, born February 21, 1986 in Sawara-ku, Fukuoka

Sawara-ku, Fukuoka

is one of the seven wards of Fukuoka, Fukuoka Prefecture, Japan.-Data:*Population: 211,851 people *Area: 95.88 square kilometers -Profile:...

, is a Japanese

Japanese people

The are an ethnic group originating in the Japanese archipelago and are the predominant ethnic group of Japan. Worldwide, approximately 130 million people are of Japanese descent; of these, approximately 127 million are residents of Japan. People of Japanese ancestry who live in other countries...

 singer-songwriter

Singer-songwriter

Singer-songwriters are musicians who write, compose and sing their own musical material including lyrics and melodies. As opposed to contemporary popular music singers who write their own songs, the term singer-songwriter describes a distinct form of artistry, closely associated with the...

 and pianist

Pianist

A pianist is a musician who plays the piano. A professional pianist can perform solo pieces, play with an ensemble or orchestra, or accompany one or more singers, solo instrumentalists, or other performers.-Choice of genres:...

.

Profile

Kawashima dreamed of becoming a singer from a young age. Her father vanished before she was born, and she was raised by her mother. She first began learning to play the piano at the age of 3. Kawashima's mother died when she was just 3 years old. She was taken to an orphanage and eventually adopted by the Kawashima family, owners of a construction company. Her adoptive father died when she was 10, and her adoptive mother died when she was 16. Every year since her adoptive mother's death, she has held a concert on August 20 in her memory. Now she is singing not only for her mother, but also for people who listen to her songs, wishing for world peace

World peace

World Peace is an ideal of freedom, peace, and happiness among and within all nations and/or people. World peace is an idea of planetary non-violence by which nations willingly cooperate, either voluntarily or by virtue of a system of governance that prevents warfare. The term is sometimes used to...

. Kawashima has also helped to establish schools in poor countries, 3 schools have already been built, her goal is to build 100 schools.

Before she became famous, she set herself the goal of performing 1000 times on the street, finally accomplishing this after she became well known. Her voice has been likened to that of an angel. At first, there were only a few people listening to her busking

Busking

Street performance or busking is the practice of performing in public places, for gratuities, which are generally in the form of money and edibles...

, but gradually she attracted many fans. She initially dreamt of becoming an enka

Enka

is a popular Japanese music genre considered to resemble traditional Japanese music stylistically. Modern enka, however, is a relatively recent musical form which arose in the context of such postwar expressions of modern Japanese nonmaterial nationalism as nihonjinron, while adopting a more...

 singer. She performed on stage at Carnegie Hall

Carnegie Hall

Carnegie Hall is a concert venue in Midtown Manhattan in New York City, United States, located at 881 Seventh Avenue, occupying the east stretch of Seventh Avenue between West 56th Street and West 57th Street, two blocks south of Central Park....

 in New York at around the age of 10. In 1999, she released "Juu-roku Koi Gokoro / Anata ni Kataomoi" - however, due to poor sales, she abandoned enka a few months later and took charge of her own composition.

At some point, she and "Nao" formed the duo I WiSH and had a decent level of success, but the band was dissolved in 2005 so that Kawashima and Nao could concentrate on solo projects.

Some of Kawashima's songs have been used as theme songs for anime

Anime

is the Japanese abbreviated pronunciation of "animation". The definition sometimes changes depending on the context. In English-speaking countries, the term most commonly refers to Japanese animated cartoons....

 and video games. is the theme song of Shining Force Neo

Shining Force Neo

is an action role-playing game co-developed by Neverland and Amusement Vision and published by Sega in 2005 for the Sony PlayStation 2 as a part of the Shining Force series....

; "Compass" was is the theme song of the eighth One Piece

One Piece

is a Japanese shōnen manga series written and illustrated by Eiichiro Oda. It has been serialized in Weekly Shōnen Jump since August 4, 1997; the individual chapters are being published in tankōbon volumes by Shueisha, with the first released on December 24, 1997, and the 64th volume released as...

movie Episode of Alabasta: The Desert Princess and the Pirates, and "Kimi no Koe" is the ending theme song of The Place Promised in Our Early Days

The Place Promised in Our Early Days

is a 90-minute Japanese anime film created and directed by Makoto Shinkai, following his previous work Voices of a Distant Star. As in the previous film, the soundtrack was composed by Tenmon...

. One of her newest songs, "Door Crawl", is the theme song of Final Fantasy Fables: Chocobo's Dungeon

Final Fantasy Fables: Chocobo's Dungeon

, is a role-playing video game published by Square Enix for the Wii. It is an installment in the Chocobo series that focuses on Chocobo and a Cid character.-Gameplay:...

.

