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Arashi
Arashi
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Arashi
Origin Genres Years active Labels Website Tokyo, Japan Pop, rock, hip hop, R&B[1] 1999present Pony Canyon, J Storm www.j-storm.co.jp/arashi Members Satoshi Ohno Sho Sakurai Masaki Aiba Kazunari Ninomiya Jun Matsumoto Arashi (?, literally Storm) is a popular Japanese idol group consisting of five members formed under the Japanese talent agency Johnny & Associates. The group was officially formed on September 15, 1999 in Honolulu, Hawaii and made their CD debut on November 3, 1999. The group was initially signed to Pony Canyon and released one studio album and six singlesbeginning with their 1999 eponymous debut singlebefore moving to the Johnny's subsidiary label J Storm in 2001, which was initially set up for their succeeding releases.[1] While their debut single debuted atop the Oricon weekly chart selling a little over half a million copies, the group subsequently faced slowly declining sales. With the release of their eighteenth single "Love So Sweet", Arashi began gaining commercial success as "Love So Sweet" was used as the opening theme song for the highrating drama Hana Yori Dango 2,[2] making it one of the top five best-selling singles of 2007 in Japan and the group's first single to exceed 400,000 copies sold overall in nearly seven years.[3] For the next two years, Arashi gained a number of achievements and records as they became the first artist to place the top two rankings on the Oricon singles yearly chart for two consecutive years with their singles "Truth/Kaze no Muk e" and "One Love" in 2008 and "Believe/Kumorinochi, Kaisei" and "Ashita no Kioku/Crazy Moon (Kimi wa Muteki)" in 2009,[4] simultaneously topped the 2009 Oricon singles, album and music DVD yearly charts, and became the third artist in Oricon history to monopolize the top three best-selling singles of the year.[5][6] In 2010, all six of Arashi's singles ranked within the top ten of the Oricon singles yearly chart,[7] and their million-selling studio album Boku no Miteiru Fkei was named the best-selling album of the year in Japan.[8]
Contents
History
19992001: Debut and departure from Pony Canyon
Johnny & Associates announced the group's debut on September 15, 1999 through a press conference aboard a cruise ship off the coast of Honolulu, Hawaii.[9] Then-president Johnny Kitagawa chose five trainees from the Johnny's Jr. division of the agency to become the members of Arashi, the Japanese word for Storm, and to represent the agency's thrust of "creating a storm throughout the world".[10][11] On November 3, 1999, they made their CD debut by releasing the single "Arashi", which became the theme song for the Volleyball World Cup hosted by Japan in 1999.[9] It went on to become a major hit, selling 557,430 copies in its first week and almost a million copies by the end of its chart run.[1][12] On April 5, 2000, Arashi released their second single "Sunrise Nippon/Horizon", which debuted at number-one on the Oricon weekly singles chart selling 304,340 copies.[13] The next day, the group began their first concert tour at Osaka Hall.[14] In July, the group released their next single "Typhoon Generation", which debuted at number three on the weekly singles chart with 256,510 copies sold and continued to chart for nine weeks before leaving the charts.[15][16] After holding more concerts in August, the group released their last single of 2000, "Kansha Kangeki Ame Arashi". The single debuted at number two on the Oricon weekly singles chart and had first-week sales of 258,720.[17][18] In January 2001, Arashi released their first studio album Arashi No.1 Ichigou: Arashi wa Arashi o Yobu!. The album debuted at number-one on the Oricon weekly album chart with initial sales of 267,220 copies.[19] Until the release of their tenth anniversary compilation album All the Best! 19992009, the album remained the group's best-selling album with overall sales of about 323,030 for nearly ten years.[20] From March 25 to April 30, 2001, the group embarked on their first nationwide concert tour Arashi Spring Concert 2001.[21] The tour took place in Sendai, Osaka, Nagoya, Hokkaid, Fukuoka, Hiroshima, Kanazawa, Toyama, and Tokyo with an unprecedented twenty-six performances.[21] Before moving to a private record label by the end of 2001, Arashi released "Jidai" as their final single under Pony Canyon. Used as the theme song for Matsumoto's drama Kindaichi Shnen no Jikenbo 3, it was named Best Theme Song in the 30th Television Drama Academy Awards.[22]
