Flow (styled as FLOW) is a Japanese

rock Rock most often refers to: * Rock (geology), a naturally occurring solid aggregate of minerals or mineraloids * Rock music, a genre of popular music Rock or Rocks may also refer to: Places United Kingdom * Rock, Caerphilly, a location in Wales ...

band formed in 1998 as a five-piece band made up of two vocalists, a drummer, a bassist, and a guitarist. They are signed to

Sacra Music Sacra Music (stylized as SACRA MUSIC) is a Japanese record label subsidiary of Sony Music Entertainment Japan. The record label was established on April 1, 2017, specializing in anison music. On September 25, 2021, SACRA MUSIC started an official ...

. As of November 2022, the band has released 39 singles, 2 collaboration singles with

Granrodeo Granrodeo (stylized as GRANRODEO) is a Japanese rock band, specializing in creating anime soundtracks. Career In 2005 voice actor Kishō Taniyama ("Kishow") and musician Masaaki Iizuka ("E-Zuka"), known for his collaborations in creating anim ...

, 1 collaboration single with

Orange Range are a 5-member Japanese rock band, based in Okinawa, Japan. Formed in 2001, the band began with Spice Music and later signed with Sony Music Japan's gr8! records division in 2003. The band left gr8! records in 2010 to start their own label, S ...

, and 11 studio albums. Their songs have been featured in the opening sequences of several

anime is Traditional animation, hand-drawn and computer animation, computer-generated animation originating from Japan. Outside of Japan and in English, ''anime'' refers specifically to animation produced in Japan. However, in Japan and in Japane ...

and Japanese drama series.

History

The group began in 1993 when brothers Kōshi (elder: vocals, rhythm guitar) and Take (younger: lead guitar) began playing together. They formed Flow in 1998, and by 2000, were joined by Keigo (vocals), Gotō (bass) and Iwasaki (drums). In 2001, the band released its first

maxi single A maxi single or maxi-single (sometimes abbreviated to MCD or CDM) is a music single release with more than the usual two tracks of an A-side song and a B-side song. The first maxi singles Mungo Jerry's first single, " In the Summertime" was t ...

, ''Flow #0''. In 2002, the group released two mini-albums within the same year, followed by "Okuru Kotoba", Flow's first

cover Cover or covers may refer to: Packaging * Another name for a lid * Cover (philately), generic term for envelope or package * Album cover, the front of the packaging * Book cover or magazine cover ** Book design ** Back cover copy, part of co ...

single, released in January 2003, which remained on the

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 and Western music. It started as, which was founded by Sōkō Koike in Nov ...

indie chart for seven consecutive weeks and also hit No. 6 on the overall singles chart. In the spring of that year, their first full-scale album '' Splash!!!'' debuted at No. 2 on the Oricon album chart. In July 2003, Flow released the single " Blaster" on the major label

Ki/oon Records is a Japanese record label, a subsidiary of Sony Music Entertainment Japan. Artists Their artists include L'Arc-en-Ciel, Asian Kung-Fu Generation, Home Made Kazoku, Puffy AmiYumi, Polysics, Supercar, Pushim, Chatmonchy, Denki Groove, Tomoe ...

. In April 2004, they released " GO!!!", which stayed on the Oricon Top 10 Chart for three weeks. In May 2004, Flow released their first major label album ''

Game A game is a structured form of play (activity), play, usually undertaken for enjoyment, entertainment or fun, and sometimes used as an educational tool. Many games are also considered to be work (such as professional players of spectator s ...

''. A string of singles followed and in July 2005 the band released its third album, '' Golden Coast''. Since the release of ''Golden Coast'', Flow has released two singles with new A-sides, but one of these '' Around The World / Kandata'' was a double A-side release. The songs " GO!!!" and " Re:member" both served as opening themes to the anime series ''

Naruto ''Naruto'' is a Japanese manga series written and illustrated by Masashi Kishimoto. It tells the story of Naruto Uzumaki, a young ninja who seeks recognition from his peers and dreams of becoming the Hokage, the leader of his village. T ...

'', as well as " Sign" for ''

Naruto Shippuden ''Naruto'' is a Japanese manga series written and illustrated by Masashi Kishimoto. It tells the story of Naruto Uzumaki, a young ninja who seeks recognition from his peers and dreams of becoming the Hokage, the leader of his village. T ...

