SOULHEAD
Encyclopedia
Soulhead is a Japan
ese urban contemporary
duo consisting of sisters and who hail from Hokkaidō
.
standard. In February 2002 they released a CD single through Tokuma Japan Communications called "Inside Out". After changing their name to Soulhead, the duo was signed to Sony Music Associated Records. The label sent them one year abroad to Australia
and New Zealand
to improve their proficiency in English. They released their debut single "Step to the New World" on 24 July 2002 as a vinyl 12" single. In 2006, they were transferred to Sony Music Associated Records' sublabel, onenation. So far they have released 15 singles, 3 regular albums, 2 remix albums & 1 greatest hits album and they have also been featured on 1 single. They have also appeared on various compilations. Soulhead's sound is a blend between various genres such as soul
, hip-hop
, R&B
, dancehall
, reggae
and funk
, and many of their lyrics are in English. They usually work with the production team known as Octopussy. They have also worked on releases with other Japanese artists such as Kumi Koda
and Soul'd Out, and Yoshika is also a renowned songwriter who have worked with artists such as Sowelu
, Ken Hirai
, & Crystal Kay
. On 21 February 2007 they released a compilation called Best of Soulhead, which contained all their singles released to date, as well as some B-sides. It came as a CD only, and CD+DVD package.
On February 24, 2010, after a 4 year break, they released a new album titled "SOULHEAD" under Avex Group, their new home. The album charted on the 40th position on the ORICON
charts after a week of the release.
s who they respect are Tupac Shakur
, Snoop Dogg
, The Beatles
, Janis Joplin
, Takuro Yoshida
, and Ice Cube
.
Japan
Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...
ese urban contemporary
Urban contemporary
Urban contemporary is a music radio format. The term was coined by the late New York DJ Frankie Crocker in the mid 1970s. Urban contemporary radio stations feature a playlist made up entirely of hip hop/rap, contemporary R&B, pop, electronica such as dubstep and drum and bass and Caribbean music...
duo consisting of sisters and who hail from Hokkaidō
Hokkaido
, formerly known as Ezo, Yezo, Yeso, or Yesso, is Japan's second largest island; it is also the largest and northernmost of Japan's 47 prefectural-level subdivisions. The Tsugaru Strait separates Hokkaido from Honshu, although the two islands are connected by the underwater railway Seikan Tunnel...
.
Biography
Before they assumed the name Soulhead, they were known as Batti Baas. Batti Baas released one vinyl single through Handcuts Records called "Lovin' You", which featured Aaron Blackmon. The song was a remake of the Minnie RipertonMinnie Riperton
Minnie Julia Riperton was an American singer-songwriter best known for her 1975 single "Lovin' You". She was married to songwriter and music producer Richard Rudolph from 1972 until her death in the summer of 1979. They had two children - music engineer Marc Rudolph and actress/comedienne Maya...
standard. In February 2002 they released a CD single through Tokuma Japan Communications called "Inside Out". After changing their name to Soulhead, the duo was signed to Sony Music Associated Records. The label sent them one year abroad to Australia
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
and New Zealand
New Zealand
New Zealand is an island country in the south-western Pacific Ocean comprising two main landmasses and numerous smaller islands. The country is situated some east of Australia across the Tasman Sea, and roughly south of the Pacific island nations of New Caledonia, Fiji, and Tonga...
to improve their proficiency in English. They released their debut single "Step to the New World" on 24 July 2002 as a vinyl 12" single. In 2006, they were transferred to Sony Music Associated Records' sublabel, onenation. So far they have released 15 singles, 3 regular albums, 2 remix albums & 1 greatest hits album and they have also been featured on 1 single. They have also appeared on various compilations. Soulhead's sound is a blend between various genres such as soul
Soul music
Soul music is a music genre originating in the United States combining elements of gospel music and rhythm and blues. According to the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, soul is "music that arose out of the black experience in America through the transmutation of gospel and rhythm & blues into a form of...
, hip-hop
Hip hop music
Hip hop music, also called hip-hop, rap music or hip-hop music, is a musical genre consisting of a stylized rhythmic music that commonly accompanies rapping, a rhythmic and rhyming speech that is chanted...
, R&B
Contemporary R&B
Contemporary R&B is a music genre that combines elements of hip hop, soul, R&B and funk.Although the abbreviation “R&B” originates from traditional rhythm and blues music, today the term R&B is most often used to describe a style of African American music originating after the demise of disco in...
