Soulhead (known as SOULHEAD in Japan) is a Japanese urban contemporary/ R&B duo consisting of sisters Yoshika Sawayama (よしか) and Tsugumi Sawayama (つぐみ). Both were born in

Hokkaidō is Japan's second largest island and comprises the largest and northernmost prefecture, making up its own region. The Tsugaru Strait separates Hokkaidō from Honshu; the two islands are connected by the undersea railway Seikan Tunnel. The la ...

; Yoshika was born on July 20, 1978 and Tsugumi was born on January 25, 1981. Since their debut, they have worked with several well-known artists, including

Sowelu better known by her stage name, Sowelu, is a Japanese pop/ R&B singer signed onto Avex Group's label Rhythm Zone. History Her career started in 2002 with the release of her first single ''Beautiful Dreamer'', a soft love ballad which did ver ...

, Koda Kumi, Crystal Kay and Ken Hirai.

Biography

Before they assumed the name Soulhead, Yoshika and Tsugumi were known as Batti Baas. Batti Baas released one vinyl single through Handcuts Records called '' Lovin' You'', which featured Aaron Blackmon. The song was a remake of the Minnie Riperton standard. In February 2002, they released a CD single through Tokuma Japan Communications called ''

Inside Out Inside Out may refer to: *Backwards (disambiguation) or inverse Books * '' Inside Out: A Personal History of Pink Floyd'', by Pink Floyd drummer Nick Mason * ''Inside Out'', Christian book by Larry Crabb * ''Inside Out'', novel by Barry Eisler ...

.'' Shortly after the release of ''Inside Out,'' they were signed to Sony Music Associated Records and began working under the pseudonym Soulhead. The label sent them one year abroad to

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a Sovereign state, sovereign country comprising the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous List of islands of Australia, sma ...

and New Zealand to improve their proficiency in English. They released their debut single, ''

Step to the New World "Step to the New World" (stylized as ''STEP TO THE NEW WORLD'') is female duo Soulhead's first single and third single in total (having released two singles under the name ''Batti Baas'': ''Lovin' You'' and '' Inside Out''). It was used to adverti ...

,'' on August 21, 2002. In 2006, they were transferred to Sony Music Associated Records' sublabel,

onenation , often abbreviated as SMEJ or simply SME, and also known as Sony Music Japan for short (stylized as ''SonyMusic''), is a Japanese music arm for Sony. Founded in 1968 as CBS/Sony, SMEJ is directly owned by Sony Group Corporation and is opera ...

. They have appeared on various compilations with other

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 ...

ese artists. Soulhead's sound is a blend between various genres, such as soul, hip-hop, R&B,

dancehall Dancehall is a genre of Jamaican popular music that originated in the late 1970s. Initially, dancehall was a more sparse version of reggae than the roots style, which had dominated much of the 1970s.Barrow, Steve & Dalton, Peter (2004) "The Rou ...

, reggae and

funk Funk is a music genre that originated in African American communities in the mid-1960s when musicians created a rhythmic, danceable new form of music through a mixture of various music genres that were popular among African Americans in the m ...

, with many of their lyrics in English. They usually work with the production team known as Octopussy. They have also worked on releases with other Japanese artists, such as Kumi Koda and Soul'd Out. Yoshika is also a renowned songwriter, who has worked with artists such as

, Ken Hirai and Crystal Kay. On February 21, 2007 they released a greatest hits album called ''

Best of Soulhead ''Best of Soulhead'' is the first greatest hits album by Soulhead. It was their last album under the Sony Music Entertainment Japan sub-label onenation before moving to Avex. The album peaked at #5 on Oricon and remained on the charts for thirteen ...

'', which contained all of their singles released up to '' Naked'', along with a few

b-side The A-side and B-side are the two sides of phonograph records and cassettes; these terms have often been printed on the labels of two-sided music recordings. The A-side usually features a recording that its artist, producer, or record compan ...

s. On February 24, 2010, after a four-year hiatus, they released a new album titled ''

Soulhead Soulhead (known as SOULHEAD in Japan) is a Japanese urban contemporary/ R&B duo consisting of sisters Yoshika Sawayama (よしか) and Tsugumi Sawayama (つぐみ). Both were born in Hokkaidō; Yoshika was born on July 20, 1978 and Tsugumi was bor ...

'' under Avex Group, which they transferred to from

SMEJ , often abbreviated as SMEJ or simply SME, and also known as Sony Music Japan for short (stylized as ''SonyMusic''), is a Japanese music arm for Sony. Founded in 1968 as CBS/Sony, SMEJ is directly owned by Sony Group Corporation and is opera ...

