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Chara (singer)
, better known by her stage name , is a Japanese singer, actress and video jockey. She debuted in 1991 with the single ''Heaven''. She is known for her song " Swallowtail Butterfly (Ai no Uta)", the theme song for the 1996 Shunji Iwai film ''Swallowtail Butterfly'' in which she starred, her 1997 hit single " Yasashii Kimochi", and her collaboration with Judy and Mary vocalist Yuki, " Ai no Hi Mittsu Orange". Chara later formed a band with Yuki, called Mean Machine. Early life Chara grew up in Kawaguchi, Saitama. She started learning the piano from age four, and starting composing songs in elementary school. In her first year of elementary school, she performed a song she had written, , at a school piano recital., accessed through She originally received her nickname ''Chara'' in junior high school, after a teacher called her this. She was so well known by this name that even some of her friends did not know her real name. She continues to use this name as she believes it ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Ki/oon Music
is a Japanese record label, a subsidiary of Sony Music Entertainment Japan. Artists Their artists include: L'Arc-en-Ciel, Asian Kung-Fu Generation, Polysics, The Gospellers, Denki Groove, KANA-BOON, Guitar Wolf, Sid (band), Sid, Group Tamashii, Unicorn (Japanese band), Unicorn, BLUE ENCOUNT, Lenny Code Fiction, Kairi Yagi, Tani Yuuki, otoha, Neguse, Hitsujibungaku, Regal Lily, FZMZ, Cody Lee, CVLTE, and Yutori. Former artists Flow_(Japanese_band), FLOW, Home Made Kazoku, Puffy AmiYumi, Supercar (band), Supercar, Pushim, Chatmonchy, Tomoe Shinohara, The Babystars, Does (band), DOES, Nico Touches the Walls, plingmin, Joe Inoue, merengue (band), Merengue, Acid Android, Miki Furukawa, Piko (singer), Piko, Domino (band), Domino, Prague (band), Prague, Lama (Japanese band), Lama, Totalfat, Hemenway, Negoto,chara (singer), Chara, Folks (band), Folks, Scenarioart, PELICAN FANCLUB. Labels * hyde (musician), Haunted Records * Ki/oon Music (main) * Ki/oon Overseas * Loopa Neosite Dis ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Swallowtail Butterfly (Ai No Uta)
is a song by Chara, released under the name ''Yen Town Band''. It was the lead single from '' Montage'', a concept album released for the Shunji Iwai film ''Swallowtail Butterfly'' that also starred Chara. This song was used as the theme song for the film. The single debuted at #31 on Oricon's singles charts. Two months later, after the release of the film and album, the single managed to reach #1. The song was written by Takeshi Kobayashi, in collaboration with Chara and film director Shunji Iwai. Music video The music video begins with a long panning shot over a cityscape. It then shows Chara against a farm windmill. It then switches to a junkyard, where Chara and several other people are filtering through rubbish. They eventually find a working piano, which they bring back on the back of a pickup truck. Chara plays the piano as the car drives off. This scene is interspersed with scenes from the movie. Track listing Chart rankings Sales Cover versions * Cinnabom (20 ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
VJ (media Personality)
A video jockey (abbreviated VJ or sometimes veejay) is an announcer or host who introduces music videos and live performances on commercial music television channels such as MTV, VH1, MuchMusic and Channel V. Origins The term "video jockey" comes from the term "disc jockey", "DJ" ("deejay") as used in radio. Music Television ( MTV) popularized the term in the 1980s (see List of MTV VJs). The MTV founders got their idea for their VJ host personalities from studying Merrill Aldighieri's club. Aldighieri worked in the New York City nightclub Hurrah, which was the first to make a video installation as a prominent featured component of the club's design with multiple monitors hanging over the bar and dance floor. When Hurrah invited Aldighieri to show her experimental film, she asked if she could develop a video to complement the DJ music so that then her film would become part of a club ambiance and not be seen as a break in the evening. The experiment led to a full-time job there ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Toe (band)
