is a

Japanese Japanese may refer to: * Something from or related to Japan, an island country in East Asia * Japanese language, spoken mainly in Japan * Japanese people, the ethnic group that identifies with Japan through ancestry or culture ** Japanese diaspor ...

heavy metal and

pop rock Pop rock (also typeset as pop/rock) is a fusion genre with an emphasis on professional songwriting and recording craft, and less emphasis on attitude than rock music. Originating in the late 1950s as an alternative to normal rock and roll, earl ...

singer. Since her debut in 1983, Hamada has been known as the "Heavy Metal Queen" of Japan. Throughout her career, she has released 25 singles and 23

studio albums An album is a collection of audio recordings issued on compact disc (CD), vinyl, audio tape, or another medium such as digital distribution. Albums of recorded sound were developed in the early 20th century as individual 78 rpm records co ...

Biography

Early history

Mari Hamada started singing when she joined a choir at elementary school and participated in recording TV commercial jingles while in junior high. While at Musashigaoka High School, she formed a punk rock band called "Mari Band". During her tenure at

Aoyama Gakuin University is a private Christian university in Shibuya, Tokyo, Japan. Originally established in 1874 by missionaries from the Methodist Episcopal Church, it was reconfigured in its current form in 1949 as part of Aoyama Gakuin. Aoyama Gakuin Universit ...

, Hamada was a backing vocalist for the band "Hamachan" and the lead vocalist of the all-female rock band "Misty Cats"; the latter having recorded the demo song "Misty Blue" for the various artists album ''Kichijōji Yamaha Studio Take-1 Presents: 7th One Way Contest'' in 1982.

1980s

In 1983, Hamada released her debut album '' Lunatic Doll ~ Ansatsu Keikoku'', which was produced by

Daiko Nagato is a Japanese musical producer, musical arranger, writer and composer. He's more known as a founder of music company Being Inc., which provided million seller hits during the 1990s and with his music company provided more than 80 theme songs for ...

and

Loudness In acoustics, loudness is the subjectivity, subjective perception of sound pressure. More formally, it is defined as, "That attribute of auditory sensation in terms of which sounds can be ordered on a scale extending from quiet to loud". The rel ...

drummer

Munetaka Higuchi (December 24, 1958 – November 30, 2008) was a Japanese musician and record producer. He is best known as the original drummer of the heavy metal band Loudness, but first rose to prominence as a member of Lazy in the 1970s. Career From a ...

and released by

Victor Entertainment , also known as in Japan, is a subsidiary of JVCKenwood that produces and distributes music, movies and other entertainment products such as anime and television shows in Japan. It is known as JVC Entertainment in countries where Sony Music Ent ...

under the "Invitation" label. She gained some attention when

Shigesato Itoi is a Japanese copywriter, essayist, lyricist, game designer, and actor. Itoi is the editor-in-chief of his website and company '' Hobo Nikkan Itoi Shinbun'' ("Almost Daily Itoi Newspaper"). He is best known outside Japan for his work on Nintendo' ...

wrote: . The album made her the flag bearer for Japanese female rock vocalists, which was a small and unusual market at the time. A year later, Hamada released the album ''

Misty Lady is the third studio album by Japanese singer/songwriter Mari Hamada, released on June 21, 1984 by Invitation. It is the first album to have Hamada credited as a songwriter and co-producer. The album was reissued alongside Hamada's past releases o ...

'', which began her career as a songwriter. In 1985, Hamada released '' Blue Revolution'', with the

title track A title track is a song that has the same name as the album or film in which it appears. In the Korean music industry, the term is used to describe a promoted song on an album, akin to a single, regardless of the song's title. Title track may a ...

becoming her first career single. It was also her first self-produced album. For her 1987 album ''

In the Precious Age ''In the Precious Age'' is the seventh studio album by Japanese singer/songwriter Mari Hamada, released on September 1, 1987 by Invitation. Produced by Mike Clink, it is Hamada's first album to be recorded outside Japan. It features collaborations ...

'', Hamada flew to

Los Angeles Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the largest city in the state of California and the second most populous city in the United States after New York City, as well as one of the world' ...

to work with producer

Mike Clink Mike Clink is an American record producer. He began his career as an engineer at Record Plant Studios, recording such bands as Whitesnake, Triumph, Guns N' Roses, Mötley Crüe, Megadeth, UFO (including ''Strangers in the Night''), Jefferson ...

and record with artists such as Toto's

Mike Porcaro Michael Joseph Porcaro (May 29, 1955 – March 15, 2015) was an American bass player known for his work with the rock band Toto. He retired from touring in 2007 as a result of being diagnosed with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS). He was ...

and

Jeff Porcaro Jeffrey Thomas Porcaro (; April 1, 1954 – August 5, 1992) was an American drummer, songwriter, and record producer. He is best known for his work with the rock band Toto but is one of the most recorded session musicians in history, working on ...

