Ai Carina Uemura, known mononymously as Ai, is a Japanese-American singer-songwriter and rapper. Born in Los Angeles, Ai moved to Kagoshima at age four. Motivated to become a singer, she returned to Los Angeles during her adolescence, attending the Los Angeles County High School for the Arts. While in Los Angeles, she performed as part of a gospel choir at a Mary J. Blige concert and appeared as a backup dancer in Janet Jackson's music video, "Go Deep". She briefly joined the Asian girl group SX4 in 1999 until she graduated high school.
"Matsu wa" is the debut single by Aming released on July 21, 1982 in Japan.
Yutaka Matsushige is a Japanese actor.
Eri Fukatsu is a Japanese actress. She won the award for best actress at the 18th Yokohama Film Festival for Haru and the best actress award at the 2010 Montreal World Film Festival for her performance in Villain. She also received acclaim for her role in the Japanese TV series Bayside Shakedown and the subsequent spin-off films of the series. In 1988, she starred in "Christmas Express" commercials for the Central Japan Railway Company.
The discography of Japanese-American singer-songwriter Ai consists of thirteen studio albums, four extended plays (EP), eight compilation albums, one live album, one mix tape, ten video albums and numerous solo and collaboration singles.
Arthur Conant Lounsbery is a Japanese voice actor and narrator affiliated with 81 Produce. His major roles include Felix Louis-Claude Mont d'Or in Argonavis, Ryugel Baran in Inazuma Eleven GO: Galaxy, Twinblade Arthur in Million Arthur and Kaito Tsukigami in Star-Myu.
"Hope & Dreams" is a song recorded by Japanese singer Misia for her eleventh studio album New Morning. It was released digitally as a promotional single by Ariola Japan on March 19, 2014.
Morfonica is a Japanese all-female rock band that is part of Bushiroad's media franchise BanG Dream!. Formed in 2020, the group's members portray fictional characters in the project's anime series and mobile game BanG Dream! Girls Band Party! in addition to performing their characters' respective instruments in live concerts.
The Japanese media franchise BanG Dream!, created by Bushiroad in 2015, consists of eight bands whose members portray fictional characters in the anime series and mobile game BanG Dream! Girls Band Party!. The bands consist of Poppin'Party, Roselia, Afterglow, Pastel Palettes, Hello, Happy World! (2016), Raise A Suilen (2018), Morfonica (2020), and MyGO!!!!! (2022). Ave Mujica and Mugendai Mewtype (2023) are the only two bands in the franchise that are not tied to Girls Band Party!.
Wa to Yo is the eleventh studio album by Japanese-American singer-songwriter Ai. It was released on June 7, 2017, through EMI Records, as a double album. Wanting to express both her American and Japanese background, Ai recorded the Wa disc in Japanese with traditional Japanese sensibilities while the Yo disc was recorded in English with R&B and hip hop influences.
It's All Me, Vol. 1 is an extended play by Japanese-American singer-songwriter Ai. It was released on July 8, 2020, through EMI Records and features a departure from the traditional Japanese and western electropop sounds found in her 2017 studio album, Wa to Yo.
"Aldebaran" is a song recorded by Japanese-American singer-songwriter Ai, released on November 1, 2021, by EMI Records and Universal Music Group. The song served as the theme song for the Japanese television drama, Come Come Everybody and subsequently served as the third single from Ai's twelfth studio album, Dream.
Come Come Everybody is a Japanese television drama series and the 105th NHK Asadora series, following Okaeri Mone. It premiered on November 1, 2021, and concluded on April 8, 2022. The story is about 100 years-old family, three generations, Yasuko (grandmother), Rui (mother), and Hinata (daughter) who worked with a radio English course during the Shōwa, Heisei, and Reiwa eras. The drama is set in Okayama, Osaka and Kyoto.
Heart is the seventeenth studio album by the Japanese singer Koda Kumi, released on March 2, 2022, over two years after her previous studio album Re(cord) (2019). The album was released on streaming platforms a month prior to the physical release on February 2.
Kyōgen is the debut studio album by Japanese singer Ado, released January 26, 2022, by Virgin Music. A J-pop and rock record, the album was produced by various Vocaloid musicians.
"First Time" is a song recorded by Japanese-American singer-songwriter Ai, released February 16, 2022, by EMI Records as a promotional single from her twelfth studio album Dream. Produced by Bernard "Harv" Harvey, lyrically the song is about Ai's struggles during the start of her music career and how she was able to eventually find success for the first time. In promotion of the song, Ai teamed up with Nestlé to promote KitKat.
"Welcome Rain" is a song recorded by Japanese-American singer-songwriter Ai from her twelfth studio album, Dream. Written and produced by Nao'ymt, the song has been used in web commercials for Asahi Breweries. Lyrically, the song is about communication through a difficult situation. Critics have compared the song to "Aldebaran".
The Dream Tour was the thirteenth headlining concert tour by Japanese-American singer-songwriter Ai and was in support of her twelfth studio album, Dream (2022). The tour began on May 14, 2022, in Koshigaya, Japan and concluded on December 9, 2022, in Tokyo, Japan.
Uta's Songs: One Piece Film Red is a soundtrack album by Japanese singer Ado, released on August 10, 2022, by Virgin Music. The album accompanies the 2022 Japanese animated film, One Piece Film: Red. The album was preceded by three singles: "New Genesis", "I'm Invincible" and "Backlight", all of which charted within the top 5 of the Billboard Japan Hot 100 and the top 80 of the Billboard Global 200.
Respect All is the thirteenth studio album by Japanese-American singer-songwriter Ai, released on August 23, 2023, by EMI Records. Announced in June 2023, the album includes Nestlé Japan's Kit Kat campaign song, "Start Again", as well as "Life Goes On", the image song for the Japanese film Haru ni Chiru.
