girl group
A girl group is a music act featuring two or more women in music, female singers who generally vocal harmony, harmonize together. The term "girl group" is also used in a narrower sense in the United States to denote the wave of American female p ...
formed by
Avex Trax
is a record label owned by Japanese entertainment conglomerate Avex Inc. The label was launched in September 1990, and was the first label by the Group.
History
Two years after Max Matsuura began a career distributing studio albums from othe ...
in 2003. It consists of five members: Aki, Aya, Haruna, Miori, and Mai. The group debuted in 2003 with the song "Lolita Strawberry in Summer" and released in 2004 the song "
Love Like Candy Floss
"Love Like Candy Floss" (stylized as "Love like candy floss") is a song by Japanese girl group Sweets, released as their 3rd single on February 11, 2004.
Background and release
"Love Like Candy Floss" is a mid-pop tune composed by Bounceback, ...
." While active as a group, Sweets was also part of the supergroup Girl's Box along with other Avex artists. After three years of activity, Sweets disbanded in 2006.
History
2003: Debut
During the Avex Auditions 2002, five 12-year-old girls were selected out of fifteen finalists to create a new girl group, with the project planned by
TV Tokyo
JOTX-DTV (channel 7), branded as is a Japanese television station that serves as the flagship of the TX Network. They first performed at A-nation '03 Avex Summer Festa on April 12, 2003. Later, on August 27, they released their first single, "Lolita Strawberry in Summer", as the fourth ending theme to ''
Monkey Typhoon
''Monkey Typhoon'', known in Japan as , is a Japanese mixed-media project created by Avex Inc., consisting of a manga series and an anime television series. The project was first announced in June 2000, under the tentative title , with colla ...
''. The song was produced by Bounceback, who had previously written songs for
BoA
Boa, BoA, or BOA may refer to:
Snakes
* Any member of the Boidae, a family of medium to large, non-venomous, constricting snakes
** Any member of the Boinae, a subfamily of boid snakes
*** Any member of ''Boa'' (genus), a group of boid snakes
* ...
and
Ayumi Hamasaki
is a Japanese singer-songwriter and producer. Nicknamed the "Empress of Pop" on account of her influence throughout Asia, she is widely recognized for her versatile music production, songwriting, and live performances. Hamasaki is the List of ...
. On November 19, 2003, Sweets released their second single, "Love Raspberry Juice", which was featured as the theme song in the commercial for the game ''Tokyo Friend Park II: Friend Park e Asobi ni Ikō!!'' 100 girls appeared as extras in the music video. At the end of 2003, Sweets collaborated with
Dream
A dream is a succession of images, ideas, emotions, and sensation (psychology), sensations that usually occur involuntarily in the mind during certain stages of sleep. Humans spend about two hours dreaming per night, and each dream lasts around ...
and Fruits Punch as the supergroup Girl's Box to release the single ''1st X'mas''.
2004: "Love Like Candy Floss", ''Sweets''
Sweets' third single, "
Love Like Candy Floss
"Love Like Candy Floss" (stylized as "Love like candy floss") is a song by Japanese girl group Sweets, released as their 3rd single on February 11, 2004.
Background and release
"Love Like Candy Floss" is a mid-pop tune composed by Bounceback, ...
", was released on February 11, 2004 as the theme song in the commercial for
Circle K
Circle K Stores, Inc. is a Canadian-American chain of convenience stores headquartered in Tempe, Arizona, and owned by Alimentation Couche-Tard, Alimentation Couche-Tard, Inc., based in Laval, Quebec. Founded in 1951 in El Paso, Texas, the comp ...
's bakery. The song's theme was described as "falling in love with a friend." The music video was filmed in Nagano, making it the first of their videos to be filmed outside of a studio, and was described as "drama-like", featuring Haruna following an older man. The music video was featured on the television show ''Pop Jam'' for four weeks. On March 3, 2004, Sweets released their first mini album, ''Sweets''. On June 16, 2004, they released their fourth single, a triple
A-side
The A-side and B-side are the two sides of vinyl records and cassettes, and the terms have often been printed on the labels of two-sided music recordings. The A-side of a single usually features a recording that its artist, producer, or ...