. From that point on, she changed her musical style to a more mainstream

sound. In 1988, Hamada released the song " Heart and Soul", which was used by

NHK , also known as NHK, is a Japanese public broadcaster. NHK, which has always been known by this romanized initialism in Japanese, is a statutory corporation funded by viewers' payments of a television license fee. NHK operates two terrestr ...

on their coverage of the

1988 Summer Olympics The 1988 Summer Olympics (), officially known as the Games of the XXIV Olympiad () and commonly known as Seoul 1988 ( ko, 서울 1988, Seoul Cheon gubaek palsip-pal), was an international multi-sport event held from 17 September to 2 October ...

Seoul Seoul (; ; ), officially known as the Seoul Special City, is the capital and largest metropolis of South Korea.Before 1972, Seoul was the ''de jure'' capital of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (North Korea) as stated iArticle 103 ...

. The song peaked at No. 7 on

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 ...

's singles chart. Hamada was invited to perform on the 39th ''

Kōhaku Uta Gassen , more commonly known simply as ''Kōhaku'', is an annual New Year's Eve television special produced by Japanese public broadcaster NHK. It is broadcast live simultaneously on television and radio, nationally and internationally by the NHK net ...

'', but she declined the offer. In 1989, Hamada's ninth album ''

Return to Myself is the ninth studio album by Japanese singer/songwriter Mari Hamada, released on June 7, 1989 by Invitation. It is Hamada's second album to be produced by Greg Edward, and it features contributions by Chicago members Bill Champlin and Jason Sche ...

'' topped Oricon's albums chart and went Platinum. In addition, the title track " Return to Myself ~Shinai, Shinai, Natsu." hit No. 1 on Oricon's singles chart.

1990s

Hamada's 1990 album ''

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 ...

'' reached No. 2 and was certified Gold. A year later, she switched labels to MCA Victor, with '' Tomorrow'' also peaking at No. 2, but going Platinum. Hamada's 10th anniversary album '' Anti-Heroine'' topped the albums chart in 1993. That year, she participated in the charity group "Used to Be a Child", concept similar to Band Aid where performers donate earnings from a single to charitable causes; in this case the money went to Imabari City's Islet Organization. Hamada also went global with the international release '' Introducing... Mari Hamada'', which consists of original English-language songs and some of her hits reworked in English. The album was released in Asia on May 30, 1993. She made her European debut in 1994 with a re-arranged version of the album and participated at that year's

Midem Midem is the acronym for Marché International du Disque et de l'Édition Musicale, which is organised annually in and around the Palais des Festivals et des Congrès in Cannes, France. The trade show, organized by Reed MIDEM, a subsidiary of Re ...

in France. Hamada also released the follow-up album ''

All My Heart ''All My Heart'' is the second international release by Japanese singer/songwriter Mari Hamada, released on August 4, 1994, in Asia by MCA Records. The album includes a duet version of "Fixing a Broken Heart" with Indecent Obsession. Some of the E ...

'' in Asian markets that year. The album features "

Fixing a Broken Heart "Fixing a Broken Heart" is a song by the Australian pop group Indecent Obsession. It was the first single released from their third studio album, '' Relativity'' (1993). Two versions of the song exist: one solely by the band and the other a duet ...

", a duet with Australian band Indecent Obsession. In 1996, Hamada's album ''

Persona A persona (plural personae or personas), depending on the context, is the public image of one's personality, the social role that one adopts, or simply a fictional Character (arts), character. The word derives from Latin, where it originally ref ...

'' hit No. 2 on Oricon's albums chart. During this time, she put her touring activities on hold to focus on songwriting and recording. Two years later,

Universal Music Japan , often referred to as just Universal Music Japan or UMJ, is a Japanese subsidiary of the Universal Music Group founded in 1990. It is the largest subsidiary for a foreign company in the country regarding music distribution. The company is resp ...

transferred her to the

Polydor Polydor Records Ltd. is a German-British record label that operates as part of Universal Music Group. It has a close relationship with Universal's Interscope Geffen A&M Records label, which distributes Polydor's releases in the United States. ...

label. Her two albums under the label, ''

Philosophia ''Philosophia: Philosophical Quarterly of Israel'' is a peer-reviewed academic journal covering philosophy from different traditions that was established in 1971. The journal publishes five issues per year, and it is published by Springer Nat ...

'' and '' Blanche'', failed to crack the top-10.

