According to Nikkai Sports, enka "queen" Sachiko Kobayashi has been dropped from NHK's all-important Kohaku Utagassen program for this coming New Years Eve. Sachiko's (age 58) disappearance of the "Red and White" program is evidence of the further decline of enka in Japan.
Sachiko Kobayashi
http://www.enka.com.ua/en/info/36.html