With her wild earthy look and distinctive voice, Chara is one of the most easily identifiable artists on the music scene. Making music that is at the same time innocent and mature, clean and dirty,...

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Drumming group Kodo has taken the art of playing Japanese taiko drums to new heights both musically and as spectacle, achieving international fame in the process. Kodo traces its origins to Ondekoza, which...

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Chage and Aska were THE J-pop success story in the late '80s and early '90s. The two natives of Fukuoka Prefecture first came to the public's attention by winning the 1979 Yamaha Popular Song Festival,...

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The 5.6.7.8's formed in Tokyo in 1986. Since then the line-up has changed many times, with the constants being singer/ guitarist Ronnie "Yoshiko" Fujiyama, and drummer Sachiko. The band embraces...

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"Living legend" is a term loosely thrown around; often an exaggeration or an indication only that somebody once did something spectacular. However to call Momoe Yamaguchi a living legend is...

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Jaws dropped when Asuca Hayashi began singing at Toshiba-EMI's Music Talks showcase event in Tokyo in late 2002. Just 13 at the time, the diminutive (154 cm tall) Hayashi displayed an amazingly mature,...

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Ellegarden are Takeshi Hosomi on vocals and guitar, Shinichi Ubutaka on guitar, Yuichi Takada on bass, and Hirotaka Takahashi on drums. In their tenth year as a band, 2008, they announced they would...

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One of the best-known figures in Japanese history is Minamoto no Yoshitsune, the brave but doomed 12th-century warrior who exemplifies the archetype of the bishonen - a young man of extraordinary,...

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Kaori Asada, better known as Bonnie Pink, got her first break in the music industry when Pony Canyon scouts caught one of her gigs when she was still a college student in Kyoto. Her first album, Blue...

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The Brilliant Green is one of Japan's premier power pop bands. The band was formed in 1995 by guitarist Ryo Matsui and bassist Shunsaku Oda, who brought in singer Tomoko Kawase (Tommy) after seeing...

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Death sells. That's the cynical conclusion one reaches when looking at the career of tragic Japanese rock 'n' roller Yutaka Ozaki. Since he died at age 26 on April 25, 1992, Ozaki has become mythologized...

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Namie Amuro, born September 20, 1977, (real name Namie Maruyama, said to be one quarter Italian), was a huge sensation in the 90's and has gone on to be one of the most successful Japanese pop artists...

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Tetsuya Ogawa (born October 3, 1969, at Osaka in Kansai, Japan), known professionally as tetsu, is the leader and bassist of the Japanese rock band L'Arc~en~Ciel....

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Tokyo Jihen, officially translated as Tokyo Incidents, is the vehicle of iconic singer/songwriter/guitarist Ringo Shena. Aggressively billed as a "real band", and including Shena's accomplished...

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The Mad Capsule Markets were formed in Tokyo in 1990, consisting of Kyono on vocals, Takeshi Ueda (who early on called himself Cray) on bass, Motokatsu...

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One of the few Japanese artists to make a significant impact overseas, Keigo Oyamada (a.k.a. Cornelius) has played a leading role in the development of Japanese music, art, and fashion since the early...

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After a performance as Tommy february6 in 2003, Kawase took off her glasses and donned a much more alternative look to create Tommy heavenly6, a brand new character with a modern rock sound....

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Decked out in head to toe black leather, shades, greased up hair and delivering a devastating cherry bomb guitar attack, Tokyo's Guitar Wolf are cooler than you are. Like the Ramones - an obvious influence...

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Despite the sleepy image their name might suggest, The Pillows have been relentlessly rocking for over 20 years, and handling many of the details of their careers themselves. The group formed in 1989,...

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The quartet Asian Kung-Fu Generation plays high octane guitar rock with emo and powerpunk influences. The group was formed in 1996 when Kensuke Kita (guitar, vocals), Hideyo Yamada (bass, vocals),...

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YUI is a Japanese singer-songwriter, multi-instrumentalist, and actress. She is currently signed to Studioseven Recordings and attached to the talent agency Stardust Promotion. ...

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Formed in 2003 in Chiba, Shuu and Nii had been friends since elementary school, the earliest incarnation of the band made its first performance while the members were still in high school....

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Formed by vocalist Kumi and guitarist Naoki Sato in 1997, Love Psychedelico remains a unique voice in the world of J-Pop. Drawing heavily on music from the 60s and 70s, Kumi's nuanced mix of Japanese...

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Dragon Ash has been one of Japan's most successful bands of the last decade, and influential in helping establish Japanese hip-hop and "mixture-kei". The group was originally formed by high...