2000s

In 2002, Hamada signed with

Tokuma Japan Communications is a publisher in Japan, headquartered in Shinagawa, Tokyo. The company was established in 1954 by Yasuyoshi Tokuma in Minato, Tokyo. The company’s product portfolio includes music publishing, video game publishing, movies, anime, magazines, m ...

and released '' Marigold''. She also resumed live touring that year when she performed at the Akasaka Blitz just before it was completely demolished and rebuilt. Since then, Hamada would release a new album and tour every two years. Her album sales, however, were not of the same level as the decade before, with each album barely hovering within the Top 100.

2010s

In 2010, Hamada returned to her heavy metal roots with '' Aestetica'', which received heavy airplay. The album sparked a resurgence in her career, reaching No. 35 on Oricon's albums chart. Her live video '' Mari Hamada Live in Tokyo "Aestetica"'', which was filmed at the

Nakano Sun Plaza , formerly Nakano Sun Plaza, is a hotel in Nakano, Tokyo. The hotel includes a concert hall, the Nakano Sunplaza Hall (formerly Nakano Sun Plaza Hall). Built in 1973,

, peaked at No. 2 on Oricon's DVD chart. Hamada followed up the success with her 2012 album '' Legenda''. Hamada kicked off her 30th anniversary celebration in 2013 with the compilation album '' Inclination III'' and an extensive national tour. In 2014, she released the boxed set '' Mari Hamada Complete Single Collection''. At the same time, her former and current labels reissued her past albums in Super High Material CD (SHM-CD) format. In April, Hamada performed an extended concert in Tokyo, which was filmed for WOWOW. The concert was aired on Japanese television on July 20, 2014, including two interviews with Mari, and was released on DVD and Blu-ray in January 2015. On August 16, Hamada performed live at the

Summer Sonic Festival The , also known as Supersonic, is an annual two- or three-day rock festival held at the same time in Osaka and Chiba, Japan. The majority of the bands playing in Osaka the first day go to Chiba the following day and vice versa. The line-up cont ...

, an annual two-day rock festival held at two venues simultaneously with bands switching venues for the second day. On August 31, September 3 and 7, 2014, she performed concerts with a symphony orchestra titled "Rock Queen Orchestra". On October 11, 2015, Hamada performed live at the Loud Park Festival, with Loudness guitarist

Akira Takasaki is a Japanese musician. He is best known as the lead guitarist and sole constant member of the heavy metal band Loudness. He is also the guitarist of the band Lazy, with which he first rose to prominence in the 1970s. Career He started his ...

as a special guest. On January 13, 2016, Hamada released the album ''

Mission Mission (from Latin ''missio'' "the act of sending out") may refer to: Organised activities Religion *Christian mission, an organized effort to spread Christianity *Mission (LDS Church), an administrative area of The Church of Jesus Christ of ...

'', which peaked at No. 11 on Oricon's albums chart. The last show of the ''Mission'' tour was filmed and released on DVD and Blu-ray as '' Mari Hamada Live Tour 2016 "Mission"'' on February 22, 2017. To celebrate her 35th anniversary, Hamada returned to Victor Entertainment in April 2018. She released '' Gracia'' on August 1; the album went all the way to No. 6 on Oricon's albums chart, becoming her first top-10 album since ''Persona''. A year later, she released the compilation album '' Light for the Ages -35th Anniversary Best～Fan's Selection-''. She also performed at the

Nippon Budokan The , often shortened to simply Budokan, is an indoor arena located in Chiyoda, Tokyo, Japan. It was originally built for the inaugural Olympic judo competition in the 1964 Summer Olympics. While its primary purpose is to host martial arts con ...

for the first time in 25 years on April 19. The concert was released on DVD and Blu-ray as '' Mari Hamada 35th Anniversary Live "Gracia" at Budokan'' on December 18.

2020s

In 2020, Hamada became the first Japanese vocalist to win the reader's popularity vote on ''

Burrn! is a monthly Japanese magazine for fans of heavy metal music, published since September 1984. It is the major publication on heavy metal music in the country. As of 2013, it is published by Shinko Music Entertainment in Tokyo. The magazine's c ...

'' magazine's 36th Heavy Metal Championship for 2019.

Personal life

Hamada's younger sister tours with her band as a backing vocalist. In a 2014 interview with Japanese media website

Natalie Natalie may refer to: People * Natalie (given name) * Natalie (singer) (born 1979), Mexican-American R&B singer/songwriter * Shahan Natalie (1884–1983), Armenian writer and principal organizer of Operation Nemesis Music Albums * ''Nata ...

, Hamada stated that she does not do

Twitter Twitter is an online social media and social networking service owned and operated by American company Twitter, Inc., on which users post and interact with 280-character-long messages known as "tweets". Registered users can post, like, and ...

or blogs because she is not good at using social media. She did, however, open her official Twitter account in February 2017. She also does not follow other artists and prefers to listen to anything different from her genre, such as

Celtic music Celtic music is a broad grouping of music genres that evolved out of the folk music traditions of the Celtic people of Northwestern Europe. It refers to both orally-transmitted traditional music and recorded music and the styles vary considerab ...

or world music.

