Shota Shimizu
Encyclopedia
is a Japanese musician and singer-songwriter
from Yao
, Osaka Prefecture
, Japan
, who made his debut in 2008. On June 1, 2008, Shimizu performed at Central Park
during the annual Japan Day Festival. Shota Shimizu went to a local Christian school in Osaka where he learned how to sing gospel music
. He became captivated with soul music
, which is how his music career started. He was inspired by Donny Hathaway
, Marvin Gaye
, and Ray Charles
.
Before his debut, in November 2007, Shota sang in English on amateur night at the Apollo Theater
. He was called a one in a million soul singer by a local newspaper in New York. The second time he performed at the Apollo Theater was November 19, 2008. He sang the song "Sukiyaki
" by Kyu Sakamoto
in Japanese, where he was given a standing ovation from an audience of fifteen hundred people. He said he sang it because he wanted to show his Japanese pride and demonstrate the beauty of the Japanese language.
two days after the single's release to promote it. "Home" peaked at ranked at #5 and sold 27,820 units in its first week. After 17 weeks, it had sold 125,735 copies. His second single, , was released on June 4, 2008 in Japan. It ranked at #4 and sold 22,778 units in its first week. After 12 weeks, it had sold 47,114 copies. Shota released his 3rd single "My Treasure" on October 22, 2008. It ranked at #15 and sold 9,540 units in its first week. After 5 weeks, it had sold 15,365 copies.
He released his debut album titled Umbrella
, on November 26, 2008 in Japan. The album ranked at #2 and sold 56,442 units in its first week. After 8 weeks, it has sold an impressive 115,863 copies. In March 2009, Shota Shimizu began his first headlining tour, Umbrella Tour 2009. The tickets sold out in one day.
Soundtrack.
The single sold a total of 11,144 copies so far.
on the single "One Love", which was released on July 18, 2007. He also collaborated with Miliyah Kato on the song "I'm Your Angel" on the album Tribute to Celine Dion, which was released on September 26, 2007. Shimizu collaborated with Miliyah Kato again in 2009 on her "Love Forever
" single (which was also released onto Miliyah Kato's album, Ring
), which was released on May 13, 2009. "Love Forever" has been a huge hit in Japan, and its ringtone has sold over two million downloads. These Japanese singers/songwriters are both twenty years old and love soul music, but still maintain very different music styles. On September 16, 2009, M-flo released a tribute album named Tribute: Maison de M-Flo
and Shimizu covered the song "let go".He then released a song,Loving You,in a compilation album named [BEAT CONNECTION] with Crystal Kay,Seamo,Mummy-D and Dohzi-T on October 27,2010.
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...
from Yao
Yao, Osaka
is a city in Osaka, Japan.As of 2009, the city has an estimated population of 271,454 and the density of 6,510 persons per km². The total area is 41.71 km².Yao is home to a general aviation airport, Yao Airport.The city was founded on April 1, 1948....
, Osaka Prefecture
Osaka Prefecture
is a prefecture located in the Kansai region on Honshū, the main island of Japan. The capital is the city of Osaka. It is the center of Osaka-Kobe-Kyoto area.- History :...
, Japan
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...
, who made his debut in 2008. On June 1, 2008, Shimizu performed at Central Park
Central Park
Central Park is a public park in the center of Manhattan in New York City, United States. The park initially opened in 1857, on of city-owned land. In 1858, Frederick Law Olmsted and Calvert Vaux won a design competition to improve and expand the park with a plan they entitled the Greensward Plan...
during the annual Japan Day Festival. Shota Shimizu went to a local Christian school in Osaka where he learned how to sing gospel music
Gospel music
Gospel music is music that is written to express either personal, spiritual or a communal belief regarding Christian life, as well as to give a Christian alternative to mainstream secular music....
. He became captivated with soul music
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...
