Music: the 'Other' International Language
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Music: The ‘Other’ International Language Brief History of J-Pop 1920’s • Enka v POPS (Kayoukyoku) 1950’s & 60’s • POSTWAR Rockabilly, influenced by the Beatles, Elvis. Many Japanese artists gained popularity by performing at US military bases such as Yokosuka and Atsugi. • English songs were translated, a debate over whether Japanese popular music should be sung in English or Japanese (NIHONGO ROCK RONSO / JAPANESE ROCK DEBATE) 1963 • Release of the song SUKIYAKI (Ue o muite arukou) by Sakamoto Kyu (only Japanese song to ever reach No. 1 on the US Billboard Hot 100 Chart). 1966 • Despite opposition, the Beatles performed in Tokyo 1970’s • New Wave, Folk and psychedelic influences such as The Rolling Stones, ABBA inspired Japanese acts like Souther All Stars, Yellow Magic Orchestra 1980’s • The rise of visual Kei acts like Glay, X-Japan: androgynous, flamboyant appearance stars not dissimilar to the glam, goth bands of the west - such as Kiss. • PARA PARA dancing takes off! Synchronized dancing moving usually only the arms or upper body, closely associated with eurobeat. 1990’s • The rise of talent agencies, talent auditions, actor schools and multiple-group producers (vs indie). • Shibuya Kei: a term used to describe acts like Flipper‟s Guitar ( jazz / electropop ) Charts, Popularity Ratings ORICON Charts • Published every Tuesday • Abbreviation of *Original Confidence Inc.* • Record sales of CDs, DVDs, and video games However, ORICON relies on participating music outlets to report their sales and misses critical records such as online download sales and other channels like sales of CDs released only at convenience stores (in the case of the group NEWS). ORICON was also controversially accused of “tampering with statistics to promote Johnny‟s in 2006. 紅白歌合戦 (kouhaku uta gassen) New Year‟s Eve music event (NHK) featuring the most popular artists of the year, divided into teams (RED vs WHITE). 2011 NYE was the 62nd Gassen, won by the RED team. RED: Female WHITE: Male Performance is by invitation only, so if a band is invited they are considered to have “truly made it”! A group of celebrities judge the performances not only based on talent, but other criteria, such as choreography. Billboard Japan Top 100 The week‟s most popular songs are ranked by Hanshin Corporation, based on radio airplay. TV Shows MUSIC STATION On Asahi TV • 8pm Friday nights on Channel 5 • All the latest performers and some foreign acts • Interviews (7th September - YUI) CD TV Top 100 Countdown Airs (LATE NIGHT) Every Saturday Channel CBC HEY HEY HEY (MUSIC CHAMP) Special Monday nights on Fuji TV (Tokai TV) SPECIAL! 24th September Live from Odaiba in Tokyo - Autumn songfest featuring AKB48, Ikimonogakari, Che‟Nelle, Superfly and more. Okinawa Actors School Actual Okinawan school with a branch in Osaka that trains musicians and actors of the pedigree of SPEED and NAMIE AMURO. SPEED Inspired by TLC A talented quartet from Okinawa, who were named SPEED by the audience of a TV show “Night of the Hit Parade” in 1995. NAMIE AMURO One of the longest surviving solo female acts ever. Once labelled the “teen queen” of Japan, she reportedly performed in front of some 400,000 people at one concert. Her 1966 album “Sweet 19 Blues” sold over 3 million copies. Credited for pioneering Shotgun Weddings in Japan. Her mother was tragically murdered in Okinawa in 1999. Prim Minister Keizo Obuchi asked Amuro and her producer to write a song about world harmony which was performed at the 2000 G8 Summit in Okinawa. ASAYAN Music Audition Television Ran from 1995 - 2002 Was responsible for the rise of various artists, such as: MORNING MUSUME (very much in the mould of AKB48) CHEMISTRY EXILE’S ATSUSHI (was famously defeated in a spot for Chemistry) Talent Agency Pop Stars ジャニーズ (Johnny & Associates) Formed in 1962 (Producer Johnny Kitagawa) Trains and promotes groups of male idols and became a record label in 1997. Johnny Kitagawa‟s 232 chart-topping songs & 8,419 concerts are a world record. Groups: SMAP, TOKIO, KINKI KIDS, ARASHI, V6, Hey! Say! JUMP, KAT-TUN SMAP Sports Music Assemble People Genres: Talent Agency Pop They do celebrity cooking shows, interview foreign celebrities, host radio shows, perform in comedy acts, musicals and dramas. They‟re not highly acclaimed for their singing ability - rather symbols of individuality. KIMUTAKU (Kimura Takuya) - perhaps the most famous of the group, voted the sexiest man in Japan. Commonly spotted on billboards or even posters at the KENCHO ! TSUYOSHI KUSANAGI Kusanagi starred in dramas dealing with South Korea / Japan relations and international love affairs, and even released a Korean Language CD. KATORI SHINGO The „baby‟ of the group with the approachable smile! Published a series of books for Japanese