Music Corner 134: Furui Riho

Furui Riho is a R&B-pop singer-songwriter from Hokkaido, who not only write and composes lyrics but also arranges music as well. Furui Riho’s musical career has a gospel influence as she has been involved in choir since a young age. Furui Riho has been an active solo artist since college. In 2019, she released her first digital single “Rebirth”, which led to all her current activities, including her debut album Green Light that released in 2022. Furui Riho’s music has garnished many fans due to her realistic lyrics that at times are filled with humor and attention grabbing compositions.

Furui Riho instantly grabbed me with her soulful track, “I’m free”. In I’m free, you can easily hear the gospel influence and feel it in your bones with not just her voice but her lyrics as well. Tracks such as “Sins” and “Green Light” have an R&B feel that combines soul and a more modern composition of what we hear in R&B today, that can give off both a chill but dance vibe. I also enjoy how Furui Riho switches it up and does songs with mixing soul and a jazzy composition, such as “Pink Hair” and “Backwards”. “Pink Hair” has a little bit of a slower and more soulful beat than jazz, while “Backwards” has a more jazz-like composition with R&B mixed in. Furui Riho has collaborated with several artists, such as Shin Sakiura, aimi, and Michael Kaneko to name a few. Her collaborations show off her skills to match her voice with who she is collaborating with, such as in the track “n.oy.b (Shin Sakiura)” and “The Wave (aimi)”. Furui Riho’s latest track, “Super Star” has a little bit of a more pop-like beat but with a memorable composition,which makes it stand out with Furui showing off her powerful voice and a catchy chorus to keep you coming back.

Currently, Furui Riho has one album, Green Light (2022) and nine digital singles, with her most recent being “Super Star”. Check out Furui Riho’s official website, Twitter, Instagram, and the music video for her latest single, “Super Star”!