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 who debuted independently in 2003 and signed with

Toshiba EMI , formerly , was one of Japan's leading music companies. It became a wholly owned subsidiary of British music company EMI Group Ltd. on June 30, 2007, after Toshiba sold off its previous 45% stake. Its CEO and president was Kazuhiko Koike. When ...

in 2005. The band's name, Radwimps, was formed from two English slang terms, " rad" and "

wimp Wimp, WIMP, or Wimps may refer to: Science and technology * Weakly interacting massive particle, a hypothetical particle of dark matter * WIMP (computing), the "window, icon, menu, pointer" paradigm * WIMP (software bundle), the web stack of Wind ...

". According to the band, the coined word had several meanings, including "excellent weakling" and "superlative coward". Radwimps achieved commercial success in 2006 with their album ''Radwimps 4: Okazu no Gohan'' and are best known for their later singles "

Order Made is a song by Japanese rock band Radwimps, released on January 23, 2008, as the leading single a year before the band's sixth album, '' Altocolony no Teiri''. The song was a commercial success, debuting at number one on Oricon's single charts, and ...

" (2008) and "

Dada Dada () or Dadaism was an art movement of the European avant-garde in the early 20th century, with early centres in Zürich, Switzerland, at the Cabaret Voltaire (in 1916). New York Dada began c. 1915, and after 1920 Dada flourished in Pari ...

" (2011), both of which hit number one 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 ...

's single charts. They have also gained recognition for providing the soundtrack to ''

Your Name is a 2016 Japanese animated romantic fantasy film produced by CoMix Wave Films. It depicts a high school boy in Tokyo and a high school girl in the Japanese countryside who suddenly and inexplicably begin to swap bodies. The film was commis ...

'', one of the highest-grossing Japanese animated films, as well as the soundtrack to 2019's ''

Weathering with You is a 2019 Japanese animated romantic fantasy film produced by CoMix Wave Films and distributed by Toho. It depicts a high school boy who runs away from his rural home to Tokyo and befriends an orphan girl who has the ability to control the w ...

'' and 2022's '' Suzume''.

History

Radwimps formed in 2001 in

Kanagawa is a prefecture of Japan located in the Kantō region of Honshu. Kanagawa Prefecture is the second-most populous prefecture of Japan at 9,221,129 (1 April 2022) and third-densest at . Its geographic area of makes it fifth-smallest. Kanagaw ...

, Japan during their first year of high school. The five original members had been friends since

middle school A middle school (also known as intermediate school, junior high school, junior secondary school, or lower secondary school) is an educational stage which exists in some countries, providing education between primary school and secondary school. ...

. Lead vocalist

Yojiro Noda , is a Japanese singer, songwriter, musician, record producer and actor. Noda is the lead vocalist, songwriter and guitarist of the Japanese rock band Radwimps and also began a solo project, Illion, in 2012. Life and career Early life, Radw ...

first became interested in music after hearing Oasis in middle school, when he would try to remember the guitar chords and sing to Oasis songs. The band's activities were initially centred on

Yokohama is the second-largest city in Japan by population and the most populous municipality of Japan. It is the capital city and the most populous city in Kanagawa Prefecture, with a 2020 population of 3.8 million. It lies on Tokyo Bay, south of T ...

, and their first performance took place on BB Street in

Kannai is a district in Naka Ward, Yokohama, Japan, bounded by the Ōoka River, JR Negishi Line, Nakamura River, and Yokohama waterfront. "Kannai" is not an official name of the area, but the common term of reference has been in use for over a centur ...

