was a US

United States

The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...

 record label

Record label

In the music industry, a record label is a brand and a trademark associated with the marketing of music recordings and music videos. Most commonly, a record label is the company that manages such brands and trademarks, coordinates the production, manufacture, distribution, marketing and promotion,...

 of Sony Music Entertainment Japan

Sony Music Entertainment Japan

is Sony's music arm in Japan. SMEJ is directly owned by Sony Corporation and independent from the United States-based Sony Music Entertainment due to its strength in the Japanese music industry....

 that was launched in 2003 to distribute 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...

ese Sony artists in the United States, and that closed in 2007. Their first signed artist was T.M.Revolution

Takanori Nishikawa

is a renowned Japanese singer and actor. He performs as T.M.Revolution , which stands for although the name stems from the famous 80s pop electronic band TM Network...

, and they used the 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....

 fandom community to spread the word. T.M.Revolution's U.S. concert debut at Otakon

Otakon

Otakon is a fan convention in the United States focusing on East Asian popular culture and its fandom. The name is a portmanteau derived from convention and the Japanese word otaku...

 2003 was successful, drawing an audience of over 5,000.

Tofu Records' second signing was with L'Arc-en-Ciel. The label kicked off publicity for the group with a concert at 1st Mariner Arena

1st Mariner Arena

1st Mariner Arena is an arena located in Baltimore, Maryland. In 2003, it was renamed by 1st Mariner Bank, which purchased naming rights to the arena for 10 years. It was reported that 1st Mariner Bank will need to pay the city $75,000 for the next ten years to keep the naming rights to the complex...

 in Baltimore, Maryland during Otakon 2004. L'Arc-en-Ciel made 1st Mariner Arena history by being the first music group from Japan to headline there. The concert drew an estimated 12,000. In 2006, Tofu Records also published the Splurge

Splurge (Puffy album)

Splurge is an album by PUFFY that was released on June 28, 2006 in Japan. It was released in the US on July 25, 2006, after their East Coast Tour. The album is no longer available on the iTunes Store. The album peaked at #19 in Japan. The CD went discontinued in the U.S...

album by pop rock duo PUFFY

Puffy

Puffy can refer to one of the following:* Puffy or Puffy AmiYumi , a Japanese pop duo** Hi Hi Puffy AmiYumi, animation series about fictional adventures of Puffy AmiYumi** Puffy: P.S...

. They also represented Nami Tamaki

Nami Tamaki

is a Japanese pop singer. She has various commercial tie-ins with the anime and games industry, and has also performed in a stage musical and a movie. Her musical influences include American singers such as Britney Spears, Madonna, and Janet Jackson....

, High and Mighty Color

High and Mighty Color

High and Mighty Color was a Japanese metal band active from 2003 to 2010. They notably had two vocalists; a male and a female.- Formation and Anti-Nobunaga :...

, ZONE

Zone (band)

Zone was an all-female pop rock band started in Sapporo, Japan in 1999. Although it initially started as a dance group, they turned to an all-female band. Zone has been categorized in a new genre called "bandol"...

, Miss Monday

Miss Monday

Miss Monday is a Japanese hip-hop and R&B artist. She sings as well as raps, and has collaborated with other artists such as Sowelu, JAMOSA, and Youngshim. She began her career in 2000, releasing singles on the I.D...

, Rhymester

Rhymester (group)

is a Japanese hip hop group consisting of MCs Mummy-D and Utamaru, and DJ Jin. The group is one of the oldest Japanese hip hop acts, having formed in 1989. They debuted on an independent label in 1993 with the EP , which was panned by critics...

, Soulhead

SOULHEAD

Soulhead is a Japanese urban contemporary duo consisting of sisters and who hail from Hokkaidō.-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...

 and Polysics

Polysics

is a Japanese new wave and rock band from Tokyo, who dubs its unique style as "technicolor pogo punk". It was named after a brand of synthesizer, the Korg Polysix. The band started in 1997, but got their big break in 1998 at a concert in Tokyo...

.

In March 2007 Tofu Records is closed. Releases on Sony Music Japan now appear on Columbia

Columbia Records

Columbia Records is an American record label, owned by Japan's Sony Music Entertainment, operating under the Columbia Music Group with Aware Records. It was founded in 1888, evolving from an earlier enterprise, the American Graphophone Company — successor to the Volta Graphophone Company...

 or Epic Records

Epic Records

Epic Records is an American record label, owned by Sony Music Entertainment. Though it was originally conceived as a jazz imprint, it has since expanded to represent various genres. L.A...

through a new deal.

External links

Official site (from the original one)