Utada Hikaru: Next Release Has A Title

Utada, as she’s once again to be known, has got a name for her next album: “This Is The One”! The album will contain ten songs, like “Come Back To Me”, “Apple and Cinnamon”, “On and On”, “Taking My Money Back”, “Me Muero”, and five other songs. Two additional bonus remix tracks are also going to be on the track listing. The cover art is out too (see display pic)

SeoTaiji Releases Volume 8 Part 2 With Commemoration Concert

On March 14 and 15, Seo Taiji will hold the commemoration concert ‘Wormhole’ at Seoul’s Olympic Hall to mark the release of his 8th album second single.

The title of the concert is ‘Wormhole’ and Seo Taiji’s official site (www.seotaiji.com) reveals that ‘Disappearance’ is the keyword of the event.

In the meantime, a teaser event titled ‘missing taiji’ will kick off the release of the second single, and the exact release date of the single will be revealed on the homepage of the teaser event.

Japan Claims Victories At Oscars

At the 81st Academy Awards held on Sunday in Los Angeles, Japanese films went two-for-two as both nominees walked away with a prize. The bigger winner was Yojiro Takita’s “Okuribito” (“Departures” ), winning the title of Best Foreign Language Film. The critically-acclaimed movie has already won a total of 60 awards at home, including 10 in the Japan Academy Awards.

However, this Oscar is a perhaps an even more remarkable achievement, given that “Okuribito” is the first Japanese film to win the award since it was established as a competitive prize in 1956.

Kunio Kato’s “Tsumiki no Ie” (“La Maison En Petits Cubes” ) won Best Animated Short Film, the first Japanese win in that category. The last Japanese animated movie to win an Academy Award was when Hayao Miyazaki’s “Spirited Away” took Best Animated Feature Film in 2003.

This is only the second time that Japanese films have won two awards in the same year. The first was in 1955, when Teinosuke Kinugasa’s “Jigokumon” (“Gate of Hell” ) won Best Color Costume Design and the honorary award of “best foreign language film first released in the United States during 1954.”

Maki Horikita To Play Homeless Girl In Fuji’s New Drama

Actress Maki Horikita, 20, will play a homeless girl in Fuji TV’s new drama from April. In the new drama, which is not yet titled, Horikita will play a girl who becomes homeless due to her deceased father’s debt. She then marries a rich man who later dies of an illness, leaving behind six adopted children.

Horikita said, “When I saw my photo on the poster, my dirty appearance made me feel something that I had never experienced before.”

Ebi-chan Unveils Designs For New Fashion Brand Swingle

Popular model Yuri Ebihara, popularly known as Ebi-chan, showed her first efforts at clothes design recently, at an event in Yurakucho held to celebrate the market entry of new fashion brand Swingle. Ebihara, 29, wore a purple dress adorned with small pink hearts, and said that it was one of eight pieces she had helped design for Swingle, under the theme of “Clever & Cute.”

“I’ve been involved in the design of wedding dresses and jewelry before, but this was my first time to design everyday attire. But having said that, we’re targeting working women who are sensitive to fashion trends. I’m delighted that some of the pieces I helped design will be at the front of the stores,” she said.

Reporters asked where she would like to go in stylish dresses like the one she was wearing, and Ebihara said she would go to dinner or a nice bar, but that she’d need to find a boyfriend first.

Mihimaru GT’s Hiroko Teams Up With All-American Rejects

mihimaru GT vocalist hiroko has completed a collaboration with U.S. rock band The All-American Rejects. On March 4, The All-American Rejects’ latest album, “When the World Comes Down,” is being released in Japan. The Japanese release will include a new version of “Another Heart Calls,” featuring vocals from hiroko.

The new version of “Another Heart Calls” will be available as a ringtone starting on Wednesday. It has also been reported that The All-American Rejects are performing in Shibuya with hiroko on the album’s release date, but mihimaru GT’s official website says that the information is incorrect and that there are no plans for a joint concert.

“Okuribito” Takes 10 At Academy Awards

The presentation ceremony for the 32nd Japan Academy Awards took place in Tokyo on Friday. Yojiro Takita’s “Okuribito” completely overwhelmed the competition, winning in 10 of the 13 categories it was nominated for. With this, the film has now received a total of 60 major awards since the end of last year.

Aside from Best Picture, the film’s ten prizes included a Best Actor win for Masahiro Motoki. This is his second time receiving that honor in the Japan Academy Awards, with the first being in 1993 for Masayuki Suo’s “Sumo Do, Sumo Don’t.”