district on 5 February 2002. At this point, guitarist Akira Kuwahara dropped out of high school in order to focus on the band. In September and August 2002, Radwimps partook in the Yokohama High School Music Festival and eventually won the grand prize for the competition with the song "Moshi mo". "Moshi mo" was released as the band's debut single in May 2003, with 10,000 copies pressed and sold for 100 yen each. Following this single, Radwimps toured the Yokohama area, including a performance as the sole act at Yokohama's Club 24West. The band released their debut album, '' Radwimps'', in July through independent label Newtraxx, featuring songs they wrote in middle school. The following August, after a guest appearance at the Yokohama High School Music Festival, the band went on hiatus for Noda and other members to focus on their school exams. Radwimps returned from hiatus in March 2004, though Kei Asō, Yūsuke Saiki, and Akio Shibafumi did not rejoin the group. To replace the musicians, the band added acquaintances, such as drummer Satoshi Yamaguchi and bassist Yusuke Takeda. Radwimps immediately began recording new songs, and by July had released a second single, "Kiseki", and performed a three-month Japan-wide tour. Right after the end of the tour, the band started work on their second album, '' Radwimps 2: Hatten Tojō'', which was finalized by the end of the year and released in March. Directly after the release, the group departed on a five-month and also performed at high-profile summer music festivals, such as Setstock, Rock in Japan, and

Summer Sonic 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 co ...

. During this time, the band released a third single, "Hexun / Kanashi", which was their first charting release. In November, the band made their major debut under

, with the single "Nijūgoko-me no Senshokutai", followed by "EDP (Tonde Hi ni Iru Natsu no Kimi)" in January, both of which rose to the top 50. In shifting to a major label, Noda explained that the band took the same stance as they had as an independent group, and that "If we thought we were bigger on a major label, that would have been a big mistake". The band's third and first major-label album, '' Radwimps 3: Mujintō ni Motte Ikiwasureta Ichimai'', regraded 3 in March 2006, was a landmark in establishing their popularity, debuting at number 13 on

's album charts. ''Radwimps 3'' saw a change in the band's musical style, allowing them to be more experimental in their sound. By the end of 2006, the band's popularity had increased significantly: their album '' Radwimps 4: Okazu no Gohan'', led by the top-20 singles " Futarigoto" and " Yūshinron" and the top-5 "Setsuna Rensa", debuted at number five and had an initial shipment of more than 100,000 copies. At this time, the band's older releases, such as ''Radwimps'', ''Radwimps 2'', and "Kiseki", began charting for the first time, with ''Radwimps'' eventually being certified Gold by the

Recording Industry Association of Japan The is an industry trade group composed of Japanese corporations involved in the music industry. It was founded in 1942 as the Japan Phonogram Record Cultural Association, and adopted its current name in 1969. The RIAJ's activities include pr ...

. In the next three years, both ''Radwimps'' and ''Radwimps 2'' charted for approximately 100 weeks, and as of early 2011, ''Radwimps 3'' and ''Radwimps 4'' still continued to chart. In 2008, the band achieved their first number-one single, with "

", on the Oricon charts. Their 2009 album, '' Altocolony no Teiri'', sold around 213,000 copies in its first week, debuting at number two on the Oricon charts. The band achieved their second Oricon number-one single, "

", in 2011. In 2011, Radwimps released their sixth album, '' Zettai Zetsumei'', which debuted at number two on the Oricon charts and went on to be certified Platinum by the RIAJ. Following this release, the band embarked on their Zettai Enmei Tour throughout Japan from April to August 2011. On 11 March 2012, Radwimps released the single on YouTube, commemorating the one-year anniversary of the

2011 Tōhoku earthquake and tsunami The occurred at 14:46 JST (05:46 UTC) on 11 March. The magnitude 9.0–9.1 (M) undersea megathrust earthquake had an epicenter in the Pacific Ocean, east of the Oshika Peninsula of the Tōhoku region, and lasted approximately six mi ...

. On 24 August 2016, Radwimps released the soundtrack album , to the

anime is hand-drawn and 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 Japanese, (a term derived from a shortening of ...

film of the same name, directed by

Makoto Shinkai , known as , is a Japanese animator, filmmaker, author, and manga artist. Shinkai began his career as a video game animator with Nihon Falcom in 1996, and gained recognition as a filmmaker with the release of the original video animation (OVA) ' ...

