was a Japanese singer-songwriter born on Hashima Island, Nagasaki Prefecture. She first made her professional debut with the single, Kanashii Jiyū / Koi ga, Kiete Yuku. She is also known as the Shelby Flint of Japan. Biography Early life Okazaki was born in Hashima Island, Nagasaki Prefecture on December 29, 1959. She was born left-handed. During her childhood, she was forced by her mother to use her right hand. However, after hearing that it was bad to force her to use her right hand, her mother quickly advised her to use her natural hand. During her school days, she spent time in the bakery where she worked part-time, and practiced with her band, Eleanor. She was then in charge of the chorus and piano. Career Okazaki made her debut as a singer-songwriter in 1993. During the nineties, she continued singing and also wrote songs for various voice actors. As she became more involved with anime she composed songs for Wedding Peach, Fruits Basket, Princess Tutu, Symphonic Rain, Say "I love you.", and Love Hina. She formed the duo, Melocure in 2002 with singer-songwriter Megumi Hinata. In the following two years, the duo released several singles and an album, Melodic Hard Cure. Okazaki also produced songs during these years for artists such as Megumi Hayashibara, Mayumi Iizuka, and Yui Horie. According to her fans, the lyrics of Okazaki's songs are characterized by poetic imagery, depth of emotion, gentle optimism and simplicity. Death She was diagnosed with stomach cancer in 2003 but still continued with her work. During this time there was little information released about her. The news was revealed to the public in the liner notes of the CD soundtrack re-release of the visual novel Symphonic Rain, which was released a year after her death. On May 5, 2004, Okazaki died suddenly at the age of 44 from septic shock as a result of sepsis. She was unable to speak any last words, and left her work unfinished. Discography Singles Albums Source: See also Music of Fruits Basket References External links Okazaki Ritsuko's official homepage Official site @ Star Child Official site @ Universal Music Ritsuko Okazaki @ King Records Memorial page @ CDJapan Anime musicians 1959 births 2004 deaths Japanese women singer-songwriters Japanese women pop singers Deaths from sepsis Musicians from Nagasaki Prefecture 20th-century Japanese musicians 20th-century Japanese women singers 20th-century Japanese singers 21st-century Japanese women singers 21st-century Japanese