Akiko Yano is a Japanese pop and jazz musician and singer born in Tokyo and raised in Aomori and later began her singing career in the mid-1970s. She has been called "one of the major musical talents of the Japanese popular music world", and her vocals and singing style have been compared to English singer Kate Bush.
Zimbabwean music is heavily reliant on the use of instruments such as the mbira, Ngoma drums and hosho. Their music symbolizes much more than a simple rhythm, as the folk and pop style styled music was used as a symbol of hope for Zimbabweans looking to gain independence from Rhodesia. Music has played a significant role in the history of Zimbabwe, from a vital role in the traditional Bira ceremony used to call on ancestral spirits, to protest songs during the struggle for independence. The community in Zimbabwe used music to voice their resistance to their oppression, as one of the only weapons they had available to fight back with. In the eighties, the Music of Zimbabwe was at the center of the African Music scene thanks to genres such as Sungura and Jit. However, several performers were banned by state TV and radio leading to the closing of several music venues.
Acid jazz is a music genre that combines elements of funk, soul, and hip hop, as well as jazz and disco. Acid jazz originated in clubs in London during the 1980s with the rare groove movement and spread to the United States, Western Europe, Latin America and Japan. Acts included The Brand New Heavies, Incognito, James Taylor Quartet, Us3, and Jamiroquai from the UK, and Guru, Buckshot LeFonque and Digable Planets from the U.S. The rise of electronic club music in the middle to late 1990s led to a decline in interest, and in the twenty-first century, acid jazz became indistinct as a genre. Many acts that might have been defined as acid jazz are seen as jazz-funk, or nu jazz.
Deep house is a subgenre of house music that originated in the 1980s, initially fusing elements of Chicago house with the lush chords of 1980s jazz-funk and touches of soul music. Its origins are attributed to the early recordings of Larry Heard, including his influential track "Can You Feel It".
Toshi Ichiyanagi was a Japanese avant-garde composer and pianist. One of the leading composers in Japan during the postwar era, Ichiyanagi worked in a range of genres, composing Western-style operas and orchestral and chamber works, as well as compositions using traditional Japanese instruments. Ichiyanagi is known for incorporating avant-garde techniques into his works, such as chance music, extended technique, and nontraditional scoring. Ichiyanagi was married to artist Yoko Ono from 1956 to 1962.
Yellow Magic Orchestra is the first official studio album by Japanese electronic music band Yellow Magic Orchestra, who were previously known as the Yellow Magic Band. Originally released by Alfa Records, in Japan in 1978, the album was released by A&M Records in Europe and the United States and Canada in early 1979, with the US version featuring new cover art but without the closing track of "Acrobat". Both versions would later be re-issued in 2003 as a double-disc format, with the American version as the first disc.
Eri Nobuchika is a Japanese singer-songwriter, under the Fearless Records label on Sony Music Associated Records. She currently resides in Tokyo.
Traveling Miles is the thirteenth studio album by American jazz vocalist Cassandra Wilson. Released on the Blue Note label in 1999, it is a tribute to Miles Davis, taking many of its cues from Davis' catalog of recordings with Columbia Records. The album was nominated for the Grammy Award as Best Jazz Vocal Performance.
Nu-disco is a 21st-century dance music genre associated with a renewed interest in the late 1970s disco, synthesizer-heavy 1980s European dance music styles, and early 1990s electronic dance music. The genre was popular in the early 2000s, and experienced a mild resurgence in the 2010s.
Aelita is the fifth studio album by German electronic and jazz band Tied & Tickled Trio. It was released on 1 June 2007 by Morr Music.
Taiga is the fifth studio album by Japanese experimental rock band OOIOO. It was released on July 4, 2006 by the labels Felicity, Polystar and Shock City. It is an avant-rock and experimental pop album that blends numerous world music influences, particularly African music.
Tokyo Joe is a 1982 album by Ryuichi Sakamoto and guitarist Kazumi Watanabe. It is a compilation of tracks from the albums Thousand Knives (1978), Kylyn (1979), Kylyn Live (1979) and the track "Tokyo Joe" which appeared on a various artists anthology Tokyo-Paris-London-New York, Dancing Night. The album was originally released in Japan in 1982, then re-released also in the Western countries in the 1990s.
Yasuaki Shimizu is a Japanese composer, saxophonist and producer. He is known for his interpretations of the music of J.S. Bach, in particular the "Cello Suites 1-6" re-arranged for and performed on tenor saxophone.
Indigo Jam Unit was a Japanese jazz band formed in Osaka, Japan in 2005.
Nozinja Lodge is the debut studio album by South African artist Nozinja, released on Warp on June 1, 2015. It peaked at number 13 on Billboard's World Albums chart.
Midori Takada is a Japanese composer and percussionist. She has been described as a pioneer of ambient and minimalist music.
"Caught in the Middle" is a song by American rock band Paramore. It was released on June 26, 2018 through Fueled by Ramen as the fifth and final single off their fifth studio album After Laughter (2017). The track was co-written by lead vocalist Hayley Williams and guitarist Taylor York, and recorded in Nashville, Tennessee.
Sunshower is the second studio album by Taeko Ohnuki, released on July 25, 1977. The album combines elements of J-pop, smooth jazz, rock, and city pop. A commercial disappointment at the time of its release, the album later garnered critical acclaim.
Bad Mode is the eighth Japanese-language studio album by Japanese-American singer Hikaru Utada. It is the singer's first bilingual album release, with songs recorded in both Japanese and English. The album was released on the Sony Music Japan sublabel Epic Records Japan digitally on January 19, 2022, the day of Utada's 39th birthday, and was released physically on CD and limited CD-DVD-BD format bundle on February 23. It marked her first album release in four years since Hatsukoi (2018).
