Birthday profile

Taiji (musician)

Taiji, Japanese bass player and songwriter (died 2011)

Born
July 12, 1966
Died
July 17, 2011
Zodiac sign
Cancer
Birth year
1966

About Taiji (musician)

Taiji Sawada (Japanese: 沢田 泰司, Hepburn: Sawada Taiji; July 12, 1966 – July 17, 2011), also known mononymously as Taiji, was a Japanese musician and songwriter. He is best known as bassist of the rock band X from 1986 to 1992. The band rose to prominence in the late 1980s and early 1990s, credited as founders of the Japanese visual kei movement. After leaving X in January 1992, Taiji went on to work with many other recording acts, including Loudness and D.T.R. In July 2011, Taiji was arrested in Saipan for a violent outburst that took place on the flight there. Facing federal charges in the United States-affiliated commonwealth, he attempted suicide by hanging in his jail cell, which left him brain dead. Taiji died in a hospital on July 11 after his family decided to turn off his life support. In 2018, readers and professional musicians voted him the best bassist in the history of hard rock and heavy metal in We Rock magazine's "Metal General Election". == Early life == Taiji Sawada was born in Ichikawa, Chiba, on July 12, 1966. He was the second son of three children. His younger sister Masayo is a singer.

Biography source: Wikipedia. The profile adds birthday-specific historical context from the Celebs Birthday Today editorial database.

Career and life highlights

The world when Taiji (musician) was born

Taiji (musician) was born in 1966. The year snapshot below places that birthday in its cultural and historical setting: the music and films people were following, the headlines shaping public life, and the everyday prices families encountered.

Culture in 1966

  • #1 song"The Ballad of the Green Berets" – SSgt Barry Sadler
  • Top movieA Man for All Seasons
  • Top TV showBonanza
  • Best-selling bookIn Cold Blood – Truman Capote

Headlines and milestones

  • Major sports momentEngland wins the FIFA World Cup at Wembley
  • Top headlineCultural Revolution begins in China
  • Technology milestoneStar Trek premieres, inspiring future technologists
  • Defining fadBatman TV show craze
  • Notable inventionElectronic fuel injection
  • World population3.41 billion

United States snapshot

  • U.S. leaderLyndon B. Johnson
  • Sports championBaltimore Orioles (World Series)
  • Also wonBoston Celtics (NBA)
  • U.S. population196.6M

1966 versus 2026

These figures put everyday life in Taiji (musician)'s birth year beside the site's latest United States snapshot.

Measure19662026
Gas$0.32$3.45/gal
Average home$14,200$435,000
Average income$9,400$67,500
Minimum wage$1.25$7.25/hr (federal)
Movie ticket$1.09$11.95
Postage stamp$0.05$0.73
Population196.6M341 million

Sources and editorial standards

This profile combines a biographical source with structured birthday and historical context. Sources recorded for this profile: Wikipedia, MusicBrainz, Wikidata. See our editorial policy for sourcing, corrections, and review standards.

Read the source biography on Wikipedia. Wikipedia text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License.