. On September 28, 2011, the duo released their second Avex album, '' Jump Up the Wall.'' This has been their final release to date. Yoshika released her first solo album on July 3, 2013, titled '' My Anthem,'' which consisted of twelve new songs and one remix. Six months later, she released another album: a remix album compiled of remixes from ''My Anthem.'' As of March 2016, their

Avex is a Japanese entertainment conglomerate led by founder Max Matsuura and headquartered in Tokyo, Japan. Founded in 1988, the company manages J-pop talents like Ayumi Hamasaki and internet sensation PikoTaro. It has also shifted into other busi ...

site was unavailable.

Influences

Some musical

artist An artist is a person engaged in an activity related to creating art, practicing the arts, or demonstrating an art. The common usage in both everyday speech and academic discourse refers to a practitioner in the visual arts only. However, th ...

s who they respect are Tupac Shakur,

Snoop Dogg Calvin Cordozar Broadus Jr. (born October 20, 1971), known professionally as Snoop Dogg (previously Snoop Doggy Dogg and briefly Snoop Lion), is an American rapper. His fame dates back to 1992 when he featured on Dr. Dre's debut solo single, " ...

, The Beatles,

Janis Joplin Janis Lyn Joplin (January 19, 1943 – October 4, 1970) was an American singer and musician. One of the most successful and widely known Rock music, rock stars of her era, she was noted for her powerful mezzo-soprano vocals and "electric" stage ...

, Takuro Yoshida and

Ice Cube An ice cube is a small piece of ice, which is typically rectangular as viewed from above and trapezoidal as viewed from the side. Ice cubes are products of mechanical refrigeration and are usually produced to cool beverages. They may be produc ...

Personal life

It was announced in their official blog that Yoshika gave birth to a baby.

Albums

Studio albums

Oh My Sister ''Oh My Sister'' is the debut studio album by female duo Soulhead and is first album with Sony Music Entertainment Japan. The album reached #3 on the Oricon Weekly charts. Information The album was predominantly rap, R&B and hip-hop. It was rel ...

Rank: #3 / Sold: 214,545 #:March 5, 2003 #

BRAIDED Braided is a musical group consisting of Casey LeBlanc, Ashley Leitão, and Amber Fleury, who all competed on the third season of '' Canadian Idol'' in 2005. They are the third music group to come from an Idol show in the world, after Young Div ...

Rank: #4 / Sold: 139,992 #:April 28, 2004 # Naked
Rank: #5 #:March 8, 2006 #

SOULHEAD Soulhead (known as SOULHEAD in Japan) is a Japanese urban contemporary/ R&B duo consisting of sisters Yoshika Sawayama (よしか) and Tsugumi Sawayama (つぐみ). Both were born in Hokkaidō; Yoshika was born on July 20, 1978 and Tsugumi was bor ...

Rank: #40 #:February 24, 2010 # JUMP UP THE WALL
Rank: #73 #:September 28, 2011

Best albums

BEST OF SOULHEAD ''Best of Soulhead'' is the first greatest hits album by Soulhead. It was their last album under the Sony Music Entertainment Japan sub-label onenation before moving to Avex. The album peaked at #5 on Oricon and remained on the charts for thirteen ...

Rank: #5 #:February 21, 2007

Remix albums

# RE-CONSTRUCT ALBUM Vol.1 "REFLECTION"
Rank: #89 / Sold: 9,602 #:September 26, 2003 # RE-CONSTRUCT ALBUM Vol.2 "CRYSTALLIZED"
Rank: #41 #:June 21, 2006 # my anthem -sympathetic resonance- #:January 22, 2014

Yoshika solo albums

# MY ANTHEM
Rank: #286 #:July 3, 2013

Singles

Standard singles

(Source) # Lovin' You feat. Aaron Blackmon (BATTI BAAS) #:January 7, 2001 #

(BATTI BAAS) #:June 2, 2002 #

Rank: #24 / Sold: 59,287 #:July 24, 2002 (12") #:August 21, 2002 (CD) #

Lover, Knight, Man "Lover, Knight, Man" (stylized as ''LOVER, KNIGHT, MAN''), is female duo Soulhead's second single under Sony Music Entertainment Japan. It managed to reach #36 on the Oricon charts and charted for eight weeks. Information While a music video for ...

Rank: #36 / Sold: 18,410 #:November 20, 2002 # Sora
Rank: #28 / Sold: 16,035 #:February 5, 2005 # Oh My Sister (Remix)/I'm just going down
Rank: #114 / Sold: 2,561 #:May 2, 2003 # Get Up! ep
Rank: #28 / Sold: 15,967 #:July 30, 2003 #

You Can Do That ''You can do that'' (sometime stylized as ''YOU CAN DO THAT'') is Soulhead's eighth single. It was released on January 21, 2004 and contained two new songs. It charted at #36 on Oricon and was their last single released for their album ''Braided.' ...