learning english, and famously cross-dressed as the character Shingo-Mama. ARASHI Formed in 1999 on a cruise ship near Hawaii Often thought of as SMAP‟s juniors Appeal to a younger demographic than SMAP, yet older than Hey! Say! JUMP Hey! Say! JUMP Average age of the members was 15.7 years old when this all boy band performed at their debut concert. They were the youngest male group to top the Oricon Charts. In 2011, member Morimoto was caught smoking underage and banned from the group. Debut single „Ultra Music Power‟ Kanjani Eight Yet another Johnny‟s agency group that formed in 2002. Consists of 7 male members from the Kansai region. As per SMAP, they starred in a television show called ANOTHER which aired on Channel 8 in Kansai. The origin of their name is KAN (Kansai) JANI (Johnny‟s) 8 (Channel). They topped the Oricon charts in Week 37 of 2012 with their song “Aoppana”. Yasushi Akimoto’s (non-Johnny’s) ‘not your ordinary pop group’ AKB48 Genres: Pop / dance A group of teenage to mid 20 year old girl members that constantly changes, based on elections. CD singles of the group contain a ballot paper, on which fans can vote. The 2011 electioncomprised of over 1 million votes. AKB - Akihabara, is the location of the AKB48 theatre. Performances are held daily, but have become so popular that tickets are distributed by lottery. The group is divided into 3 groups, A, K and B. ONly one performs on a given day, allowing simultaneous performances in different locations. HEAVY ROTATION Indie Artists and non-Johnny’s Stars Ayumi Hamasaki Genres: Pop / dance With sales of over 50 million records in Japan, AYU is not only the highest selling solo artist of all time in Japan, but also the best selling Japanese female artist in history. The Fukuoka-born and raised ex model and Shibuya nightclub dancer was offered a recording deal after a karaoke session. AYU writes her own lyrics, is responsible for the composition and production of several of her songs, and her soft dance-pop style was a storming success in direct competition to Utada Hikaru in the early 2000s. Well received singles: “M”, “Seasons”, “Trust” SOUTHERN ALL STARS Genres: Pop / blues / folk / rock Extremely popular group that once had 44 singles in the top 100 simultaneously! Famous for their summer-influenced lyrics often mentioning areas of Kanagawa, mixed with extremely erotic themes. Keisuke Kuwata (lead singer) won the prize for best vocalist at the 1977 Yamaha East West auditions. He undertook a successful operation to remove esophageal cancer in 2010 that threatened his career. MR CHILDREN Genres: Pop / Rock Extremely high selling male group that write their own songs, lead by vocalist Sakurai Kazutoshi. Their songs are generally soft rock and deal with „real‟ male issues such as depression, relationships, corporate strain. Many of the group‟s songs have appeared on dramas (“Nanmonai uta” – Pure 1996) and television commercials. B’z Genres: Pop turned Rock 80 million records in Japan and the first Japanese band to have handprints on Hollywood‟s ROCKWALK! B‟z performed with Aerosmith at the 2002 FIFA World Cup Concert in Tokyo. Ketsumeishi Genres: Hip-hop, rap and reggae influenced band prominent in the mid 2000s, with hits like “Sakura” and “Natsu no omoide” (the latter famous for slow motion footage of women in bikinis jumping in and out of a pool). Kobukuro Genres: Folk Rock / Pop KOBUCHI & KURODA Two street performers that met in Osaka and made it big ! EXILE Genres: R&B / Dance / Pop Formerly known as J Soul Brothers, lead by Hiro, they are a group of 14 dancing performers that constantly change with auditions. Well known for singles such as “Tada…Aitakute” “Ti Amo” a latin-influenced song about the guilt associated with being unfaithful, was downloaded over a million times as a chaku-ita (keitai ringtone). Current vocalists ATSUSHI and TAKAHIRO GReeeeN Genres: Hip Hop, Breakbeat The four members Hide, Soh, 92 and Navi are all students of dentistry and have never shown their faces in the public sphere. Sometimes they censor their faces when appearing on television! The single “Kiseki” was the best selling download single in Japan, and replaced Aoyama Thelma & SoulJa‟s “Koko ni iru yo”. YUI Genres: Pop / Rock Fukuoka born singer-songwriter voted the the *Artist you most want to marry* on Music Station in 2011. One of many artists to perform charity concerts after the TOHOKU earthquake and tsunami. “Rain” was the best female music video on the 2011 MTV Japan Music Video Awards. “Fight” is currently performing well in the Oricon charts. Nishino Kana Genres: Pop / R&B 2012 album Love Place sits at No. 2 on the Oricon Album chart, with singles such as “Watashitachi” and “Go for It”. Che’Nelle Malaysian born Australian artist, that also sings in Japanese and has been tremendously popular in Japan with the July album release BELIEVE.