Ringo Sheena

Ringo Sheena
Native name	椎名 林檎
Birth name	Yumiko Shiina
Born	(1978-11-25) November 25, 1978 Fukuoka, Fukuoka,[1] Japan
Genres	Rock, punk rock, alternative rock, experimental rock, chamber music, chanson, jazz, big band, bossa Nova, adult contemporary, funk, hip hop, electronica, kayōkyoku, enka
Occupations	Singer, songwriter, music composer, music producer, musician
Instruments	Vocals, guitar, piano, keyboards, bass guitar, drums, koto, shamisen, harmonica, melodica, harpsichord, accordion
Years active	1998–2004, 2007–present (solo) 2004–2012 (group)
Labels	EMI Music Japan (1998–2013) Universal Music Japan (2013-present)
Associated acts	Tokyo Jihen, Soil & "Pimp" Sessions
Website	Official site
Notable instruments
Duesenberg Star TV model DSR-SP

Yumiko Shiina (椎名 裕美子, Shiina Yumiko, born November 25, 1978), known by her stage name Ringo Sheena^{[Note 1]} (椎名 林檎, Shiina Ringo), is a Japanese singer-songwriter, music composer and music producer. She is also the founder and lead vocalist of the band Tokyo Jihen.

She describes herself as "Shinjuku-kei Jisaku-Jien-ya (新宿系自作自演屋, a Shinjuku-style writer-performer)".

She was ranked number 36 in a list of Japan's top 100 musicians compiled by HMV in 2003.^[2]

Early life

Sheena was born in Urawa (now part of Saitama), Saitama Prefecture, to Kōtarō Shiina, an employee of the oil companies, and Akiko, a homemaker. She was born with an esophageal atresia in which the esophagus narrows as it approaches the stomach. Treatment of this involved several operations, at least one of which required her right shoulder blade to be cut open. These surgeries left Sheena with large scars on her shoulder blades, said to give the impression that an angel's wings had been removed.^[3]

Her first exposure to music came from her father's interest in jazz and classical music; her mother had majored in dance in college and practiced ballet. Her parents owned a large collection of music, a piano, and a guitar, and her father was a devoted reader of music magazines. Sheena started piano lessons at four and studied classical ballet the following year.

While very outgoing as a young child, Sheena became shy and quiet after she and her older brother, Junpei, moved to Shimizu (now Shimizu-ku, Shizuoka), Shizuoka Prefecture due to their father's job. Her parents remember her as a mostly trouble-free child and a good student, except that she could not stand being alone and would throw tantrums if she could not have a friend to play with.

The family next relocated to Sawara-ku, Fukuoka, Fukuoka Prefecture, and Sheena entered junior high school there. While in Fukuoka, she again became an outgoing person. Her official biography was published as her introducing herself from Fukuoka. In later years, she spoke to interviewers in Fukuoka's Hakata dialect.

Entering junior high school, she realized that it was impossible to become a ballet dancer or professional piano player. Her body had become less symmetrical, due to the results of the operations in her infancy. She could not give power equally to the right and left sides of her body, and she eventually stopped taking ballet and piano lessons. She started listening to a wider range of music other than classical music or her parents' records. She got interested in drama and stage design. She was asked by her drama teacher to add music to the lines of a play, and taking advantage of this opportunity, she began her musical activities. She formed a band with her classmates and performed in the school festival. She initially played drums, but later became the lead singer. Although the band broke up, Sheena began to make demos with the aim of being a professional musician.

While in high school, she worked in about ten bands and improved her musical skills by performing live. She was a guitarist and a lead singer in one band, but she played keyboards, bass, or drums in others.

At the same time, she busked near Nishitetsu Fukuoka station in Tenjin.

Early works

In 1994 Sheena participated in The 19th Horipro Talent Scout Caravan (a series of auditions held by the Horipro agency). However she was unaware that this event was designed to discover budding idols, as opposed to more serious talent, and said on local radio: "Right up to the national finals I had no idea that there’d be a swimsuit contest!" Sheena was chosen as representative for the Kyushu area but lost out to Sakura Uehara in the final round.

In 1995 she participated in the Yamaha sponsored "The 9th Teens' Music Festival" as vocalist in the all-girl band, the Marvelous Marbles. The band won a youth encouragement prize. During this time Sheena became acquainted with fellow performers aiko and Takashi Taniguchi^[4] with whom she became friends both on and off stage.

She became a fan of the indie rock group Number Girl at that time because Hisako Tabuchi had joined the group. She began to play the guitar, emulating Hisako Tabuchi. She attended various shows when possible. A few years later, she asked Hisako Tabuchi to play guitar in recording some of her songs, and they formed the Indie rock band called Hatsuiku Status. Ahito Inazawa, the drummer of Number Girl, participated in the recording of her third album, Karuki Zaamen Kuri-no-Hana. She worked on the album of the new band Zazen Boys, which also featured Shutoku Mukai and Inazawa from Number Girl.

In 1996, she quit senior high school, and participated in "The 5th Music Quest 1996", a competition sponsored by Yamaha Corporation. She also held two part-time jobs. She had already received offers from several record labels, but did not want to make a commitment until the contest was over just in case and won an Award of Excellence. She refused a contract with Yamaha, and signed with Toshiba EMI.

