Ushio Hashimoto　

Sade　

When singer Sade and her band of the same name were establishing themselves, their record company, Epic, made a point of printing Pronounced Shar-day on the record labels of their releases. So ..more

Motoharu Sano & THE COYOTE BAND　

D'Angelo　

D’Angelo was one of the founding fathers and leading lights of the neo-soul movement of the mid- to late ’90s, which aimed to bring the organic flavor of classic R＆B back to the hip-hop ag ..more

Tamio Okuda　

Bon Jovi　

Bon Jovi is one of the few rock bands that first achieved commercial success in Japan before they went on to worldwide stardom. Japanese fans welcomed them from the early stage of their career, allowi ..more

Talking Heads　

This eclectic, sometimes eccentric, and highly acclaimed rock band was formed in early ’70s when David Byrne, Chris Frantz and Tina Weymouth met at the Rhode Island School of Design. Almost 10 years s ..more

DONGHAE (SUPER JUNIOR)　

Helloween　

Alongside Switzerland’s Celtic Frost and Sweden’s Bathory, Germany’s Helloween were possibly the most influential heavy metal band to come out of Europe during the 1980s. By taking the hard-r ..more

George Michael　

One of the most successful solo artists of the late ’80s and ’90s, George Michael grew up listening to ’60s-’70s soul/disco music and in the early ’80s he hooked up with Andrew Ridgeley to create a po ..more

Norah Jones　

Vocalist and pianist Norah Jones developed a unique blend of jazz and traditional vocal pop, with hints of bluesy country and contemporary folk, due in large part to her unique upbringing. The daug ..more

Cream　

Although Cream were only together for a little more than two years, their influence was immense, both during their late-’60s peak and in the years following their breakup. Cream were the first t ..more

DIR EN GREY　

Fishmans　

Laufey　

ICEx　

BILLIE EILISH　

California singer and dancer Billie Eilish debuted her ethereal indie electro-pop sound when she was barely a teenager. Born and raised in Los Angeles, Eilish grew up in a household of actors an ..more

Phil Collins　

Phil Collins’ status as one of the most successful pop and adult contemporary singers of the ’80s and beyond was probably as much a surprise to him as it was to many others. Balding and diminutive, ..more

Gorillaz　

Conceived as the first virtual hip-hop group, Gorillaz blended the musical talents of Dan The Automator Nakamura, Blur’s Damon Albarn, Cibo Matto’s Miho Hatori, and Tom Tom Clu ..more

CNBLUE　

South Korean pop/rock boy band CNBLUE formed in Seoul in 2009, but got their start in Japan, perhaps choosing to debut there because of rock’s greater mainstream presence. Essentially a boy band wi ..more