Mai Kuraki, also known as Mai-K, first debuted in America with the single "Baby I Like". The single was recorded at Boston's Cybersound studio by producer Perry Geyer, and was released in America in October 1999. At the young age of 16, she impressed the staff at Cybersoundwith her natural talent and poise. This is high praise indeed, considering those that worked on the recording of the single included keyboardist Greg Hawkes (The Cars), and songwriter Larry Thomas. So impressed were they, that the legendary dance promoter, Mark Kamins (Madonna, U2, etc.) was called in to do promotional work for the single. Even the critics were impressed, as samples released by the American label EAST WEST record received high reviews from KEYBOARD MAGAZINE for its state of the art sound. Mai-K's first four singles in Japan were all top-ten hits in Japan, and her fist album, "Delicious Way" shattered sales records across the country. At age 18, she is currently working on an all-English, American debut album to be released in the near future, and rehearsing for her up and coming tours . . . all of this while studying modern culture and society at Ritsumeikan University in Kyoto!


Aiuchi Rina has always enjoyed singing for people. When she was very little, she used to put on shows and sing for her mother, then as she got older she started her musical training with piano lessons at age 5. She became quite good, and was even the class pianist at her kindergarten and elementary school.

"I've always been fortunate to have lot's of good people around me," says Rina, "and it's because of all these wonderful people that I've met over the years that the road to my dream has opened up to me in music. I'm so indebted to the many people that have guided and taught me along the way, and it is for them that I keep on working hard. They become the source of my power and confidence. "

What is perhaps the most mesmerizing point of this beautiful young talent, is how her singing voice can be so powerful when her speaking voice sounds like an ANIME cartoon character. This sometimes overwhelming cuteness countered by the power and presence of her voice is perhaps the source of her undeniable charm. The effect is even stronger when one studies her lyrics, which reflect a sheltered, somewhat frightened side to her personality, despite the power with which she presents them through her voice. "Trying to be strong . . . well, that's a part of me too. But, at the same time, another side of me is actually just scared of the world. My weak sides, my strong sides . . . I don't want to hide anything, so I try to express all of myself in my lyrics and music, like I would to my very close friends."


Influenced by the practicing of her older brother, she began playing the electric keyboard at age three. In middle school, interested in both Japanese and Western music, she began writing original songs. Around this time, she joined her first band, "Keyboared". In high school, she took the lead vocal role in her band, and began playing in night clubs in the Kyoto, Osaka, Kobe area. During this time of busy songwriting, and live performances, she was able to, through a friend, send a demo tape to the producer at Giza.



Yuri Nakamura : Vocalist and Song composer . . . she composes the music for all of Garnet Crow's songs.

Favorite artists: Flipper's Guitar, Bjork, Cloudberry Jam, Allanis Morrisette


Nana Azuki: Working as the lyricist for the band, she has written lyrics for many top bands in Japan.

Favorite artists: Peter Gabriel, Iggy Pop, John Zorn, Jesus Jones, The Cure


Hitosi Okamoto: He works as a studio musician, and has played with many different artists besides Garnet Crow as well as working on his own solo projects .

Favorite artists: Teenage Fan Club , Jellyfish, Summer Camp, Midget


Hirohito Furui: He arranges all the songs for Garnet Crow, but also arranges for countless other artists as well, making him one of the highest grossing arrangers in all of Japan.

Favorite artists: David Foster, Stone Cake, Cloudberry Jam, The Style Council



Partly because her father was a voice trainer, U-ka was brought up in an environment where she was always close to music. When she got older, her dream became to someday be a professional singer.

About six months ago she started taking vocal lessons. A demo tape made in those lessons eventually landed in the hands of Giza's producer. Soon after her debut as an artist was set.

