Wed, June 17, 2009 (4:21am EDT)
Rock band B'z is providing the theme to the Fuji TV drama series "Buzzer Beat," starring Tomohisa Yamashita and Keiko Kitagawa. For B'z, this is their first time in four years writing a tune for a television drama, and their first time ever for Fuji TV's "Getsu 9" time slot.
The song, titled "Ichibu to Zenbu," is being released as their 46th single on August 5. B'z recorded the song with support from drummer Chad Smith (of Red Hot Chili Peppers) and bassist Juan Alderete (of The Mars Volta).
B'z fans will get to hear the song on TV when "Buzzer Beat" premieres on July 13.
The song, titled "Ichibu to Zenbu," is being released as their 46th single on August 5. B'z recorded the song with support from drummer Chad Smith (of Red Hot Chili Peppers) and bassist Juan Alderete (of The Mars Volta).
B'z fans will get to hear the song on TV when "Buzzer Beat" premieres on July 13.
Wed, June 17, 2009 (3:42am EDT)
Yuko Hara of Southern All Stars has been selected to sing the theme song of NTV's upcoming drama series "Akahana no Sensei." The song's title and release date have not been revealed, but it is known that it was written by her husband and bandmate Keisuke Kuwata.
The last time Hara sang a drama theme song was in 1997, when she provided "Namida no Tenshi ni Hohoemi wo" for the NHK Asadora "Amakara-shan." That was also the last time that Kuwata wrote a song for Hara as a solo artist.
The new tune will be available as a chaku-uta on July 8, the same day that "Akahana no Sensei" premieres.
The last time Hara sang a drama theme song was in 1997, when she provided "Namida no Tenshi ni Hohoemi wo" for the NHK Asadora "Amakara-shan." That was also the last time that Kuwata wrote a song for Hara as a solo artist.
The new tune will be available as a chaku-uta on July 8, the same day that "Akahana no Sensei" premieres.
Wed, June 17, 2009 (3:22am EDT)
Otakon 2009 (taking place July 17-19 in Baltimore) has officially announced that rock band VAMPS will be making a special appearance at the convention.
Consisting of vocalist HYDE and guitarist KAZ, VAMPS announced previously that they would be touring the U.S. from July 11 to August 1. They were already scheduled to play in Baltimore on July 16, but had planned to leave right away for their following show in Seattle. However, in response to fan support, they decided to extend their stay in Baltimore to appear at Otakon on Friday, July 17, where they will hold a Q&A panel and autograph session.
More information will be made available at the Otakon website.
Consisting of vocalist HYDE and guitarist KAZ, VAMPS announced previously that they would be touring the U.S. from July 11 to August 1. They were already scheduled to play in Baltimore on July 16, but had planned to leave right away for their following show in Seattle. However, in response to fan support, they decided to extend their stay in Baltimore to appear at Otakon on Friday, July 17, where they will hold a Q&A panel and autograph session.
More information will be made available at the Otakon website.
Wed, June 17, 2009 (3:05am EDT)
The music charts this week were taken over by two groups rising in popularity. Avex's GIRL NEXT DOOR landed at #1 with their 5th single, "Infinity," while GReeeeN captured the album charts with their 3rd release, "Shio, Kosho."
"Infinity" sold close to 31,000 copies, enough to beat out Mai Kuraki's "Beautiful." For GIRL NEXT DOOR, "Infinity" was their fifth consecutive Top 3 single, a streak stretching back to their debut. That has not been achieved by a mixed male/female group since globe did it in 1996. Kuraki, on the other hand, now has 32 consecutive Top 10 singles since her debut, extending the record she already holds as a female solo artist.
The bottom half of the top ten singles were all new releases, coming from Gackt, "Hayate no Gotoku!," TUBE, Plastic Tree, and Kazuki Kato.
In album sales, "Shio, Kosho" sold over 452,000 copies, which marks the best opening week performance of 2009 so far. That amount was more than the rest of the top ten combined, which included new releases from GLAY, VAMPS, RIP SLYME, Quruli, BRAHMAN, and Masashi Sada. This is GReeeeN's second consecutive #1 album, and they currently also hold the #4 spot on the singles chart.
"Infinity" sold close to 31,000 copies, enough to beat out Mai Kuraki's "Beautiful." For GIRL NEXT DOOR, "Infinity" was their fifth consecutive Top 3 single, a streak stretching back to their debut. That has not been achieved by a mixed male/female group since globe did it in 1996. Kuraki, on the other hand, now has 32 consecutive Top 10 singles since her debut, extending the record she already holds as a female solo artist.