Rank: #36 / Sold: 18,691 #:January 21, 2004 # No Way
Rank: #50 / Sold: 5,353 #:March 24, 2004 #

At the Party ''At the Party'' (stylized as AT THE PARTY) is female duo Soulhead's tenth single and released on June 2, 2004. The single failed to chart on Oricon and recochoku. Information ''At the Party'' is a dance track infused with hip-hop. Some of the ...

#:June 2, 2004 #

Fiesta ''Fiesta'' (Spanish for "religious feast", "festival", or "party") may refer to: Events *Fiesta San Antonio, a 10-day event held every April in San Antonio, Texas *St. Peter's Fiesta, a five-day festival in Gloucester, Massachusetts *Fiestas d ...

Rank: #35 / Sold: 7,773 #:May 25, 2005 # Sparkle☆Train/Got To Leave
Rank: #30 / Sold: 15,324 #:December 14, 2005 # Pray/XXX feat. Koda Kumi
Rank: #22 / Sold: 10,109 #:January 27, 2006 # Kimi no Kiseki/Itsumademo...
Rank: #56 #:December 6, 2006 # Dear Friends
Rank: #60 #:January 24, 2007

12" Analog singles

(Source) #''Too Late J Watarai remixSong For You J Hironyc remix' #:August 20, 2003 #''Break Up J Masterkey remixPlayboy aigenji remix'' #:August 20, 2003 #''To Da Fakes MCs'' #:September 10, 2003 #''Lover, Knight, Man .O.I.+Octopussy remixMoon Shine feat. Aaron Blackmon oggystyle remix' #:September 10, 2003 #''Sparkle☆Train ~worked by mark de clive-lowe/You can do that ~worked by Reel People'' #:July 13, 2006 #''XXX ~worked by SA-RA/Pray ~worked by

Kenny Dope Kenny "Dope" Gonzalez (born July 5, 1970), also sometimes known as K-Dope, is an American record producer and disc jockey. He is one half of the classic house music Masters at Work musical production team with Little Louie Vega; and also release ...

'' #:July 13, 2006

DVDs

Oh My Sister LIVE & CLIPS Oh My Sister Live & Clips (stylized as Oh My Sister LIVE & CLIPS) is the first DVD released by female duo Soulhead.. The DVD contains the PVs that correspond to their singles from their debut album ''Oh My Sister.'' Along with the PVs, content al ...

#:October 8, 2003 # SOULHEAD tour 2006 "Naked" #:August 9, 2006 # 5th Anniversary tour "BEST OF SOULHEAD" #:November 11, 2007

Collaborative efforts and featured artist

# Ryuusei no Sadoru (流星のサドル / Meteor of the Saddle) (February 25, 2004) #:from album '' SOUL TREE ~a musical tribute to toshinobu kubota~'' #Like a Queen feat. SOULHEAD (February 23, 2005) #:from single ''Like a Queen feat. SOULHEAD'' / Tomita.Lab # D.D.D feat. SOULHEAD (December 21, 2005) #:from album '' BEST ~second session~'' / Koda Kumi #Home party feat. TSUGUMI of SOULHEAD (August 1, 2007) #:from album ''おたくgirlsの宴'' / lecca # Beauty and the Beast (September 26, 2007) #:from album ''TRIBUTE TO CELINE DION'' #Love Majic feat. LUNA, TSUGUMI of SOULHEAD & JAMOSA (July 28, 2010) #:from album ''POWER BUTTERFLY'' / lecca #Round Mirror Moon feat. Yoshika (October 2, 2010) #:from album ''攻め燃える (Burning Attack)'' / JABBERLOOP #Natural High feat. Tsugumi (October 2, 2010) #:from album ''攻め燃える (Burning Attack)'' / JABBERLOOP #SLOW MOTION feat. TSUGUMI (May 18, 2011) #:from album ''OPEN THE DOOR'' / HIROKO #DREAMERS feat. TSUGUMI (October 26, 2011) #:from album ''BEHIND the TRUTH'' / NERDHEAD

References

External links

Soulhead official Sony web site

Soulhead official Avex web site

Soulhead @ Avex

Soulhead discography @ Discogs

Soulhead @ Oricon Style music

Soulhead @ OikakeNet
{{Authority control Avex Group artists Japanese pop music groups Tokuma Japan Communications artists People from Ebetsu, Hokkaido