Ataru Nakamura
Encyclopedia
is a Japanese pop
singer and songwriter
.
on 28 June 1985, Nakamura began studying music at a young age. She taught herself to play the piano, guitar, and the drums at age ten, and began to write her own songs at the age of thirteen. In 1999, at the age of fourteen, she released an indie label
album called Shouchikubai as her prize.
. Her first major label single, "Yogoreta Shitagi", was released on her birthday, and received minor attention. "Yogoreta Shitagi" was written about an ex-boyfriend who was cheating on her and is written from the former boyfriend's point of view. Nakamura called this individual on the telephone to explain that the song she had written about him was to be her debut single.
Her second single, "Tomodachi no Uta", received greater attention, and placed at number 150 on the Oricon
charts. However, it was not until Nakamura revealed on the talk-radio program All Night Nippon
that she was a transsexual and had undergone sex reassignment surgery
that she received major attention. Her explanation garnered a lot of media attention, and her single rose to number 9 on the Oricon charts. "Tomodachi no Uta" became the theme song for the popular television drama Watashi ga Watashi de Aru Tame ni, a primetime television drama about a young transsexual woman. Nakamura even received a small cameo appearance
on the program.
Nakamura wrote "Tomodachi no Uta" when she was fourteen years old; notably, it was the first song she ever wrote. She wrote the song to say goodbye to the friends in junior high she would never see again. "Tomodachi no Uta" was featured in an Avex Trax musical
titled "Kokoro no Kakera". The soundtrack featured 21 songs chosen from the company's hits over the past two decades.
Her third single, "Watashi no Naka no Ii Onna", entered the Oricon charts at number 39. On the same day "Watashi no Naka no Ii Onna" was released, the song "Chewing Gum" written by Nakamura for the band AAA
, debuted on the Oricon chart. Her two songs competed with one another for four weeks.
Her first album, Ten Made Todoke, was released on 1 January 2007. A month later, she released "Kaze ni Naru", her fourth single. "Kaze ni Naru" was the theme song for the film Sakebi.
Her song "Kakeashi no Ikizama" was used as the closing theme for the anime series Reideen
.
Nakamura released "Kotonakare Shugi", a rock song produced by Kameda Seiji, on 17 December 2008.
She wrote a song called "Hare-butai" for Jero
, Japan's first black enka singer.
Ashita wa Haremasu You Ni was Nakamura's third studio album, released on 25 February 2009 in both standard and deluxe editions, the latter containing a DVD containing various performances and music video
s.
to Yamaha Music Communications. She released the single "Iede Shoujo," which debuted at #90 on the Oricon charts and sold 796 copies the first week. On 9/22 her album came out titled Shōnen Shōjo it debuted at #65 on the Oricon and sold 2,103 copies the first week. The album was later awarded a Japan Record Award
, despite its lack of commercial success.
. This was mentioned in her official biography short during her appearance at the 2007 Kouhaku Uta Gassen.
/pop
sound. Her second style is an enka
-inspired sound; thus far her enka-styled ballads have been her largest successes. Her singles have thus far alternated between these two styles.
Pop music
Pop music is usually understood to be commercially recorded music, often oriented toward a youth market, usually consisting of relatively short, simple songs utilizing technological innovations to produce new variations on existing themes.- Definitions :David Hatch and Stephen Millward define pop...
singer and songwriter
Songwriter
A songwriter is an individual who writes both the lyrics and music to a song. Someone who solely writes lyrics may be called a lyricist, and someone who only writes music may be called a composer...
.
Early life
Born in TokyoTokyo
, ; officially , is one of the 47 prefectures of Japan. Tokyo is the capital of Japan, the center of the Greater Tokyo Area, and the largest metropolitan area of Japan. It is the seat of the Japanese government and the Imperial Palace, and the home of the Japanese Imperial Family...
on 28 June 1985, Nakamura began studying music at a young age. She taught herself to play the piano, guitar, and the drums at age ten, and began to write her own songs at the age of thirteen. In 1999, at the age of fourteen, she released an indie label
Independent record label
An independent record label is a record label operating without the funding of or outside the organizations of the major record labels. A great number of bands and musical acts begin on independent labels.-Overview:...
album called Shouchikubai as her prize.
