Kaori Kishitani

Kaori Kishitani
岸谷 香
Born
Kaori Okui (奥居 香)

(1967-02-17) February 17, 1967 (age 57)
Hiroshima, Mie, Japan
OccupationSinger-songwriter
AgentAll Spice Company
Spouse
Gorō Kishitani
(m. 1996)
Children2
Musical career
Genres
Instruments
  • Vocals
  • guitar
  • piano
  • bass
Years active1983–present
LabelsSME Records
Japanese name
Kanji岸谷 香
Hiraganaきしたに かおり
Katakanaキシタニ カオリ
Transcriptions
RomanizationKishitani Kaori
Websitekaorikishitani.com

Kaori Kishitani (岸谷 香, Kishitani Kaori) (born February 17, 1967), formerly Kaori Okui (奥居 香, Okui Kaori), is a Japanese musician and singer-songwriter, best known as the lead vocalist of the all-female rock band Princess Princess and currently the lead vocalist of the band Unlock the Girls. In addition to her career as a musician, she has written songs for several J-pop artists.[1][2][3]

Biography

[edit]

Born in Hiroshima, Japan, Kaori Okui dropped out of Tamagawa Seigakuin Girls' High School and Nakano Junior and Senior High School.[1][2][4]

Princess Princess

[edit]

In 1983, Okui, guitarist Kanako Nakayama, bassist Atsuko Watanabe, keyboardist Tomoko Konno, and drummer Kyōko Tomita won a band audition hosted by TDK Records and formed Akasaka Komachi. After releasing a handful of singles and an EP, the band left TDK Records and changed their name to Julian Mama in 1985 before settling with the name Princess Princess and signing with CBS Sony in 1986. The band's breakout year was in 1989, when "Diamonds" became the first of five consecutive singles to hit No. 1 on Oricon's singles chart. By the mid-1990s, however, their popularity waned, and in 1996, Princess Princess disbanded.[1][2]

After 16 years, Princess Princess reunited in November 2012 for several concerts in order to help with recovery from the 2011 Tōhoku earthquake and tsunami.[5] They performed six concerts: November 3 and 4 at the Sendai Sun Plaza Hall, then November 20, 21, 23 and 24 at Nippon Budokan in Tokyo. In addition, the band performed at the Tokyo Dome on December 23 and 24, 2012, as well as the 2012 Kōhaku Uta Gassen on New Year's Eve. Princess Princess reunited again in 2016 for five concerts: March 11 to 13 at the Sendai Pit, and March 25 and 26 at the Toyosu Pit before once again parting ways.

Solo career

[edit]

In 1994, Okui released her first solo singles "Kiseki no Toki" and "Vanishing"; she then released her solo debut album Renaissance on November 21. On March 4, 1995, one year prior to Princess Princess' disbandment, Okui held her first solo concert at NHK Hall. In 1997, after marrying actor Gorō Kishitani, she released her third single "Happy Man" and second album Shout. A year later, Okui released her third album Kaori.[1][2]

In 2018, Kishitani made an appearance as a guest artist at the annual touring ice show Fantasy on Ice, where she performed to the song "Sekai de Ichiban Atsui Natsu" (lit. "The Hottest Summer in the World") in the show opening amongst others.[6]

Personal life

[edit]

Okui married actor Gorō Kishitani in 1996 immediately after Princess Princess disbanded. After giving birth to her first son in the summer of 2001, she took her husband's surname as her professional name. Kishitani gave birth to her daughter in the summer of 2003.[1][2]

Discography

[edit]

Singles

[edit]
List of singles, with selected chart positions
Title Date Peak chart positions Sales (JPN)[7] RIAJ
certification[8]
Album
Oricon Singles Charts
[9]
"Kiseki no Toki" August 1, 1994 15 66,000 N/A Renaissance
"Vanishing" October 21, 1994 26 42,000 N/A
"Happy Man" April 16, 1997 32 34,000 N/A Shout
"Sparkle" December 1, 1997 78 4,000 N/A Kaori
"Himawari" May 30, 1998 N/A
"Hello. Hello." March 8, 2006 109 N/A Ring to the Heavens
"Ice Age ~Hyōgaki no Kodomo-tachi~" April 19, 2006 149 N/A
"Singing" December 13, 2006 N/A The Best and More
"Romantic Warriors" June 25, 2014 67 N/A Piece of Bright
"Dream" June 24, 2015 102 N/A
"—" denotes releases that did not chart.

Studio albums

[edit]
Year Information Oricon weekly
peak position
[9]
Sales[10]
RIAJ certification[8]
1994 Renaissance 12 71,000
1997 Shout
  • Released: July 21, 1997
  • Label: Sony Records
  • Formats: CD, cassette
35 26,000
1998 Kaori
  • Released: July 1, 1998
  • Label: Sony Records
  • Formats: CD
45 10,000
2006 Ring to the Heavens 165
2016 Piece of Bright
  • Released: May 25, 2016
  • Label: SME Records
  • Formats: CD, digital
28
2018 Unlock the Girls
  • Released: January 24, 2018
  • Label: SME Records
  • Formats: CD, digital
69
2019 Unlock the Girls 2
  • Released: May 1, 2019
  • Label: SME Records
  • Formats: CD, digital
117

