Japanese singer Ayumi Hamasaki has released eighteen studio albums, five compilation albums, twenty-six remix albums, four live albums and numerous singles and promotional singles. She debuted in 1995 under Nippon Columbia with the stage name Ayumi, releasing an extended play Nothing from Nothing, which was a collaboration with Dohzi-T and DJ Bass. Three years later, Hamasaki debuted again as a singer under Avex Trax with the single "Poker Face" (1998). Her first album A Song for ×× (1999) debuted at number one on Oricon's albums chart, and sold over 1.4 million copies.
Best: First Things is the debut greatest hits album by Japanese singer Koda Kumi. Rhythm Zone released it in a variety of formats on September 21, 2005. The album is divided into two discs, each containing a single released by Koda between her 2000 debut with "Take Back" and her most recent single, "Hot Stuff" in 2005. The second disc contains four new singles: "Butterfly", "Flower", "Promise", and "Star", as well as a bonus track, the solo version of "The Meaning of Peace".
The discography of Japanese-American R&B and pop singer Hikaru Utada consists of eleven studio albums, four compilation albums, eleven video albums and numerous singles and promotional singles. Utada began as a musician in the early 1990s as a member of U3, a family unit made up of her, her mother Junko Utada, also known as 1970s enka singer Keiko Fuji, and her father, musical producer Teruzane Utada. U3 released their debut album Star in 1993, with the hope to debut in America. In 1996, the group was rebranded as Cubic U, an R&B project focusing on Hikaru Utada, resulting in the English language album Precious in 1998 with record label Toshiba EMI.
The solo discography of Ringo Sheena features eight studio albums, five compilation albums, two extended plays and twenty-seven singles. Signing with Toshiba-EMI in 1998, Sheena released her debut single "Kōfukuron" in May 1998, when she was 19 years old. She subsequently released the singles "Kabukichō no Joō" and "Koko de Kiss Shite", the latter becoming her first hit. As of 2014, Sheena has been signed with EMI Records following EMI Music Japan being absorbed into Universal Music Japan.
The discography of Japanese recording artist Namie Amuro contains 12 studio albums, 7 compilation albums, 47 singles, 10 live albums, 14 video albums and 102 music videos. Amuro has also collaborated with Verbal of M-Flo and Ryōsuke Imai for her Suite Chic project.
The discography of Mika Nakashima includes 11 studio albums, 7 compilation albums, 45 singles and 20 video albums. These have all been released through Sony Music Entertainment Japan.
The solo discography of Japanese musician Yui consists of five studio albums, three compilation albums, twenty-one singles and five video albums. These were released on independent label Leaflet Records in 2004, followed by Sony Music Entertainment Japan sub-label Gr8! Records in 2005, Sony Records between 2005 and 2006, Sony sub-label Studioseven Recordings between 2007 and 2010, before returning to Gr8! Records in 2010.
The discography of Japanese-American musician Yuna Ito consists of three studio albums, one compilation album and nineteen singles. Her debut album, Heart, was released in 2007 after six singles, including one of the two theme songs for the film Nana, "Endless Story" (2005), which also featured Ito in her acting debut, as well as "Precious" (2006), the theme song of the film Limit of Love: Umizaru. Both of these songs were very commercially successful, becoming certified by the RIAJ.
The discography of Japanese contemporary R&B singer Crystal Kay consists of 12 studio albums, three extended plays, five compilation albums, four video albums and numerous single releases. Crystal Kay debuted as a singer at 13 years of age in 1999 under Epic Records Japan. Her third album Almost Seventeen (2002) saw a great leap in popularity for Crystal Kay, reaching number two on Oricon's albums chart. In 2005, Crystal Kay sang the eponymous theme song for the Tsuyoshi Kusanagi drama Koi ni Ochitara: Boku no Seikō no Himitsu. "Koi ni Ochitara" became Crystal Kay's most successful single, being certified for a million ringtone downloads.
The discography of Ayaka consists of six studio albums, two compilation albums, a cover album and numerous singles, released through Warner between 2006 and 2009, and through Ayaka's independent label, A Station, from 2012 onwards.
The discography of Japanese pop and electronic dance group Perfume consists of seven studio albums, three compilation albums, twenty-eight singles and six video albums. Forming in 2001, the group debuted as local Hiroshima idols, releasing two singles through the independent Momiji Label. In 2003, the members moved to Tokyo to further their career as idols. Signing with independent label Bee-Hive Records, the group met electronic producer Yasutaka Nakata of the band Capsule, who began to produce their music from 2003 onward.
