EZ Do Dance (Eng)

Launched on the 21st of June 1993 by the Major Avex, the 2nd single of trf which has got indeed what it takes to become a summer hit, will end as a million seller and will ignite the career of the band led in backstage by the great Tetsuya Komuro.

EZ Do Dance

Dance for dummies ?

Version française ici.

1st publication : 31/10/2018

Last updated: 31/10/2018

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TRF (Eng)

While they just performed exceptionally abroad in Paris at Japan Expo for their 25th anniversary, I propose to (re-)discover this must-know J-Pop / Dance band of the 90s-2000s...

TRF

The TK's Rave Factory

French version here.

1st publication : 31/07/2018

Last updated: 31/10/2018

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Can you celebrate ? (Eng)

Record-breaking song and a signature of the Japanese star Amuro Namie, here is one of  the most popular J-Pop love songs during wedding parties in Japan. Even if it was not a particularly good souvenir for its first performer...

Can you celebrate ?

Wedding night

Version française ici.

1st publication : 10/05/2018

Last updated: 10/05/2018

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Amuro Namie (安室奈美恵) - Eng

By the end of 2017, while she was celebrating in live her 40th anniversary, including 25 years of career, the J-Pop singer Amuro Namie announced suddenly her retirement for the following year from show-biz, to take care of her family. An announcement followed in January 2018 by the one of the famous producer Komuro Tetsuya who had launched her, which obliges to come back without delay on this princess of J-Pop.

Amuro Namie (安室奈美恵)

From Super Monkey's to Queen of Hip-Pop

Version française ici.
1st publication : 2018/02/28

Last updated: 2018/08/29

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BUMP OF CHICKEN (Eng)

While they have the same age as the traditional songstress Hajime Chitose, among others, it is through another style, more rock, but still as melodious and deep, that the 4 classmates of Bump Of Chicken (aka BOC) are regularly acclaimed, featured in many anime as well as karaoke or video games !

BUMP OF CHICKEN

Heading to the stars

Version française ici.

1st publication : 15/10/2017

Last update: 15/10/2017

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Hajime Chitose (元 ちとせ) - Eng

The princess of the Shima uta, a traditional style from the archipelagoes in southern Japan, comes from a small island lost between Okinawa and Kyuushuu; here name: Hajime Chitose. Mastering and surpassing the root frame, she highlighted her birthplace of Amami in the Japanese charts and then through her collaborations with several foreign artists and her participation in events promoting peace.

Hajime Chitose (元 ちとせ)

Peaceful Voice from the Ancient Kingdom

Version française ici.

1e publication : 06/10/2017

Dernière MaJ: 07/10/2017

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ZARD (Eng)

J-Pop band more or less informal and quickly reduced to its beautiful singer Sakai Izumi, ZARD shined across the 1990-2000 years surrounded by an aura as mysterious as sweet, delighting millions of fans of all ages through her hits for animes (Dragon Ball, Détective Conan, Slam Dunk...) and dramas (Kekkon no Risou, Shiratori Reiko de gozaimasu...), before brutally fainting away in 2007, 10 years before I create this article. 

ZARD

The Hidden Star of J-Pop

Version française ici.

1st publication : 2017/06/15

Last update: 2017/06/15

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Arigatou - ありがとう (Eng)

For the 10th year in Major of its creators and 1st performers, Ikimonogakari (いきものがかり), I introduce one of their signature song, Arigatou which, you probably already know it, means "Thank you" 😉 . But to who are these thanks, and from who ? And why this song rather than any other with the same title did engrave itself into the Japanese culture ?

Arigatou - ありがとう

The Spouse of the Youkai

Version française ici.
1st French publication: 2016/10/12
1st English publication: 2016/10/19
Last Update: 2021/01/26

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Ikimonogakari - いきものがかり (Eng)

From Sakura to Naruto ;-) and Bleach, from the drama GeGeGe no Nyôbô to the movie Your Lie in April, including numberless illustrations in ads, news or entertainment shows, this is the introduction for their 10th year in Major of the trio Ikimonogakari (いきものがかり) ! A pop-rock band who had needed 7 years before blooming in 2006, but for such a marvelous result...

Ikimonogakari - いきものがかり

The hare and the turtle... and Ikkimonkey !

Version française ici

1st English version: 2016/10/16.

Last Updated: 2021/06/03.

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Mirai Yosouzu 2 - 未来予想図 II (Eng)

As I'm writing it in January 2016, year of the monkey (saru), I wish you an happy new year... and I apologize for not having posted more J-Music standards articles during these first months of existence. I should have more time this year, and as a good resolution, here is this one, I wish I had released sooner...

Last 6th of May 2015, we celebrated the 50 years old of Miwa, singer of band Dreams Come True whose we celebrated too the 25 years of  career between 2014 and 2015, and thus I'm going to introduce to you one of their numerous standards, precisely their very 1st hit, Mirai Yosouzu 2 (未来予想図 II). However nothing was predestining this title to such a notoriety, apart from this puzzling "2", as no other identical title had been released before !

Back to the Future

Version française ici
English version: 17/01/2016.
Last update: 31/12/2019

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Dreams Come True (Eng)

It's all in the name of the band, whose career, at least the one of the 2 remaining members, would make dream a lot of artists in the world.

Dreams come true





Version française ici. 

English version: 17/01/2016.

Last update: 13/10/2017.

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Ue wo muite arukou (Sukiyaki) - 上を向いて歩こう (Eng)

Open wide your ears 👂, here comes the world best-seller Japanese song (lone n°1 in the USA, 13 millions sales worldwide) ! Its original name and the one of its first performer, Sakamoto Kyu, may seem unknown to you, but whatever your age may be, there is good chance you already heard it somehow. Its secret ? Traveling incognito with other names 😉...

Ue wo muite arukou (Sukiyaki) - 上を向いて歩こう

Undercover Empress

Version française ici.
1st French version: 30/09/2015.
1st English version: 17/10/2015.
Last update: 18/09/2017.

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Tentai kansoku - 天体観測 (Eng)

With Tentai kansoku, their 3rd single (2nd in Major), the pop-rock / alternative rock band BUMP OF CHICKEN became a star of the J-Pop / J-Rock scene ! More than 15 years later, the song is still in the karaokes' Top 50.

Tentai Kansoku

Searching for my polestar

Version française ici.
English version: 25/09/2015.
Last update: 17/10/2017.

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Ye Lai Xiang - 夜来香 (Eng)

In counterpart to my article on Shinda onna no ko, I'm going to introduce a love song that could probably call the Japanese Lili Marleen due to its history which confounds with the one of the Chinese-Japanese war and due to the extraordinary destiny of her first performer with multiple aliases, Yamaguchi Yoshiko (山口 淑子) aka Li Xianglan...

Ye Lai Xiang - 夜来香

Lili and the Twilight Tuberose



Version française ici.
English version: 18/09/2015.
Last update: 08/08/2016.

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Shinda onna no ko - 死んだ女の子 (Eng)

For my 1st article on a Japanese "great standard", I had chosen a song which is neither a commercial "hit" nor 100% made in Japan ! In fact I didn't choose, time did for me as it was on August 2015...

Shinda Onna no Ko - 死んだ女の子

That Enola Gay...

Version française ici.
1st English version: 12/09/2015.
Last update: 07/10/2017.

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