Oricon announced its "fresh star ranking" for the first half of 2009, which surveyed 1,200 men and women about young celebrities who have left the strongest impression on them. This time, actress Yuriko Yoshitaka and actor Hiro Mizushima led the rankings.

Yoshitaka, 20, has gained recognition through her roles in various television dramas, but her big break came last year when she received Best Newcomer awards for her performance in "Hebi ni Piasu" ("Snakes and Earrings").

The 25-year-old Mizushima, on the other hand, has been regularly topping recent popularity surveys and is likely to be one of the top young stars for a while.

Women:
1. Yuriko Yoshitaka
2. Haruka Ayase
3. Nana Eikura
4. Erika Toda
5. JUJU
6. Yui Aragaki
7. Maki Horikita
8. Aoi Miyazaki
9. Aya Ueto
9. misono
9. Ayaka

Men:
1. Hiro Mizushima
2. Audrey (owarai duo)
3. Takeru Sato
4. Hannya (owarai duo)
5. Hayato Ichihara
6. Yusuke Kamiji
6. Osamu Mukai
6. Eita
9. Hayato Sakamoto (baseball player)
10. Ryo Ishikawa (golfer)

Cellist/vocalist Kanon Wakeshima will be doing two performances in California this month, following her appearance at Otakon in Maryland (July 17-19).

According to the Maru Music label, Wakeshima will visit the Amoeba Music store in San Francisco on July 20, then will head to Los Angeles to play at the Royal T Cafe on July 21. Royal T Cafe is also holding an art exhibit for Wakeshima on the same day.

Wakeshima, who debuted in Japan last year, is produced by Mana of Malice Mizer. Mana's Moi dix Mois project will also be in Los Angeles this month to perform at Anime Expo during the July 2-5 weekend.

Actress Kou Shibasaki is reportedly tackling her first rock tune for the new Fuji TV drama series "Otomen," set to premiere on August 1. She is singing the theme song, titled "Rabaso ~lover soul~."

Shibasaki wrote the lyrics specifically to match the drama, which stars Masaki Okada as a popular high school boy who secretly has very feminine interests, such as shojo manga.

The song is expected to be released as a CD single in September.

On Wednesday, singer-songwriter Lia announced on her official website that she recently got married to a man that she has been dating for a while. It came with the news that she is also pregnant with her first child.

Lia was scheduled to perform a concert in Shibuya on August 2 and had planned to reveal the news at that time. However, taking her health into consideration, she has canceled the show and put all live performances on hold, though she said she will continue with recording music.

Lia is well known for theme songs and image songs for anime and video games. Once a member of the I've Sound label, she is currently part of the sister label Queens Label.

Hip-hop group RIP SLYME will be representing Japan in an international marketing campaign for sports brand Adidas.

This year marks Adidas' 60th anniversary. At the end of January, Adidas started its commemorative campaign, involving about 20 star athletes and entertainers from around the world. Participants include soccer player David Beckham (34), rapper Missy Elliott (37), and NBA player Kevin Garnett (30). Commercials are being broadcast in England, America, and various Asian countries.

RIP SLYME will be collaborating with Adidas in advertising a new line of shoes and clothes commemorating the 60th anniversary. Their song "Good day" from the album "JOURNEY" has been given a remixed version titled "Good Day - adidas Originals remix by DJ FUMIYA," which will be available for chaku-uta download on July 15th. All five members of RIP SLYME will be wearing the new commemorative sneakers in the promotional video.