2006–early 2007: Switch to Avex Trax and Ten Made Todoke era
In 2006, she switched to a major label, the popular Avex TraxAvex Trax
, listed in the Tokyo Stock Exchange as 7860 and abbreviated as AGHD, is the holding company for a group of entertainment-related subsidiaries based in Japan...
. Her first major label single, "Yogoreta Shitagi", was released on her birthday, and received minor attention. "Yogoreta Shitagi" was written about an ex-boyfriend who was cheating on her and is written from the former boyfriend's point of view. Nakamura called this individual on the telephone to explain that the song she had written about him was to be her debut single.
Her second single, "Tomodachi no Uta", received greater attention, and placed at number 150 on the Oricon
Oricon
, established in 1999, is the holding company at the head of a Japanese corporate group that supplies statistics and information on music and the music industry in Japan. It started as , which was founded by Sōkō Koike in November 1967 and became known for its music charts. Oricon Inc...
charts. However, it was not until Nakamura revealed on the talk-radio program All Night Nippon
All Night Nippon
All Night Nippon is a Japanese radio program broadcast by Nippon Broadcasting System and other radio stations from 1–5 am . It preempts broadcasts from TBS Radio's programming.The highest ratings were achieved on the night of October 1, 1967.-DJs:...
that she was a transsexual and had undergone sex reassignment surgery
Sex reassignment surgery
Sex reassignment surgery is a term for the surgical procedures by which a person's physical appearance and function of their existing sexual characteristics are altered to resemble...
that she received major attention. Her explanation garnered a lot of media attention, and her single rose to number 9 on the Oricon charts. "Tomodachi no Uta" became the theme song for the popular television drama Watashi ga Watashi de Aru Tame ni, a primetime television drama about a young transsexual woman. Nakamura even received a small cameo appearance
Cameo appearance
A cameo role or cameo appearance is a brief appearance of a known person in a work of the performing arts, such as plays, films, video games and television...
on the program.
Nakamura wrote "Tomodachi no Uta" when she was fourteen years old; notably, it was the first song she ever wrote. She wrote the song to say goodbye to the friends in junior high she would never see again. "Tomodachi no Uta" was featured in an Avex Trax musical
Musical theatre
Musical theatre is a form of theatre combining songs, spoken dialogue, acting, and dance. The emotional content of the piece – humor, pathos, love, anger – as well as the story itself, is communicated through the words, music, movement and technical aspects of the entertainment as an...
titled "Kokoro no Kakera". The soundtrack featured 21 songs chosen from the company's hits over the past two decades.
Her third single, "Watashi no Naka no Ii Onna", entered the Oricon charts at number 39. On the same day "Watashi no Naka no Ii Onna" was released, the song "Chewing Gum" written by Nakamura for the band AAA
AAA (band)
, and also known as Attack All Around, is a Japanese pop band signed to the label Avex Trax which debuted in September 2005. The group originally consisted of five young men and three young women who had all acted in commercials and had been dancers for other Japanese stars, such as Ayumi Hamasaki...
, debuted on the Oricon chart. Her two songs competed with one another for four weeks.
Her first album, Ten Made Todoke, was released on 1 January 2007. A month later, she released "Kaze ni Naru", her fourth single. "Kaze ni Naru" was the theme song for the film Sakebi.
Her song "Kakeashi no Ikizama" was used as the closing theme for the anime series Reideen
Reideen
is a Japanese animated television series remake of the 1975 Super Robot anime Brave Reideen. It was produced by Production I.G and directed by Mitsuru Hongo. Which was originally broadcast on the satellite network WOWOW in 2007....
.