designated rapper of Arashi, has since written all the incorporated rap lyrics of the group's releases.[fn 1] 2004 was Arashi's fifth anniversary since debut. They began the year by releasing their twelfth single, "Pikanchi Double", in February as the theme song for their second movie Pikanchi Life is Hard Dakara Happy ( Life is Hard Happy Pikanchi Life is Hard Thus Happy?). Selling 89,106 copies in the first week, it is Arashi's lowest-selling single to date.[27][28] In celebration of their anniversary, the group released a greatest hits album 5x5 The Best Selection of 20022004, which included their second 2004 single "Hitomi no Naka no Galaxy/Hero". In 2005, on New Year's Day, Arashi released their first concert DVD since How's It Going? in 2003 titled 2004 Arashi! Iza, Now Tour!!. From July 26 to August 24, they embarked on a summer tour titled One to support their album of the same name.[29] One of the highlights of the tour included the live performance their first single of the year, "Sakura Sake", on top of "Johnny's Moving Stage" ( Janizu Mubingu Suteji?), a transparent stage that travels over the top of the audience.[30] Invented by Matsumoto, "Johnny's Moving Stage" has since been used in a majority of Arashi's concerts to allow them to move closer to the audience seated at a distance from the main stage.[30][31][32] In November, Arashi released a theme song for the manga-based drama Hana Yori Dango, which starred Matsumoto as one of the lead actors. "Wish" went on to sell an estimated 178,000 copies in its first week and over 300,000 copies by the end of its chart run, making it their first single sell over 300,000 copies in total in nearly three years since "A Day in Our Life" in 2002.[33][34]
Sakurai's movie Honey and Clover.[42] Although Arashi had planned to return to Thailand to hold a concert on October 7, it was canceled due to a military coup d'tat.[39][43]
The group's success in 2007 sparked renewed public interest. In February, Arashi released their first single of the year, "Step and Go", which debuted at the top of the Oricon weekly chart for having sold 324,223 copies, making it as the group's first single to exceed 300,000 copies sold in the first week since "Sunrise Nippon/Horizon" in 2000.[13][51] The same month, it was announced that the group would be doing a concert tour of the five major domes in Tokyo, Nagoya, Osaka, Fukuoka, and Sapporo.[52] The tour, titled Arashi Marks 2008 Dream-A-Live, consisted of ten performances, from May 16 in Osaka to July 6 in Sapporo.[52][53] The only other Johnny's artists who have done a five dome tour were SMAP and KinKi Kids.[52] The tour also coincided with their eighth studio album, Dream "A" Live, which was reported to be a hit with male buyers by Oricon despite the fact that most releases by Johnny's artists are geared towards female teens and young adults.[54] In the midst of the
tour, Arashi released their twenty-second single "One Love", the theme song for the last production of the Hana Yori Dango trilogy. Like "Step and Go", the single sold over 300,000 copies in its first week and charted at number-one of the weekly singles chart.[55] As the start of the group's second Asia tour, Arashi became the third musical groupafter SMAP and Dreams Come Trueto perform at the National Olympic Stadium in Tokyo as their first major outdoor concert on September 5. The first two legs of the tour included a return to Taipei and Seoul[56] while the third leg was a first time trip to Shanghai. The concert in Shanghai also marked Johnny & Associates' first concert in China.[57][58] Almost a month after the release of "One Love", their twenty-third single, "Truth/Kaze no Muk e", was released. Debuting atop of the Oricon weekly charts, the double A-side single sold 467,288 copies.[59] Before the group's concert in Shanghai on November 15, they released their fourth single of the year, "Beautiful Days", which was used as the theme song for Ninomiya's drama Rysei no Kizuna.[60] Although "Beautiful Days" only had a little over a month to chart before the Oricon charting period for 2008 ended on December 11, the single managed to climb up to be the tenth best-selling single of the year.[61][62] Their concert DVD Summer Tour 2007 Final Time - Kotoba no Chikara, released on April 16, also ranked as the second best-selling music DVD of 2008 and ranked sixth place in the general DVD category.[63]