ABOUT U-KA
Home: Now residing in Osaka
Birthday: June 9th
Blood type: A

Favorite artists: The Beach Boys, Jennifer Lopez, Tatsuro Yamashita
Favorite season: Summer, because its the number one season for meeting people and the number one seasaon for broken hearts. It's not all heart-breaking or sad though, cause there's plenty of HAPPY memories in the summertime too.
Favorite color: Sky blue, white
Hobby: Collecting mermaid and dolphin goods, making designs for her own T-shirts, doing pedicures, memorizing proverbs
Character: A natural girl, always going her own pace



doa are...
Daiki Yoshimoto(Vo)
Akihito Tokunaga(Bass)
Shinichiro Ohta(Guitar)

doa is the music group formed by three persons. Three persons It is taking charge of Vocal, a performance, composition, and Creative!

|| d-o-a.jp ||


She was borne by Kagoshima in 1984. She received audition from a junior high school student's time aiming at the singer. Grand Prix was won and it came out with the superstar light contest in 2002. She put four singles and two albums on the market until now.
Check out her hot NEW Album, "Yumi Shizukusa 2"



She began to learn a dance under the influence of an elder sister at the age of ten, and she began the lesson of a song after that. It was carried out in 2002. The victory was splendidly won in GIZA studio Presents audition, and it came out with it. The debut single became the opening theme of the animation detective school Q.
The second album was put on the market in November. She has gained high support focusing on this generation in voise which cannot be regarded as 17 years old, and the powerful dance.



Sparkling Point are...
Asuka
Airi
Azusa

The demonstration tape made with the friend who was playing always together crossed and came out for the hand of the staff of a record company. It is the three female group of the Amami Oshima graduate.


Aiko's musical backbone has been her latin-flavored singing style that has a nostalgic feel to it yet is fresh and new at the same. It was in this style that her talent was discovered, and her debut as an artist at Giza was decided soon after.

As a child, her mother's taste for Jazz and Bosa Nova music gave Aiko a chance to listen to these musical styles. In this enviroment, she soaked up these many different styles, and gaine a strong interest in music.
Of all the music she has listened to, her favorites are the latin-taste pop melodies of SHAKIRA, and the smooth Bosa Nova styles of Astrud Gilberto.

ABOUT AIK0

Hometown: Osaka
Birthday: October 11th
Blood type: O
Hobbies: Travelling abroad, window shopping, watching movies
Special skills: Finding a place where she can recieve cell phone transmissions without being cut off
Personality: Easy going, peaceful
Favorite artists: SHAKIRA, Gipsy Kings, SANTANA, Astrud Gilberto



The Tambourines are a music project based on the vocals of Ami Matsunaga.

Their debut single, "Easy Game" is pure pop, and feels a little sentimental or nostalgic at times . . . Matsunaga's soft and cute voice gives a real feel-good feeling to this group.
The b-side song is "yesterday is over", written by Ami Matsunaga. Out of the many songs she has written in the past, this was her first choice for the single. A playful song that again reminds you of songs past.

Ami Matsunaga:
Interested in Latin, Bosonova, French pop, and recently guitar pop, soft rock, etc. . . she likes to create songs with good rhythm and chord progressions that make you feel good. She started learning the piano when she was young, and recently uses computer software and keyboards to make music. As far as her lyrics go, she likes to play on the "happy, poppy, and selfish" sides of a woman's heart, striving to make them enjoyable to both men and women. She was very positive throughout the jacket design and promotion video shoots . . . with a good attitude and sharp musical sense, she is definitely the cornerstone of the Tambourines.


It came out with the first album "Discovery" in 2001. PAKU CHONA which is 2002 and a leader -- Nippon Television Network -- it travels in Asia with a Japan-South Korea mixture member by plan of a "RAIHA SHOUNEN"
The second album "again" recorded the 1st place of the South Korean chart. It is the most popular female group in the Republic of Korea a release and now about 2003 third albums "Beloved."

It came out with Kokoroga Tmaranai in Japan in 2004.

|| jwly.com ||


The music of the Western music (TLC) which she heard for the first time as a schoolchild is a cause. She felt the merit of a song pure and it began to sing. She came out at the age of 13 in July, 2002.
The debut single attracted attention on the club scene of Kansai from before the release. Evaluation with high her voice and charm of a musical piece was obtained.

Long-awaited 1st album"beginning" was released on October 22, 2003.



Activity is begun focusing on the live in Osaka taking advantage of having been finishing second in the audition which subscribed for the first time during high school enrollment in school.

