Mirai (meaning ''Future'' in

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 ...

) is a

Czech Czech may refer to: * Anything from or related to the Czech Republic, a country in Europe ** Czech language ** Czechs, the people of the area ** Czech culture ** Czech cuisine * One of three mythical brothers, Lech, Czech, and Rus *Czech (surnam ...

pop Pop or POP may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media * Pop music, a musical genre Artists * POP, a Japanese idol group now known as Gang Parade * Pop! (British group), a UK pop group * Pop! featuring Angie Hart, an Australian band Album ...

music group, founded in 2014 in

Nový Jičín Nový Jičín (; ) is a town in the Moravian-Silesian Region of the Czech Republic. It has about 23,000 inhabitants. The historic centre of Nový Jičín is well preserved and is protected as an Cultural monument (Czech Republic)#Monument reservati ...

. The band consists of

frontman The lead vocalist in popular music is typically the member of a group or band whose voice is the most prominent melody in a performance where multiple voices may be heard. The lead singer sets their voice against the accompaniment parts of the ...

, singer, and guitarist is Mirai Navrátil, drummer Šimon Bílý, bass guitarist Michal Stulík, and guitarist Tomáš Javůrek. The band had won both

Český slavík Český slavík () is an award meant to recognize outstanding achievement and annual popularity in the Czech music industry. It was established in 1996 as the successor to the Zlatý slavík awards, which were established in 1962 in Czechoslova ...

and Anděl awards.

History

Beginnings

Mirai Navrátil, born in Japan and raised in

Frýdek-Místek Frýdek-Místek (, ; ) is a city in the Moravian-Silesian Region of the Czech Republic. It has about 54,000 inhabitants. The historic centres of both Frýdek and Místek are well preserved and are protected as two Cultural monument (Czech Republic) ...

, met Šimon Bílý while playing for the local English band ''Dolls In The Factory''. In 2014, Navrátil and Bílý founded Mirai, recruiting Michal Stulík as its third member. This trio signed a contract with

Universal Music Universal Music Group N.V. (often abbreviated as UMG and referred to as Universal Music Group or Universal Music) is a Dutch– American multinational music corporation under Dutch law. UMG's corporate headquarters are located in Hilversum ...

record label and decided to sing in

Early achievements

At the beginning of 2015, Mirai released their first song ''Dítě robotí'' ("Robot's Child"), which contained pop and electronic themes. It became one of the three most played songs on Czech radio stations. That same year, they released a second single ''Souznění''. Their third single ''Cesta z města'' ("The Way off the City") was published in October 2015 and presented in the band Kryštof's concert performances, quickly becoming their breakthrough hit. In January 2016, ''Cesta z města'' became the second most played song on Czech radio stations. Their singl''e Kokos bez kokosu'' also entered the top five in 2016.

Konnichiwa album

In February 2017, Mirai released a single entitled ''Když nemůžeš, přidej'' ("If you are exhausted, just speed up"). The music video for the single depicts group members fulfilling impossible tasks, according to

Emil Zátopek Emil Zátopek (; 19 September 1922 – 21 November 2000) was a Czech long-distance runner best known for winning three gold medals at the 1952 Summer Olympics in Helsinki. He won gold in the 5,000 metres and 10,000 metres runs, but his final ...

's motto. The single became the most played on Czech radio for nine weeks, and remained in the top 10 until the spring of 2018. Tomáš Javůrek, joined Mirai as a second guitarist before the release of the album ''Konnichiwa'' in October 2017. The album was made with four producers, and featured various musical styles. At the time of its release, the wife of Šimon Bílý died in a car accident, so the planned joint tour with Poetika was postponed from autumn 2017 to spring 2018. In April 2018, Mirai received a platinum album at the concert at

Lucerna Music Bar Lucerna Music Bar is a music venue, concert club in Prague, Czech Republic. It is housed within Lucerna Palace. Lucerna Music Bar is one of the stages used in the Prague International Jazz Festival and the AghaRTA Prague Jazz Festival. It was u ...

. The album also featured the singles ''Pojď, zapomenem'' ("Come on, we'll forget it") and ''Anděl'' ("Angel") (twice at the top of Top CZ/SK chart). The band started to appear at many large summer music festivals. At 2017 Český slavík awards, Mirai were chosen as the Discovery of the year and song ''Když nemůžeš, tak přidej'' became the most popular and most streamed song of the year. Mirai became a discovery of the year also at the 2017

Anděl Awards The Anděl Awards () is a Czech music award ceremony organized by the Czech Academy of Popular Music. History It is a successor to the Annual Czechoslovak Music Award (Czech: ''Výroční československé hudební ceny'') established in 1991 ...

Second album

In January 2019, the band introduced a first song of their second album, whose release was announced to October 2019. In March and April 2019, Mirai won TOP 50 CZ/SK chart six times in a row. In March 2023, the band announced a work on a new album.

Discography

* ''Cesta z města'' (2015) * ''Konnichiwa'' (2017) * ''Arigatō'' (2019) * ''Maneki Neko'' (2021) * ''Tomodachi'' (2024)

References

External links

* {{Český slavík Award for Best Musical Group Czech pop music groups Musical groups established in 2014 2014 establishments in the Czech Republic Czech musical quartets