Arashi attended the 60th NHK Khaku Uta Gassen on New Year's Eve, making it not only the group's first time performing on the show but also the first time in twenty-one years another group from Johnny's other than SMAP and Tokio, the two traditional participants, performed at Khaku.[79][80]
a domestic Boeing 777-200 bearing both the images of the members of Arashi and the title of their Boku no Miteiru Fkei album, which will be sold with a specially designed cover inflight. Japan Airlines will use the Arashi Jet until January 2011.[98][99] The song "Love Rainbow" was released as a single on September 8. It debuted at number-one on the Oricon weekly singles chart and sold around 529,000 copies, making "Love Rainbow" the group's third 2010 single to surpass 500,000 copies sold in the first week.[100] On October 12, Boku no Miteiru Fkei sold a total of a million copies, making it the group's first studio album to sell over a million copies and the first album in Japan to reach a million copies sold in 2010.[101] Additionally, "Dear Snow" was released as a single on October 6 and became Arashi's fourth 2010 single to sell over 500,000 copies in the first week.[102] The group released their sixth single of 2010, "Hatenai Sora" (?, "Endless Sky"), on November 10. The single sold 572,000 copies in its first week, surpassing the group's old personal record of 557,000 copies sold in the first week set by their debut song "Arashi" in 1999.[103] The group became the first male artist to achieve six number-one singles in a year.[104] On December 31, 2010, Arashi co-hosted the 61st NHK Khaku Uta Gassen with Nao Matsushita, becoming the first group to host the show.[105][106]
On November 2, 2011, the group released their 36th single "Meiky Love Song". "Meiky Love Song" was adapted as the ending theme song for Sakurai's drama Nazotoki wa Dinner no Ato de. The single sold over 240,000 copies on the first day[115] and over 530,000 copies in the first week[116] . In December 2011, it was announced that Arashi topped four categories in the 2011 Oricon yearly rankings. Beautiful World sold a total of 908,000 copies, making it the top-selling album of 2011 in Japan. This marks the third consecutive year that Arashi has topped the Oricon yearly album chart, being the first artist to do so in twenty years. This year's ranking also marks the third consecutive year that Arashi has topped the music DVD charts as Arashi 1011 Tour "Scene": Kimi to Boku no Miteiru Fkei Stadium sold 793,000 copies, making it the best selling music DVD in Oricon DVD ranking history. The second best selling music DVD for 2011 was Arashi's Arashi 1011 Tour "Scene": Kimi to Boku no Miteiru Fkei Dome+, which sold 673,000 copies.[117]
2012present
On March 7, 2012, Arashi released their 37th single, Wild at Heart. "Wild at Heart" was the theme song for Matsumoto's drama Lucky Seven. The single sold 550,000 copies in the first week, making it the group's third highest first week sales after Hatenai Sora and Arashi. [118] Later in March, Arashi revealed their second single for 2012 and 38th in total, "Face Down". The single will be released on May 9 and will be the theme song for Ohno's drama Kagi No Kakatta Heya ( Locked Room). [119] In late April, the release date of June 6th was announced for their 39th single "Your Eyes", which is the theme song for Aiba Masakis NTV drama Mikeneko Holmes no Suiri ().[120] Not since "Dear Snow" and "Hatenai Sora" (Beautiful World) in 2010 have two singles been released within a month of each other. "Face Down" and "Your Eyes" sold 526,000 and 478,000 copies in the first week respectively.[121] [122] In addition, Arashi released a music DVD titled ARASHI LIVE TOUR Beautiful World on May 23rd, which sold approximately 572,000 copies in the first week. On July 20, 2012, Arashi announced a concert entitled "Ara-fes" which will be held at the National Olympic Stadium in Tokyo on September 20 and 21 of this year. This marks the 5th consecutive year in which the group has performed at the National Olympic Stadium. It was announced that the group will also play there in 2013. Proposed by the Arashi members themselves, the concept of "Ara-fes" is that the track-list will be determined by fan voting, from a total of 240 songs including singles, couplings, and album tracks. Approximately the top 30 songs in ranking will be performed.[123]
Discography
Main article: Arashi discography Studio albums
Compilation albums
2001: Arashi No.1 Ichigou: Arashi wa Arashi o Yobu! 2002: Here We Go! 2003: How's It Going? 2004: Iza, Now!