ABOUT

hometown: Osaka (Hyogo breeding)
birth date: 1985.2.6 (18 years old of present)
constellation:Water Bearer
blood type: AB type
height: -- 163cm
strong point:bright
favorite artist:CAROLE KING, JOAO GILBERTO, JOYCE, NORAH JONES
favorite food:ice, meat, and a crab
favorite movie: "I am Sam" and favorite "Life Is Beautiful



Vocals: Shinya Hirayama
When they were young, he would often say to his younger brother, "Someday, I'd like to make music together. . ." And so, the creation of WAG came to be. The artist he respects the most is the guitarist and lead singer Kerry Jones from Stereophonics. Shinya is known for his good looks and lanky body,　which give him an almost intimidating look on stage.

Guitars: Keisuke Yanagida
Childhood friend　of Yuuji's, they went to the same middle school together. They were in the same homeroom together and one day when they saw their homeroom teacher play guitar, Keisuke was mesmerized. He soon became obsessed with learning the acoustic guitar, and has been playing ever since.
His favorite artists are Nivana's Kurt Kobain and Marilyn Manson. At the young age of 20, his stage presence and guitaring skills are already well acknowledged by his fans.

Guitars: Yuuji Hirayama
In middle school, he was drawn into music by the distorted sound of the guitars in Mr. Big songs. He liked it so much he started to learn guitar himself. "I don't actually have any favorite bands," he says, priding himself on his own original style of music, which reflects his unique character and his peculiar good sense.

Bass: Kousuke Minami
Mesmerized by the bass play of Damon Minchella of the band Ocean Colour Scene, he started learning to play himself. He wrote all the English lyrics for the the band's first few songs released on indies labels. He majored in Irish literature in college, and the song "Baggot Inn" is about a place he visited while he was in Ireland.

Drums: Tetsuya Oguro
A childhood friend of Shinya's, he became a member of WAG when he switched from the guitar to the drums. His favorite band is Radiohead. He is the only member of the band that was more science orientated in school, so being good with numbers and machines, he has become arranger and manipulator of the band's songs.


Hitoshi has been the guitarist for Garnet Crow since 1999, and has also worked as a stuido musician for the company's many different bands. He loves the indies pop sounds of bands like Teenage Fanclub and Jellyfish, and has strove to create this kind of sound with some home demos in 1999.

In November of 2000, he released his first maxi-single as a solo artists, "First fine day." The sentimental pop sound moved record shops and radio station staff, and created a wide support base for this new artist. Then in June of the same year he released his second single, "Sweet, Sweet Summer Rain." There is a hint of youthful optomism in this sweet pop song, proving that Hitoshi's indies sound was and is still going strong.


Mami Miyoshi: drums and vocals

Besides being the drummer and vocalist, she also writes most of the lyrics for Rumania Montevideo's songs. She started learning the piano at age 2, and started the drums in high school. In the various bands she's played in in the past, she has been the vocalist, keyboardist, or drummer. A girl of many talents, she is always ready to challenge new instruments as well. For her, every time she listens to music she finds some new discovery 　-- some new memory to be made -- and with this discovery the world somehow seems to open up around her . . . . like a "journey to a new world". She became a part　of Rumania Montevideo when she first sang on her little brother Makoto's demo tape; a tape that would eventually reach the ears of Giza Studio's producer.

Aikiko Matsuda: keyboard and saxophone
Thanks to the influence of her father's record collection, she became interested in music listening to　artists like "The Carpenters" and "Simon and Garfunkel." In high school, she started learning the saxophone, and from there she started the keyboard. In the band Ram-Jet Pulley, she is the lead vocalist, something she never dreamed of doing before the chance came. Her soft, yet wonderfully sad and powerful voice is the base for the Ram-Jet Pulley sound.

Satomi Makoshi: bass
The heart of the rhythm section, she is definitely the most energetic of the band. She started learning the guitar in high school, then switched to bass later on. She likes music because it's a chance to express her inner self in ways words just can't seem to do. She is able to find her inner self in different styles of music, and feels she can also express for others who、 like her, can't always seem to find the words they really want to say. She is currently writing lyrics for Ram-Jet Pulley, working with the unique singing style of Akiko to create a new sound and style.

Kazunobu Mashima: guitars
The hot guitaring that Kazunobu "Mash" Mashima plays is a little surprising considering his calm demeanor. He hates playing things "normal" so is always looking for new tricks to improve his play, and expresses himself in what the Miyoshi brother and sister tandem almost find "childish." In high school he played the drums, bass, guitar, and sang vocals for various bands. "The king of analog music" as the members call him, Kazunobu likes many kinds of music from all eras. In Ram Jet Pulley, he is writing songs, and wants to further his unique playing style by making new sounds.