. The film was an international success, further boosting the band's global profile and sending them to number two on the ''Billboard'' World Albums chart. The record also charted at number 16 on ''Billboard'' Heatseekers, and number 15 on ''Billboard''s Soundtrack Albums chart. In their home country of Japan, it was certified Double Platinum by the RIAJ, with over 500,000 copies sold, making it the band's best-selling album. It went on to win the Japan Record Special Award, the Japan Academy Prize for Outstanding Achievement in Music, and Soundtrack Album of the Year at the 31st Japan Gold Disc Awards. Three months after that release, Radwimps returned with their ninth studio album, ''

Human Bloom is the ninth studio album by Japanese rock band Radwimps. Released on November 23, 2016, by EMI Records, it topped the Oricon charts in Japan and was certified platinum by the RIAJ. Track listing Personnel Credits are adapted from the albu ...

''. On 19 April 2017, while in the middle of their Human Bloom Tour, Radwimps performed as a guest act for

Coldplay Coldplay are a British rock band formed in London in 1997. They consist of vocalist and pianist Chris Martin, guitarist Jonny Buckland, bassist Guy Berryman, drummer Will Champion and creative director Phil Harvey. They met at University ...

A Head Full of Dreams Tour The A Head Full of Dreams Tour was the seventh concert tour undertaken by British rock band Coldplay. It was announced on 27 November 2015 in support of their seventh studio album, ''A Head Full of Dreams'', and marked a return to live perform ...

Tokyo Dome is an indoor stadium in Bunkyo, Tokyo, Japan. It was designed as a baseball stadium following its predecessor, Korakuen Stadium. Construction on the stadium began on May 16, 1985, and it opened on March 17, 1988. It was built on the site of th ...

. In the same month, they also added Singapore to their Asian tour. On 10 May 2017, Radwimps released the single "Saihate Ai ni / Sennou". At the end of 2018, they issued their next album, '' Anti Anti Generation'', featuring

Taka The Bangladeshi taka ( bn, টাকা, sign: , code: BDT, short form: Tk) is the currency of the People's Republic of Bangladesh. In Unicode, it is encoded at . Issuance of bank notes 10 and larger is controlled by Bangladesh Bank, whil ...

One Ok Rock (stylized in all caps as ONE OK ROCK) is a Japanese rock band, formed in Tokyo, Japan, in 2005. Originally five members, the band currently consists of vocalist Takahiro Moriuchi, guitarist and bandleader Toru Yamashita, bassist Ryota Kohama, a ...

, singer-songwriter

Aimyon is a Japanese singer and songwriter. She is from Nishinomiya, Hyōgo Prefecture. Her agency is ENS Entertainment, and her label is unBORDE under Warner Music Japan. Career Aimyon was influenced to become a singer-songwriter in part because ...

, Tabu Zombie of

Soil & "Pimp" Sessions Soil & "Pimp" Sessions (stylised as SOIL&"PIMP"SESSIONS) is a Japanese club jazz sextet who formed in Tokyo, Japan, in 2001. They are known for their energetic live performances, having coined the term "death jazz" to describe their music. Histo ...

, and rapper Miyachi. The record produced three singles: "Saihate Aini / Brainwashing", "Mountain Top", and "Catharsis". The album peaked at

number one Number One most commonly refers to: * 1 (number) Number One, No. 1, or #1 may also refer to: Music Albums * ''Number 1'' (Big Bang album), and the title song * ''No. 1'' (BoA album), and the title song * ''No.1'' (EP), by CLC * ''n.1 ...

on both Oricon and Japan's ''Billboard'' charts, receiving a Gold certification from the RIAJ for sales of 100,000 copies. The band followed it with their Anti Anti Generation Tour 2019, from June to August. In 2019, Radwimps provided music for Shinkai's next film, ''

'', released on 19 July. The album debuted at number three on the Oricon Albums Chart before peaking at number two in the following week. It won the 34th Japan Gold Disc Award for Animation Album of the Year, which made it the top-selling anime album of 2019, with more than 128,000 copies sold that year. It also won the 43rd Japan Academy Film Prize for Best Music and Best Soundtrack at the 24th

Space Shower Music Awards Space Shower Music Awards (old name: SPACE SHOWER Music Video Awards, abbr. to SPACE SHOWER MVA) are an annual set of music awards sponsored by Japanese Space Shower TV is a Japanese music television channel operated by Space Shower Networks, In ...