Compilations

[edit]
Year Information Oricon weekly
peak position
[9]
Sales[10]
RIAJ certification[8]
2014 The Best and More 58

Songwriting credits

[edit]
  • Mana Ashida: "Aina no Lovely Rock 'n' Roll" (lyrics, music)
  • Ayano Ahane: "Lucky Goes On! -Shiawase ga Yui-" (music)
  • Yuki Uchida (music, arrangement)
    • "Aishiteru"
    • "November"
    • "Da.i.su.ki."
    • "Uchida no Rock 'n' Roll"
  • Yuka Onishi (music, arrangement)
    • "Hoshizora no Shita de"
    • "Drivin' Heart"
  • Yōko Oginome: "Last Dance wa Watashi ni" (music)
  • Otoha: "Kaigan Date" (music)
  • Mai Kazahana & Hiroyuki Amano: "Watashi ga Suteta Mono" (music)
  • Color
    • "Tsubasa ga Nakute mo" (lyrics, music)
    • "Stay with Me" (music)
    • "Chīsaki Shatachi" (music)
  • Gorō Kishitani: "Ano Kane wo Narase" (music)
  • KinKi Kids: "Father" (music)
  • Shizuka Kudo: "Junk" (lyrics)
  • Mariko Kouda (music, arrangement)
    • "Taiyō de Ikou"
    • "Tomodachi"
    • "Sayonara"
  • Noriko Sakai (music)
    • "Photograph"
    • "15-Sai no Watashi e"
    • "Anata to Mita Sora"
  • Kenji Sawada: "Polaroid Girl" (music)
  • Chiyoko Shimakura: "Aishiterutte Iwasetai" (music, arrangement)
  • Minami Takahashi: "Girls Talk" (lyrics, arrangement)
  • Tube: "Shōnan Regret" (music)
  • Takeshi Tsuruno: "Love Letter" (lyrics, music)
  • Yohito Teraoka: "Last Scene" (music)
  • Pearl Kyōdai: "To Candy" (music)
  • Puffy: "Haru no Ashita" (lyrics, music)
  • Peachy (Rika Ishii)
    • "Super Jet Shoes ~ Mirai wo Aruku Kutsu ~" (lyrics, music, arrangement)
    • "Kuishinbo Tengoku" (lyrics, music, arrangement)
    • "Show Paradise" (music, arrangement)
    • "Tiny Tiny X'mas" (lyrics, music, arrangement)
    • "Sweet Sweet Home" (lyrics, music, arrangement)
  • Yo Hitoto: "Papa Mama" (music)
  • Ryōko Hirosue: "It's My Idol" (lyrics, music)
  • V6: "Tsubasa ni Nare" (lyrics, music)
  • Eri Machimoto: "Venus Journey" (music)
  • Moeko Matsushita: "Hello" (lyrics, music)
  • Seiko Matsuda: "Precious Heart" (music)
  • Rika Matsumoto: "Mizu no Naka no Tsuki" (music)
  • Takumi Mitani & Daisuke Yokoyama: "Bokura no Uta" (lyrics, music)
  • Alisa Mizuki
    • "Eden no Machi" (music, arrangement)
    • "Kaze wa Fuiteru" (music, arrangement)
    • "Watashi" (lyrics, music)
  • Tomochika: "Chieko no Wink" (lyrics, music)
  • Hiroko Moriguchi (music, arrangement)
  • Lagoon: "Rhapsody in White" (lyrics, music)

References

[edit]
  1. ^ a b c d e "Profile". Kaori Kishitani Official Website. All Spice Company. December 19, 2017. Retrieved November 21, 2020.
  2. ^ a b c d e "岸谷 香". Nikkei Woman. Nikkei Business Publications. Retrieved November 21, 2020.
  3. ^ "岸谷 香 ガールズ・バンド"Unlock the girls"始動!最高のロック・アルバムを携えた、"girls"たちのはじめてのツアーへ胸の高鳴りは止まらない!". Disk Garage. January 24, 2018. Retrieved November 21, 2020.
  4. ^ "40年「花のしらべ」40曲 4日コンサート、芹さんや岸谷さんら出演". Chugoku Shimbun. April 19, 2016. Retrieved November 21, 2020.
  5. ^ "Princess Princess to reunite after 16 years". Tokyo Hive. January 7, 2012. Retrieved November 21, 2020.
  6. ^ 羽生結弦が4回転トウループ着氷 ファンタジー・オン・アイス神戸公演 [Yuzuru Hanyu performs quadruple toe loop at Fantasy on Ice in Kobe]. Sports Hochi (in Japanese). Minato, Tokyo. June 15, 2018. Archived from the original on June 11, 2022.
  7. ^ "プリンセス・プリンセス(シングル)". Yamachan Land (in Japanese). Archived from the original on May 24, 2011. Retrieved July 21, 2021.
  8. ^ a b c "ゴールドディスク認定" (in Japanese). Recording Industry Association of Japan. Retrieved August 31, 2020.
  9. ^ a b c "岸谷香". Oricon. Retrieved November 21, 2020.
  10. ^ a b "プリンセス・プリンセス". Yamachan Land (in Japanese). Archived from the original on August 14, 2011. Retrieved June 23, 2021.
[edit]