''. "

Days A day is the time period of a full rotation of the Earth with respect to the Sun. On average, this is 24 hours, 1440 minutes, or 86,400 seconds. In everyday life, the word "day" often refers to a solar day, which is the length between two s ...

" was the first opening for

Bones A bone is a rigid organ that constitutes part of the skeleton in most vertebrate animals. Bones protect the various other organs of the body, produce red and white blood cells, store minerals, provide structure and support for the body, a ...

' ''

Eureka Seven ''Eureka Seven'', known in Japan as , is a 2005 Japanese anime series created by Bones. The series was directed by Tomoki Kyoda, with series composition by Dai Satō, character designs by Kenichi Yoshida and music by Naoki Satō. ...

'' anime, and "Realize" was the opening for the

PlayStation 2 The PlayStation 2 (PS2) is a home video game console developed and marketed by Sony Computer Entertainment. It was first released in Japan on 4 March 2000, in North America on 26 October 2000, in Europe on 24 November 2000, and in Australia on 3 ...

video games based on the same series. Flow performed live in America for the first time in Dallas, Texas on September 2, 2006 at AnimeFest which was held at the

Hyatt Hotel Hyatt Hotels Corporation, commonly known as Hyatt Hotels & Resorts, is an American multinational hospitality company headquartered in the Riverside Plaza area of Chicago that manages and franchises luxury and business hotels, resorts, and vacat ...

and Convention Center in downtown Dallas. Flow then released "

Colors Color (American English) or colour (British English) is the visual perceptual property deriving from the spectrum of light interacting with the photoreceptor cells of the eyes. Color categories and physical specifications of color are associa ...

" in 2006, the first opening for

Sunrise Sunrise (or sunup) is the moment when the upper rim of the Sun appears on the horizon in the morning. The term can also refer to the entire process of the solar disk crossing the horizon and its accompanying atmospheric effects. Terminology A ...

's original series, '' Code Geass: Lelouch of the Rebellion''. Their song "

Answer Answer commonly refers to response to a question. Answer may also refer to: * Answer (law), any reply to a question, counter-statement or defense in a legal procedure Music * Answer, an element of a fugue Albums * ''Answer'' (Angela Aki alb ...

" was the first opening theme for the live action Japanese drama ''

Detective School Q is a Japanese manga series, written by Seimaru Amagi and illustrated by Fumiya Satō (the creators of ''Kindaichi Case Files''), originally serialized in Kodansha's ''Weekly Shōnen Magazine'' between June 2001 and August 2005, with its cha ...

''. They performed "

Night Parade ''Night Parade'' is a 1929 American Pre-Code Hollywood, pre-Code drama film directed by Malcolm St. Clair (filmmaker), Malcolm St. Clair based on the play ''Ringside'' by Hyatt Daab, Edward Paramore, Jr. and George Abbott. Released by RKO Pictu ...

" with the hip-hop band

Home Made Kazoku was a Japanese hip-hop trio from Nagoya, formed in 1996, and whose hiatus started in 2016. They are signed to Ki/oon Records, a subsidiary of Sony Music. Biography Home Made Kazoku is a trio, consisting of members Micro, Kuro, and DJ U-Ichi. ...

. In February 2008, they released a new single titled " Arigatō", followed by ''

Persona -trinity soul- ''Persona: Trinity Soul'' is a Japanese anime television series. It is a spin-off of the PlayStation 2 game ''Persona 3'', taking place ten years after the game's events. Produced by Aniplex and animated by its subsidiary A-1 Pictures, the ser ...

''s new opening, "

Word of the Voice ''WORD OF THE VOICE'' is FLOW's fifteenth single. Its A-Side was used as the second opening theme song for Persona -trinity soul-. It reached #15 on the Oricon , established in 1999, is the holding company at the head of a Japanese corporat ...

" in June 2008. They performed '' Code Geass: Lelouch of the Rebellion R2s second opening theme " World End" released in 2008. In 2009, the band performed "Sign", the sixth opening for ''

''. The band released a B-side compilation album on November 4, 2009. Their single " Calling" was featured as the ending for the anime ''

Heroman ''Heroman'' (stylized as ''HEROMAN'') is a Japanese manga and anime series created by Marvel's Stan Lee and Bones. The manga was published in Square Enix's magazine '' Monthly Shōnen Gangan'' from August 2009 to October 2011, with its chapte ...