Makoto Miyoshi: guitars
The composer of all of Rumania Montevideo's songs. He started playing the guitar in high school and soon after began writing music. He worked on making demo-tapes at home while playing live shows in a band in Osaka, but soon found making music to be his main interest. He likes to be thought of as a "presence" with the guitar rather than a "technique" kind of guy. He is also a collector of antiques. They say he's pulled beat-up guitars out of the garbage before and restored them to add to his collection.

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After the release of their first single, "Start All Over Agian", the band Rumania Montevideo has been highly acclaimed in the music world. Now from this band, the new super-pop unit, Ramjet Pulley, is born. Thier unique pop sound is like a soft, psychedelic lounge music playing in the background on a hot summer's day . . . like the soft light of the sun reflecting gently off a glass on the table . . . .

With the soft, flowing sound of Akiko Matsuda's voice (which is both smoothly transpartent while staying rooted in the fibers of classic pop sound), the thoughtful lyrics of Satomi Makoshi, and the pumping melodies of Kazunobu "Mash" Mashima, you're sure to be drawn into this world of relaxation.

All three members are from the band Rumania Montevideo, but in this side project they get a chance to express themselves differently then in their other band. Facing new challenges musically, they try to fulfill their love for music in ways that should impress not only Rumania Montevideo fans, but a variety of different listening audiences.


Azumi has always been involved with music. 　She started taking piano lessons and gave her first live perfomance in her second year of elementary school. Since then she developed a pure love for music, and she has always dreamt of becoming a professional singer. That dream became reality when Giza Studio's producer heard one of her demo tapes, and decided to have her start singing lessons at the company. At the young age of 16, she moved away from her home to live in Osaka, and hopefully achieve the impossible dream.
She was a quick learner, and learned the in's and out of the business so fast, that before she could hardly catch her breath with the new lifestyle in Osaka, she was debuting with the song, "Aoi Aoi kono hoshi ni" (The Blue Blue Star).
As crazy as things of been for Azumi, she keeps a good attitude, trying to just take things one at time, and realizing that all she has to do is be herself.

birthday: April 10th, 1984
hobby: book-reading, watching martial art competitions on TV, or making trouble!
specialty: thinking carefully about things, and concentrating
favorite artists: Christina Aguilera, Destiny's child, 'Nsync
favorite movie: Action flicks, like Speed, Mission Impossible, The Matrix, etc.
favorite book: The Little Prince
dislikes: Anything that brings on sadness or lonliness


Aika started taking piano lessons when she was in grammar school, but was always more interested in the music and melodies that seemed flow effortlessly from her mind than the tedious work of learning sheet music. The young Aika never thought of writing down her ideas as songs, but as she discovered her originality , she slowly grew into her musical talent,and in 1996, began her songwriting career. "When I began searching for the melodies in my heart, I started wanting to write them down. That's when I started thinking of being a singer-songwriter, or perhaps a composer someday."



From her childhood days, Hikari has always been fascinated by fairy tales, and has loved drawing pictures. In high school and college, she went on to study art, majoring in western painting. When in her sophomore year of study at college, she starting holding group art exhibitions with her friends from high school in Kyoto. While pursuing her art career, she also enjoyed listening to artists like Enya, Sarah Brightman, and Secret Garden . . . all of which became a big influence in her musical career to come.

Though she didn't take it very seriously, she auditioned for a model agency in her Junior year of college. Through that agency, she met with Giza studio's producer, and showed him the poems and paintings she had been working on over the years. The producer saw potentional in these works and decided to use her in a program in the works at that time called "DEAR RESONANCE." Hikari was featured as guest vocalist for the musical project, singing to an arrangement of a song who's composer she had long enjoyed, Debussey.

DEAR RESONANCE's first single, "Yume no aida- NATURES RIDE-" (the commerical song for Nestea's beverage product, "Shun no kocha") became a homage to one of Debussey's most famous works, "Reverie"(Dream). With her delicate, soft vocals, her lyrics seem to wrap you into an image of pure peace of mind, and reflect her creative world in a way only the Japanese language text could do. Furthermore, the cover painting of this single is also one of her works as are the many paintings featured in her debut CD, "Ureshii Tameiki."