Considering that Fumiya Fujii first broke into the entertainment business fronting a swishy idol group that dressed in matching outfits mixing the aesthetics of the Bay City Rollers and Haircut 100, few would have predicted a long career and creditability in the art world.  Fujii was born in Kurume City, Fukuoka on July 11, 1962. He became interested in music at an early age and played in a couple of bands as a teenager. He formed the band Checkers in 1980 with his brother Naoyuki Fujii (who...

Considering that Fumiya Fujii first broke into the entertainment business fronting a swishy idol group that dressed in matching outfits mixing the aesthetics of the Bay City Rollers and Haircut 100, few would have predicted a long career and creditability in the art world.  Fujii was born in Kurume City, Fukuoka on July 11, 1962. He became interested in music at an early age and played in a couple of bands as a teenager. He formed the band Checkers in 1980 with his brother Naoyuki Fujii (who would later also collaborate with Fumiya in F-Blood) on sax, Tohru Takeuchi on guitar, Yuji Ohdoi on bass, Yoshiya Tokunaga on drums, with Fumiya leading a trio of singers that also included Yoshihiko Takamoku and Masaharu Tsuruku. Checkers played music largely influenced by the American pop music they heard on Far Eastern Network radio. The energetic and good looking bunch became quite popular in the Fukuoka area, and after the members graduated from high school they decided to move to Tokyo to have a go at a professional music career. The group signed to the major label Pony Canyon, and released their first single “Giza Giza Heart no Komori Uta” in September 1983.  Checkers became immensely popular, and were soon making national tours and seen frequently on TV. They also made the popular movies Checkers in Tan Tan Tanuki in 1985, and Checkers Song For U.S.A. in 1986.  Checkers had a long run of hit singles, some used in TV advertising, amongst the biggest being “Kanashikute Jealousy” (1984), “Namida No Request” (1984), “Anoko To Scandal” (1985), “I Love You, Sayonara” (1987)  and “One Night Gigolo” (1988).  All together, they released thirteen albums, before breaking up on New Year’s Eve 1992 after performing at the prestigious TV show, NHK’s  Kohaku Utagassen.  Following the breakup, Fujii started a solo career as a singer. In Checkers he had always been very much the main event, as he sang lead, danced, had the most fashionable haircuts, and unlike most idols, wrote his own lyrics. Fujii’s first solo single “True Love” was the featured theme for the TV drama Asu Naro Hakusho, and went on to sell over two million copies. Around that time, he also began pursuing his interest in art. He became particularly interested in computer generated graphic art, and set up a traveling exhibition of his work called FUMIYART. Later there was a FUMIYART 2 exhibit in NYC and FUMIYART 3 in Paris.  Eventually he set up his own art gallery in Tokyo.  Fujii remains active in music, and his attention to detail extends to designing the sets for his live performances. On December 7, 2007, he became the second singer ever to have performed at Budokan 100 times.