Singles

1. [2003.08.21] Tenshitachi no Melody / Tabidachi no Asa (「天使たちのメロディー/旅立ちの朝」)
2. [2004.02.18] 12-ko no Kisetsu ~4 Dome no Haru~ (「12個の季節～4度目の春～」)
3. [2004.05.25/06.02] Page 525 (525ページ)
4. [2004.08.04] Mermaid (「マーメイド」)
5. [2004.11.17] 'Sayonara' 'Arigatō' ~Tatta Hitotsu no Basho~ (「さよなら」「ありがとう」～たった一つの場所～)
6. [2005.04.06] Zetsubō to Kibō (「絶望と希望」)
7. [2005.08.24] ...Arigatō... (「・・・ありがとう．．．」)
8. [2006.02.01] Dear / Tabidachi no Hi ni... (Dear/旅立ちの日に…)
9. [2006.04.19] Mienai Tsubasa (「見えない翼」)
10. [2006.10.11] Taisetsu na Yakusoku / Mou Hitotsu no Yakusoku (「大切な約束/もう１つの約束」)
11. [2007.02.14] My Love
12. [2007.03.14] compass
13. [2007.05.30] Kimi ni..... (「君に･････」)
14. [2007.10.03] Shiawase Desu ka / Suitcase (「幸せですか/スーツケース」)
15. [2007.12.12] Door Crawl (「ドアクロール」)
16. [2008.08.20] Kakera (「カケラ」)
17. [2009.04.08] Daijōbu da yo (「大丈夫だよ」)
18. [2009.12.16] Daisuki da yo (「大好きだよ」)
19. [2010.04.07] haru no yume (「春の夢」)
20. [2010.12.16] I Remember feat. Joe Sample

Mini Albums

1. [2002.07.13] Kono Basho Kara... (「この場所から・・・」)
2. [2002.10.18] Habatakeru Hi Made... (「はばたける日まで・・・」)
3. [2002.12.26] Ayumi Tsuzukeru Tame ni... (「歩みつづけるために・・・」)
4. [2003.03.08] Yuki ni Saku Hana no yō ni... (「雪に咲く花のように・・・」)
5. [2003.05.23] Ashita o Shinjite... (「明日を信じて・・・」)
6. [2003.08.02] Utai Tsuzukeru Kara... (「歌いつづけるから・・・」)

Albums

1. [2005.05.18] 12-ko no Uta (Message) (12個の歌(メッセージ))
2. [2005.09.28] Rojoushuu 1 Gou (「路上集Ⅰ号」)
3. [2006.05.24] Thank You! (サンキュー!)
4. [2006.08.23] Piano Songs ~Rojoushuu 2 Gou~ (Piano Songs～路上集2号～)
5. [2007.06.27] Ashiato (足あと)
6. [2008.04.23] Café & Musique ~Rojoushuu 3 Gou~ (Café & Musique ～路上集3号～)
7. [2008.06.04] SINGLE BEST
8. [2008.06.04] COUPLING BEST
9. [2009.06.03] Simple Treasure
10. [2010.05.26] 24/24

DVD

1. [2004.12.01] 道の途中で...。 (Michi no Tochuu de...)
2. [2005.06.08] ライブ1000回達成記念～1136日の記録～ (LIVE 1000-kai Tassei Kinen ~1136 Nichi no Kiroku~)
3. [2005.12.21] PV Collection +α
4. [2006.11.01] ドラマ (大切な約束) (Drama (Taisetsu na Yakusoku))
5. [2006.11.29] つばさ祭'06～秘密の陣～ (Tsubasa-Sai '06 ~Himitsu no Jin~)
6. [2006.12.20] 川嶋あいConcert Tour2006 ～サンキュー！～ (Kawashima Ai Concert Tour 2006 ~Thank You~!)
7. [2007.04.11] 2003.8.20 渋谷公会堂 ～旅立ちの朝～ (2003.8.20 Shibuya Kōkaidō ~Tabidachi no Asa~)
8. [2007.06.27] つばさ祭'07～春の陣～ (Tsubasa-Sai '07 ~Haru no Jin~)
9. [2007.12.26] Ai Kawashima Concert 2007 足あと (Ai Kawashima Concert 2007 Ashi Ato)
10. [2009.04.08] The BEST -seventeenfivetwentyto- Ai Kawashima Concert Tour 2008
11. [2010.01.13] What's your Simple Treasure? SPECIAL Ai Kawashima Concert Tour 2009 渋谷C.C.Lemonホール (What's your Simple Treasure? SPECIAL Ai Kawashima Concert Tour 2009 Shibuya C.C.Lemon Hall)

Books

1. 16歳の白い地図 (16-sai no Shiroi Chizu) [2003-07-25]
   1. Publisher: 学習研究社 (Gakushuukenkyuusha)
   2. ISBN：4054022057
2. 蒼い旅の続き (Aoi Tabi no Tsuzuki) [2004-09-02]
   1. Publisher: 幻冬舎 (Gentosha)
   2. ISBN 4-344-00669-0
3. 最後の言葉 (Saigo no Kotoba) [2005-09-01]
   1. Publisher: ゴマブックス (Goma Books)
   2. ISBN：4344006690

External links

• Official website