, stylized as toe, is a Japanese post-rock/math rock band from Tokyo. The group was founded in 2000, and consists of Kashikura Takashi (drums), Mino Takaaki (guitar), Yamane Satoshi (bass guitar), and Yamazaki Hirokazu (guitar). History The band has its origins in 2000 when guitar player Yamazaki Hirokazu decided to quit an old band which he described as having a " scream-o emo sound", inviting the other guitarist Mino Takaaki, who played in another band. They were later joined by drummer Kashikura Takashi and bassist Yamane Satoshi. In July 2001, ''toe'' began performing live, and the next year, they released the EP ''songs, ideas we forgot'', being actively touring ever since. In 2005, they released their first studio album ''The Book About My Idle Plot on a Vague Anxiety'' through the label CATUNE. Soon after, they founded their own indie label ''Machu Picchu Industrias'', alongside the bands Mouse on the Keys, Enemies, and Tangled Hair. In 2006, they released their first D ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Tokyo Ska Paradise Orchestra
, commonly abbreviated by fans as Skapara or TSPO, is a Japanese ska and jazz band formed in 1988 by the percussionist Asa-Chang, and initially composed of over 10 veterans of Tokyo's underground scene. At the time, the band's sound was unlike that of any of its contemporaries in the then fledgling Japanese ska scene, and over thirty years, they have been influential on Japanese music as a whole. Its sound, the product of the musical influences of its members, is a mix of traditional ska, jazz, and rock. In the vein of many other more traditional ska acts, many of Skapara's songs are purely instrumental. Since its inception, the band has gone on several nationwide tours of Japan, and have toured worldwide. They have collaborated with several vocalists outside of their band, including Shiina Ringo, Akira Kobayashi, Kyōko Koizumi, Schadaraparr, Puffy, Yoshie Nakano, and Tamio Okuda. They also performed the Japanese theme song to the PlayStation 2 game ''Sly Cooper and the Thi ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
James Iha
(born March 26, 1968) is an American rock musician. He is best known as a guitarist and co-founder of the alternative rock band the Smashing Pumpkins. He was a member until the band's initial breakup in 2000 and rejoined in 2018. Iha has also produced songs, contributed guitar, keyboards and vocals and produced remixes for a number of artists, including Midnight Movies, Isobel Campbell, Marilyn Manson, Whiskeytown, Scott Weiland and Michael Stipe. Among his other musical projects, Iha has been a permanent fixture of supergroup A Perfect Circle since 2003. He was also a member of Tinted Windows (band), Tinted Windows, a group with members of Cheap Trick, Fountains of Wayne, and Hanson (band), Hanson. He previously co-owned independent record label Scratchie Records with Adam Schlesinger and, from 1999 to 2012, owned a recording studio with Schlesinger and Andy Chase of Ivy (band), Ivy called Stratosphere Sound. Early life and background Iha was born in Chicago, Illinois. He at ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Satoshi Tomiie
is a Japanese DJ and record producer. Biography A lifelong student of jazz and classical piano, Satoshi had an influential impact from his very first record. His debut single ‘Tears’, which he co-produced in 1989 with Chicago's ‘Godfather of House’ Frankie Knuckles, was an instant club hit. In the early 1990s, he toured and played keyboard for Japanese composer Ryuichi Sakamoto (of Yellow Magic Orchestra fame). His reputation for crafting meticulous club rhythms led to him remixing some of pop's biggest names including U2, Mariah Carey, Photek, Simply Red and David Bowie David Robert Jones (8 January 194710 January 2016), known as David Bowie ( ), was an English singer, songwriter and actor. Regarded as one of the most influential musicians of the 20th century, Bowie was acclaimed by critics and musicians, pa .... At the turn of the millennium, Satoshi introduced a new club sound via 2000's ‘Full Lick’ album. The long-player featured dark twisted electronic ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Towa Tei
