Kobukuro
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Kobukuro | |
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Kuroda (left) and Kobuchi
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Background information | |
Origin | Osaka, Japan |
Genre(s) | J-Pop Pop-folk |
Years active | 1998 - current |
Label(s) | Minosuke Records (1999-2000) Warner Music Japan (2001-current) |
Website | http://www.kobukuro.com |
Members | |
Kentarō Kobuchi (guitars and vocals) Shunsuke Kuroda (vocals) |
Kobukuro (コブクロ?) is a Japanese band, which formed in 1998 and made its major label debut in 2001. The name is a portmanteau of the two members' family names, Kentarō Kobuchi and Shunsuke Kuroda.
Contents |
[edit] Members
- Kentarō Kobuchi (小渕健太郎 Kobuchi Kentarō?, b. March 13, 1977); guitars and vocals)
- Shunsuke Kuroda (黒田俊介 Kuroda Shunsuke?, b. March 18, 1977); vocals)
The band's visual appearance is unusual; they have only two members, and Kuroda stands over 193cm (6'4") tall.
[edit] History
In 1998, Kobuchi and Kuroda met each other in Sakai and formed Kobukuro. Kobukuro received moderately successful ratings for their first three indie albums - Saturday 8:PM (July 1999), Root of My Mind (March 2001), and ANSWER (December 2000). Kobukuro signed with Warner Music Japan in 2001, and made their debut with the hit single, Yell which reached #4 on the Oricon Charts. The duo won the coveted "Grand Prix" awards in December 2007 at the 49th Annual Japan Record Award.
[edit] Discography
[edit] Singles
Original Japanese Title | Romanized Name | Translation of Title | Release Date |
YELL ~エール~ / Bell | Yell / Bell (245,390 copies sold) | March 22, 2001 | |
轍 | Wadachi (53,430 copies sold) | Rut | June 20, 2001 |
YOU / miss you (22,360 copies sold) | November 21, 2001 | ||
風 | Kaze (120,000 copies sold) | Wind | February 14, 2002 |
願いの詩 / 太陽 | Negai no Uta / Taiyō (37,620 copies sold) | Poem of Wish / The Sun | July 10, 2002 |
雪の降らない街 | Yuki no Furanai Machi (27,988 copies sold) | The Town Without Snow | November 13, 2002 |
宝島 | Takarajima (24,482 copies sold) | Treasure Island | April 9, 2003 |
Blue Blue (16,134 copies sold) | August 27, 2003 | ||
DOOR (20,083 copies sold) | May 12, 2004 | ||
永遠にともに / Million Films / ここから | Towa ni Tomo ni / Million Films / Koko kara (146,265 copies sold) | Forever with You / Million Films / From Here | October 14, 2004 |
ここにしか咲かない花 | Koko ni shika Sakanai Hana (407,200 copies sold) | A flower that only blooms here | May 11, 2005 |
桜 | Sakura (430,943 copies sold) | The Cherry Blossoms | November 2, 2005 |
君という名の翼 | Kimi to Iu Na no Tsubasa (106,957 copies sold) | Wings that are named you | July 26, 2006 |
(Ayaka x Kobukuro) Winding Road | February 28, 2007 | ||
蕾 | Tsubomi (461,062 copies sold) | Flower Bud | March 21, 2007 |
蒼く 優しく | Aoku Yasashiku (211,309 copies sold) | Blue and Kind | November 7, 2007 |
[edit] Albums
- Saturday 8PM (July 21, 1999)(Indies) #294
- Root of my mind (March 4, 2000)(Indies) #197
- ANSWER (December 19, 2000)(Indies)
- Roadmade (August 29, 2001) #6 104,350
- grapefruits (August 28, 2002) #4 99,770
- STRAIGHT (November 6, 2003) #10 45,363
- MUSIC MAN SHIP (November 3, 2004) #3 214,593
- NAMELESS WORLD! (December 21, 2005) #1 869,708
- All Singles Best (September 27, 2006) #1 2,851,326 (4 consecutive weeks at #1)
- 5296 (December 19, 2007) #1 1,355,191 (3 consecutive weeks at #1,)
- Total Kobukuro Sales: 7,812,947 (5.01.08)
[edit] External links
- (Japanese) Official Web Site of Kobukuro
- (Japanese) Official Web Site by Warner Music Japan