| Background | group_or_band |
|---|---|
| Origin | Japan |
| Years active | 1996–2001 |
| Label | Flava Records (1997) Warner Music Japan (1998—2001) |
| Associated acts | Hirofumi Asamoto, Dragon Ash, Shinichi Osawa, Zeebra |
| Website | www.wmg.jp/artist/sugarsoul |
| Past members | Aiko, DJ Hasebe, Kawabe |
Sugar Soul (シュガー・ソウル, Shugā So'uru) was a Japanese three-member R&B group which formed in 1996. They soon made their debut in January 1997 on the Flava Records label. The members featured DJ Hasebe (programming), Aiko Machida (vocals) and Kawabe (composer).[1] The band achieved success with the single "Garden" in 1999, which featured Kenji Furuya of Dragon Ash. The band was seen as one of the prominent new R&B-style musicians in Japan in the late 1990s.[2]
In 2001, the band went on a permanent hiatus after the release of the single "Soulmate." Vocalist Aiko went on to become the vocalist of drum and bass band Kam in 2010.[3]
Kumi Koda covered the Sugar Soul song "Ima Sugu Hoshii" in 2006, and in 2009 May J. covered "Garden."
Discography
Original albums
| Year | Album Information | Oricon Albums Charts [4] | Reported sales [5] |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1999 |
| 10 | 139,000 |
| 2000 | Uzu (うず, "Swirl")
| 3 | 340,000 |
Other albums
| Year | Album Information | Oricon Albums Charts [4] | Reported sales [5] |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2001 |
| 12 | 44,000 |
| 2002 |
| 97 | 3,000 |
| — | — | |
| 2003 |
| 20 | 24,000 |
Singles
| Release | Title | Notes | Oricon singles charts [4] | Oricon sales [5] | Album |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1997 | "Those Days" | Re-released in 1999, sales pertain to re-release | 34 | 30,000 | — |
| 1998 | "Kanashimi no Hana ni" (悲しみの花に, "To a Flower of Sadness") | Debut single under Warner | 75 | 11,000 | On |
| "Sauce" | Produced by Shinichi Osawa | 51 | 33,000 | ||
| 1999 | "Namibia" (ナミビア) | Produced by Hirofumi Asamoto | 50 | 13,000 | |
| "Garden" feat. Kenji | 2 | 923,000 | Uzu | ||
| "Siva 1999" feat. Zeebra | 10 | 152,000 | |||
| 2000 | "Respectyourself" | 15 | 76,000 | ||
| "Ii yo" (いいよ, "It's Good") | 79 | 2,600 | |||
| 2001 | "Soulmate" | Final release as a band | 46 | 7,000 | — |
References
- ^ "Sugar Soul". Discogs. 2008. Retrieved 2008-04-04.
- ^ Condry, Ian. Hip Hop Japan: Rap and the Paths of Cultural Globalization. Durham, NC: Duke University Press, 2006
- ^ "Sugar Soulが10年ぶりに復活". RBB TODAY. 2010-06-22. Retrieved 2011-02-09.
- ^ "アーティスト： Sugar Soul". Oricon. Retrieved June 6, 2011.
- ^ "オリコンランキング情報サービス「you大樹」". Oricon. Retrieved June 6, 2011. (subscription only)
External links
- Web archive of official site (in Japanese)
- Warner Music Japan label site (in Japanese)