Since she had already finished composing enough material for two albums, she submitted them at a meeting to plan her debut. She was harshly criticized by the directors of EMI about her lyrics, and her opinions clashed with theirs many times. She left for the United Kingdom in January 1997. The lyrics of "Tadashii Machi" and "Identity" expressed her feelings about this period. She went back to Japan three months later.

Initial solo career

Ringo Sheena's first official single was released in May 1998, when she was 19 years old. It was entitled "Kōfukuron". In the music video for this single, Sheena alluded to her surgery scars by wearing a pair of wings on her back. Although it was the title track, she did not like the arrangement of this song as she felt it was too similar to her demo version. She wanted to make "Suberidai" the title song, but this idea was rejected by EMI as they felt the song would not be a big seller. She wanted to release "Keikoku" or "Gips" as the first single, but the then EMI director rejected that idea as well. After the relative failure of the single, EMI let her have more input into the promotion of her music.

She chose "Kabukichō no Joō" as the second single. She helped with the direction of the music video and chose the location of the video shoot. Although the song was not a big seller, its sensational lyrics and melody which was reminiscent of older Japanese pop music, gave her valuable exposure. Sheena dedicated the song to Ryōko Hirosue, who had declared that she was a fan of Sheena's. Hirosue attended the "Senkō Ecstasy" tour in the front row, mingling with regular fans.

Her third single and first hit was "Koko de Kiss Shite", which had a catchy tune and was a radical change from her prior singles. In the music video, she chose to replace a scene in which she appeared by herself and used a scene that had all the band members playing together instead. Encouraged by this success, she re-released "Kōfukuron", and this time it was a hit. She dedicated the song to her friend Rie Tomosaka.

This was followed by the release of her first album, Muzai Moratorium, in February 1999. The album was a major hit. "Gips" was due to be the next single, but when Sheena had to cancel recording due to illness, "Honnō" was released as the fourth single instead. Shina chose a hospital as the setting for the music video for "Honnō". This choice stemmed from her frequent hospital visits as a child and her more recent hospitalization. Although Sheena intended the video to have a cyberpunk feel or to portray the image of a spacecraft's interior, many people interpreted it as cosplay, which disappointed her.

The fifth and sixth singles, "Gips" and "Tsumi to Batsu", were released at the same time to prevent overlap with the release of her second album, Shōso Strip, in March 2000. This album was a success and is her best selling album to date.

Sheena had initially indicated that she would retire as "Sheena Ringo" when she had released three albums. At the time the second album was released, she was among the top three Japanese female artists, along with Hikaru Utada and Ayumi Hamasaki, in terms of popularity and annual income. However, she was uncomfortable with being regarded as an icon,^[5] and wanted her career to branch out more from the mainstream. When she began to produce her third album under the tentative title "Fushigi, Waizatsu, Ekisentorikku (不思議・猥雑・エキセントリック, Wonder, Vulgar, Eccentric)" she intended to make it her last solo album.

In November 2000 she married Junji Yayoshi, a guitarist in her band; the news became public in January 2001. She released the single "Mayonaka wa Junketsu" in March 2001, with the intention of including it on the third album, but it is the only single to date that was not included on an album.^[6] The music video was created in a retro-anime style that depicted Ringo as a sort of mid-'60s spy movie heroine. Her son with Junji was born in July. The two divorced in January 2002, 14 months after marrying. Following her divorce she released a two-disc multilingual cover album Utaite Myōri: Sono Ichi. Since she felt that a cover album did not count as a bona fide album, she began to work on her third original album.

People around her suggested that she expand internationally, but Sheena refused the proposal of a foreign label to sell her third album in countries outside of Japan. She said, "The work I already have in Japan is as much as I can manage."

In 2003, she released her third album, titled Kalk Samen Kuri no Hana.^[7] Sheena chose the members of the tour for the third album. She wanted next to focus on composing music for other artists rather than performing herself. She appeared in the media after a long absence on two major evening news programs, News Station and News 23.

Towards the conclusion of her solo career, she had her trademark beauty mark removed, and released her final solo single, "Ringo no Uta" ("Apple's Song"), which was adopted by the national children's song TV program Minna no Uta. This song had a summation of her career, and the music video included references to all of her previous videos.

In 2004, Sheena undertook the role of music director for the stage play KKP (Kentaro Kobayashi Produce) #004 Lens,^{[Note 2]} which is based on the story of her short film Tanpen Kinema Hyaku-Iro Megane.