The bottom half of the top ten singles were all new releases, coming from Gackt, "Hayate no Gotoku!," TUBE, Plastic Tree, and Kazuki Kato.
In album sales, "Shio, Kosho" sold over 452,000 copies, which marks the best opening week performance of 2009 so far. That amount was more than the rest of the top ten combined, which included new releases from GLAY, VAMPS, RIP SLYME, Quruli, BRAHMAN, and Masashi Sada. This is GReeeeN's second consecutive #1 album, and they currently also hold the #4 spot on the singles chart.
Wed, June 17, 2009 (2:11am EDT)
Last season's drama series "Love Shuffle" (TBS) revolved around a group of men and women mixing and matching their relationships in an attempt to find their right mates. The experiment apparently worked out for two of the show's stars: Hiroshi Tamaki (29) and Yuriko Yoshitaka (20), who are said to now be seriously dating.
In "Love Shuffle," Tamaki played a manager at an IT company who was on the fast track due to his engagement to the president's daughter. Yoshitaka, on the other hand, played an art student undergoing psychiatric counseling. Although their characters did not end up together, the two actors hit it off and continued their dates off-screen.
Sources said that the two got along well during the show's filming, and they really started seeing each other after the series ended in March.
Tamaki's acting career has been very busy lately, particularly with starring roles in movies such as "Manatsu no Orion," "MW," and the upcoming "Nodame Cantabile" movies. Meanwhile, Yoshitaka has been establishing herself as a rising star. She received multiple Best New Actress awards for her role in last year's "Snakes and Earrings," in which she appeared nude.
In "Love Shuffle," Tamaki played a manager at an IT company who was on the fast track due to his engagement to the president's daughter. Yoshitaka, on the other hand, played an art student undergoing psychiatric counseling. Although their characters did not end up together, the two actors hit it off and continued their dates off-screen.
Sources said that the two got along well during the show's filming, and they really started seeing each other after the series ended in March.
Tamaki's acting career has been very busy lately, particularly with starring roles in movies such as "Manatsu no Orion," "MW," and the upcoming "Nodame Cantabile" movies. Meanwhile, Yoshitaka has been establishing herself as a rising star. She received multiple Best New Actress awards for her role in last year's "Snakes and Earrings," in which she appeared nude.
Wed, June 17, 2009 (1:45am EDT)
Ryutaro Morimoto, currently the youngest member of Hey! Say! JUMP at 14 years old, recently had his mobile phone stolen. The suspect, a 17-year-old boy, was arrested on Wednesday by Kanagawa police. The boy has reportedly denied the charges.
The phone was stolen at around 11:45pm on Tuesday night. The boy, a fan of Morimoto, had followed him around on multiple occasions in the past. Last December, Morimoto's family consulted police about the problem.
On Tuesday at about 10:00pm, Morimoto went to a restaurant near his house, meeting the boy in person to ask him to stop his behavior. The boy then apparently threatened Morimoto by saying that he had a knife. When Morimoto attempted to call his family from outside the restaurant, the boy grabbed the phone and ran away. He was later found after police traced a call to another cell phone owned by Morimoto.
Morimoto's management has not yet issued an official statement on the matter.
The phone was stolen at around 11:45pm on Tuesday night. The boy, a fan of Morimoto, had followed him around on multiple occasions in the past. Last December, Morimoto's family consulted police about the problem.
On Tuesday at about 10:00pm, Morimoto went to a restaurant near his house, meeting the boy in person to ask him to stop his behavior. The boy then apparently threatened Morimoto by saying that he had a knife. When Morimoto attempted to call his family from outside the restaurant, the boy grabbed the phone and ran away. He was later found after police traced a call to another cell phone owned by Morimoto.
Morimoto's management has not yet issued an official statement on the matter.
Wed, June 17, 2009 (1:05am EDT)
Model Yuri Ebihara (29) has admitted to rumors that she and hip-hop artist ILMARI (33) of RIP SLYME are dating. Their relationship was first reported last month by weekly magazine FRIDAY.
Ebihara and her twin sister made an appearance at a special in-store event for Samantha Thavasa on Tuesday. When asked about the reports of her dating, Ebihara blushed and admitted that it was true.
She said that they were first introduced by a friend, and that they only started dating about two months ago. As for whether there is a possibility of marriage, she commented, "Yes, if things go well."
Ebihara and her twin sister made an appearance at a special in-store event for Samantha Thavasa on Tuesday. When asked about the reports of her dating, Ebihara blushed and admitted that it was true.
She said that they were first introduced by a friend, and that they only started dating about two months ago. As for whether there is a possibility of marriage, she commented, "Yes, if things go well."