Late 2007–2008: Watashi wo Daite Kudasai era
Nakamura's fifth single marked the promotion of her second album titled Watashi wo Daite Kudasai. The album was released on 5 December 2007. "Ringo Uri", the album's first single, premiered on 27 June 2007, and peaked at number 30 on the Oricon charts. The album's second single, "Hadaka Denkyū", premiered on 21 November. "Tori no Mure", the album's third single and her seventh overall, received minor airplay.2009: Ashita wa Haremasu You Ni era
"Kaze Tachinu" debuted on 9 July 2008. The song was used as the theme song for the live-action film GeGeGe no Kitaro Sennen Noroi Uta. The single did well and was received much like "Tomodachi no Uta". Nakamura appeared at Ap Bank Fes '08, a musical festival, on 20 July 2008, to promote the single.Nakamura released "Kotonakare Shugi", a rock song produced by Kameda Seiji, on 17 December 2008.
She wrote a song called "Hare-butai" for Jero
Jero
Jerome Charles White, Jr. , better known by his stage name , is an enka singer of African-American and Japanese descent. He is the first black enka singer in Japanese music history.- Biography :...
, Japan's first black enka singer.
Ashita wa Haremasu You Ni was Nakamura's third studio album, released on 25 February 2009 in both standard and deluxe editions, the latter containing a DVD containing various performances and music video
Music video
A music video or song video is a short film integrating a song and imagery, produced for promotional or artistic purposes. Modern music videos are primarily made and used as a marketing device intended to promote the sale of music recordings...
s.
2010: Shōnen Shōjo era
In 2010 "Ataru Nakamura" switched her management from Avex TraxAvex Trax
, listed in the Tokyo Stock Exchange as 7860 and abbreviated as AGHD, is the holding company for a group of entertainment-related subsidiaries based in Japan...
to Yamaha Music Communications. She released the single "Iede Shoujo," which debuted at #90 on the Oricon charts and sold 796 copies the first week. On 9/22 her album came out titled Shōnen Shōjo it debuted at #65 on the Oricon and sold 2,103 copies the first week. The album was later awarded a Japan Record Award
Japan Record Award
for outstanding achievements in the Japan Composer's Association, is major music awards show held annually in Japan.- Categories :The Japan Record Award are four awards which are not restricted by genre....
, despite its lack of commercial success.
Personal life
Nakamura was born male but transitioned to female after struggling with issues of gender identityGender identity
A gender identity is the way in which an individual self-identifies with a gender category, for example, as being either a man or a woman, or in some cases being neither, which can be distinct from biological sex. Basic gender identity is usually formed by age three and is extremely difficult to...
. This was mentioned in her official biography short during her appearance at the 2007 Kouhaku Uta Gassen.
Musical style
Nakamura is notable for the two different styles in which she sings. Her first style is a modern rockRock music
Rock music is a genre of popular music that developed during and after the 1960s, particularly in the United Kingdom and the United States. It has its roots in 1940s and 1950s rock and roll, itself heavily influenced by rhythm and blues and country music...
/pop
Pop music
Pop music is usually understood to be commercially recorded music, often oriented toward a youth market, usually consisting of relatively short, simple songs utilizing technological innovations to produce new variations on existing themes.- Definitions :David Hatch and Stephen Millward define pop...
sound. Her second style is 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...
-inspired sound; thus far her enka-styled ballads have been her largest successes. Her singles have thus far alternated between these two styles.
Singles
- (2006) - Oricon Weekly Charts Peak - #155
- (2006) - Oricon Weekly Charts Peak - #9
- (2006) - Oricon Weekly Charts Peak - #39
- (2007) - Oricon Weekly Charts Peak: #103
- (2007) - Oricon Weekly Charts Peak: #30
- (2007) - Oricon Weekly Charts Peak: #87
- (2008) - Oricon Weekly Charts Peak - #27
- (2008) - Oricon Weekly Charts Peak - #65
- (2010) - Oricon Weekly Charts Peak - #90
Albums
- (2007) - Oricon Weekly Charts Peak: #29
- (2007) - Oricon Weekly Charts Peak: #38
- (2009) - Oricon Weekly Charts Peak: #59
- (2010) - Oricon Weekly Charts Peak: #65