Shinji Harada (Harada Shinji、原田真二) is a famous

pop music Pop music is a genre of popular music that originated in its modern form during the mid-1950s in the United States and the United Kingdom. The terms ''popular music'' and ''pop music'' are often used interchangeably, although the former describe ...

artist in

Japan Japan ( ja, 日本, or , and formally , ''Nihonkoku'') is an island country in East Asia. It is situated in the northwest Pacific Ocean, and is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan, while extending from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north ...

, born in

Hiroshima is the capital of Hiroshima Prefecture in Japan. , the city had an estimated population of 1,199,391. The gross domestic product (GDP) in Greater Hiroshima, Hiroshima Urban Employment Area, was US$61.3 billion as of 2010. Kazumi Matsui h ...

, on December 5, 1958. After three years of practicing

guitar The guitar is a fretted musical instrument that typically has six strings. It is usually held flat against the player's body and played by strumming or plucking the strings with the dominant hand, while simultaneously pressing selected stri ...

, at the age of fifteen he was ready to play guitar with the band ''Yamaha''. Harada became a musical sensation in Japan when he released his debut single ''Teens' Blues'' on October 25, 1977 when he was 18 years old. He released two more singles, ''Candy'' in November and ''Shadow Boxer'' in December same year. All three singles ranked within the top 20 in 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 ...

chart simultaneously, which had never happened before. The debut album ''Feel Happy'' was to become number one in the first week of release in Japan in 1978. A documentary film about him, ''Our Song'', was made in 1978. Harada has been prolific, releasing more than 70 singles from 1977 to 2015. Harada is just as prolific a songwriter, having written or composed for

Koji Kikkawa Koji, Kōji, Kohji or Kouji may refer to: *Kōji (given name), a masculine Japanese given name *Kōji (Heian period) (康治), Japanese era, 1142–1144 *Kōji (Muromachi period) (弘治), Japanese era, 1555–1558 *Koji orange, a Japanese citrus ...

Junko Yagami , is a Japanese singer and songwriter from the Aichi Prefecture. She has released 25 albums, including 6 Album#Live, live concert albums, and is a notable figure in Japanese music of the 1970s and 1980s. Biography Upbringing Junko Yagami ...

Anri , known as , is a Japanese pop singer-songwriter, originating from Yamato, Kanagawa Prefecture. Biography Her debut release was the 1978 ''Oribia o Kikinagara'' (While Listening to Olivia), written by Amii Ozaki. Her song "Cat's Eye" was use ...

Hiromi Go , is a Japanese singer, part of Sony Music Entertainment Japan. His real name is . In the 1970s, he was called the with Goro Noguchi and Hideki Saijo. He belonged to Johnny & Associates, but later left the agency. He also effectively became ...

Akina Nakamori is a Japanese Singing, singer and Actor, actress. She is one of the most popular and best-selling artists in Japan. Akina achieved national recognition after winning the 1981 season of the talent show ''Star Tanjō!''. Her debut single "Slow M ...

, AND many more artists. His song 'Time Travel' from the album 'Feel Happy' was covered by

Spitz Spitz (derived from the German word ''spitz'' 'pointed') is a type of domestic dog characterized by long, thick, and often white fur, and pointed ears and muzzles. The tail often curls over the dog's back or droops. While all of the breeds rese ...

. Spitz's 'Time Travel' was used in the famous 2011 Japanese drama

Boku to Star no 99 Nichi is a Japanese television series which premiered on Fuji TV in October 2011. It starred Japanese actor Hidetoshi Nishijima (actor), Hidetoshi Nishijima and Korean actress Kim Tae-hee. Plot In the romantic comedy, quiet Japanese security guard Nami ...

starring Hidetoshi Nishijima and Kim Tae Hee.

Discography

* ''Feel Happy'' (1978) * ''Natural High'' (1979) * ''The Best Collection'' (1980) * ''Entrance'' (1981) * ''Light Collection'' (1983) * ''Save Our Soul''　(1983.7.21) * ''Modern Vision'' (1984) * ''Magical Healing'' (1985) * ''Doing Wonders'' (1986) * ''Urban game'' (1988.11.21) * ''Absolute Singles'' (1988) * ''Absolute Mix'' (1988) * ''Just Urban Night'' (1989) * ''Kindness'' (1991) * ''Miracle Love'' (1992.11.21) * ''Make it a Paradise'' (1993.9.21) 　COLUMBIA * ''The World of Shinji Harada'' (1998) * ''Urban Angels 2004'' (2004.12.5) 　Shine Records * ''Harmoney～Bokurano Harmony～(mini album)''　　(2005.10.25) * ''Feel Happy 〜Debut 30th Anniversary〜'' (2007.10.24) FORLIFE * ''Feel Free'' (2007) Roppongi WAVE

External links

Shinji Harada Official Website

Gentle Earth: Shinji Harada's non-profit organization
{{DEFAULTSORT:Harada, Shinji 1958 births Japanese pop musicians Living people Musicians from Hiroshima Prefecture