adding that it felt like coming home. On the tour, she said the setlist and structure were all things she loved performing, and that the audience singing along made her feel like they were carrying the songs with her, calling it a show that brought the whole venue together and left her feeling reenergized. She thanked everyone who attended and supported the tour.
Who is Akina Nakamori?
Akina Nakamori (中森明菜) is a Japanese singer who debuted in 1982 and became one of the defining pop idols of the 1980s, known for hits delivered with a dramatic, torch-singer style that set her apart from her idol-era peers. After stepping back from the spotlight at various points over her career, she has continued to perform and release music, and her 2026 tour marked her first full concert run in two decades. She will mark the 45th anniversary of her debut in 2027.
Author’s Comment
An idol from 1982 gets her own NHK retrospective and I’m not even surprised — Japan’s broadcasters have turned "comeback anniversary content" into an art form, and nobody plays it better than NHK’s SONGS franchise. What gets me is the detail that it’s been 17 years since she’s sung live in one of their studios. Seventeen years! That’s not a comeback, that’s an archaeological dig. But credit where it’s due: a 20-years-no-tour run that actually sells out and gets this kind of victory-lap treatment is rare, and it says a lot about how durable her catalog still is with people who weren’t even born for the original broadcasts. I’ll take sincere nostalgia over manufactured hype any day — just don’t expect me to sit through all three specials in one sitting.
