AKINA Look Toward The FUTURE with Latest Release!

FUTURE Digital Jacket Cover

AKINA, member of the girl group FAKY, has released a new single “FUTURE”. She is a Half American and half Japanese singer-songwriter who stands out in the J-POP world because she has cultivated a unique musical sense that touches various cultures due to her experience moving around the world ever since her childhood. Her singing voice, which is both delicate and powerful was highly praised and her cover of "Amazing Grace" was also used as a special song for the movie "A Morning of Farewell" starring Sayuri Yoshinaga. As a newcomer, she has achieved an exceptional achievement.

AKINA is attracting attention in the alternative scene as a singer-songwriter while working globally as FAKY at the same time and today the song "FUTURE" produced by Kai Takahashi, who is a member of LUCKY TAPES and has worked on iri and Taichi Mukai has been released.

This work is AKINA's first all-Japanese lyrics, and her sweet singing voice and the chill sound created by Kai Takahashi match perfectly that makes the listeners feel more positive.

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Comment from AKINA:

「FUTURE means to me self-reflection and freedom. With all the time spent at home the past couple of years, it’s caused me to feel like I’ve lost purpose at times. But those dark times are necessary for a change and I think this song shows that it’s okay to struggle as long as you try to find your way back again!.」 - Akina

Comment from Kai Takahashi:

「This is an ambitious all Japanese lyric song that I made for Akina who was born in California. I wrote it in the midst of the early days of Corona just a year ago and her husky and powerful singing voice matched the positive lyrics. The moment I heard her singing voice I felt that the scale of this song just got bigger. I think it will be difficult for her to balance her group and solo activities but I am looking forward to the success of both AKINA as a member of FAKY and as a solo artist!」

 - Kai Takahashi

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Also, on 6th October, following kiki vivi lily and PEARL CENTER's MATTON / inui, she was selected to be featured in the new song of the two-member band The Burning Deadwoods by a track maker from Tokyo. And on 15th October, On the 15th, the single "Stupid, Careless, Dumb" which she wrote and composed by herself made a big hit on Spotify's major playlist.

Furthermore, along with this release, it was revealed that a live stream will be held on Twitch on 28th October from 10 AM ET / 11 PM JST with the major music culture media "Rolling Stone" that has been published in the United States for more than 50 years. Many up-and-coming singer-songwriters from Europe and the United States, such as “girl in red” and “mxmtoon”, have appeared live on "Rolling Stone on Twitch” and AKINA is the first Japanese female artist to be featured on it which is an achievement. With her global recognition that has been growing lately, hopefully her talent can continue to receive more attention in the future.

BRATS Teams Up with Painter Mao Nakada For This Out of This World Music Video!

Popular rock band BRATS has released an anime-style music video for their popular song "Doudatte Yokatta". For the new visual style, the band collaborated with Tokyo-based painter and printmaker Mao Nakada. The new video is the latest in a series of team-ups between BRATS and rising stars in the fields of art, film, and photography. Last month, the band released a new version of their ballad "Toge" shot by photographer Elena Egorova. This new selection of videos aims to give artists free reign to interpret BRATS' music from their own unique viewpoints.

Be sure to check out the music video in question below!

Maika Loubté Takes Fans On a Storybook Journey Through Her Dreams and Reality with Latest Music Video!

Lucid Dreaming Jacket Cover

To celebrate the release of her latest album vocalist Maika Loubté has dropped the music video for her track “Zenbu Dreaming” on her YouTube channel. From her remarkable new album Lucid Dreaming that released back on the 20th, Maika artfully narrates a story in which dreams and reality cross over through her blending of pop, dance, and electronic music. The album’s concept comes from Maika Loubté’s own dreams and she combines a mixture of English, Japanese, and French lyrics in her songwriting to depict her experience of being aware of her dreaming. The project, recorded and produced by Maika in her Tokyo home studio, also weaves in instrumental-only tracks showcasing her storytelling ability just through sound.

The cover displays an alien-like creature that appears in the music video for "Spider Dancing," one of the singles released back in May, and is a fantastically creative incarnation of the human soul, shuttling between fantasy and reality.

The album also includes a new album version of "Show Me How," which became a big hit as a commercial song for a new Mazda car campaign in which Maika appears on the TV spot. Lucid Dreaming also contains a couple of collaborations including, "It's So Natural" with fellow singer AAAMYYY who appears as a guest vocalist on the song about a woman’s relationship with a man. Maika also teams up on "System" with the popular Canadian music producer Ryan Hemsworth.  

About the making of Lucid Dreaming, Maika comments: “I tried to make this album a mixture of my conscious and unconscious mind that included the music I can hear in my dreams. At first it was an experiment, but after I finished the album, the experiment became a story I wanted to share. After the year that was 2020, I wondered what our common denominator would be as people, when there is a noticeable social divide. Those people exist as individuals. That there are as many truths as there are people. However, I couldn't find an answer to whether the individual encompasses the world or the world encompasses the individual. During the making of this album, I was confronting my own ideas and emotions and almost gave up on completing it, but thankfully I was able to keep going and I hope you will listen to the whole album as one song.”

During the last couple of years, Maika released a number of singles in the lead up to the release of Lucid Dreaming.  She filmed and premiered several music videos to accompany the tracks, and also appeared in a campaign for clothing brand RVCA that featured her song “Spider Dancing.”  Maika also performed some of the album tracks on virtual live streaming events with US band Psymon Spine and will appear virtually at Taiwan’s 2021 LUCfest.

Be sure to check out “Zenbu Dreaming” below along with the streaming link for Lucid Dreaming here!

LM.C Kicks Things Up For Their Anniversary!

LM.C is a rock unit that consists of two members: Aiji (guitarist) and maya (vocalist),   debuted on October 4th in 2006 with the simultaneous release of two maxi singles, “Trailers[Gold]” and “Trailers[Silver]”.

LM.C is very popular worldwide since they have been very active touring outside Japan as well. In celebration of LM.C's 15th anniversary, the release of the music clips called “THE MUSIC VIDEOS ’06-’21” has been decided worldwide. The details of special online event for the people who purchased the Blu-ray have been announced, and there is a chance to win their costumes as well!

As we look forward to the upcoming release be sure to pre-order it here!

Music Corner Week 94: SPiCYSOL

SPiCYSOL is a four-member band that blends various genres such as rock, funk, and r&b with the goal of blending the sounds of City and Surf. The lead singer for the group is Kenny, who also plays guitar. The lead guitarist is Akun, while Kazuma plays the drums. Lastly, Pete plays the keyboard, trumpet, and does backup vocals, depending on the song. SPiCYSOL excels in their ability to create fun and unique compositions that pull the listener in. I like the trumpet when it is used; it jazzes up the tracks and adds something different to their compositions. Lead vocalist Kenny’s vocals are performed well and suit the compositions, also guitarist Akun’s guitar work is very nuanced, and it complements the music without being overbearing. One of my favorite songs of the year is their track “So What”, which shows off each member of the band and is a fun track to play on repeat. 

In 2015 they dropped their first album, To the C. The band made their major debut with Warner Music Japan on April 7 of 2021 with their release “ONE-EP”. On October 6 of 2021, the band dropped their first major album titled From The C.

SPiCYSOL stays active on its Twitter and official website with all their latest news. Be sure to check out their song “So What” in the video posted below.