, which is how his music career started. He was inspired by Donny Hathaway
Donny Hathaway
Donny Edward Hathaway was an American soul singer-songwriter and musician. Hathaway contracted with Atlantic Records in 1969 and with his first single for the Atco label, "The Ghetto, Part I" in early 1970, Rolling Stone magazine "marked him as a major new force in soul music."His collaborations...
, Marvin Gaye
Marvin Gaye
Marvin Pentz Gay, Jr. , better known by his stage name Marvin Gaye, was an American singer-songwriter and musician with a three-octave vocal range....
, and Ray Charles
Ray Charles
Ray Charles Robinson , known by his shortened stage name Ray Charles, was an American musician. He was a pioneer in the genre of soul music during the 1950s by fusing rhythm and blues, gospel, and blues styles into his early recordings with Atlantic Records...
.
Before his debut, in November 2007, Shota sang in English on amateur night at the Apollo Theater
Apollo Theater
The Apollo Theater in New York City is one of the most famous, and older, music halls in the United States, and the most famous club associated almost exclusively with Black performers...
. He was called a one in a million soul singer by a local newspaper in New York. The second time he performed at the Apollo Theater was November 19, 2008. He sang the song "Sukiyaki
Sukiyaki (song)
The cover version by A Taste of Honey reached number three on the U.S. Billboard Hot 100 chart. It also went to number 1 on Billboard's Adult Contemporary chart and Soul chart)....
" by Kyu Sakamoto
Kyu Sakamoto
was a Japanese singer and actor, best known outside of Japan for his international hit song "Sukiyaki", which was sung in Japanese and sold over 13 million copies...
in Japanese, where he was given a standing ovation from an audience of fifteen hundred people. He said he sang it because he wanted to show his Japanese pride and demonstrate the beauty of the Japanese language.
Umbrella (2008)
Shimizu's first single, entitled "Home", was released on February 20, 2008, and he appeared on Music StationMusic Station
is a Japanese music television program. It began broadcasting on October 24, 1986 and continues to be broadcast weekly in High-definition from 8PM-9PM on tv asahi...
two days after the single's release to promote it. "Home" peaked at ranked at #5 and sold 27,820 units in its first week. After 17 weeks, it had sold 125,735 copies. His second single, , was released on June 4, 2008 in Japan. It ranked at #4 and sold 22,778 units in its first week. After 12 weeks, it had sold 47,114 copies. Shota released his 3rd single "My Treasure" on October 22, 2008. It ranked at #15 and sold 9,540 units in its first week. After 5 weeks, it had sold 15,365 copies.
He released his debut album titled Umbrella
Umbrella (Shota Shimizu album)
Umbrella is the debut album by Japanese R&B singer Shota Shimizu, released on November 26, 2008 in Japan. The album ranked at #2 and sold 56,442 units in its first week...
, on November 26, 2008 in Japan. The album ranked at #2 and sold 56,442 units in its first week. After 8 weeks, it has sold an impressive 115,863 copies. In March 2009, Shota Shimizu began his first headlining tour, Umbrella Tour 2009. The tickets sold out in one day.
After Umbrella (2009)
Shota released his 4th single titled "Utsukushii Hibi yo" / "Sayonara wa Itsumo Sobani" on July 15, 2009 in Japan. It debuted at #14 & sold 8,576 copies in the first week. The track "Kaze no Youni" from this single was inspired by the song "Kaze no Dōkei" from the Chrono TriggerChrono Trigger
is a role-playing video game developed and published by Square for the Super Nintendo Entertainment System in 1995. Chrono Triggers development team included three designers that Square dubbed the "Dream Team": Hironobu Sakaguchi, the creator of Square's Final Fantasy series; Yuji Horii, a...
Soundtrack.
The single sold a total of 11,144 copies so far.