Concerts and tours

1998

Battle of the bands and nationwide promotional campaign

1999

Senkō Ecstasy (先攻エクスタシー, Attacking-first Ecstasy) by Gyakutai Glycogen

Rising Sun Rock Festival 1999 in Ezo

Manabiya Ecstasy (学舎エクスタシー, School Ecstasy) by Tensai Praeparat

2000

Gekokujō Xstasy (下剋上エクスタシー, Usurpation Ecstasy) by Gyakutai Glycogen

Gokiritsu Japon (御起立ジャボン, Stand up Japan) by Hatsuiku Status

Zazen Extasy (座禅エクスタシー, Zen meditation Ecstasy) by Gyakutai Glycogen

2003

Baishou Ecstasy (賣笑エクスタシー, Selling Variety Show Ecstasy)

Sugoroku Ecstasy (雙六エクスタシー, Sugoroku Ecstasy) by Tokyo Jihen

Backing band

Tokyo Jihen

On May 31, 2004, Sheena formed a band called Tokyo Jihen (東京事変). Tokyo Jihen is Japanese for "The Tokyo Incidents". The band was first introduced in Sheena's Sugoroku Ecstasy tour and is featured on Sheena's Electric Mole DVD.

The original lineup of Tokyo Jihen was Ringo Sheena (vocals, guitar, melodica); Mikio Hirama (ヒラマミキオ, Hirama Mikio, also known as Mikki) (guitar, backing vocals); Seiji Kameda (亀田誠治, Kameda Seiji) (bass guitar); H Zett M (H是都M, HZM), also known as Masayuki Hiizumi (ヒイズミマサユ機, Hiizumi Masayuki, from jazz instrumental band PE'Z), (keyboard/piano); and Toshiki Hata (刄田綴色, Hata Toshiki) (drums). All of them were members of the back-up band for Sheena Ringo's solo tour "Sugoroku Ecstasy" in 2003.

Hiizumi and Hirama left Tokyo Jihen in July 2005, and the band selected two new members: Ryosuke Nagaoka (長岡亮介, Nagaoka Ryosuke), also known as Ukigumo (浮雲, Drifting Cloud), on guitar and backing vocals, and Keitaro Izawa (伊澤啓太郎, Izawa Keitaro), also known as Ichiyou Izawa (伊澤一葉, Izawa Ichiyou), on keyboards in September 2005. The band released its second album (featuring the new lineup) in January 2006, and played two concerts, at the Osaka-Jo Hall in Osaka and the Budokan in Tokyo, in February 2006.

Resumption of solo work

In late 2006, Ringo announced that she would resume work as a solo artist as the Music Director for the 2007 film Sakuran.^{[Note 3]} The album Heisei Fūzoku (2007) is the soundtrack from this film. Violinist Neko Saitō and the band Soil & "Pimp" Sessions appear on the album. A song featuring her and Soil, "Karisome Otome (Death Jazz version)" was released on iTunes Japan exclusively on November 11, 2006. It went to the top of the charts and remained there for days.

In June 2007, Sheena was asked to compose music for the kabuki Sannin Kichisa by Kanzaburo Nakamura. She composed the ending theme and some other music.

In September 2008, Sheena provided Japanese boy's band, Tokio with two songs for their singles.^[8]

In February 2009, Sheena provided Japanese rock duo Puffy AmiYumi with songs. Ami and Sheena were introduced by Hikaru Utada. Ami was a fan of Sheena's music, and now they are friends.^[9]

In March 2009, Sheena Ringo received an award from the Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology. It was a newcomer Fine Arts Award in the Popular Culture category.

In May 2009, Sheena released a solo single entitled "Ariamaru Tomi". It was used as the theme song of the TV drama Smile.

In June 2009, Sheena released her solo album titled Sanmon Gossip after a long hiatus.

On December 2, 2009, Sheena releases the single "Nōdōteki Sanpunkan" with Tokyo Jihen after an interval of about two years.

Concerts and concert tours

2008

Rising Sun Rock Festival 2008 in Ezo

Sheena Ringo (nama) Ringo Haku 〜Jusshuunen-Kinensai〜 (椎名林檎 (生)林檎博’08 〜10周年記念祭〜, Sheena Ringo (live) Ringo Expo '08 -The 10th Anniversary Festival-)

2009

Kame no Ongaeshi (亀の恩返し, The Grateful Turtle)

Back-up band

Singing and songwriting style

Sheena is an accomplished musician and songwriter who writes music spanning numerous genres. She is well known for her eccentricity, rolling her "r"s and creating promotional music videos with striking visuals.

She admired Eddi Reader's voice, but felt her own voice was not as clear and sounded hoarse. She admired Janis Ian's singing and wrote "Seventeen" in tribute to Ian's "At Seventeen". She later covered "Love Is Blind". She listens to many genres of music. At the time of her debut, she has ten closely written pages of lists of her favorite musicians. They included various genres such as classical music, Japanese and American popular music from the 1950s and 1960s, contemporary rock, and the local band Fukuoka.^[10]

She mainly plays rhythm guitar, but she plays other musical instruments. During live shows she sometimes plays the piano and occasionally plays the bass guitar. While recording, she sometimes plays piano and drums, and occasionally uses uncommon musical instruments such as a melodica and a samisen.

Sheena's lyrics often contain complex and archaic language. Printed lyrics in her liner notes regularly feature kanji that are not in common use.

Sheena's songwriting style steadily became more complex over the course of her solo career, incorporating a wider variety of instruments and more elaborate production with each album. Sheena's influence in songwriting is still dominant in Tokyo Jihen, and the arrangements have been stripped down to a more standard rock and roll style, highlighting the roles of the individual players in the band.

