stage name
A stage name is a pseudonym used by performers and entertainers—such as actors, comedians, singers, and musicians. Such professional aliases are adopted for a wide variety of reasons and they may be similar, or nearly identical, to an individu ...
, Sowelu, is a Japanese
pop
Pop or POP may refer to:
Arts, entertainment, and media Music
* Pop music, a musical genre Artists
* POP, a Japanese idol group now known as Gang Parade
* Pop!, a UK pop group
* Pop! featuring Angie Hart, an Australian band
Albums
* ''Pop'' (G ...
Her career started in 2002 with the release of her first single ''Beautiful Dreamer'', a soft love ballad which did very well in the charts, and was later featured on the ''Relaxin’ with Japanese Lovers'' compilation album. Her first single was modestly successful, and it wasn't until the release of her album ''Geofu'' in the summer of 2003 that she gained recognition. ''Geofu'' did exceptionally well in the charts, scoring a number 4 position with more than 300,000 copies sold. Her first single after ''Geofu'', "Rainbow" was used as the theme song for the Japanese drama ''Netsuretsuteki Chukahanten'', and the other A-side song on that single, "breath ~Omoi no Youryō~" was used for the national promotion campaign of JFN Radio. She performs under
Sony Music Japan
, often abbreviated as SMEJ or simply SME, and also known as Sony Music Japan for short (stylized as ''SonyMusic''), is a Japanese music arm for Sony. Founded in 1968 as CBS/Sony, SMEJ is directly owned by Sony, Sony Group Corporation and is ...
's DefSTAR Records label.
Her next big single "Glisten" was used in a make-up commercial for Menards products and did fairly well in the Japanese market. With this success, she gained even more popularity, and was asked to sing the end theme for the popular TBS animated series '' Fullmetal Alchemist'', entitled "I Will", giving her an easy in with American fans. Because of "'I Will"', the two other songs included with her "I Will" single, "Candy Rain" and "Pearl Color ni Yurete", became popular among American fans. In 2005, her song "Candy Rain" was featured on the ''Soul Tree: a Musical Tribute to Toshinobu Kubota'' album and "Pearlcolor ni Yurete" was on the Momoe Yamaguchi tribute album ''Thank You For...''. Likewise, her third single "Fortune" was selected for the American J-Pop compilation album ''Neo Soul'', and "Across My Heart" written by Kenny Lerum and Barry J. Eastmond, from the ''Geofu'' album, was added to the "Smooth Listening Compilation" album.
In November 2004, Sowelu released her 8th single, "Last Forever", which became the TV insert song for the new drama ''There goes Nurse-man'', and her cover of "The Rose" was featured on a Nescafe commercial. Then finally, after one and a half years of waiting, Sowelu released her second album ''Sweet Bridge'' on January 7, 2005.
In 2005, Sowelu contributed to M-Flo's album ''
Beat Space Nine
''Beat Space Nine'' is the fourth studio album released by the Japanese group M-Flo. The record is presented in the metaformat of a spaceliner's in-flight entertainment system, specifically that of "Global Astroliner", constituting a recurring the ...
'' on the track "So Exclusive", and again on their album ''Dope Space Nine'' in the same song, remixed by Korean fusion band, Clazziquai.
In the music video for the song "to YOU" several photographs of her family and her childhood are intercut with scenes of her singing in a wide room with large glass windows. According to her website, the video location is a church about one hour away from Tokyo by car. At the end of the PV, the family members in the photos make an appearance together with Sowelu, including her grandmother, her mother and even Sowelu's pet
chihuahua Chihuahua may refer to:
Places
*Chihuahua (state), a Mexican state
**Chihuahua (dog), a breed of dog named after the state
**Chihuahua cheese, a type of cheese originating in the state
**Chihuahua City, the capital city of the state
**Chihuahua Mun ...
.
Her 4th album "24 -twenty four-" was released on July 12, 2006. It debuted at #3, her highest ranking yet. The album remained at the #3 spot for two weeks on the Weekly Oricon Album Charts. One of the album's songs entitled "守るべきもの", (''Mamoru Beki Mono''/The One You Should Protect) is used as the ending of the 9th Pokémon movie Pokémon Ranger and the Prince of the Sea: Manaphy.
On December 12, 2007 Sowelu released her latest single "光", (''Hikari''). The single had moderate success and reached #28 on the Oricon Weekly Charts More recently Sowelu will participate in the 2008 Nike ad campaign, "MY MUSIC,MY FORCE"; along with Perfume, Home Made Kazoku, Tohoshinki, Shota Moriyama and Shoko Nakagawa.
In Spring 2009, Sowelu's contract with Sony Music Japan's DefSTAR label wasn't renewed, resulting in the label dropping her from the web site's roster. Less than a week after the news of Sowelu being dropped from her label, it was announced that Sowelu had signed to Avex Trax, one of Japan's most powerful record labels (under its sister label Rhythm Zone).
On May 30, 2012, Sowelu released her 5th studio album, "29 tonight".
Personal life
She was born in Tokyo to a half Irish and half Japanese mother and Japanese father .
Sowelu is a martial arts fan and has stated that she is only attracted to fighting men (as for show-business men), such as mixed martial artists and professional wrestlers, especially those who look like Mark Hunt or Kazuyuki Fujita.CD DATA, July 14, 2007, (B000SO7038,
Kadokawa Shoten
, formerly , is a Japanese publisher and division of Kadokawa Future Publishing based in Tokyo, Japan. It became an internal division of Kadokawa Corporation on October 1, 2013. Kadokawa publishes manga, light novels, manga anthology magazines su ...
Beautiful Dreamer
"Beautiful Dreamer" is a parlor song by American songwriter Stephen Foster. It was published posthumously in March 1864, by Wm. A. Pond & Co. of New York. The first edition states on its title page that it is "the last song ever written by Steph ...
Get Over
"Get Over" is the 11th single by Japanese band Dream. First press copies of the single came with a Hikaru no Go sticker. The single reached number 12 on the weekly Oricon charts and charted for eight weeks. This track was used as the first opening ...
Exile
Exile is primarily penal expulsion from one's native country, and secondarily expatriation or prolonged absence from one's homeland under either the compulsion of circumstance or the rigors of some high purpose. Usually persons and peoples suf ...