The discography of Japanese R&B and pop singer Ken Hirai consists of ten studio albums, two compilation albums, one remix album, three cover albums, thirteen video albums and numerous singles and promotional singles. Hirai debuted as a musician under Sony Music Records in 1995 with the single "Precious Junk", but found success five years later with the single "Lakuen" and his third album, The Changing Same.
The discography of Japanese group KinKi Kids consists of 17 studio albums, 6 compilation albums, 25 video albums and 44 singles. All of KinKi Kids' singles have reached number one in Japan on Oricon charts. All of their music has been released by Johnny's Entertainment in Japan. In Taiwan, Kinki Kids' music has been released under Forward Music from 1997 to 2000, Skyhigh Entertainment and What's Music in 2001, and Avex Taiwan from 2002 to the present.
Gossip Candy is an extended play by Japanese recording artist and songwriter Kumi Koda. It was released on July 7, 2010, by Koda's record label, Rhythm Zone. Koda's fifth extended play, Gossip Candy consists of five recordings; Lollipop, Inside Fishbowl, Outside Fishbowl, For You, and a cover of Got to Be Real, originally performed by Cheryl Lynn. It was released in three different formats: Digital EP, CD and CD+DVD. The CD only version was re-released as the "Dream Music Park" edition with a bonus baseball cap. The Dream Music Park concert was later released on the CD+2DVD edition of Dejavu.
The discography of Japanese musician Kaela Kimura consists of eleven studio albums, two compilation albums, one cover album, four extended plays, thirty-one singles and five video albums. She debuted as a musician in 2004 under the label Columbia Music Entertainment, releasing ten albums with the company. In 2013, Kimura released Rock, an album of English language covers under her private label Ela Music. In 2014, Kimura released "Ole! Oh!", her first single under Victor Entertainment.
The discography of Japanese recording artist and actor Masaharu Fukuyama consists of ten studio albums, four compilation albums, three remix albums, twenty video albums, and numerous physical and promotional singles. Fukuyama debuted through BMG Japan by releasing the single "Tsuioku no Ame no Naka" (1990) and the album Dengon. The works failed to chart, however, in 1992 the single "Good Night", aided by the popularity it gained through use in the drama Ai wa Dō da, charted on the Oricon Singles Chart, peaking at number nine. In 1993, his album Calling became his first number one album on the Oricon Albums Chart; it has sold over 850,000 copies in Japan and has been certified two-times platinum by the Recording Industry Association of Japan (RIAJ).
The discography of M-Flo features nine studio albums, nine compilation albums, one live album and 25 singles. These were released on Labsoul Records and Avex Group independent label Rhythm Republic in 1998, and from 1999 onwards released through Rhythm Zone.
The discography of Tokyo Jihen consists of five studio albums, three compilation albums, one regular release extended play, three vinyl exclusive extended plays, and 13 video releases, released through Toshiba EMI, EMI Music Japan and Universal between 2004 and 2013.
The discography of Japanese pop duo Dreams Come True consists of 20 studio albums, 6 compilation albums, 17 video albums, and numerous singles. The band was formed in 1988 by Miwa Yoshida, Masato Nakamura, and Takahiro Nishikawa as Cha-Cha & Audrey's Project, which was later changed to Dreams Come True. The first single "Anata ni Aitakute" did not chart, but their eponymous debut album sold over a million copies in Japan and was certified Million by the Recording Industry Association of Japan (RIAJ). The follow-up albums also performed well on the charts, with the 1989 release Love Goes On... lingering on the Oricon Albums Chart for four years. The group's fifth studio album The Swinging Star (1992) was at one point, the best-selling album in Japan, shifting over 3.7 million copies in the country.
The discography of the Japanese pop group Sandaime J Soul Brothers consists of ten studio albums, two compilation albums, and twenty-six singles. Since the group's original formation in 1999, the group has experienced two line-up changes and reboots, and currently consists of seven members: Naoto Kataoka, Naoki Kobayashi, Ryuji Imaichi, Hiroomi Tosaka, Elly, Takanori Iwata, Kenjiro Yamashita. The group was formed by producer and former Exile member Hiroyuki Igarashi who founded the group's management agency LDH Japan.
