Five-member dance and vocal unit MADKID had a big hit on their hands with “RISE,” the opening theme to the first cours of The Rising of the Shield Hero anime. That one went on to hit the six million mark in YouTube views, and they’re hoping for …Read more »
There’s something really special about seeing someone rise above the odds and triumph to achieve their long-standing dream. That’s exactly what happened to one of J-Pop’s biggest stars, Utada Hikaru, whose latest release has her teaming up with Skrillex on the theme song for Kingdom …Read more »
Idol group AKB48 released their 52nd single this week, “Teacher Teacher”, with 2,580,513 presales bringing it to double platinum even before the official release date. The release sports a suggestive title, the group’s first time working with a non-Japanese dance director, and 16-year-old upstart Yui …Read more »
The Tokyo Ghoul:re anime is getting a CD single release for its opening theme song, “asphyxia,” which features the band Cö shu Nie. Since original Tokyo Ghoul manga author Sui Ishida personally chose the band to perform the opening, it’s only fitting that he came …Read more »
Heads up! Three fans were injured by a camera that fell during a performance by Nogizaka46 at Tokyo Dome Tuesday, according to Tokyo Reporter. Nogizaka46 is, of course, a spinoff of idol group AKB48 featuring—you guessed it—46 active members. Three Nogizaka46 fans suffered injuries when …Read more »
Police have filed charges against a man in Fukuoka for leaving over 500 AKB48 CDs on a mountain, the Japan Times reports. Those who have followed stories about the popular music group over the years know where this story is headed: the man was after …Read more »
Leaks, hacks, identity theft, fraud: online crime is on the rise around the world, and Japan is no exception. But not to worry: AKB48 is on the case. Three members of the Akihabara-based idol group appeared at an event with law enforcement in Akihabara to …Read more »
Namie Amuro, one of Japan’s most popular singers, will retire from show business next September, she announced today. “I, Namie Amuro, would like to take this opportunity to inform all of my fans of my decision to retire as of Sept. 16, 2018,” news service …Read more »
The two members of Trustrick, the musical duo that’s contributed songs to anime like Danganronpa , My Love Story!! , and Shonen Maid , are going their separate ways, at least for now. The duo, vocalist Sayaka Kanda and guitarist Billy, will pursue separate solo …Read more »
Mayu Tomita, an idol singer, was stabbed repeatedly at a fan event Saturday by a man who had reportedly been stalking her for months. She is in critical condition and has yet to regain consciousness. The suspect, Tomohiro Iwazaki, was arrested and admitted to stabbing …Read more »
Best-selling J-pop singer/songwriter Utada Hikaru is set to return to the Japanese music scene after a five-year hiatus. Utada, whose last album, This is the One , was released in 2009, is one of Japan’s best-selling artists. Born and raised in the U.S., Utada’s debuted …Read more »
Hatsune Miku's big North American tour is set to go live this April, and the Vocaloid superstar will be joined by one of the chiptune music scene's most well-known bands. If the first name that came to your mind was Anamanaguchi, you got it! They …Read more »
Japanese rock duo VAMPS—consisting of Hyde, of solo fame and L'Arc-en-Ciel, and K.A.Z.—is getting ready to play the United States, with dates lined up for October 5 in Los Angeles and October 7 in San Francisco. The tour currently has Facebook , Twitter , and …Read more »
You might be familiar with all-girl J-rock group Gacharic Spin if you've heard one of the ending songs from Dragon Ball Z Kai , "Don't Let Me Down," which started running with the series in its 147th episode. Soon you'll be able to see them …Read more »
This year's J-Pop Summit looks to be bigger than ever. The event takes place Saturday and Sunday, August 8 and 9, at the historic Fort Mason Center in San Francisco's Marina district, and while we'll have to wait to find out what the second day …Read more »
Joseph Luster
Julian Gnam
Matt Schley
