History
During the summer of 1999, Yuki and Cico had a chance encounter. Yuki was on a homestay in Los Angeles, and her residence was that of Cico’s aunt. While sharing the same quarters, the two became friends. Returning to Japan separately, they continued their musical endeavors. Not too long after, they had the opportunity to collaborate at a Christmas event, and decided afterward to unite and devote themselves to music.
Name origins
In the new year after deciding to work together, Yuki and Cico went to Kyōto (京都) and prayed for future success at the Fushimi Inari Taisha (伏見稲荷大社), a shrine famous for Inari, a god of business and harvest. On their way back, they came across the Gojō Bridge, recalling it as the site of a famous Japanese legend — the battle between Benkei (弁慶) and Ushiwakamaru (牛若丸). The powerful Japanese warrior monk Benkei is said to have posted himself at this bridge, fighting and winning consecutive duels with 999 passing swordsmen. His 1,000th duel was with Ushiwakamaru and did not end in Benkei’s favor. Benkei joined Ushiwakamaru as a retainer and they had many successful missions together. [3] Yuki and Cico noticed similarities between the legendary duo and themselves — despite an age difference between the two of them, they both seemed to have their sights aimed high. The duo considered "Benkei and Ushiwakamaru" as a name for their act, but later felt it was too unoriginal to just use the names of other people. When Yuki began learning guitar, she started out with Ben E. King’s "Stand by Me." As this was the first song the duo ever sang together, they decided to combine Benkei with Ben E. King — and the name Bennie K was born. To Yuki and Cico, Benkei is a symbol of power; they feel that this name choice reflects their commitment to putting out music that expresses themselves as powerful women.
BK Project
Following the release of "The "Bestest" Bennie K Show," Bennie K went off the radar for many months. On 8.19.09, Yuki and Cico updated the official Bennie K website, announcing that they would be starting a new venture called BK Project. The duo apologized for their delay in dispelling any rumors about their absence that may have stirred up anxiety in fans. Yuki has decided to put her singing on hold — and will shift to the role of producer — desiring to take on a greater goal of supporting other amateur and professional musicians. Yuki and Cico both recognize that they have received a great deal of help from other artists over the years — which greatly contributed to their successes — and feel that now is the time to show their gratitude by giving back to the music community. They will be working with American singer Becca for their first production under the project — a single entitled "Dreamer" that will be released under the name Bennie Becca on 11.4.09. [4]
In late 2021, Bennie K announced their disbandment and released their final single "Finale" on December 1, 2021. On their official site they stated that their official date of disbandment will be January 24, 2022.
B'z are a Japanese rock duo, consisting of guitarist, composer and producer Takahiro "Tak" Matsumoto and vocalist and lyricist Koshi Inaba, known for their energetic hard rock tracks and pop rock ballads. B'z is one of the best-selling music artists in the world and the best-selling in their native Japan, having released 49 consecutive No. 1 singles, 25 No. 1 albums, 3 No. 1 EPs on the Oricon music charts and sold more than 100 million records worldwide.
Crystal Kay Williams is a Japanese singer, songwriter, actress and radio host.
Heartsdales was a Japanese-American hip pop duo composed of sisters Yumi Sugiyama and Emi Sugiyama, known by their stage names Rum and Jewels, respectively.
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 theme in the group's albums. Similarly to their previous works, the majority of the tracks contain guest features—including that of Bennie K, Yoshika, and Emyli.
The Grace, was a South Korean a cappella girl group formed by SM Entertainment in 2005, with four members: Lina, Dana, Sunday and Stephanie. They are known as Tenjochiki in Japanese releases, and are sometimes referred to as CSJH The Grace, an abbreviation of Korean and english name as an acronym for Cheon Sang Ji Hui Deo Geureiseu.
Elizabeth Sakura Narita, better known by her stage name Lisa, is a Japanese singer, songwriter and producer. In 1998, she debuted as a member of the Japanese urban contemporary group M-Flo with Verbal and Taku Takahashi. In 2002, she left the band in order to pursue a solo project and released seven albums as a soloist. In December 2017, she rejoined as a member of M-Flo.
Affection is the debut studio album by Japanese R&B-turned-pop singer Koda Kumi. It was released on March 27, 2002. It has been her only album to not chart in the Top 10, debuting at No. 12 on Oricon and staying on the charts for six weeks, making it her lowest-charting studio album. During its run, it had only sold 91,360 copies. The limited editions of the album contained remixes for "Take Back" and "Trust Your Love", which had previously been released on her North American release of the singles.