Collaborations
Shimizu worked with Dohzi-TDohzi-T
, real name , is a Japanese rapper, who has been active since 1989.-Biography:Dohzi-T belonged to hip hop band "Zingi", formed in 1990. He debuted as a solo singer with the single "Shōnen A" on October 10, 2001. He associated with popular singers such as Shota Shimizu, Miliyah Kato and Hiromi Go...
on the single "One Love", which was released on July 18, 2007. He also collaborated with Miliyah Kato on the song "I'm Your Angel" on the album Tribute to Celine Dion, which was released on September 26, 2007. Shimizu collaborated with Miliyah Kato again in 2009 on her "Love Forever
Love Forever
"Love Forever" is Miliyah Kato's 15th single, released on May 13, 2009. It is a collaboration between fellow R&B/J-Pop singer Shota Shimizu, with whom Kato has previously collaborated with on the song "I'm Your Angel" from the album Tribute to Celine Dion....
" single (which was also released onto Miliyah Kato's album, Ring
Ring (Miliyah Kato album)
Ring is Miliyah Kato's fourth studio album. It was released on July 8, 2009. It contains singles, Sayonara Baby, 20: Cry, and her most successful single to date Love Forever...
), which was released on May 13, 2009. "Love Forever" has been a huge hit in Japan, and its ringtone has sold over two million downloads. These Japanese singers/songwriters are both twenty years old and love soul music, but still maintain very different music styles. On September 16, 2009, M-flo released a tribute album named Tribute: Maison de M-Flo
Tribute: Maison de m-flo
Tribute: Maison de M-Flo is a tribute album to M-Flo released by Rhythm Zone on September 16, 2009. The songs are newly remixed or have a new arrangement and each song is covered by a different artist.-CD tracklisting:# Miss You / May J. & Jonte...
and Shimizu covered the song "let go".He then released a song,Loving You,in a compilation album named [BEAT CONNECTION] with Crystal Kay,Seamo,Mummy-D and Dohzi-T on October 27,2010.
Singles
| # | Information | Weekly Singles Charts |
Sales (Japan) | Album |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Debut Single | Home
|
5 | 128,000 | Umbrella |
| 2nd Single | Aishiteru
|
4 | 47,000 | |
| 3rd Single | My Treasure
|
15 | 15,000 | |
| 4th Single | Utsukushii Hibi yo / Sayonara wa Itsumo Sobani
|
14 | 13,000 | Journey |
| 5th Single | Kimi ga suki
|
8 | 19,000 | |
| 6th Single | Goodbye
|
10 | 14,000 | Colors |
| 7th Single | Kimi ga Kurasu Machi
|
12 | 9,000 | |
| 8th Single | You & I
|
14 | 11,000 | |
| 9th Single | Love
|
16 | 7,000 | |
Albums
| # | Information | Weekly Albums Charts |
Sales |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1st Album | Umbrella Umbrella (Shota Shimizu album) Umbrella is the debut album by Japanese R&B singer Shota Shimizu, released on November 26, 2008 in Japan. The album ranked at #2 and sold 56,442 units in its first week...
|
2 | 124,000 |
| 2nd Album | Journey Journey (Shota Shimizu album) Journey is the second album by Shimizu Shota, released on March 3, 2010. It was released in two versions: a regular edition and a limited edition including a DVD .-Track listing:CD:# Journey... |
1 | 117,000 |
| 3rd Album | Colors
|
7 | 69,000 |
Collaborations
| # | Information | Weekly Single Charts |
Sales |
|---|---|---|---|
| Single | Love Forever Love Forever "Love Forever" is Miliyah Kato's 15th single, released on May 13, 2009. It is a collaboration between fellow R&B/J-Pop singer Shota Shimizu, with whom Kato has previously collaborated with on the song "I'm Your Angel" from the album Tribute to Celine Dion....
|
5 | 90,000 |
| おやすみのキスを～Good Night My Love～
(Oyasumi no Kisu Wo～Good Night my love～)
|
19 | 14,000 | |
| Forever Love
|
4 | 60,000 | |
| Believe
|
9 | 16,000 | |