, dancehall
Dancehall
Dancehall is a genre of Jamaican popular music that originated in the late 1970s. Initially dancehall was a more sparse version of reggae than the roots style, which had dominated much of the 1970s. In the mid-1980s, digital instrumentation became more prevalent, changing the sound considerably,...
, reggae
Reggae
Reggae is a music genre first developed in Jamaica in the late 1960s. While sometimes used in a broader sense to refer to most types of Jamaican music, the term reggae more properly denotes a particular music style that originated following on the development of ska and rocksteady.Reggae is based...
and funk
Funk
Funk is a music genre that originated in the mid-late 1960s when African American musicians blended soul music, jazz and R&B into a rhythmic, danceable new form of music. Funk de-emphasizes melody and harmony and brings a strong rhythmic groove of electric bass and drums to the foreground...
, and many of their lyrics are in English. They usually work with the production team known as Octopussy. They have also worked on releases with other Japanese artists such as Kumi Koda
Kumi Koda
, better known by her stage name , is a Japanese singer and songwriter from Kyoto, known for her urban and R&B songs. Having debuted in 2000 with the single "Take Back", Koda gained fame for her seventh single, "Real Emotion/1000 no Kotoba", the songs of which were used as themes for the video game...
and Soul'd Out, and Yoshika is also a renowned songwriter who have worked with artists such as Sowelu
Sowelu
better known by her stage name, Sowelu, is a Japanese pop/R&B singer signed onto Avex Group's label Rhythm Zone.- History :Her career started in 2002 with the release of her first single Beautiful Dreamer, a soft love ballad which did very well in the charts, and was later featured on the Relaxin’...
, Ken Hirai
Ken Hirai
is a Japanese R&B and pop singer. Since his debut, Hirai has worked as a model, actor, composer, lyricist, singer, and spokesperson.During his career, Hirai has released 32 singles and 11 albums up until October 2010. According to Oricon, his single Hitomi Wo Tojite became the best-selling single...
, & Crystal Kay
Crystal Kay
Crystal Kay Williams , known by her stage name Crystal Kay, is a singer and songwriter from Yokohama, Kanagawa, Japan...
. On 21 February 2007 they released a compilation called Best of Soulhead, which contained all their singles released to date, as well as some B-sides. It came as a CD only, and CD+DVD package.
On February 24, 2010, after a 4 year break, they released a new album titled "SOULHEAD" under Avex Group, their new home. The album charted on the 40th position 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 after a week of the release.
Influences
Some musical artistArtist
An artist is a person engaged in one or more of any of a broad spectrum of activities related to creating art, practicing the arts and/or demonstrating an art. The common usage in both everyday speech and academic discourse is a practitioner in the visual arts only...
s who they respect are Tupac Shakur
Tupac Shakur
Tupac Amaru Shakur , known by his stage names 2Pac and Makaveli, was an American rapper and actor. Shakur has sold over 75 million albums worldwide as of 2007, making him one of the best-selling music artists in the world...
, Snoop Dogg
Snoop Dogg
Calvin Cordozar Broadus, Jr. , better known by his stage name Snoop Dogg, is an American rapper, record producer, and actor. Snoop is best known as a rapper in the West Coast hip hop scene, and for being one of Dr. Dre's most notable protégés. Snoop Dogg was a Crip gang member while in high school...
, The Beatles
The Beatles
The Beatles were an English rock band, active throughout the 1960s and one of the most commercially successful and critically acclaimed acts in the history of popular music. Formed in Liverpool, by 1962 the group consisted of John Lennon , Paul McCartney , George Harrison and Ringo Starr...
, Janis Joplin
Janis Joplin
Janis Lyn Joplin was an American singer, songwriter, painter, dancer and music arranger. She rose to prominence in the late 1960s as the lead singer of Big Brother and the Holding Company and later as a solo artist with her backing groups, The Kozmic Blues Band and The Full Tilt Boogie Band...
, Takuro Yoshida
Takuro Yoshida
is a Japanese male singer-songwriter. He was born on April 5, 1946 in Okuchi, Kagoshima and raised in Hiroshima. He made his debut with the single "Imeji no Uta / Maku II" on June 1, 1970...
, and Ice Cube
Ice Cube
O'Shea Jackson , better known by his stage name Ice Cube, is an American rapper and actor. He began his career as a member of the hip-hop group C.I.A. and later joined the rap group N.W.A. After leaving N.W.A in December 1989, he built a successful solo career in music, and also as a writer,...
.