Stage name

At her audition in 1996, she introduced herself as "Sheena Ringo" for the first time. "Ringo" means "apple" in Japanese. She said that "Ringo" originated from her class nickname when she often blushed in public, and from The Beatles' drummer Ringo Starr.

She declared recently that she followed the naming of the pen name of her favorite manga artist, Sensha Yoshida. His first name is just a name of an object like Ringo ("Sensha" in this case meaning a "tank" in English). She thought that those who heard her name would be shocked by that.^[11]

Influences

The music that dominated Sheena's childhood were Debussy's piano pieces. Due to her piano and ballet background, Sheena particularly fond of music for the piano, and she also enjoyed the Peanuts, a favorite group of her father. Sheena enjoyed music for the ballet as played by symphony orchestras, and she often listened to the records that ballerina Yoko Morishita had created for use by dance instructors.

In her primary school days, Sheena often listened to the sound track from the film Nausicaa of the Valley of the Wind; "Toward the Faraway land ..." by Joe Hisaishi; and "Rendezvous" by Sadao Watanabe. Her parents owned records by Billy Joel, Mayumi Itsuwa, and others. Under her mother's influence, Sheena loved the older Japanese pop songs.

In junior high, Sheena enjoyed the Motown sound, and became fans of Soul Train under the influence of her older brother. Marvin Gaye was a favorite. During this period, Sheena rarely listened to Japanese music.

Whilst attending senior high school, Sheena started listening to Blankey Jet City, Radiohead, Björk and the Sex Pistols. She thought that Japanese lyrics is not suitable for music influenced by Western music like rock music. However, she altered her way of thinking thanks to Ken'ichi Asai who was a lead singer of Blankey Jet City, and came to listen to Japanese songs again. She said that she respected Thom Yorke of Radiohead, and Peter Greenaway and Ken'ichi Asai from Blankey Jet City. She said that when she listened to Björk, her heart was freed. She was influenced by the Sex Pistols for their stage presence rather than their musicality. Sheena liked the Red Hot Chili Peppers. She named Evil Empire by Rage Against the Machine and No Code by Pearl Jam to be some of her favorite albums of all time.

After leaving high school, she listened to Todd Rundgren, Led Zeppelin, and The White Album by the Beatles. Sheena admired Madonna for her music and her self-sufficiency.

Japanese musicians Oldies The Peanuts Hiromi Ōta Junko Yagami Kiyoshi Hasegawa Eiko Shuri Takao Kisugi Hakudo Otsuka Akira Inaba Keiko Maruyama Toi et Moi Mayumi Itsuwa Momoe Yamaguchi The Stalin Recently Kirinji Guitar Wolf Blankey Jet City Quruli Elephant Kashimashi DMBQ Super Junky Monkey Yura Yura Teikoku Cascade Chara Heart Bazaar Takashi Taniguchi[4] Number Girl Barbee Boys Dexied the Emons Mo'some Tonebender Original Love (Takao Tajima)

Western musicians All times Trine Rein Björk France Gall Lisette Melendez Shanice Cyndi Lauper Madonna Marvin Gaye Michael Jackson New Edition Arrested Development Public Enemy Tony! Toni! Toné! Eternal Nina Simone Sarah Vaughan Ella Fitzgerald Maria Callas Carole King Janis Ian Tracy Chapman Sheryl Crow Robert Schumann Claude Debussy Zoltán Kocsis Cyprien Katsaris Radiohead Nirvana Suede Fairground Attraction The Cranberries Red Hot Chili Peppers Rage Against the Machine Pearl Jam Todd Rundgren Led Zeppelin The Beatles Helloween Mr. Big Sex Pistols Dead Kennedys

