VAMPS, the new project formed by L'Arc~en~Ciel's hyde and Oblivion Dust's KAZ, has officially announced its first release.

The single is titled "LOVE ADDICT," and it will come with a tune called "TIME GOES BY." The first press edition includes a DVD with a video clip of "LOVE ADDICT." Release has been scheduled for July 2.

It was previously announced that the group will be doing a 46-date ZEPP tour starting in August.

In another popularity survey, Oricon asked a thousand men and women which celebrity they would want to go on a date with during the Golden Week holiday period. Most of the answers were familiar names for such surveys, but the women's top choice was the unexpected Yusuke Kamiji, who has recently become widely recognized thanks to "Quiz! Hexagon II" and his involvement with the show-related trio Shuchishin.

Kamiji beat out Masaharu Fukuyama, Tsuyoshi Domoto, and Hiroshi Tamaki (all tied for #2), as well as Koichi Domoto and Shun Oguri (tied for #5).

The men's favorite was actress Masami Nagasawa, leading a list that included Aya Ueto, Yui Aragaki, singer YUI, and Ai Otsuka and Saki Aibu (tied for #5).

The Best Supporting Actress award in the 11th Nikkan Sports Drama Grand Prix has been won by Yu Kashii, who played the role of Noriko Hakushika in the popular drama series "Yukan Club." She is the second cast member from that drama to win in this set of awards, as Jin Akanishi was announced as Best Actor on Monday.

The 21-year-old Kashii made major headlines after the series ended last December when she and actor Joe Odagiri announced their engagement. They married on February 16, which happens to be the birthday for the both of them.

Prominent singer and TV personality Akiko Wada will be visiting Harlem, New York, later this year to hold her first concert outside of Japan. She will perform at the famous Apollo Theater on September 29, less than a month before the 40th anniversary of her debut single. She is said to be the first Japanese artist to get a solo show at that venue.

Four years ago, Wada went to New York for a special television program. She visited The Apollo while she was there, and she was deeply moved by the theater's many pictures of famous artists, particularly her idol Ray Charles. At the time, she began hoping to someday perform there.

Negotiations for a concert were apparently finalized this year, and the process reportedly went smoothly as the theater's staff was familiar with Wada's fame as a singer in Japan. Wada is said to be in training for the big event, cutting back on alcohol, doing lots of walking, and going to a gym 2-3 times a week.

One of the concert's highlights will be the guest appearance of the ARC Choir, a group formed by the Addicts Rehabilitation Center that Wada previously worked with for the television show four years ago. Other special features are being planned for the concert, though Wada expressed disappointment that she would not be able to perform again with the late Ray Charles. (He made a guest appearance at the Tokyo International Forum for Wada's 30th anniversary concert in 1998.)

Wada will also be on tour in Japan from June 20 until September 18.

"Blindness," a movie by Brazilian director Fernando Meirelles, has been announced as the opening film of this year's Cannes Film Festival (taking place May 14-25), and it has also been entered into the festival's competition section. The movie stars Julianne Moore and Mark Ruffalo, but also has a supporting cast that includes Yoshino Kimura and Yusuke Iseya. This makes it the first Cannes opening film with Japanese involvement since Akira Kurosawa's "Dreams" ("Yume") in 1990.

Kimura and Iseya have been rumored as a couple ever since they worked together on Takashi Miike's "Sukiyaki Western Django," but the two have still never commented on the rumors.

SHIGI, a 21-year-old singer-songwriter in college, will be making her major label debut on July 2. Her first single, "Shomei," is being used as the theme song for the Junji Sakamoto action film "Chameleon" (in theaters July 5). The movie stars Tatsuya Fujiwara and Asami Mizukawa.

SHIGI is currently a third-year student at a private college in Tokyo. While she was in the 6th grade, she started doing live street performances with her guitar. Since then, she has played over 200 shows, including some at venues such as Zepp Tokyo. She finally gained enough attention to make her debut after winning a radio show competition.

The singer's official website can be found here.

This summer, actress/singer Kou Shibasaki will embark on her first concert tour. Although she made her singing debut in 2002, it was only last August that she held her first live performances. Now, she will be doing 7 live house shows in 6 cities, gathering an expected total audience of 15,000 fans.

The tour will run from July 26 to August 10, starting in Fukuoka.

Popular R&B artists DOUBLE and Namie Amuro have completed their first collaboration, a song titled "BLACK DIAMOND." Described as a dance number, the music video features choreography by JONTE and RAMON, who are known for their work with Beyonce.

"BLACK DIAMOND" is being included on DOUBLE's "THE BEST COLLABORATIONS" album, on sale May 28. The album is her second project celebrating the 10th anniversary of her debut. It features 18 collaborations, with artists such as ZEEBRA, KREVA, and m-flo.

Kenji Sonishi's 4-panel gag manga "Neko Rahmen" is being turned into a live-action film titled "Neko Rahmen Taisho." The original comic, which is currently serialized in Comic Blade, is a surreal comedy about a cat that runs a ramen shop. Two tankoubon have been released so far, selling a total of 150,000 copies.

Director Minoru Kawasaki is taking on the project. Known for movies such as "The World Sinks Except Japan" ("Nihon Igai Zenbu Chinbotsu") and "The Rug Cop" ("Zura Deka"), Kawasaki also has a history with offbeat films featuring animal characters, such as "The Calamari Wrestler," "Executive Koala," and "Kani Goalkeeper."

The film is being distributed by Tornado Film, who is also distributing Kawasaki's upcoming "The Monster X Strikes Back: Attack the G8 Summit" ("Guilala no Gyakushu: Toyako Summit Kiki Ippatsu"). "Neko Rahmen Taisho" will see limited theatrical release across the country this fall.