. The band launched a world tour with stops in the United States, Canada, and Mexico in July 2020. The tour was cancelled, however, due to the

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 identi ...

, and a planned Japan tour was postponed. On 22 and 23 November 2020, Radwimps held a special fifteenth anniversary concert at

Yokohama Arena is an indoor arena located in Yokohama, Kanagawa Prefecture, Japan. The capacity of the arena is 17,000 and was opened in 1989. The arena was modeled after US sports venue Madison Square Garden in New York City. It is a five-minute walk from the ...

. In September 2021, Akira Kuwahara announced that he would go on hiatus for an indefinite period of time, after the weekly magazine ''

Shūkan Bunshun is a Japanese weekly news magazine ( Shūkanshi) based in Tokyo, Japan, known for its investigative journalism and frequent clashes with the Japanese government. It is considered one of the most influential weekly magazines in the country. Hist ...

'' reported his extramarital affair with a former model. In 2022, Radwimps provided music for the film ''The Last Ten Years'', released on 4 March. The same year, the band also wrote music for Shinkai's film '' Suzume'', making this the third time they collaborated with the director. In October, Kuwahara returned to the band after his year-long hiatus.

Side projects

Radwimps have also released music under the moniker

Misoshiru's is a Japanese punk rock band. A fictional stage persona for the band Radwimps that was created in 2005, the project was first unveiled in 2006 when Misoshiru's were the billed artist for the band's song "Jennifer Yamada-san". In 2013, Misoshiru' ...

("The Miso-Soups"), beginning with the song "Jennifer Yamada-san" from the 2006 single " Yūshinron". A band with a primarily punk rock sound who perform disguised in

Groucho glasses Groucho glasses, also known as nose glasses, the beaglepuss, or the GM 20/20s are a humorous novelty disguise which function as a caricature of the stage makeup used by the comedian Groucho Marx in his movies and vaudeville performances. They ...

and red T-shirts, Misoshiru's released their debut album, ''Me So She Loose'', in March 2013. In 2008, Yojiro Noda acted as a record producer for the first time, writing and producing the song "Labrador" for singer Chara, which was used as the leading promotional track for her album ''

Honey Honey is a sweet and viscous substance made by several bees, the best-known of which are honey bees. Honey is made and stored to nourish bee colonies. Bees produce honey by gathering and then refining the sugary secretions of plants (primar ...

''. During the recording sessions, Noda collaborated with musicians such as Nobuaki Kaneko (

Rize Rize (Greek: ρίζα, Laz: რიზინი, Georgian: რიზე, , Ottoman Turkish: ريزه) is the capital city of Rize Province in the eastern part of the Black Sea Region of Turkey. Rize is a typically Turkish provincial capital w ...

), Yoshifumi Naoi ( Bump of Chicken), Susumu Nishikawa ( Diamond Head), and Koichi Tsutaya. In 2010, Radwimps took part in a special project called Terrakoya, a commemorative band formed for the ''EMI Rocks'' 50th anniversary of

EMI Music Japan , formerly , was one of Japan's leading music companies. It became a wholly owned subsidiary of British music company EMI Group Ltd. on June 30, 2007, after Toshiba sold off its previous 45% stake. Its CEO and president was Kazuhiko Koike. When ...

rock concert, featuring Radwimps along with

Acidman Acidman (often stylized as ACIDMAN) is a Japanese rock group. The band was formed in 1997 with four members, Shiibashi Takeshi, Urayama Ichigo, Satou Masatoshi, and Ohki Nobuo. They created two demo tapes together in 1998, but former vocalist Sh ...

