Namie Amuro is a Japanese former recording artist, producer, lyricist, dancer, model, actress and entrepreneur who was active between 1992 and 2018. A leading figure of the Japanese entertainment industry since the early 1990s, Amuro is known for breaking the youthful idol stereotype of J-Pop, changing the fashion trends and lifestyle of women in Japan, her experimentation across music styles, and for her visual imagery in music videos and live performances. Due to her career longevity, resilience, professionalism, efforts behind-the-scenes in the music industry, and her way of life, she is considered a pop culture icon in Japan and Asia. She has been referred to as "Diva of Heisei Era" and the "Queen of Japanese Pop", and has been recognized as having the influence and career impact domestically equivalent to artists such as Janet Jackson and Madonna in Western music and pop culture.
Yui, stylized as YUI or yui, is a Japanese singer-songwriter and multi-instrumentalist. In her solo career, she sold more than 5 million physical copies in Japan. She is popular in Japan and in surrounding countries, ranking number one in 2011 Count Down TV "Dearest Female Artist" and Music Station "Artist You Most Want to Marry" polls, as well as Radio Television Hong Kong's "Most Popular Japanese Artist".
Kashimashi: Girl Meets Girl is a Japanese yuri manga series written by Satoru Akahori and illustrated by Yukimaru Katsura. The manga was originally serialized in Dengeki Daioh between the July 2004 and May 2007 issues, and later published in five bound volumes by MediaWorks from January 2005 to May 2007. The story focuses on Hazumu Osaragi, a normal, albeit effeminate high school boy who is killed when an alien spaceship crash lands on him, only to be restored to health as a girl. This results in a same-sex love triangle that Hazumu finds herself in with two of her best female friends.
"Freaky" is the 36th single by Japanese singer Koda Kumi, released on June 27, 2007. The single took the #1 spot on the Oricon charts, making it her fourth #1 single, and charted for fifteen weeks.
"Namidairo" is the eleventh single by Japanese pop singer-songwriter Yui. The single was released on February 27, 2008. The title song is a tie-up for the TV drama, 4 Shimai Tantei Dan.
Moon is the fortieth single released by Japanese singer-songwriter Koda Kumi. Much like her past summer single "Freaky" and "4 Hot Wave", Moon carried four songs. It charted at No. 2 on Oricon and stayed on the charts for nineteen weeks. It was released in CD and CD+DVD editions, with the limited editions of both versions carrying an alternate rendition of "Moon Crying".
My Short Stories is the first B-side compilation album by the popular Japanese singer-songwriter Yui that was released on November 12, 2008. This album contains all the past B sides of her past singles and a new song titled "I'll be".
"Stay with Me" is the forty-second single by Japanese R&B/pop artist Kumi Koda. It charted at No. 1 on the Oricon Weekly charts and remained on the charts for nine weeks. This became the first time Kumi released two consecutive No. 1 singles, whereas her previous single, "Taboo," also charted at number one.
"Mirotic" is a song by South Korean boy band TVXQ. It was released in South Korea via SM Entertainment as part of the group's eponymous fourth studio album on September 26, 2008. In Japan, it was released as a CD single titled "Jumon: Mirotic" through Rhythm Zone on October 15, 2008, where it served as one of the several lead singles for the group's fourth Japanese studio album Secret Code (2009). The Korean lyrics was written by Yoo Young-jin, with Japanese lyrics translated by Ryoji Sonoda, whilst music was handled by Yoo, Mikkel Sigvardt, Lucas Secon and Thomas Troelsen. The song was based from Sarah Connor's single Under My Skin.
Next Level is the tenth studio album by Japanese recording artist Ayumi Hamasaki. It was released through Avex Trax on March 25, 2009 in five physical formats, and for digital consumption. The album was solely produced by Avex Trax owner Max Matsuura, whereas the album's content was written by Hamasaki herself. Additionally, it marks a return for several composers that helped construct her previous records, including Dai Nagao, CMJK, Kazuhiro Hara, HΛL, amongst others. Stylistically, Next Level is a departure from her previous albums, focusing on electronic music with elements of rock and dance.
"It's All Too Much"/"Never Say Die" is the fourteenth single by Japanese pop singer-songwriter Yui. The single was released on October 7, 2009. The two songs were used for the first live-action film adaptation of the manga series Kaiji, as theme song and insert song, respectively. "It's All Too Much"/"Never Say Die" debuted at number one in the first week sales with sales of 75,047 copies and is Yui's 5th overall number one single on the Japanese Oricon charts. The single is certified Gold by the Recording Industry Association of Japan (RIAJ) for shipment of 100,000 copies.
"My Girl" is a song recorded by Japanese boy band Arashi. It was released on November 11, 2009 through their record label J Storm. "My Girl" was used as the opening theme song for the television drama of the same name which stars Arashi member, Masaki Aiba. "My Girl" was released as a CD single in two formats: a regular edition and a limited edition. The former comes with two B-sides and the instrumental of all the songs, while the latter comes with the B-side "Tokei Jikake no Umbrella" and a DVD.
"Gloria" is Japanese pop rock singer-songwriter Yui's fifteenth single. "Gloria" was released on January 20, 2010, by her label Studioseven Recordings and was released in two formats: CD and CD+DVD. The single debuted atop the Oricon Weekly Single Chart becoming her sixth number-one single.
Love Songs is the twelfth studio album by Japanese singer-songwriter Ayumi Hamasaki. The album was released on December 22, 2010, through Avex Trax, eight months after her eleventh studio album Rock 'n' Roll Circus. A stylistic return to the aesthetic of her albums before Secret, Love Songs contains pop songs with lyrics primarily revolving around love, many of them ballads.
"It's My Life / Your Heaven" is the eighteenth single and third double A-side single by Japanese pop singer-songwriter Yui. The single was released on January 26, 2011.
"Manatsu no Sounds Good!" is the 26th single by the Japanese girl idol group AKB48, released in Japan on May 23, 2012.
"Go to the Top" is a song recorded by Japanese recording artist Kumi Koda for her eleventh studio album, Bon Voyage (2012). It premiered on October 24, 2012 as the lead single from the album. The song was written by Kumi, while production was handled by Clarabell. It was used as the opening theme song for the Âge–developed anime series Muv-Luv Alternative: Total Eclipse. Musically, the track was described as an electronic dance song with elements of 8-bit music, dance-pop, and dubstep.
Girls Forever is the third Japanese studio album and sixth overall studio album release by South Korean girl group Kara on November 14, 2012, in four different editions.
"Labrador Retriever" is the 36th single by the Japanese idol girl group AKB48. It was released in Japan on May 21, 2014 by King Records. This single was first performed at AKB48's concert in the National Olympic Stadium on March 29. It was the best-selling single of the year in Japan, with 1,786,825 copies.
"575" is a song recorded by Japanese recording girl group Perfume for their third studio album, JPN (2011). It was written, composed, arranged, and produced by Japanese musician and Capsule member Yasutaka Nakata. The song was included as a B-side track for the group's single, "Voice". It was also released exclusively to Uta stores in Japan on July 14, 2010. Musically, "575" was described as a mellow Japanese pop song. It marks the first time that the group perform in a rap structure, delivered after the first chorus. The song's title, and the structure of its verses, derives from the structure of haiku, a Japanese style of poetry which comprises a 5-syllable line, a 7-syllable line, and then another 5-syllable line.