Grow into One is the second studio album released by Japanese R&B-turned-pop singer Koda Kumi, released on March 19, 2003. It barely peaked in the Top 10 on Oricon, coming it at #8, and charted for forty-three weeks. The album also contained, at the time, one of her best-selling singles, "Real Emotion/1000 no Kotoba". Combined with the singles, the album has sold over half a million copies in Japan.
Monkey Majik is a Japanese pop rock band formed in 2000 in Sendai, Japan. The band consists of Canadian brothers, Maynard Plant and Blaise Plant, each acting as lead vocalists and guitarists, and two Japanese members: Tax on drums, and Dick on bass. Monkey Majik is signed to Binyl Records, a subsidiary of Avex Records.
"The Love Bug" is a song recorded by Japanese hip-hop duo M-Flo for their third studio album, Astromantic (2004). It was written, arranged, and produced by Verbal and Taku Takahashi who compose the duo and features South Korean singer BoA as the accompanying vocalist. It was released on March 17, 2004, and was distributed by Rhythm Zone in two physical formats: a standard CD single and a limited edition vinyl. In its bass line, the song samples "Give Me Your Love" (1981) by American jazz vocalist Sylvia Striplin. Following its release, "The Love Bug" peaked at number eight on the Oricon Singles Chart and sold over 56,000 copies.
Yoshika (ヨシカ) is a Japanese singer, who sings mainly with R&B influences. Her major label debut album, Timeless, was released in January 2006.
Naoki Takada is a Japanese hip hop recording artist better known by his stage name Seamo. He made his debut in 2004 using the alias Sea-Mo Nator, but later changed his name to Seamo. He made his solo debut in 2005 with the Japanese record label BMG Japan with the single "Kanpaku". Seamo became famous when he appeared along with the duo Bennie K on the song "A Love Story." In 2006, Seamo had his best-selling single in Japan with "Mata Aimashō" (マタアイマショウ), which despite peaking at number fourteen on the singles chart has spent thirty four weeks on the chart and sold more than 160,000 copies so far. His debut album is Get Back On Stage, released on October 31, 2005. His second album, Live Goes On, made its debut on the Japanese chart at number one. As his favorite artists and influences, Seamo lists Kool Keith, MC Hammer, and Japanese acts Unicorn, Sing Like Talking, and Original Love. In 2008, he released "Honey Honey Feat. Ayuse Kozue", this song was used as the ending theme song of the second season of the anime xxxHolic, xxxHolic: Kei. His song "My Answer" was used as the tenth ending of the popular anime Naruto Shippuden. His song "Umi e Ikou" was featured as the ending theme for the 2010 live-action drama Moyashimon.
KinKi Kids is a Japanese duo consisting of Koichi Domoto and Tsuyoshi Domoto under the talent agency Johnny & Associates. Although the members share the same surname, the only relation they have to each other is that they both hail from the Kinki region, hence the duo's name. KinKi Kids was formed in 1993 and officially debuted on July 21, 1997.
Japana-rhythm is Bennie K's fourth album.
Synchronicity is Bennie K's third album.
Shota Shimizu is a Japanese singer-songwriter and musician from Yao, Osaka, Japan, who debuted in 2008. On June 1, 2008, Shimizu performed at Central Park in New York City, USA, during the annual Japan Day Festival. Shota Shimizu went to a local Christian school in Osaka where he learned how to sing gospel music. He became captivated with soul music, which is how his music career started. He was inspired by Donny Hathaway, Marvin Gaye, and Ray Charles.
"Manatsu no Sounds Good!" is the 26th single by the Japanese girl idol group AKB48, released in Japan on May 23, 2012.
"So Long!" is the 30th major single by the Japanese idol girl group AKB48. It is also AKB48's sixth cherry blossom-themed single, and its first single of 2013. This single was released in Japan on February 20 in four different versions.
"The Golden History" (ザ・ゴールデン・ヒストリー) is the 16th major-label single by the Japanese girl idol group Momoiro Clover Z. It was released in Japan on September 7, 2016.
"Dreamland" is a Japanese-language song recorded by Japanese music duo Bennie K. It was released through For Life Music on June 8, 2005. The song was used in commercials for Coca-Cola, for which it was specifically written, starting in March 2005. It quickly gained in popularity, prompting Bennie K's management to be flooded with inquiries about a potential release date. Due to overwhelming fan demand and attention from the general public, Yuki and Cico reworked the song and released it as the lead single to their fourth studio album Japana-rhythm. The single became Bennie K's most successful single, with multiformat sales of 3 million units.