''. Flow returned to North America to perform at

Anime Central Anime Central (ACen) is an annual three-day anime convention held during May at the Hyatt Regency O'Hare & Donald E. Stephens Convention Center in Rosemont, Illinois. The convention is organized by the Midwest Animation Promotion Society (MAPS) ...

, in Rosemont, Illinois on May 20, 2011, and

FanimeCon FanimeCon is an annual four-day anime convention held during May at the San Jose McEnery Convention Center in San Jose, California over Memorial Day weekend. Programming The convention typically offers an AMV contest, artist's alley, contest ...

in San Jose, California on May 28, 2010 and in May 2011. Their song " Hey!!!" was the third opening theme for the anime ''

Beelzebub Beelzebub ( ; he, ''Baʿal-zəḇūḇ'') or Beelzebul is a name derived from a Philistine god, formerly worshipped in Ekron, and later adopted by some Abrahamic religions as a major demon. The name ''Beelzebub'' is associated with the Can ...

'', and the song " Brave Blue" was used as the second opening theme for the anime ''

Eureka Seven AO ''Eureka Seven'', known in Japan as , is a 2005 Japanese anime series created by Bones. The series was directed by Tomoki Kyoda, with series composition by Dai Satō, character designs by Kenichi Yoshida and music by Naoki Satō. ''E ...

''. In 2012, they performed in France for the first time at

Japan Expo Japan Expo is a convention on Japanese popular culture - the largest of its kind in the world - taking place in Paris, France, although it has branched out into a partnership festival - Kultima - and expanded to include some European and US pop c ...

. They provided a cover of " Cha-La Head-Cha-La" as the main theme song for the film '' Dragon Ball Z: Battle of Gods''; the song, coupled with an insert song from the film, was released as a double A-side single on March 20, 2013, and subsequently would be featured as the opening theme for '' Dragon Ball'' video games such as '' Dragon Ball Z: Battle of Z'' and ''

Dragon Ball XenoVerse ''Dragon Ball Xenoverse'' is an action role-playing fighting game based on the ''Dragon Ball'' franchise developed by Dimps and published by Bandai Namco Games. It was released in February 2015 for PlayStation 3, PlayStation 4, Xbox 360, Xbox ...

''. Flow released their eighth studio album '' Flow The Max!!!'' on March 27, 2013. Flow went to Brazil for the first time to perform at Ressacca Friends in 2013. Their single " Ai Ai Ai ni Utarete Bye Bye Bye" released on February 26, 2014 was used as the second opening to the anime ''

Samurai Flamenco is an anime television series conceptualized by Manglobe and produced by Aniplex, Fuji TV, Kyoraku Industrial Holdings, Dentsu, Hobibox, Movic and DeNA. It is directed by Takahiro Omori, with Hideyuki Kurata handling series scripts, Chinatsu ...

''. Flow returned to Brazil in the summer of 2014 to perform at

Anime Friends Anime Friends is a South American annual anime convention An anime convention is an event or gathering with a primary focus on anime, manga and Japanese culture. Commonly, anime conventions are multi-day events hosted at convention centers, ho ...

in Sao Paulo and at SuperCon in Recife. They returned to perform at AnimeFest after 8 years in August 2014 at the

Sheraton Dallas Hotel The Sheraton Dallas Hotel, formerly the Adam's Mark Hotel and originally the Southland Center, is a complex of International Style skyscrapers located in the City Center District of downtown Dallas, Texas. The hotel is the largest and second ta ...

. Their single, "7 -seven-", was a collaboration with the band

and was featured as the ending theme to the anime ''

The Seven Deadly Sins The seven deadly sins is a classification of vices used in Christian teachings. Seven deadly sins may also refer to: Art * ''The Seven Deadly Sins and the Four Last Things'', a 1485 painting by Hieronymus Bosch * '' The Seven Deadly Sins of Moder ...

