Kodansha Essay Award
1 appearances
-
Edition 15 (1999) award
Seiko Ito
イトウ セイコウ
Ito Seiko
Aliases:
伊藤正幸 / MAC THE SEIKO
Pen Names:
MAC THE SEIKO（Stage name used during rap/music activities）
Profile
- Gender
- Male
- Born
- 1961-03-19 （Kamakura-cho, Katsushika, Tokyo, Japan）
- Nationality
- Japan
- Languages
- Japanese
- Residence History
- Katsushika, Tokyo (birthplace) → Taito Ward (Ueno/Asakusa area), Tokyo
Career
- Occupations
- editor, novelist, lyricist, rapper, actor, television personality
- Active Years
- 1985-
- Affiliations
- Kodansha (former editor), Cube Co., Ltd. (talent agency), Kinki University Institute of International Humanities (visiting professor)
- Memberships
- Japan Writers' Association
- Influenced By
- Jean Baudrillard, Marcel Duchamp, Raymond Roussel
- Influenced
- MCU, KOHEI JAPAN, YOU THE ROCK★, Scha Dara Parr, Utamaru
- Nominations
- 2nd Mishima Yukio Prize nominee (No Life King, 1988), 10th Noma Literary New Face Prize nominee (No Life King, 1988), 26th Mishima Yukio Prize nominee (Imaginary Radio, 2013), 149th Akutagawa Prize nominee (Imaginary Radio, 2013), 11th Honya Taisho nominee (Imaginary Radio, 2014), 150th Akutagawa Prize nominee (Hana ni Hasami Uchi, 2014)
Education
| Institution | Faculty | Department | Degree | Period | Country |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Toho University Affiliated Toho Junior & Senior High School | — | — | — | — | Japan |
| Waseda University | Faculty of Law | — | 法学士 | 1980-1984 | Japan |
Toho University Affiliated Toho Junior & Senior High School
Country:
Japan
Waseda University
Faculty of Law
Degree:
法学士
Period:
1980-1984
Year of Graduation:
1984
Country:
Japan
Began stage activities and worked behind the scenes in radio while at university
Awards
| Year | Award | Work | Category | Organization | Result |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1999 | Kodansha Essay Award | Botanical Life (Shokubutsu Seikatsu) | — | Kodansha | winner |
| 2013 | Noma Literary New Face Prize | Imaginary Radio | — | Noma Culture Foundation | winner |
| 2013 | Shizuoka Bookstore Awards — Fiction Category | Imaginary Radio | — | Shizuoka Bookstore Awards Committee | winner |
Kodansha Essay Award
1999
Work:
Botanical Life (Shokubutsu Seikatsu)
Organization:
Kodansha
Result:
winner
Noma Literary New Face Prize
2013
Work:
Imaginary Radio
Organization:
Noma Culture Foundation
Result:
winner
Shizuoka Bookstore Awards — Fiction Category
2013
Work:
Imaginary Radio
Organization:
Shizuoka Bookstore Awards Committee
Result:
winner
Awards & Nominations
Noma Literary Newcomer Award
1 appearances
-
Edition 35 (2013) award
Works
Major Works
No Life King
1988 NovelDebut novel exploring 1980s youth culture, urban malaise and experimental uses of language.
urban lifeyouthlinguistic experimentation
Imaginary Radio
2013 NovelA novel centered on the 2011 Tohoku earthquake that intertwines memory and imagination to explore loss and recovery; notable for its episodic structure and narrative experiments.
disaster (2011 earthquake)memorymedialoss and recovery
Adaptations
- [radio drama] Imaginary Radio (radio drama) (2014)
Our Love
2016 NovelA work that treats love and relationships, alternating between intimate everyday narration and social perspectives.
loverelationshipseveryday life
Botanical Life (Shokubutsu Seikatsu)
1999 EssayAn essay collection on gardening and home cultivation; combines affection for plants with everyday observation. Later adapted into a TV drama.
gardeningdomestic lifenature observation
Adaptations
- [TV drama] Plant Dad Veranda (TV adaptation)
Bibliography
- No Life King (1988)
- World's End Garden (1991)
- A Vacant Man's Vacation (1991)
- Kaitaiya Gaiden (1993)
- Castration Training (1997)
- Botanical Life (1999)
- Imaginary Radio (2013)
- Hana ni Hasami Uchi (2014)
- Our Love (2016)
- Yume Nanoka: Night into Day Country (2020)
Adaptations
- Plant Dad Veranda (TV adaptation of Botanical Life)
- Imaginary Radio (radio drama adaptation)
Translations by Author
- Ihara Saikaku, 'Seken Munasanyō' (translation/editorial work, 1992)
- The Marx Brothers: Radio (editorial supervision, 1995)
- Words of Islam (editor/translator, 1996)
Style & Themes
- Literary Style
- experimental play with languageconversational, rhythmic prosecombination of social themes with private perspective
- Recurring Motifs
- the citymedia and informationwar and anti-warplants and gardeningsex and human relationships
Health
-
depression (during university)大学在学中Affected his creative direction; music and stage activities were factors in his recovery and subsequent career choices.
Legacy
Ito Seiko is a multi-creator whose experimental prose and Japanese-language rap expression have influenced both Japanese hip-hop and contemporary literature. He has contributed broadly through novels, essays, music and media appearances.
Academic Societies
- Japan Writers' Association
In Popular Culture
- Frequent appearances on TV and radio programs (cultural commentary, hosting)
- TV drama adaptation of Botanical Life ('Plant Dad Veranda')
- Contribution to the early dissemination of Japanese-language rap
Quotes
-
At some point I had a file on my computer titled 'There was only the Gulf War' with only two lines. I called the strange sense of powerlessness after that war 'castration' and tried to depict it as an object, which led me to write about sexual matters as a way of confronting that feeling.
Source: WB interview (R25), 2006 (2006)
Trivia
- Birth name: Masayuki Ito (伊藤正幸)
- Also known by stage name MAC THE SEIKO
- Blood type AB
- Height 170 cm, weight 64 kg (public figures)
- Has stated he does not hold a driver's license
- Enthusiast of home gardening (author of Botanical Life)
- Received Best Fundoshi Award from the Japan Fundoshi Association three years in a row (2011–2013) and inducted into the hall of fame in 2014
- Won the Noma Literary New Face Prize in 2013 for Imaginary Radio
- Announced the birth of a child in 2021 and prioritized childcare
- Has debuted as a haiku poet