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woensdag 20 februari 2013

J-Pop Corner: Daichi Miura (三浦大知)


Daichi Miura (三浦大知), or just Daichi, started his career at a young age. Unlike most child artists he didn't fade away. After his break he came back as a solo artist and could still wow audiences with his dance moves and strong voice. Thanks to his R&B/pop sound and skillful dance moves he is often compared to Michael Jackson, whose songs he has also covered. Similar artists are Yuya Matsushita (松下優也) and Hiromi (宏実).

Daichi was born on August 24, 1987 in Okinawa. He attended the “Okinawa Actors School”, which is known for educating artists Namie Amuro, Olivia Lufkin, misono and many others. 


At age 9, Daichi debuted as the lead vocalist of group “Folder”. It consisted of 7 members, five girls and two boys. In the three years that followed, Folder released 2 singles and participated in TV shows. Daichi got recognition for both his vocals and dance moves. People noticed a resemblance with Michael Jackson so Folder performed a cover of the Jackson 5's “ABC” and “I want you back”. Daichi was also dubbed as "Japan's Smallest Soulman".

When he turned 12, Daichi took a break from the music business. His voice started to change thanks to puberty and after both male vocalists quit, Folder became “Folder 5”. The girls had some success on the charts but they broke up in 2003. In the meanwhile, Daichi stayed away from the stage but continued his guitar, vocal and dancing training.

In 2004, Daichi announced that he would return to the music scene. A year later he held his first concerts in 5 years, and in March was the debut release of his single “Keep it Goin'On”. The single was a message to his fans to show his unchanging love for music and effort to be in such a strict industry. His come-back was a success and the single claimed the #14 spot on the Oricon charts. That same year 2 more singles would be released.

Single “No Limit” was released in January 2006 and featured rapper Utamaru from the group RHYMESTER (ライムスター). After such a long break, the young artist just couldn't sit still and also released his first album, “D-ROCK with U”, that same month. It ranked 18th on the Oricon charts. After the album release Daichi went on tour and in March a DVD of his performance at Shibuya-AX was released. “D-ROCK with U” had also impressed ZEEBRA, who is seen as the father of the Japanese rap scene.

In 2007, Daichi performed in New Jersey, United States for “Rock Steady Crew”'s 30th anniversary. On August 24 he attended the event “SUMMER SEMINAR '07 ~Jump into the 20th~” and celebrated his 20th birthday during the event.

Event performances increased in 2008, and in July, Daichi released his single “Inside Your Head”. The PV for this song showed choreographer talents since he took the responsibilities for all the dances. In January 2009, Daichi was featured on a single of the singer Chiharu. The next month he also released a featured single, “Your Love”, with rapper KREVA. Single “Delete My Memories” was released in May, while second album “Who's The Man” hit the shelves on September 16.

In 2010 Daichi got the chance to collaborate with Korean artist, BoA. He was featured on her song “Possibility”. Ninth single “The Answer” came out in August and in December his first ballad, “Lullaby” was released. The following year, 2011, Daichi collaborated with fellow label artist, lecca. Their song “First Sight” was used as the opening track for the TV program "FutureTracks→R". In November of that year, third album “D.M.” came out.

Three more singles were released in 2012. One of them only had a digital release. Two live tour DVDs were also released that year.

2013 had a great start for Daichi. His DVD “DAICHI MIURA "exTime Tour 2012"” was ranked 3th on the Oricon charts. His music video collection, “Choreo Chronicle 2008-2011 Plus” will go on sale on March 20.










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