''. Flow released their second anime best album compilation ''Flow Anime Best Kiwami'' on February 25, 2015. Flow's first-ever world tour, ''Flow World Tour 2015 Kiwami'', saw them performing five times in Japan and fourteen times in seven other countries. Their first digital single, , was released on March 21, 2015 and was used as the image song for the ''Naruto'' stage play ''Live Spectacle Naruto''. Their single was used as the 34th ending theme of ''Naruto Shippuden''. Their single "Steppin' out" was used as the opening theme of '' Durarara!!x2: Ketsu''. Flow's single / Burn" was released on August 24, 2016; the songs are used as the opening themes of ''

Tales of Zestiria the X is a Japanese anime television series based on both ''Tales of Zestiria'' and ''Tales of Berseria'' video games developed by Bandai Namco Studios and tri-Crescendo, and published by Bandai Namco Entertainment. It is produced by Ufotable, direc ...

'' and ''

Tales of Berseria is an action role-playing video game developed and published by Bandai Namco Entertainment for PlayStation 3, PlayStation 4, and Microsoft Windows. It is the sixteenth main entry in the ''Tales'' series and a prequel of ''Tales of Zestiria''. ...

''. Their single "Innosense" was released on February 8, 2017; the song was used as the second ending theme of ''Tales of Zestiria the X''. The band covered "

Classic A classic is an outstanding example of a particular style; something of lasting worth or with a timeless quality; of the first or highest quality, class, or rank – something that exemplifies its class. The word can be an adjective (a ''c ...

" on the album ''Tribute of Mucc -en-'' as a tribute to the band

Mucc is a Japanese visual kei rock band, formed in Ibaraki Prefecture in 1997. The classic line up of Tatsuro on vocals, Miya on guitar, Yukke on bass, and Satochi on drums was solidified in 1999 following the departure of original bassist Hiro. A ...

released on November 22, 2017. Flow returned to North America to perform at Anime Boston on March 30, 2018. They covered " D.O.D. (Drink Or Die)" for the June 6, 2018 hide tribute album ''Tribute Impulse''. They also performed the theme song for the drama series '' Sachiiro no One Room''. Their song "Break it down" was used in the 2020 game ''Naruto x Boruto Ninja Tribes''. Flow again performed at the Nippon Budokan on January 30, 2019. They released their album ''Tribalythm'' on April 10, 2019 and their tour ''Flow Live Tour 2019: Tribalythm'' promoted the album. Flow successfully performed ''Flow Chokaigi 2020 "Anime Shibari Returns"'' at the Makuhari Messe Event Hall on February 24, 2020. They covered

's " Modern Strange Cowboy" on the album ''Granrodeo Tribute Album "Rodeo Freak"'' released on May 13, 2020. Flow's song was used for opening theme of the 2020 anime series ''

Shadowverse ''Shadowverse'' is a digital collectible card game developed and published by Cygames. It was released free-to-play for iOS and Android devices in June 2016. macOS and Windows versions were released in October 2016. ''Shadowverse'' employs an an ...

''. They held a special online concert series featuring all 11 of their albums titled ''Flow Special Online Live Comprehensive Album Series: Flame of 12 Months'' every 26 of the month, which started on September 26, 2020 and ended on August 26, 2021. The band produced for the

virtual YouTuber A , or , is an online entertainer who uses a virtual avatar generated using computer graphics. Real-time motion capture software or technology are often—but not always—used to capture movement. The digital trend originated in Japan in the mi ...

agency

Nijisanji Nijisanji (Japanese: にじさんじ) is a virtual YouTuber agency owned by AnyColor Inc. (formerly Ichikara Inc., changed 17 May 2021) The agency was founded in 2018 with the purpose of promoting the use of Live2D models and streaming as oppo ...

, which celebrated their 3rd anniversary in 2021. The song was sung by a total of 12 livers, including Akina Saegusa, Furen E Lustario, Hayato Kagami, Kaede Higuchi, Kuzuha, Rena Yorumi, Rion Takamiya, Ryushen, Saku Sasaki, Sara Hoshikawa, Shellin Burgundy, and Toya Kenmochi. Their single "United Sparrows" was used for the ending theme of the 2021 anime series ''

Back Arrow is an original Japanese anime series produced by Studio VOLN, directed by Gorō Taniguchi and written by Kazuki Nakashima. The series aired from January to June 2021. Plot The series takes place in the land of , a continent completely surroun ...

