Frist on this List is...
Boa Kwon/ Kwon Boa or BoA (Beat of Angel)
(Korean: 권보아, Chinese: 權珤雅, Japanese: クォン·ボア)
Birthday: November 5, 1986
Star Sign: Scorpio
Height: 160 cm
Place of Birth: Gyeonggi-do, South Korea
Genres: K-pop, J-pop, R&B, Hip Hop
My personal favorites:
BoA auditioned with her brother at an SM Entertainment talent search at age 11.
She has said that her early influence as a singer was Seo Taiji.
BoA underwent two years of training (involving vocal, dance, English, and Japanese lessons), and at the age of thirteen released her Top 10 debut album ID; Peace B in South Korea on August 25, 2000.
She signed Japanese label Avex Trax to launch her music career in Japan and she was forced to quit school to prepare for her early Japanese release in 2001, first mini-album, Don't Start Now.
Also, she released her debut Japanese single, a Japanese version of the song, "ID; Peace B" (originally from the eponymous album). The single reached #20 on the Oricon chart and was followed by "Amazing Kiss", "Kimochi wa Tsutawaru", and "Listen to My Heart"; the last became the singer's first single to enter the Oricon's Top Five. After the September 11, 2001 attacks, BoA recorded the charity single "The Meaning of Peace" with Kumi Koda as part of Avex's Song Nation project to raise funds for charity. From 2001 to 2007, BoA hosted Beat it BoA's World, a radio program on the Japan FM Network.
Because of her wide appeal, BoA has appeared in advertisements for many brands. Among the brands she has promoted are Olympus, Lotte, Nike, L'Oréal, Japanese cosmetic company Kosé, Skechers, Audio-Technica, GM Daewoo, and L'Occitane. Seven of her songs have been used as themes. "Every Heart: Minna no Kimochi" was used as the ending theme for the anime InuYasha; "Beside You: Boku o Yobu Koe" was used as the opening theme for the anime Monkey Typhoon; "Key of Heart" was the theme song for the Japanese release of Over the Hedge; "Your Color" was the theme song of the video game Ninety-Nine Nights;"Mamoritai: White Wishes" was the theme song of the video game Tales of Graces,. "Tail of Hope" was used as the theme for the Japanese drama "Hakui no Namida," and "Masayume Chasing" was used as the 15th opening theme song for the anime "Fairy Tail." Her widespread popularity has also made her a "cultural ambassador"; she has represented South Korea in inter-Asian musical events and has appeared in an Oxford University Press-published English-language textbook.
On September 2, 2008, it was announced that BoA would make her American debut under a new subsidiary label, SM Entertainment USA. With the album, BoA hoped to become a "world-renowned entertainer" in the vein of Janet Jackson.
BoA's debut American single "Eat You Up," produced by Thomas Troelsen, was released online on October 21, 2008. A physical promotional CD containing dance remixes of "Eat You Up" was released. "Eat You Up" placed at #9 on Billboard's Hot Dance Club Play chart. The remix of "Eat You Up" featuring rapper Flo Rida was slated for release in late November and leaked onto the internet in December. BoA performed "Eat You Up" as well as other songs at YouTube's Tokyo Live concert, and performed in New York City on December 3, 2008, as well as the Jingle Ball at the Anaheim Honda Center on December 6, 2008. She also performed the song "Look Who's Talking" at the event.
Currently, BoA has just released the first album that wrote herself for her 15 Anniversary and also a music video "Kiss My Lips and CAMO" showing off a sexier and mature BoA.
Second on the list...
Koda Kumi
倖田 來未 Kōda Kumi
Stage Name: Koda
Birthday: November 13, 1982
Star Sign: Scorpio
Place of Birth: Kyoto, Japan
She has a son and is Married to Kenji03 from Back-On
Genres: J-pop, R&B, Hip Hop
My personal favorites:
Koda Kumi, who I've also talked about in my other posts. I personally love her and on top of that Girl Group 2ne1 also loves her. And she too was compared to a pop star, Christina Aguilera which they have a lot in common. Even if she hasn't been dubbed the Queen of J-pop yet, she is definitely the Queen of Oneegyaru and Nails. Before Hyuna brought the sexy into K-pop, Koda Kumi is defiantly Senpai/Unnie of J-pop Sexiness.
Koda was born into a family of musicians. Her grandfather was a Shakuhachi master and her mother was a Koto teacher; she is the older sister of Misono, current solo artist and former lead singer of Day After Tomorrow. Koda's early years, she was bullied during her school years. During her second year of high school, Koda auditioned in Avex’s "Dream Audition", where she came in second out of 120,000 participants. She was then signed onto the Avex sub-label Rhythm Zone.