titled "Growin' into Shinin'" / "Never Ending Story" / " Shochū Omimai Mōshiagemasu." The song "Growin' into Shinin' Stars" was the official cheer song for the
Yomiuri Giants
The are a Japanese professional baseball team competing in Nippon Professional Baseball's Central League. Based in Bunkyo, Tokyo, they are one of two professional baseball teams based in Tokyo, the other being the Tokyo Yakult Swallows. They h ...
beginning April 2004; "Never Ending Story" was the ending theme song to the variety show ''Doubutsu Kisou Tenkai'' from April to September 2004; and "Shochū Omimai Mōshiagemasu", a cover of the Candies song of the same name, was used as the theme song for a promotional campaign. On November 3, 2004, Sweets released the song "Sky" as the ending theme to ''
Genseishin Justirisers
, lit. ''Phantom Star God Justirisers'', is a tokusatsu superhero TV series produced by Toho and airing on TV Tokyo. This series is the second in Toho's Chouseishin Series, Seishin (Star God) series. The show aired 51 episodes between October 2, ...
''. By the end of the year, Sweets was voted number 1 in the magazine ''CD-Data''. Later, Sweets participated in a second Christmas collaboration single with Dream and
Aiko Kayō
is a Japanese singer and actress. She has released 12 singles and 2 albums on the Avex Trax label in Japan. She has also performed with the musical units and A Girls.
Release
On May 25, 2005, Kayo released her seventh single . It was released ...
, which released on December 1, 2004.
2005: ''Keep On Movin, first tour, Aki and Aya's hiatus, ''5 Elements''
On February 2, 2005, Sweets released the double
A-side
The A-side and B-side are the two sides of vinyl records and cassettes, and the terms have often been printed on the labels of two-sided music recordings. The A-side of a single usually features a recording that its artist, producer, or ...
single "Countdown" / "Our Song (Wakare no Toki)", which was followed up with the release of their second mini album, ''Keep On Movin, on February 23, 2005. "Mienai Tsubasa" was released on June 1, 2005. The music video, as well as their behind-the-scenes DVD ''Wings of My Heart'', were shot in
Hawaii
Hawaii ( ; ) is an island U.S. state, state of the United States, in the Pacific Ocean about southwest of the U.S. mainland. One of the two Non-contiguous United States, non-contiguous U.S. states (along with Alaska), it is the only sta ...
. Several members became ill during the shooting because of the rain.
On August 10, 2005, Sweets released their 8th single, "Earthship (Uchūsen Chikyūgō)", which was then followed up by their first concert tour named after the song, with three shows in Osaka, Nagoya, and Tokyo. Shortly after their tour, they performed at A-nation '05 and released their first photo book, ''Sweets #1''. Afterwards, Aki and Aya went on hiatus from September 2005 to April 2006 to focus on their high school entrance exams. The remaining three members continued to promote without them and released "On the Way (Yakusoku no Basho e)" as their 9th single. On October 5, 2005, Sweets released their first studio album, ''5 Elements''. On November 16, 2005, Sweets collaborated with Dream,
Nao Nagasawa
is a Japanese actress, voice actress, former singer and model. She is known for her roles in various tokusatsu series, film, and drama, such as "Nanami Nono / Hurricane Blue" in the series Super Sentai ''Ninpu Sentai Hurricanger''.
Filmography ...
,
Nanase Hoshii
, better known as , is a Japanese singer, entertainer, and actress who is represented by the talent agency, Fitone. She was born in Tochigi Prefecture, Japan.
Discography
Studio albums
Compilation albums
Singles
As featured artist
DVD
...
, Aiko Kayō, Paradise Go! Go!, and Michi Saito for Girl's Box's third Christmas collaboration single.
2006: Disbandment
Aki and Aya returned from hiatus, and Sweets released the single "Bitter Sweets" on March 23, 2006. During a promotional event at
Tokyo Dome City Hall
The Tokyo Dome City Hall (TDC Hall) is a facility for sports, fashion shows, circuses, and live music, located inside Tokyo Dome City in Tokyo, Japan. It is on the opposite corner of the Tokyo Dome, and hosts a variety of events at any given t ...
on March 26, 2006, all five members of Sweets announced that they were disbanding, citing interest in different career paths, as well as Aki and Aya retiring to focus on high school. Afterwards, on June 7, 2006, they released "Color of Tears" as their final single along with ''Hi Ma'am'', their "graduation" photo book, and ''Precious Memories'', their final behind-the-scenes DVD.
Members
* Aki () - leader
* Aya ()
* Haruna ()
* Miori ()
* Mai ()