Theme songs and tie-ins

Year	Song	Category	Title/brand	Network/manufacturer	Period
1998	"Kōfukuron"	variety show	Ai no Hinadan	TBS
	"Kabukichō no Joō"	music show	Pop Jam	NHK
1999	"Kokode Kiss Shite"	drama	Shin-D Kokode Kiss Shite	NTV	from March 2 to April 27
	"Kokode Kiss Shite"	variety show	Downtown DX	NTV
	"Honnō"	music show	Fun (Fun's Recommend #007)	NTV
	"Kōfukuron -Etsuraku hen-"	TV commercial	The Cocktail Bar Cassis & Orange -shaker-	Suntory	first seen April 23
	"Akane Sasu Kiro Terasaredo"	TV commercial	The Cocktail Bar Cassis & Orange -squeeze the orange-	Suntory	first seen April 23
	"Rinne Highlight"	TV commercial	The Cocktail Bar Love Story (kyohō-grape and yogurt) -grape-	Suntory	first seen July 16
	"Keikoku"	TV commercial	The Cocktail Bar Sparkling (3 kinds) -sparkling campaign-	Suntory	first seen September 21
	"Kabukichō no Joō"	TV commercial	The Cocktail Bar Mimosa -cracker-	Suntory	first seen September 25
2000	"Aozora"	TV commercial	The Cocktail Bar Fairy Tale (peach and yogurt) -fairy tale-	Suntory	first seen February 5
2003	"Ringo no Uta"	children's TV program	Minna no Uta	NHK	from October 2003 to January 2004
2004	"Kuki (STEM) ~Daimyou Asobi hen~"	movie	Casshern	Shochiku	opened April 24
	"Kuki (STEM) ~Daimyou Asobi hen"	stage play	Lens	Sunshine Theater, Theater Drama City	from July 5 to July 11 (Tokyo), from July 24 to July 25 (Osaka)
	"Gunjō Biyori" (Tokyo Jihen)	TV commercial	Mobile phone for au, W21SA	Sanyo Electric	first seen August 12
2005	"Shuraba" (Tokyo Jihen)	drama	Oooku~Hana no Ran~	Fuji TV	from October 13 to December 22
2007	"Yokushitsu", "Identity"	At-Bat Music	Ichiro Suzuki (MLB player)
	"Kono Yo no Kagiri" (with Saito Neko and Junpei Sheena), "Karisome Otome (DEATH JAZZ ver.)" (with Soil & "Pimp" Sessions)	movie	Sakuran	Asmik Ace Entertainment	opened February 24
	"Tamatebako"	kabuki	Sannin Kichisa (三人吉三)	Theatre Cocoon	from June 7 to 28th
	"Senkou Shōjo" (Tokyo Jihen)	TV commercial	Kei car, Subaru Stella and Subaru R2	Subaru	first seen November 7
	"Kingyo no Hako"	movie	Mōryō no Hako	SHOWGATE Inc.	opened December 22
2008	"Amagasa" (singer: Tokio)[8]	drama	Yasuko to Kenji	NTV	from July 12 to September 20
2009	"Hiyori-hime" (singer: Puffy AmiYumi)	anime TV series	Genji Monogatari Sennenki	Fuji TV	from January 15 to March 26
	"Ariamaru Tomi"	drama	Smile	TBS	from April 17 to June 26
	"Futari-bocchi Jikan"	children's TV program	Minna no Uta	NHK	June and July
	"Noudouteki Sanpunkan" (Tokyo Jihen)	TV commercial	Watering Kiss Mint Gum	Glico	first seen November 17
2010	"Kachiikusa" (Tokyo Jihen)	TV commercial	Watering Kiss Mint Gum	Glico	first seen January 16
	"Dopamint!" (Tokyo Jihen)	TV commercial	Watering Kiss Mint Gum	Glico	first seen July 27
	"Tengoku e Yōkoso" (Tokyo Jihen)	drama	Atami no Sōsakan (熱海の捜査官, Investigator in Atami)	TV Asahi	from July 30 to September 17
2011	"Sora ga Natteiru" (Tokyo Jihen)	TV commercial	Watering Kiss Mint Gum	Glico	first seen February 8
	"Onna no Ko wa Dare demo" (Tokyo Jihen)	TV commercial	MAQuillAGE	Shiseido	first seen February 20
	"Atarashii Bunmeikaika" (Tokyo Jihen)	TV commercial	Tokyo Metro - Tokyo Underground	Tokyo Metro	first seen May 9
	"Carnation"	drama	Asadora Carnation	NHK	from October 3, 2011 to March 31, 2012
	"Tsukiyo no Shōzō" (singer: Chiaki Kuriyama)	drama	Himitsuchōhōin Erika (秘密諜報員 エリカ, Secret agent Erika)	NTV	from October 6 to December 29
2012	"Between Today and Tomorrow"	documentary film	Kyō to Asu no Aida de (今日と明日の間で, Between Today and Tomorrow)	Style Jam	January 7
	"Jiyū e Michizure"	drama	Ataru	TBS	from April 15 to June 24
	"The Heavy Metallic Girl" (singer: Eri Fukatsu) etc.	stage play	Egg	Tokyo Metropolitan Art Space	from September 5 to October 28

Songs offered to other musicians

Year	Date	Song	Artist	Type of release
1998	October 7	"Private"	Ryōko Hirosue	Jeans (single)
1999	February 17	"Private"	Ryōko Hirosue	Private (album)
	January 27	"Cappuccino" "Mokuren No Cream"	Rie Tomosaka	Cappuccino (single)
	February 24	"Cappuccino" "Mokuren No Cream" "Shampoo"	Rie Tomosaka	Murasaki (album)
2000	June 21	"Shōjo Robot" "Ikenai Ko" "Nippon ni Umarete"	Rie Tomosaka	Shōjo Robot (single)
2008	September 3	"Amagasa" "Kachuu no Otoko"	Tokio[8]	Amagasa (single)
2009	February 25	"Hiyori-hime"	Puffy AmiYumi	Hiyori-hime (single)
	June 17	"Hiyori-hime" "Shuen no Onna"	Puffy AmiYumi	Bring It! (album)
	June 24	"Tokai no Manā" "Kodomo no Jōkei"	Rie Tomosaka	Toridori (album)
2011	March 2	"Oishii Kisetsu" "Ketteiteki Sanpunkan"	Chiaki Kuriyama	Oishii Kisetsu/Ketteiteki Sanpunkan (single)
	March 16	"Oishii Kisetsu" "Ketteiteki Sanpunkan"	Chiaki Kuriyama	Circus (album)
	March 2	"Tsukiyo no Shōzō" "Seishun no Kagayaki"	Chiaki Kuriyama	Tsukiyo no Shōzō (single)
2012	August 8	"Manatsu no Datsugokusha"	SMAP	GIFT of SMAP (album)