Koda debuted on December 6, 2000, with the single "Take Back"; it was followed by "Trust Your Love", "Color of Soul" (both 2001), and "So into You" (2002). "Trust Your Love" and "Color of Soul" were both Top 30 singles; the former reached number 18 on the chart and became Koda's first Top Twenty single. Using the stage name Koda, Koda recorded "Take Back" and "Trust Your Love" in English and released the singles in the United States under Orpheus Records. "Take Back" peaked at number 18 on the Hot Dance Music/Maxi-Singles Sales chart; "Trust Your Love" had more success, reaching the top spot on the Hot Dance Music/Maxi-Singles Sales chart. The single also charted on the Hot Singles Sales chart and Hot Dance Club Play chart, at #19 and #35, respectively.
Koda achieved minor success with "real Emotion/1000 no Kotoba", which peaked at number 3 after three weeks on the charts. The songs were used as the opening and ending themes, respectively, of the video game Final Fantasy X-2; in addition, Koda motion-acted the dance moves of one of the characters and voiced the character Lenne in the Japanese version of the game.
Koda also covered the theme song of the anime series Cutie Honey originally by Yoko Maekawa for the 2004 live-action film and Re: Cutie Honey. The song, which shared the same name as the show, was included as a bonus track on the album and became the title track of her eleventh single, "Love & Honey" (2004), after the album's release.
At the end of 2007, Koda released two singles, "Ai no Uta" and "Last Angel", a collaboration with Korean boy band TVXQ better known as Tohoshinki in Japan. "Last Angel" was used as the theme song for the Japanese release of Resident Evil: Extinction.
Koda's fortieth single "Moon" was released on June 11, 2008. Like "Freaky", "Moon" contained four tracks. The single contained "Moon Crying", used as the theme for Asahi Television drama Puzzle, and a collaboration track with The Black Eyed Peas' Fergie.
Immediately after the release of "4 Times", it was posted on her official website that her 51st single, "Ai Wo Tomenaide" was to be released September 21, 2011. The song charted at number 4 on the Oricon charts. On November 29, Kumi Koda became the only Japanese star to perform at Mnet Asian Music Awards. During the press conference before the MAMAs began, she said how she was still friends with the members of TVXQ and Minzy from the Korean girl group 2NE1.
As part of her 15th-anniversary celebration, Koda's 12th album, called 'Walk of My Life' was released on March 18, 2015, followed by a Japan-wide 'Walk Of My Life' 2015 Tour supported by Mercedes-Benz.
Third,
Ai
植村 愛 カリーナ
Stage Name: Ai - AI/A.I.
Birthday: November 2, 1981
Star Sign: Scorpio
Place of Birth: Los Angeles, CA (childhood: Kagoshima, Japan )
Genres: J-pop, R&B
My personal favorites:
Ai did a Concert in LA a few years back but I was already in class for the Fall session so, I missed it.
Her father is Japanese, and her mother was half Japanese and half Italian American.
Ai Majored in Ballet at Los Angeles School of Arts Alumni.
In 1998, she performed in a gospel choir at a Mary J. Blige concert at the Universal Amphitheatre, performing "A Dream." In the same year, she appeared as a dancer in the music video for Janet Jackson's song "Go Deep."
In 1999, she joined an Asian girl group called SX4 for two years, who were produced by George Brown of Kool & the Gang. While on her summer holiday in Kagoshima, she performed Monica's "For You I Will" on a local radio station, which leads to her being scouted by BMG Japan.
She graduated high school and moved to Japan to debut as a solo artist with the single "Cry, Just Cry" in 2000. In 2002 she moved to Def Jam Japan as the first female artist signed to the label. Her first album under the label in 2003 Original Ai debuted at 15 on Oricon's album charts, and her second, 2004 Ai, debuted at number three. In 2004, she won the Space Shower Music Video Awards' award for Best R&B Video, with her song "Thank U."
In 2005, Ai released the ballad single "Story," which became the biggest hit of her career. It was a sleeper hit, charting for 20 weeks in the top 30 in 2005 and 2006, however, went on to sell over three million ringtones, one million cellphone downloads, and 270,000 physical copies. Ai later performed "Story" at the prestigious 56th NHK Kōhaku Uta Gassen New Years' music concert. Her next studio album, Mic-a-holic Ai, was the best selling album of her career, being certified double platinum by the RIAJ.
Ai's first single of 2006, the ballad "Believe," was also a success: it debuted at number two and sold more than one million ringtones. The song was used as the theme song of the Kenji Sakaguchi starring medical drama, Team Medical Dragon. Her next two albums, What's Goin' On Ai (2006) and Don't Stop Ai (2007) were also greatly commercially successful, being certified platinum and gold respectively.