2002: Arashi Single Collection 1999 2001 2004: 5x5 The Best Selection of 2002 2004
2005: One 2006: Arashic 2007: Time 2008: Dream "A" Live 2010: Boku no Miteiru Fkei 2011: Beautiful World
Filmography
Further information: Arashi filmography Aside from their music careers, Arashi has also appeared in dramas and movies, done radio shows, commercials, and acted as the main hosts for events. A short Fuji TV drama called V no Arashi became one of the group's first activities together as it was broadcast just about a month after the announcement of their formation in Hawaii. Although it would not be until 2010 would the group act in another drama together titled Saigo no Yakusoku,[124] they have worked together on movies in 2002, 2004, and 2007. Since 2001, Arashi has hosted their own variety shows, starting with Mayonaka no Arashi on NTV.[125] On NTV, the group was a regular late-night presence as they had a string of shows that aired around midnight: C no Arashi, D no Arashi, G no Arashi, and Arashi no Shukudaikun. Before VS Arashi was moved from an afternoon timeslot to Golden Time in 2009, Arashi was also a regular afternoon presence on Fuji TV as they had a string of shows that aired around 1:00 p.m. (JST) since 2002: Nama Arashi: Live Storm, Arashi no Waza-Ari, Mago Mago Arashi and Golden Rush Arashi.[126] Besides their NTV Odoroki no Arashi! Seiki no Jikken Gakusha Mo Yosoku Fukan ( ! Surprising Arashi! Experiments of the Century: Impossible for Scholars to Predict?) television specials that would air almost twice a year around 7:00 p.m. (JST), Arashi did not have any variety shows that aired during primetime until TBS gave the group their first primetime show titled Himitsu no Arashi-chan in 2008.[127] In 2010, NTV began to broadcast another Arashi-hosted primetime show titled Arashi ni Shiyagare, which airs every Saturday at 10:00p.m JST.[128]
Endorsements
Nearly every year, the group endorses products for different companies such as Coca-Cola, House Foods, and au by KDDI. Since 2008, Arashi has been appearing in au by KDDI's exclusive mobile phone commercials.[129] In 2010, Arashi began to endorse for Nintendo by appearing in various Wii Party commercials to promote the game.[130] In 2011, the group also endorsed the company as well by appearing in all eight Mario Kart 7 commercials to promote the game. Most of Arashi's singles have been used as theme songs for dramas such as Stand Up!! and Ma, movies such as Hana Yori Dango Final and Yatterman, and commercials.[131][132] In 2004, "Hero" was used as the theme song for the 2004 Summer Olympics news coverage on NTV. In 2008, "Kaze no Muk e" was used for the 2008 Summer Olympics on NTV.[133]
In 2010, their song "Yurase, Ima o" was used as the theme song for the 2010 Winter Olympics news coverage on NTV.[81] On April 8, 2010, the Japan Tourism Agency appointed Arashi as the navigators for their "Japan Endless Discovery" national tourism campaign. Arashi appeared in commercials, which aired in East Asia, to encourage people from overseas to visit Japan.[134][135]
Other activities
In 2004, the group was appointed to be the main personality supporters for NTV's 27th annual telethon 24-Hour Television.[136] With the theme being "Your Dream is Everybody's Dream" ( Anata no Yume wa Minna no Yume?), it was broadcast live for about twenty-four hours from August 21 to August 22. In 2008, Arashi was once again the main personality supporters for the telethon.[137] The 31st annual 24-Hour Television focused on the theme of "Vow: The Most Important Promise" ( Chikai: Ichiban Taisetsu na Yakusoku?), and it was broadcast live from August 30 to August 31. The telethon raised 1,083,666,922 Japanese yen (approx. US$11,902,822.61) in donations, which is the second-highest amount of donations in 24-Hour Television history to date.