''. On August 9, 2021, they held their first in-person concert since

Covid-19 pandemic The COVID-19 pandemic, also known as the coronavirus pandemic, is an ongoing global pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The novel virus was first identif ...

titled ''Flow The Carnival 2021 ~Shinsekai~'' in Line Cube Shibuya. The single "Dice" was released on December 15, 2021 and contained three collaboration songs. "Dice" was used for the first opening theme song of the 15th anniversary rebroadcast of the 2006 anime series '' Code Geass: Lelouch of the Rebellion''. was featured in the slot machine game ''Pachislot Anemone: Eureka Seven HI-Evolution''. was a partnership between Flow and

Afterglow An afterglow in meteorology consists of several atmospheric optical phenomena, with a general definition as a broad arch of whitish or pinkish sunlight in the twilight sky, consisting of the bright segment and the purple light. Purple light mai ...

from the '' BanG Dream! Girls Band Party!'' mobile rhythm game. The two parties also collaborated for a cover of "Colors", which is a playable song in ''Girls Band Party!''; "Yūshō" was also added to the game for a limited time from December 11, 2021 to January 10, 2022. Two songs from the single "Gold" were used in "Naruto" franchise. was used as the image song for the stage play ''Live Spectacle "Naruto" ~Uzumaki Naruto Monogatari~'', while "Gold" used as the tenth opening theme song for the anime '' Boruto: Naruto Next Generation'' in January 2022. The new single titled " was a collaboration with the band

and was used for the second opening theme of 15th Anniversary re-run of '' Code Geass: Lelouch of the Rebellion R2'' anime. The single also includes a cover of Orange Range's "O2".

Members

Japan Expo 13 - FLOW - KOUSHI - 2012-0705- P1400939

;Kohshi *Position: Vocalist, Rhythm Guitarist *Real name: Kōshi Asakawa *Birthday: April 22, 1977 *Birthplace: Saitama Japan Expo 13 - FLOW - KEIGO - 2012-0705- P1400941

Japan Expo 13 - FLOW - KEIGO - 2012-0705- P1400941

;Keigo *Position: Vocalist *Real name: Keigo Hayashi *Birthday: July 1, 1977 *Birthplace:

Tokyo Tokyo (; ja, 東京, , ), officially the Tokyo Metropolis ( ja, 東京都, label=none, ), is the capital and largest city of Japan. Formerly known as Edo, its metropolitan area () is the most populous in the world, with an estimated 37.468 ...

Japan Expo 13 - FLOW - TAKE - 2012-0705- P1400937

;Take *Position: Lead Guitarist, Backing Vocalist *Real name: Takeshi Asakawa *Birthday: August 31, 1978 *Birthplace: Saitama Japan Expo 13 - FLOW - GOT'S 2012-0705- P1400940

Japan Expo 13 - FLOW - GOT'S 2012-0705- P1400940

;Got's *Position: Bassist, Backing Vocalist *Real name: Kohtaro Gotō *Birthday: January 26, 1977 *Birthplace: Niigata Japan Expo 13 - FLOW - IWASAKI - 2012-0705- P1400936

Japan Expo 13 - FLOW - IWASAKI - 2012-0705- P1400936

;Iwasaki *Position: Drummer *Real Name: Hiroshi Iwasaki *Birthday: November 21, 1969 *Birth Place:

Osaka is a designated city in the Kansai region of Honshu in Japan. It is the capital of and most populous city in Osaka Prefecture, and the third most populous city in Japan, following Special wards of Tokyo and Yokohama. With a population of 2. ...

Discography

Albums

Studio albums

Extended plays

Compilation albums

Singles

Indie singles

Digital singles

Videos

DVDs & Blu-rays

Fanclub-limited DVDs & Blu-rays

Others

Compilations

Guest appearances

Credited work

Covers

References

External links

* {{Authority control Japanese alternative rock groups Japanese indie rock groups Japanese punk rock groups Japanese rock music groups Musical quintets Sacra Music artists Anime musical groups Musical groups from Saitama Prefecture Musical groups established in 1998 Asian Wave contestants Amuse Inc. artists