Songs provided by other musicians

Year	Date	Song	Artist	Type of release/performance
2008	August 16	IT WAS YOU	Burt Bacharach	Rising Sun Rock Festival 2008 in Ezo

Songs covered by other musicians

Year	Date	Song	Artist	Type of release/concert
2000	September 9	"Medley -Koko de Kiss Shite., Gips, Kōfukuron, Kabukichō no Joō, Honnō-"	Rie Tomosaka	NTV variety show: The Yoru mo Hippare
	November 18	"Gips"	Mino Kabasawa	her piano cover album: Piano Pure -Memory of 2000-
2001	November 21	"Mayonaka wa Junketsu"	Mino Kabasawa	her piano cover album: Piano Pure -Memory of 2001-
	September 22	"Mayonaka wa Junketsu"	Rieko Miura, Atsuko Kurusu, Saki Kamiryo	NTV variety show: The Yoru mo Hippare -Aki no Special-
	December 15	"Mayonaka wa Junketsu"	Max	NTV variety show: The Seiya mo Hippare -2001 Christmas Special-
2002	from December 28, 2002 to January 13, 2003	"Kōfukuron -Etsuraku hen-"	Jun Matsumoto and Masaki Aiba (Arashi)	Arashi Storm Concert Tour 2003 "Atarashi Arashi"
	December 25	"Gips"	Kazumasa Oda	TBS music TV program: Christmas no Yakusoku 2002
2003	from June 29 to July 21	"Okonomi de"	Takao Tajima (Original Love)	"Odoru Taiyo" Tour
2004	April 1	"Tsumi to Batsu"	Kent Ohgiya	his piano cover album: Try Try Try "PIano yo Utae" Special
	February 4	"Ringo no Uta"	Takashi Obara	his piano cover album: Pianism in J pop "II Hi Tabidachi"
2005	July 3	"Koko de Kiss Shite."	Tsuyoshi Domoto (KinKi Kids)	Fuji TV variety show: Shin-Domoto Kyodai
2006	June 21	"Yattsuke Shigoto"	Kera and the Synthesizers[Note 4]	their third album: Tonari no Onna
2007	February 7	"Kabukichō no Joō"	Yoshihiro Kai	his cover album: 10 Stories
	February 21	"Honnō"	Satoko Nishikawa	her solo album: Hibiki
	April 18	"Koko de Kiss Shite."	D.H.Y (Dogs Holiday of Yawn)	their cover album: Loves
2008	March 26	"Kesho naoshi"[Note 5]	Kaori Hayato	her first album: pluma
	August 9	"Marunouchi Sadistic"	Ryuichiro Tonozuka	his instrumental album: Top Gear
	June 4	"Tsumi to Batsu"	General Head Mountain	their third album: Tsuki Kanashi Blue
	October 1	"Kesho Naoshi"	Kiyoshi Hasegawa	his 40th anniversary album: 40nen. Mada Kore ga Best de wa nai. Kiyoshi Hasegawa, Live Recording
	December 3	"Kabukichō no Joō (English translation version)"	Scott Murphy (Allister)	his cover album: Guilty Pleasures 3
2009	March 4	"Gips"	Marié Digby	her cover album: Second Home
	March 11	"Kabukichō no Joō"	Fragrance	her album: Colorful
	November 25	"Karisome Otome (Death Jazz ver.)"	Maki Nagayama (vo)	sakai asuka's compilation album: Little Love Light -10 songs for 10 stories-
2010	April 2	"Marunouchi Sadistic"	Fuyumi Sakamoto and Juju	Fuji TV music program: Bokura no Ongaku Special
	September 29	"Gips"	Juju	her cover album: Request
	November 20	"Shun"	Daichi Miura	Daichi Miura Live Tour 2010 -GRAVITY-
2011	March 16	"Tsumi to Batsu"	Blistar	their cover album: BLiSTAR Rockin' Covers -Rock & Sexy-
	March 16	"Kabukichō no Joō"	Gypsy Vagabonz	their cover album: G-Jazz Swing Cover
2012	February 15	"Marunouchi Sadistic"	Unchain	their digital single
	June 20	"Honnō"	Dorlis	her greatest hits album: Dorlis
	September 5	"Tsuki ni Makeinu"	Nanou	his album: Unsung
	October 17	"Gips"	Ms.Ooja	her cover album: Woman -Love Song Covers- and its lead single: Gips