, Fujifabric, Atsushi Horie ( Straightener), Susumu Nishikawa, The Telephones, and

Kazuya Yoshii is a Japanese musician and singer-songwriter. He is best known as lead vocalist and rhythm guitarist of the rock band The Yellow Monkey. When they went on hiatus in 2001, before officially disbanding three years later, Yoshii started a solo car ...

. The band released the song "Emi" in November, written by Noda in collaboration with Yoshii. Yojiro Noda made his solo debut under the name Illion in 2013 and released his debut album, '' Ubu'', on 25 February 2013, in the United Kingdom.

Songwriting

Lead vocalist Yojiro Noda writes all of the band's music and lyrics (the only exception currently is the bonus track "Yonaki" from ''Radwimps 4'', written by Akira Kuwahara). Almost all of Noda's lyrics are based on events he has experienced, or nonfictional events. "Enren" from ''Radwimps 4: Okazu no Gohan'', released in 2006, was the first fictional-themed song Noda wrote since the band formed.

Band members

;Current members * – lead vocals , rhythm guitar * – lead guitar,

backing vocals A backing vocalist is a singer who provides vocal harmony with the lead vocalist or other backing vocalists. A backing vocalist may also sing alone as a lead-in to the main vocalist's entry or to sing a counter-melody. Backing vocalists are ...

* – bass guitar, backing vocals * – drums, backing vocals ;Former members * – rhythm guitar * – bass guitar * – drums ;Touring members * – drums * – drums * – drums ;Timeline

Discography

* '' Radwimps'' (2003) * '' Radwimps 2: Hatten Tojō'' (2005) * '' Radwimps 3: Mujintō ni Motte Ikiwasureta Ichimai'' (2006) * '' Radwimps 4: Okazu no Gohan'' (2006) * '' Altocolony no Teiri'' (2009) * '' Zettai Zetsumei'' (2011) * '' Batsu to Maru to Tsumi to'' (2013) * ''

Your Name. is a 2016 Japanese animated romantic fantasy film produced by CoMix Wave Films. It depicts a high school boy in Tokyo and a high school girl in the Japanese countryside who suddenly and inexplicably begin to swap bodies. The film was commissio ...

'' (2016) * ''

'' (2016) * '' Anti Anti Generation'' (2018) * ''

'' (2019) * ''Forever Daze'' (2021) * '' Suzume'' (with Kazuma Jinnouchi) (2022)

Tours

* (2005) * (2006) * (2006) * (2006) * (2007) * (2009) * (2011) * RADWIMPS GRAND PRIX (2014) * RADWIMPS 2015 Asia–Europe Live Tour (2015) * Human Bloom Tour (2017) * RADWIMPS Asia Live Tour (2017) * Road to Catharsis Tour (2018) * RADWIMPS Asia Live Tour (2018) * Anti Anti Generation Tour (2019)

Awards and nominations

, - , rowspan="1" align="center", 2002
, rowspan="1", Radwimps, "Moshi mo" , Yokohama High School Music Festival , , - , rowspan="1" align="center", 2007
, rowspan="1", " Yūshinron" ,

Space Shower Music Video Awards Space Shower Music Awards (old name: SPACE SHOWER Music Video Awards, abbr. to SPACE SHOWER MVA) are an annual set of music awards sponsored by Japanese Space Shower TV. The prizes have been awarded since 1996. Winners in main categories Best ...