Band personnel

Current members

* Takashi Masuzaki (Dimension) – guitar (1987–present) * ISAO – guitar (2018–present) * BOH – bass (2018–present) * Hideki Harasawa – drums (2018–present) * Takanobu Masuda – keyboards (1985–1992; 2002–present) * Masafumi Nakao – keyboards, sound effects (1991–present) * ERI (Eri Hamada) – backing vocals (1985–present)

Former members

* Katsuya Satō – guitar (1983–1987) * Fumio Kaneko – guitar (1983–1986) * Hiro Sugihara – guitar (1983) * Kenji Kitajima (Fence of Defense) – guitar (1984) *

Tak Matsumoto is a Japanese musician, songwriter and record producer. He is best known as the guitarist and main composer of the Rock music, rock duo B'z, the List of best-selling music artists in Japan, best-selling music act in their native Japan. He also ...

( B'z) – guitar (1986, 1988) * Kazuo Shimizu – guitar (1988–1991) * Junichi Kawauchi – guitar (1993) * Yōichi Fujii – guitar (2007–2016) * Nozomi Wakai – guitar (2016) * Kinta Moriyama (5X) – bass (1983) * Toshimi Nagai – bass (1993) * Tony Franklin – bass (1994) * Tomonori "You" Yamada – bass (1983–1992; 2002–2016) * Jun Harada (5X) – drums (1983) * Haruki Niekawa – drums (1983–1986) * Noriyuki Okada – drums (1986–1991) * Hirotsugu Homma (

Anthem An anthem is a musical composition of celebration, usually used as a symbol for a distinct group, particularly the national anthems of countries. Originally, and in music theory and religious contexts, it also refers more particularly to short ...

) – drums (1991–2007) * Tony Thompson – drums (1994) * Satoshi "Joe" Miyawaki (

44MAGNUM 44 Magnum (stylized as 44MAGNUM) are a Japanese heavy metal music, heavy metal band, originally formed in Osaka Prefecture in mid-1977. They were one of the first Japanese metal bands. History 44 Magnum was originally formed in 1977 by vocalist ...

/ZIGGY) – drums (2008–2016) * Takayoshi Kobayashi – keyboards (1984–1986) * Kazuhiro Hara – keyboards (1988–1990) *

Paul Mirkovich Paul Mirkovich (born March 20, 1963) is an American musician from Los Angeles. He has been the band leader, keyboardist and duet singing partner for Cher for the last 16 years. He has also been the band director for Janet Jackson and Anastacia an ...

– keyboards (1994) * Mai – backing vocals (1983–1984) * A-mi (Eiko Kamata) – backing vocals (1991–1993)

Discography

* ''

Lunatic Doll is the debut album by Japanese singer Mari Hamada, released on April 21, 1983 by Invitation. Co-produced by Loudness drummer Munetaka Higuchi, the album was given the tag line: by Shigesato Itoi. The songs were written and arranged by the Munet ...

'' (1983) * '' Romantic Night'' (1983) * ''

'' (1984) * '' Rainbow Dream'' (1985) * '' Blue Revolution'' (1985) * '' Promise in the History'' (1986) * ''

'' (1987) * ''

Love Never Turns Against ''Love Never Turns Against'' is the eighth studio album by Japanese singer/songwriter Mari Hamada, released on June 21, 1988 by Invitation. Produced by Greg Edward, it is Hamada's second album to be recorded in the U.S. It began Hamada's transitio ...

'' (1988) * ''

'' (1989) * ''

'' (1990) * '' Tomorrow'' (1991) * '' Anti-Heroine'' (1993) * ''

'' (1996) * ''

'' (1998) * '' Blanche'' (2000) * '' Marigold'' (2002) * ''

Sense of Self In the psychology of self, one's self-concept (also called self-construction, self-identity, self-perspective or self-structure) is a collection of beliefs about oneself. Generally, self-concept embodies the answer to the question ''"Who am I? ...

'' (2003) * '' Elan'' (2005) * '' Sur lie'' (2007) * '' Aestetica'' (2010) * '' Legenda'' (2012) * ''

'' (2016) * '' Gracia'' (2018)

References

External links

* * (Victor Entertainment) * (Tokuma Japan Communications) * (Tri-M Records) * (Universal Music Japan)
Mari Family – official fan club
* *
Mari Hamada
at

Mari Hamada on Idollica
{{DEFAULTSORT:Hamada, Mari 1962 births Living people 20th-century Japanese women singers 21st-century Japanese women singers Singers from Tokyo Japanese women heavy metal singers Japanese women singer-songwriters English-language singers from Japan MCA Records artists Tokuma Japan Communications artists Universal Music Japan artists Victor Entertainment artists