Collaborations and guest appearances

Year	Date	Artist	Performance	Type of release/concert
1998	December 18	Takashi Taniguchi[4]	Backing vocalist: Becoming & Rock and Hammer	his 2nd album: Becoming
1999	February 24	Rie Tomosaka	Chattering of the song: Good for Us!	her album: Murasaki
	January 30	Heart Bazaar	Pianist: Shiroi Yume	their album: Baobab
2000	June 21	Rie Tomosaka	Pianist & backing vocalist, cameo appearance on the music video	her eighth single: Shōjo Robot
2002	May 27	Masamune Kusano, Nao Matsuzaki, Hikaru Utada, Junpei Shiina	Singing a duet with them	Sheena’s cover album: Utaite Myouri ~Sono Ichi~
	May 27	Junpei Shiina	Singing with him: Where Is the Love	his cover album: Discover
2004	September 1	Zazen Boys	Backing vocalist of tracks 2, 4, 5	their album: Zazen Boys II
2005	July 8	Shūtoku Mukai (Zazen Boys)	Singing with him: Kimochi	TV music show: Bokura no Ongaku -Our Music-
	December 7	Mo'some Tonebender	Pianist: Rockin' Luuula, backing vocalist and kazoo: Mashed Potatoes Boogie	their album: Rockin' Luuula
2006	July 12	Ken'ichi Asai	Backing vocalist	his solo debut single: Kikensugiru
	August 18, 19	Zazen Boys & Mo'some Tonebender	Sheena appeared as a guest.	Rising Sun Rock Festival 2006 in Ezo
	November 11	Soil & "Pimp" Sessions	Sheena collaborated with them.	Sheena’s single: Karisome Otome
	December 8	Soil & "Pimp" Sessions	Sheena appeared with them.	TV program: Music Station
2007	January 17	Neko Saito & Junpei Shiina	Sheena collaborated with them.	Sheena’s single: Kono Yo no Kagiri
	January 19	Junpei Shiina	Singing with him: Kono Yo no Kagiri	TV program: Music Station
	February 2	Kiyoshi Hasegawa	Sheena appeared as a guest singer.	TV program: Fōku no Tatsujin (フォークの達人, Master of folk songs)
	August 19	Ken Hirai	Sheena appeared as a guest singer with Tokyo Jihen.	J-Wave 2000+7
2008	August 23, 24	Shutoku Mukai (Zazen Boys), Shu Koyama (Scoobie Do)	Sheena sang a duet with them: Zazen Boys’ Kimochi, Elephant Kashimashi's Kanashimi no Hate.	Society of The Citizens vol.2
2009	March 25	Maboroshi	Sheena sang a duet with Daisuke Sakama in Amai Yamai feat. Sheena Ringo.	their 3rd album: Maboroshi no Shi
	May 2	Ken Hirai Seiji Kameda	Sheena appeared as a singer.	Kameda's event: Kame no Ongaeshi[12]
	May 15	Maboroshi	Sheena appeared as a guest singer.	the Maboroshi Tour 2009 "Rap & Guitar vol.2" at Akasaka BLITZ [13]
	June 24	Daisuke Sakama (Mummy-D)	Sheena collaborated with him: Ryūkō & Togatta Teguchi.	Sheena’s album: Sanmon Gossip
	September 16	Soil & "Pimp"Sessions	Sheena was featured in their track: My Foolish Heart ~crazy on earth~.	their album: 6
2012	June 16	Soil & "Pimp"Sessions	Sheena appeared as a guest singer.	Hibiya Sengen[14]

In popular culture

Ringo Sheena is one of the driving forces that caused a songstress boom from the late 1990s to early 2000s in Japan. Nearly half of them debuted in 1998. Sheena was also one of fashion icon around 2000. There have also been girls called Ringo Gal who imitated Sheena's clothing, and were featured by a Japanese tabloid TV show in 1999. The Duesenberg Starplayer guitar which Sheena has used recorded the historical sales of about 1000 sets in Japan in 2000.^[15]

Sheena's name often appeared on the books, movies, TV dramas and songs, such as the Japanese movie All About Lily Chou-Chou (with The Beatles, Björk, and UA), Maximum the Hormone's song "Sheena basu tei de matsu.", Kreva's single "Idome",^{[Note 6]} the Japanese movie Linda Linda Linda,^{[Note 7]} the TV drama Furuhata Ninzaburō final series, the book by Taro Aso who is the 92nd Prime Minister of Japan Totetsumonai Nihon (as a singer representative of Jpop with Hikaru Utada).^[16]

Sheena is a model for a lot of characters of manga, anime and video games, such as Nana Osaki (Nana),^{[Note 8]} Haruko Haruhara (FLCL),^{[Note 9]} Ringo Awaya, the favourite singer of Anna Kyoyama (Shaman King, Butsu Zone), I-No (the fighting game; Guilty Gear XX),^{[Note 10]} Mayumi, the nurse with brown-dyed hair (Hideo Okuda's novel; Psychiatrist Irabu series),^[17] Murasaki (video game; pop'n music 7).^{[Note 11]} Harold Sakuishi drew the frontispiece of his manga BECK^[18] on the model for the record sleeve of Sheena's single "Honnou".