[138][139][140] In 2012, Arashi was chosen to host the annual telethon again, making it their third time being appointed as the main personality for the program.[141] After the 2011 Tohoku earthquake in March, Arashi considered canceling their concerts scheduled from June 24 to June 26, 2011 at Tokyo Dome. However, in April, they decided that they will use those three days to hold charity events instead. Part of the proceeds from a possible total audience of 225,000 will be donated to charity. It was also announced on May 19, 2011 that Arashi will release a pocket-sized version of their book Nippon no Arashi, which originally distributed to 40,000 schools in 2010. All of the revenue will be given to charity.[112] On November 4, 2011, it was reported that Arashi donated approximately 300 million yen to the disaster-stricken regions in northern Japan. The group split their donations between the Iwate, Miyagi, and Fukushima prefectures, with each one receiving about 100 million yen. About 50 million yen comprises the members total royalties received from the sale of the pocket edition of their book Nippon no Arashi. The remaining amount comes from the publishers revenues on the book and from the sale of goods at their charity event at Tokyo Dome in June.[142] On February 22, 2012, Arashi visited the temporary houses in Shichigahama, Miyagi and spoke with victims of the disaster. They also held a mini concert for 500 people, singing 11 songs over a period of one hour and shaking hands with everyone who attended.[143]
album, copies sold for a music DVD, gross sales for a music DVD, and total gross music DVD sales for an artist.[144] Billboard Japan Music Awards The Billboard Japan Music Awards is an annual music awards ceremony established by Billboard. Arashi has received two awards.[145] Year Nominated work Award Hot 100 of the Year Hot 100 Singles Sales of the Year Result Won Won
The Japan Gold Disc Awards is an annual music awards ceremony established by the Recording Industry Association of Japan in 1987. Arashi has received twenty-two awards.[50][146][147][148] Year Nominated work 2008 "Love So Sweet" Award The Best 10 Singles Single of the Year "Truth/Kaze no Muk e" The Best 10 Singles "One Love" The Best 10 Singles "Beautiful Days" The Best 10 Singles Summer Tour 2007 Final Time The Best Music Videos Arashi Artist of the Year Single of the Year "Believe/Kumorinochi, Kaisei" The Best 5 Singles "Ashita no Kioku/Crazy Moon" The Best 5 Singles "Everything" The Best 5 Singles "My Girl" The Best 5 Singles Album of the Year All the Best! 19992009 The Best 5 Albums Arashi Around Asia 2008 in The Best Music Videos Tokyo 5x10 All the Best! Clips 1999 The Best Music Videos 2009 Arashi Artist of the Year Album of the Year Boku no Miteiru Fkei The Best 5 Albums "Troublemaker" The Best 5 Singles "Monster" The Best 5 Singles Arashi Anniversary Tour 5x10 The Best Music Videos Beautiful World The Best 5 Albums Result Won Won Won Won Won Won Won Won Won Won Won Won Won Won Won Won Won Won Won Won Won Won Won
2009
2010
2011
2012
Arashi 1011 Tour "Scene": Kimi to Boku no Miteiru Fkei The Best Music Videos Stadium Arashi 1011 Tour "Scene": Kimi to Boku no Miteiru Fkei The Best Music Videos Dome plus
Won
Won
Television Drama Academy Awards The Television Drama Academy Awards is a quarterly Japanese drama awards ceremony held by the magazine The Television. Arashi has received six awards from thirteen nominations.[22][149][150][151][152][153][154][155][156][157][158][159][160][161] Year Nominated work 2001 "Jidai" 2002 "A Day in Our Life" "Kotoba Yori Taisetsu na 2003 Mono" 2004 "Hitomi no Naka no Galaxy" "We Can Make It!" 2007 "Happiness" 2008 "Beautiful Days" "Ashita no Kioku" 2009 "My Girl" "Troublemaker" 2010 "Monster" "Love Rainbow" 2011 "Hatenai Sora" Award Result Won Nominated Nominated Nominated Nominated Nominated Won Won Nominated Nominated Won Won Won