* Best Picture: Okuribito
* Best Animated Picture: Gake no Ue no Ponyo
* Best Director: Yojiro Takita (Okuribito)
* Best Screenplay: Kundo Koyama (Okuribito)
* Best Actor: Masahiro Motoki (Okuribito)
* Best Actress: Tae Kimura (Gururi no Koto)
* Best Supporting Actor: Tsutomu Yamazaki (Okuribito)
* Best Supporting Actress: Kimiko Yo (Okuribito)
* Best Music: Joe Hisaishi (Gake no Ue no Ponyo)
* Best Cinematography: Takeshi Hamada (Okuribito)
* Best Lighting Direction: Hitoshi Takaya (Okuribito)
* Best Art Direction: Towako Kuwajima (Pako to Mahou no Ehon)
* Best Sound Recording: Satoshi Ozaki, Osamu Onodera (Okuribito)* Best Film Editing: Akimasa Kawashima (Okuribito)
* Best Foreign Language Film: The Dark Knight

Special awards were given to “Yougisha x no Kenshin” and actor Kenichi Matsuyama.

Tracklist For Alan’s Debut Japanese Album Released

After a long wait, alan fans finally received more news for the female soloist’s first Japanese album, Voice of EARTH.

Debuted back in November 2007, alan’s first debut Japanese album will be released on March 4th. Featuring fifteen songs, with one track specially composed by alan (“Together”), the album will be available in two different versions: CD only and DVD only.

CD
1. 天女 ～interlude～(Tennyo; Celestial Maiden)
2. 明日への讃歌 (Ashita e no Sanka; A Hymn For Tomorrow)
3. 空唄 (Sora Uta; Sky Song)
4. 懐かしい未来 ～longing future～ (Natsukashii Mirai; Longing Future)
5. ひとつ (Hitotsu; One)
6. 風の手紙 (Kaze no Tegami; Letter Of The Wind)
7. BRAVE
8. 夢のガーデン (Yume no GARDEN; Dream Of The Garden)
9. 群青の谷 (Gunjou no Tani; Ultramarine Valley)
10. my friend
11. Liberty
12. 月がわたし (Tsuki ga Watashi; The Moon Is Me)
13. RED CLIFF ～心・戦～ (Shin•Sen; Heart, War)
14. 恵みの雨 (Megumi no Ame; Blessed Rain)
-Limited Track-
15. Together

DVD
・ intro
1. 明日への讃歌
2. ひとつ
3. 懐かしい未来 ～longing future～
4. 空唄
5. 風の手紙
6. RED CLIFF ～心・戦～
7. 恵みの雨
8. 群青の谷
9. 合唱 [懐かしい未来 ～longing future～] (Gasshou)
-Limited Video-
10. Together
・ outro 群青の谷 Making Video

After the album, alan will also release a single called Kuon no Kawa on April 8th, which is the Japanese version of “赤壁 ～大江东去～” also known as the theme song for movie, Red Cliff (Part II).

The Koda Sisters Together At Last

The J-pop sisters Koda Kumi (26, photo right) and Misono (24, photo left) are teaming up for the first time.
They are scheduled to release a joint single, “It’s All Love” by chaku-uta
download on February 25 and on CD in March and will be appearing on the
music show circuit together.
Though the younger of the two, it was Misono who first achieved popularity from her debut in 2002 until 2005 as vocalist with the group Day After Tomorrow.
One reason for the breakup of the group was said to be Misono’s considerable
weight gain, and she was then completely eclipsed by the success of her big sister. Kumi, who debuted in 2000 and had limited success in the club music scene, almost overnight became J-pop’s biggest seller in 2005 and again in 2006 with her upbeat dance numbers, regular TV appearances and “ero-kakkoii” (sexy cool) image.
Misono started getting her career back on track in 2006, but more on the TV variety circuit than in music and she is now a regular on such shows as “Quiz! Hexagon.” Both sisters, who hail from Kyoto, clearly enjoy the limelight, share a raucous sense of humor and are said to be close. But they have only ever appeared on TV together once, on “Hey! Hey! Hey! Music Champ” last December, and have performed together only in private.

Oricon Top 10 Album Daily Charts (2.18.09)

Thelma Aoyama takes the #1 spot while Kumi Koda continues to stay strong in the top 3.

1. Thelma Aoyama – LOVE! ~THELMA LOVESONG COLLECTION~
2. Lil’B – Ima, Kimi e…
3. Kumi Koda – TRICK
4. AAA – depArture
5. STRAIGHTENER – Nexus
6. Mama Mia! The Movie Soundtrack
7. Buono! – Buono! 2
8. Grammy Nominees 2009
9. EXILE – EXILE BALLAD BEST
10. Miho Fukuhara – RAINBOW