Albums
- Oh My Sister 5/03/2003; #3, 22 weeks, 214,545 copies sold
- Re-construct album Vol.1 "Reflection" 26/09/2003; #89, 5 weeks, 9,602 copies sold
- Braided 28/04/2004; #4, 13 weeks, 139,992 copies sold
- Naked 08/03/2006; #5, 17 weeks
- Re-construct album Vol.2 "Crystallized" 21/06/2006; #41, 4 weeks
- Best of Soulhead 21/02/2007; #5, 2 weeks
- Soulhead 24/02/2010; #40
Singles
- "Lovin' You" 1/07/2001 (as Batti Baas featuring Aaron Blackmon)
- "Inside Out" 6/02/2002 (as Batti Baas)
- "Step to the New World" 24/7/2002 (12"), 21/08/2002 (CD); #24, 17 weeks, 59,287 copies sold
- "Lover, Knight, Man" 20/11/2002; #36, 8 weeks, 18,410 copies sold
- "" 5/02/2003; #28, 6 weeks, 16,035 copies sold
- "Oh My Sister (remix)"/"I'm just going down" 2/5/2003;#114, 3 weeks, 2,561 copies sold
- "Get Up! EP" 30/7/2003; #28, 6 weeks, 15,967 copies sold
- "Break Up (DJ Masterkey remix)"/"Playboy (Saigenji remix)" 20/08/2003
- "Too Late (DJ Watarai remix)"/"Song For You (DJ HIROnyc remix)" 20/08/2003
- "Lover, Knight, Man (D.O.I. + Octopussy remix)"/"MOON SHINE (Doggystyle remix)" 10/09/2003
- "To Da Fake MCS (D.O.I. remix)"/" (Tomita Lab. remix)" 26/09/2003
- "You Can Do That" 21/01/2004; #36, 12 weeks, 18,691 copies sold
- "No Way" 24/03/2004; #50, 4 weeks, 5,353 copies sold
- "At The Party" 2/06/2004
- "" 7/07/2004 (re-release)
- "Oh My Sister (remix)/I'm just going down" 7/07/2004 (re-release)
- "Get Up! EP" 7/07/2004 (re-release)
- "Fiesta" 25/05/2005; #35, 4 weeks, 7,773 copies sold
- "Sparkle☆Train"/"Got to leave" 14/12/2005; #30, 6 weeks, 15,324 copies sold
- "D.D.D.D.D.D."D.D.D." is a J-Pop song which is written by Japanese R&B duo Soulhead and their producer Octopussy; Soulhead wrote the lyrics while the team wrote the music together and Octopussy made the musical arrangement. The song appears on Koda's 6th album Best: second session, and it is also the 3rd single...
(with Kumi KodaKumi Koda, better known by her stage name , is a Japanese singer and songwriter from Kyoto, known for her urban and R&B songs. Having debuted in 2000 with the single "Take Back", Koda gained fame for her seventh single, "Real Emotion/1000 no Kotoba", the songs of which were used as themes for the video game...
" 21/12/2005; #5, 3 weeks, 47,608 copies sold - "Pray"/"XXX (featuring Kumi KodaKumi Koda, better known by her stage name , is a Japanese singer and songwriter from Kyoto, known for her urban and R&B songs. Having debuted in 2000 with the single "Take Back", Koda gained fame for her seventh single, "Real Emotion/1000 no Kotoba", the songs of which were used as themes for the video game...
)" 27/01/2006; #22, 2 weeks, 10,109 copies sold - "XXX (worked by Sa-RaSa-RaSa-Ra is a hip-hop group based in Los Angeles, California, also known by its full name, The Sa-Ra Creative Partners. The group is composed of Om'Mas Keith, Taz Arnold, and Shafiq Husayn...
)"/"Pray (worked by Kenny Dope)" 13/07/2006 - "Sparkle☆Train (worked by Mark De Clive-LoweMark De Clive-LoweMark de Clive-Lowe is a musician and producer originally from New Zealand, and now based in West London. He has been one of the key musicians in the Broken Beat and Nu Jazz movements, blending jazz, ethnic music and urban grooves into a 21st Century sound...
)"/"You Can Do That (worked by Reel People)" 13/07/2006/ 6/12/2006; #56, 3 weeks - "Dear Friends" 24/1/2007; #60, 1 week
Video
- Oh My Sister Live&Clips 8/10/2003
- Soulhead tour 2006 "Naked" 9/08/2006
- 5th Anniversary Tour: Best Of Soulhead 7/11/2007