2007 — Best Art Direction , , - , rowspan="1" align="center", 2008
, rowspan="3", "

" , MTV Video Music Awards Japan 2008 — Best Rock Video , , - , rowspan="5" align="center", 2009
,

2009 — Best Your Choice , , - ,

2009 — Best Rock Video , , - , RADWIMPS , FM Festival "Life Music Award 2009" — Life Music of the Year , , - , "Oshakashama" , FM Festival "Life Music Award 2009" — Best Lyric of Life , , - , rowspan="2" , '' Altocolony no Teiri'' , FM Festival "Life Music Award 2009" — Best Album of Life , , - , rowspan="3" align="center", 2010

, The Second CD Shop Awards , , - , rowspan="2", "Oshakashama" ,

2010 — Best Your Choice , , - ,

MTV World Stage VMAJ 2010 The MTV World Stage VMAJ 2010 were held on Saturday, May 29, at the Yoyogi National Gymnasium in Tokyo, Japan. The nominees were announced on March 31, 2010. Lady Gaga received five nominations while Jay-Z, Alicia Keys, The Black Eyed Peas, Namie ...

— Best Rock Video , , - , rowspan="3" align="center", 2011
, rowspan="2", "Manifesto" ,

2011 — Best Your Choice , , - ,

2011 — Best Shooting Video , , - , rowspan="1", "

" , 2011 MTV Video Music Aid Japan — Best Rock Video , , - , align="center", 2012 , "Kimi to Hitsuji to Ao" , MTV Video Music Awards Japan 2012 — Best Rock Video , , - , align="center", 2014 , "Last Virgin" , MTV Video Music Awards Japan 2014 — Best Rock Video , , - , align="center" rowspan="3" , 2016 , RADWIMPS , MTV Europe Music Awards 2016 — Best Japanese Act , , - , RADWIMPS , Space Shower Music Video Awards 2016 — Best Group Artist , , - , RADWIMPS , Japan Record Awards 2016 — Special Award , , - , align="center" rowspan="6" , 2017
, ''

'' , Japan Academy Prize 2016 — Outstanding Achievement in Music , , - , " Zenzenzense" (movie ver.) , Japan Gold Disc Award 2017 — Best 5 Songs by Download , , - , "Nandemonaiya" (movie ver.) , Japan Gold Disc Award 2017 — Best 5 Songs by Download , , - , ''

'' , Japan Gold Disc Award 2017 — Soundtrack Album of the Year , , - , rowspan="2" , RADWIMPS , Space Shower Music Awards 2017 — Best Rock Artist , , - , Space Shower Music Awards 2017 — Artist of the Year , , - , align="center" , 2018 , RADWIMPS , Space Shower Music Awards 2018 — Best Group Artist , , - , align="center" rowspan="4" , 2019 , rowspan="2", RADWIMPS , Space Shower Music Awards 2019 — Best Group Artist , , - , Space Shower Music Awards 2019 — Best Active Overseas , , - , "Catharsis" , Space Shower Music Awards 2019 — Video of the Year , , - , rowspan=4", ''

'' , 74th

Mainichi Film Awards The are a series of annual film awards, sponsored by Mainichi Shinbun (毎日新聞), one of the largest newspaper companies in Japan, since 1946. It is the first film festival in Japan. History The origins of the contest date back to 193 ...

—

Best Music Best or The Best may refer to: People * Best (surname), people with the surname Best * Best (footballer, born 1968), retired Portuguese footballer Companies and organizations * Best & Co., an 1879–1971 clothing chain * Best Lock Corporatio ...

, , - , align="center" rowspan=3", 2020 , 34th Japan Gold Disc Award — Animation Album of the Year , , - , 43rd Japan Academy Film Prize — Best Music , , - , 24th

— Best Soundtrack , , - , align="center" rowspan=1", 2022 , "Ningen Gokko" ,

MTV Video Music Awards Japan The MTV Video Music Awards Japan (MTV VMAJ for short) are the Japanese version of the MTV Video Music Awards. Like the MTV Video Music Awards in the United States, in this event artists are awarded for their songs and videos through online votin ...

— Best Cinematography ,

References

External links

* *
Radwimps webcast ''RAD Locks!''
{{Authority control Japanese alternative rock groups Japanese pop rock music groups Japanese emo musical groups Musical groups established in 2001 Musical groups from Kanagawa Prefecture Universal Music Japan artists 2001 establishments in Japan EMI Records artists EMI Music Japan artists Virgin Records artists