Ryuichi Sakamoto, the famous Japanese musician, and composer who occasionally dabbled into the world of video games and anime, passed away on March 28, with his passing announced by his family on April 2. The composer was 71 at the time of death.
In an official post on his website, the music label he was associated with, Kab America said he was undergoing treatment for cancer discovered in June 2020, and he had been working from home and battling with the illness for some time. A funeral service was held for Ryuichi with his close family members and left some parting words in Sakamoto’s favorite phrase, “Ars Longa, vita brevis”, which translates to “Art is Long, life is short.”
Ryuichi Sakamoto was involved in a few game and anime projects, notably Tengai Makyou: Ziri which went on to start the Far East of Eden series, Dawn of Mana for which he was the composer, as well as works in anime series including the new Urusei Yatsura anime as he composed the theme song “Ikenai Rouge Magic”.
▍About Ryuichi Sakamoto
Ryuichi Sakamoto was born on January 17, 1952, and is most well-known for being a solo artist covering a diverse range of genres, including classical, and hip-hop. Many in the Japanese electronic scene attribute his influence and work in the genre as groundbreaking, as he is said to have pioneered electropop, synthpunk, cyberpunk music, electronica, and much more, leaving a lasting impression on the scene.
He even composed the music for the opening ceremony of the Barcelona Olympics in 1992. His original piece on solo piano titled “Energy Flow” was the first instrumental to become a number-one single on Japan’s Oricon charts.