In 2009, Ai released her greatest hits album, Best Ai. It was the first number one record of her career. In 2010, Ai collaborated with many artists such as Namie Amuro, Miliyah Kato, Chaka Khan, and Boyz II Men on her 10th-anniversary album, The Last Ai.
In June 2011, Ai signed with EMI Music Japan now Universal sublabel EMI. She collaborated with The Jacksons on December 13 and 14, 2011, at the Michael Jackson Tribute Live tribute concerts held in Tokyo. She performed the vocals in the third act for Michael Jackson's songs. She also performed and released the theme song for the event, "Letter in the Sky" featuring the Jacksons. In November 2011, Ai released the song "Happiness," a collaboration with Coca Cola for their winter 2011 campaign. The song was a hit, being certified gold in two different mediums. The song revitalized the sales of her ninth studio album, Independent, which has sold more than 60,000 copies.
Next,
Perfume
パフューム
Genres: J-pop, EDM, Techno, Dance-pop
My personal favorites:
Pick Me Up | Dream Fighter | Glitter | Butterfly | Computer City | Spice
My personal favorites:
Pick Me Up | Dream Fighter | Glitter | Butterfly | Computer City | Spice
I've already talked about these ladies in their own specially made post by yours truly. I wish I had their stylist because they're always on point with their basics. But here a little bit about them:
A Japanese pop girl group from Hiroshima, Japan, consisting of Ayano Ōmoto, Yuka Kashino, and Ayaka Nishiwaki. Their music is in the realm of J-pop that is techno, electropop, dance-pop, EDM. The group was formed in early 2000 inside the young talent academy Actors School in Hiroshima and debuted like most idol groups with their first Hiroshima-local single "Omajinai Perori" released on March 21, 2002. Then they moved to Tokyo, started to work with Yasutaka Nakata, and released their first nationwide indie single, "Sweet Donuts" on August 6, 2003. In 2005 they signed with Tokuma Japan Communications and released their major debut single "Linear Motor Girl" on September 21. However, it was not until 2008 where the group's seventh single "Polyrhythm", which was chosen to be the theme song of a recycle campaign by NHK, when they started to receive major attention in Japan. . .continue reading.
The group made a cameo in the OK Go's I Won't Let You Down video. OK Go then later made a similar cameo in Perfume's video for "Pick Me Up", which is one of the title tracks of Perfume's upcoming double a-side single Relax In The City/Pick Me Up, to be released April 29, 2015.
Lastly,
DREAM
ドリーム
Genres: J-pop, Electropop, dance-pop, Eurobeat
Genres: J-pop, Electropop, dance-pop, Eurobeat
My personal favorites:
I don't know if I've talked about this group but most likely I have and some of you might know this group because of E-girls but they've gone through a lot of changes. I actually saw this group and BRIGHT back in 2010 with their song Ev'rybody Alright! PV was featured in a commercial on a partime Japanese broadcast (Fuji TV). At the time they were eight/seven members but they looked gorgeous and their songs were what I looking for at the time. I tried to keep updated with them because they going probably end up light BRIGHT did but I'm really happy they're with E-girls.
DREAM signed to the Avex Trax label since 2000 and Rhythm Zone since 2009. The group was formed as a result of a 1999 talent contest called "Avex Dream 2000". Originally a three-piece group consisting of Mai Matsumuro, Kana Tachibana, and Yu Hasebe, the group has undergone many changes since its debut in 2000 on the Avex Trax label, and none of the original trios remain.
On July 7, 2002, the main lyricist Mai Matsumuro left the group to pursue a solo career. After Matsumuro's departure, Avex held another audition to replaced Matsumuro. Instead of one, six new members won the audition, resulting in an eight-member (Dream) group with the debut single "Music is My Thing".
In March 2004, Risa Ai left to pursue a solo career. They became a 7 member group as performed this way until 2007. During this time, the band's name changed from dream to DRM.
In August 2008, Yu Hasebe left the group to pursue a solo career, leaving Kana Tachibana behind as the only original member of Dream. Afterward, DRM became Dream again. In August 2010, Dream released their official major re-debut single, "My Way: Ulala" on the Rhythm Zone label. On November 24, 2010, Dream released their first album as a six-member group, titled Hands Up! on the Rhythm Zone label.
On November 23, 2010, Tachibana announced that she would leave the group. This marked the departure of the last member of the original three-member group. She officially left the group on February 20, 2011. On March 30, 2012, Sayaka Yamamoto departed to pursue a solo career.
~HAPPY CRYSTAL ANNIVERSARY~
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