is a Japanese artist, record producer, and DJ. Born in Yokohama, Japan, Towa was a member of Deee-Lite, from the US label Elektra Records in 1990 and shot to fame via their international hit single, "Groove Is In the Heart". He made his solo debut with the album '' Future Listening!'' in 1994. He has since relocated from New York to rural Nagano Prefecture in Japan. Towa's second studio album, '' Sound Museum'' (1997), became his highest charting effort at number 17 on the ''Oricon'' charts. Its single, " GBI (German Bold Italic)" featuring Kylie Minogue and Haruomi Hosono, reached number 50 and 63 in Australia and the United Kingdom, respectively. He saw continued success with 1999's '' Last Century Modern'' as its single, " Let Me Know" featuring Chara, peaked at number 34 in Japan, his highest entry. Towa has collaborated with Ryuichi Sakamoto, Yukihiro Takahashi, Akiko Yano, Ringo Sheena, and Arto Lindsay, among others. His concept party, "Hotel H", started in 2009 ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Akino Arai
is a Japanese singer, songwriter, and lyricist for various anime theme songs and shows, including '' Record of Lodoss War'', ''Please Save My Earth'', ''Macross Plus'', ''Outlaw Star'', '' Kaze no Stigma'', ''Maoyu'', and ''Aria The Origination''. Biography Arai joined Victor Music Entertainment after graduating from university. She worked on collaborations with various artists there. Her first single, "Yakusoku" was released in 1986, and was used as an insert song for the anime '' Windaria''. She also released the album '' Natsukashii Mirai''. In 1988 she left her agency. In 1992, she released the singles "Kaze to Tori to Sora ~reincarnation~" and "Kooru Suna" which were used as songs for the '' Record of Lodoss War'' anime and '' The Weathering Continent'' drama CD, respectively. Her activity in anime continued with ''Please Save My Earth''. In 1994, she sang "Voices" for the ''Macross Plus'' OVA, where she also was the singing voice for Myung Fang Lone and Sharon Apple. She w ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Takeshi Kobayashi
, is a Japanese keyboardist, lyricist, composer, arranger, and record producer. History Kobayashi started his professional career in the late 1970s. After working in the backing bands for singers such as Yosui Inoue, Misato Watanabe, and Anri, he came into prominence as a musical collaborator for the Southern All Stars frontman Keisuke Kuwata's eponymous 1988 solo album. Although his own leader albums failed to receive public attention, Kobayashi garnered commercial success in collaboration as producer or songwriter with other artists. As an arranger of his own composition "Anata ni Aete Yokatta" co-written and performed by Kyōko Koizumi in 1991, Kobayashi won the 33rd Japan Record Awards for Best Arrangement category. In 1992, he undertook the production work with the Japanese pop-rock band Mr. Children on their debut album entitled '' Everything''. The producer and the band have gone on to record together to date, achieving mainstream success with cumulative sales of o ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Yuki Isoya
, known professionally as Yuki (stylized as YUKI), is a Japanese singer. She is best known as the lead vocalist for Judy and Mary. She founded Judy and Mary in 1991 and became a solo artist in 2002. She has also been a member of the bands NiNa (1999, with Kate Pierson of the B-52's, bassist Mick Karn of Japan, former members of the Japanese New Wave band the Plastics Masahide Sakuma and Takemi Shima, and session drummer Steven Wolf) and Mean Machine (alongside Chara, 2001). Biography Yuki was born in Hakodate, Hokkaido. After graduating from Hakodate Otani College, she worked as a beautician. She met Yoshihito Onda who visited Hakodate to make a movie, '' The Triple Cross''. The meeting triggered the formation of Judy and Mary in 1992. After Judy and Mary disbanded, Yuki made her solo debut in 2002. She married Magokoro Brothers frontman Yoichi Kuramochi in September 2000, and gave birth to her first child, a boy, on April 18, 2003. However, the child died from unknown ca ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