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The Cymbals are a perfect illustration of a band that looked good on paper but which didn't live up to its initial promise. Like Hermann H. & the Pacemakers, Clammbon and similar bands that emerged...

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Morning Musume, literally "morning daughter", is a pop culture phenomena that launched in 1997. While in some ways reminiscent of Onyanko Club (or in American terms something like a cross...

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Koshi Inaba, born Hiroshi Inaba, is the vocalist and lyricist for the Japanese hard rock band, B'z.  Before becoming a rock star, Inaba graduated from the Faculty of Education at the Yokohama National...

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Seiko Matsuda, the most super of all super idols, and is still going strong in the entertainment business even though she is now in her 40's. Of course many American and European rock bands carry on...

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Ua is not a Japanese name - it's a Swahili word that means "flower" or "kill." Despite the name, Ua is from Osaka and is Japanese. She made her debut in June 1995 with a four-song...

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• Kawabata Kaname (川畑要) is a Japanese pop-R&B singer and member of CHEMISTRY (ケミストリー) with his partner Dochin Yoshikuni (堂珍嘉邦 born November 17, 1978). They were...

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Gutevolk is the solo project of singer, songwriter, and multi-instrumentalist Hirono Nishiyama. Gutevolk's music, generally accompanied by Nishiyama's whispery, childlike vocals, is a mix of ambient...

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 Hideto Matsumoto was born in St Joseph's Hospital, Midorigaoka, Yokosuka, on December 13, 1964. He entered kindergarten in 1968, studying English for three years, followed by...

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The Lead were a band of foreigners residing in Japan, and were an anomaly as the only successful geijin rock group in the GS scene. The initial lineup of the band was Phil Trainer (aka Phil Steele) ...

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Rock bands have been using images to spice up their live performances ever since the psychedelic light shows of the '0s. But Downy is probably unique among rock bands in having one member (Zakuro) whose...

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The Tempters first formed in the Tokyo suburb of Omiya, Saitama. The founders of the band, guitarist Toshio Tanaka and bassist Takaku Noburo, were high school buddies. The two started playing together...

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Inoran (birth name Kiyonobu Inoue but sometimes also referred to as Shinobu Inoue, as both readings are possible) is a Japanese rock musician from Hadano, Kanagawa Prefecture. He was the rhythm guitarist...

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Seagull Screaming Kiss Her Kiss Her was formed in 1992 by vocalist and leader Aiha Higurashi, and named after the band had already played several small gigs. The name, lifted from a track by the same...

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Rize were formed in June of 1997 with Jesse, son of Japan's super guitarist Char, on vocals and guitar, Nobuaki Kaneko on drums and Tokie on bass. Jesse and Nobuaki had grown up as childhood friends....

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The hard rocking Cro-Magnons are the next chapter in the story of Hiroto Kōmoto and Masatoshi Mashima, previously of The Blue Hearts and The High-Lows.  Also in the group are bassist Masaru Kobayashi...

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Versailles is a visual-kei band noted for their quick rise to international notoriety. The group was formed in March 2007 by singer KAMIJO and guitarist HIZAKI. Bassist Jasmine You, who had previously...

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Raychell’s career as a singer began in 2009 under the pseudonym LAY (changed to Raychell in 2012). She released her debut single “Kono ai de aruyouni” in...

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Moi dix Mois is a Japanese musical project founded by Malice Mizer's front, Mana. As part of the visual kei movement it is marked by Mana's selection of guest...

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Two famous Japanese died in 1989. One was Emperor Hirohito, now known posthumously as Emperor Showa. The other was enka singer Hibari Misora (which translates as "beautiful skylark" - the...

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With a string of successive hits, live and television appearances, model and spokesperson gigs, and interviews, Ayumi Hamasaki has reigned as Japan's undisputed queen of pop since before the turn of...

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Every Little Thing generally walks the right side of the fine line between forgettable fluff and well-crafted pop. Presently a collaborative effort between vocalist Kaori Mochida and producer/programmer/keyboardist...

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Ami Suzuki's disappearing act is one of the Japanese music scene's more depressing stories. Until 2001, girl-next-door Suzuki was one of the J-pop scene's most visible faces, with a plethora of TV appearances...

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For a mainstream pop artist who is not well known outside of Japan, Akiko Kobayashi has had a rather odd career path, and one that has seen her work with an impressive list of international stars. ...

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Eikichi Yazawa, born September 14, 1949 in Hiroshima, is a veteran rock music figure, with such an incredibly devoted following that it is tempting to call him the Japanese Elvis. He first burst onto...

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