Reception

Lenny Kravitz stated that he admired Ringo's music video and both her way of making music and the presentation, and said that he wanted to meet her in 2000.^[19] When Courtney Love visited Japan in 2001, she was recommended Japanese female rock singers by the music magazine editor of rockin'on.^[20] Sheena and Seagull Screaming Kiss Her Kiss Her^{[Note 12]} were in Courtney's favor. Courtney tried to make contact with Sheena or to give the song to Sheena, but she failed.^[21] Mika visited to Japan in 2007 and mentioned Ringo in several interviews as one of his favorite Japanese artists, along with Puffy AmiYumi, The Yellow Monkey, Yoko Kanno, and the Yoshida Brothers.^[22][23] Jack Barnett of These New Puritans who was visiting Japan for the Summer Sonic 08 said in an interview that he was a great fan of Ringo Sheena and bought all her works while he was there, as they were not available in the United Kingdom.^[24]

Her third album, "Kalk Samen Kuri no Hana", was ranked 2nd in the most underappreciated Japanese music of the last decade by CNN International Asia on December 22, 2009.^[25] Sheena got a mention in The Guardian as an artist who deserves to be seen and heard in the west in 2010.^[26]

Musical instruments

Type	Model	Color	Notes
Electric guitars	Duesenberg Starplayer II	surf green	She bought it by installments while still an amateur.
	Duesenberg Starplayer TV	silver sparkle
		surf green
		black-and-gold checkered pattern using gold leaf	Her signature model, "Ichimatsu (市松)". This was sold as a limited edition for Sheena Ringo's 5th anniversary.
	Duesenberg V-Caster	vintage white
	Duesenberg Rocket	black and white
	Fender Jaguar Special		Made by Fender Japan
	Fender Telecaster		Custom-made by Fender Japan
	Fender Stratocaster Jimi Hendrix tribute
	Gibson Firebird
	Gibson Flying V	antique natural
	Gibson RD Artist	natural	Recommended by Ukigumo
	Nagare	blue	This guitar is based on the Fender Jazzmaster, and is equipped with a flashbulb so it shines while playing.
	Rickenbacker 620	jetglo	She bought it with her first royalties.
	Tele Phantom	red	Made by Songbird Guitar. This guitar uses "Vox Phatnom markⅥ" as the motif, and the structure is Telecaster. It is the same model of guitar as Ukigumo except for color.
Acoustic guitars	K.Yairi FK-1J
Bass guitars	Danelectro 58 Longhorn	aqua burst
Amplifiers	Orange Overdrive OR412		She began to use this under the influence of Susumu Nishikawa who was her session guitarist in the early days.
Effects units	Pro Co RAT2
Keyboard instruments	Toy piano		She used it on the "Senko Ecstasy" tour.
	Melodica		She used it on the "Dynamite Out" tour.

Discography

Solo works Studio albums Muzai Moratorium (February 24, 1999) Shōso Strip (March 31, 2000) Kalk Samen Kuri no Hana (February 23, 2003) Sanmon Gossip (June 24, 2009) Compilation albums Heisei Fūzoku (February 21, 2007) Watashi to Hōden (July 2, 2008) MoRA (November 25, 2008) Ukina (November 13, 2013) Mitsugetsu shou (November 13, 2013) Cover albums Utaite Myōri: Sono Ichi (May 27, 2002) Vinyl albums Saturday Night Gossip (August 26, 2009)

With Tokyo Jihen Studio albums Kyōiku (November 25, 2004) Adult (January 26, 2006) Variety (September 26, 2007) Sports (February 24, 2010) Dai Hakken (June 29, 2011) Color Bars (January 18, 2012)

Awards

1999

• Best Female Video for "Honnō" - Space Shower Music Video Awards 1999

2000

• Best Female Video for "Tsumi to Batsu" - Space Shower Music Video Awards 2000
• Best Album for "Shouso Strip" - 42nd Japan Record Awards

2002

• Best Animation Video for "Mayonaka wa Junketsu" - Space Shower Music Video Awards 2002
• Best Web Site - Space Shower Music Video Awards 2002

2004

• Best Art Direction Video for "Kuki (STEM) ~Daimyou Asobi Hen~" - Space Shower Music Video Awards 2004

2005

• Best Group Video for "Gunjou Biyori" (Tokyo Jihen) - Space Shower Music Video Awards 2005

2007

• Music Prize and Excellent Prize for "Sakuran" (music director) - 31st Japan Academy Prize

2008

• Best Technical Works Video for "Killer Tune" (Tokyo Jihen) - Space Shower Music Video Awards 2008

2009

• The Newcomer Prize of 2009 - Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology’s Fine Arts Award in the Popular Culture category

2010

• Best Artist and Best Female Video for "Tsugou no Ii Karada" (Dir: Kodama Yuuichi) - Space Shower Music Video Awards 2010

Notes

References

External links

• Official website of Sheena Ringo at EMI Music Japan/Virgin Music (Japanese)
• SR Nekoyanagi Line - Official website of "Kuronekodow" which is a private office of Sheena Ringo (Japanese) (English)
• Official website of Tokyo Jihen at EMI Music Japan/ (Japanese)

v t e Ringo Sheena Discography Videography Production Associated bands Studio albums Muzai Moratorium Shōso Strip Kalk Samen Kuri no Hana Sanmon Gossip Other albums Zetchōshū Utaite Myōri Heisei Fūzoku Watashi to Hōden Live and video releases Gekokujō Xstasy Gokiritsu Japon Electric Mole Ringohan Zazen Extasy Related topics EMI Music Japan Tokyo Jihen Category

Authority control WorldCat VIAF: 49030544 LCCN: no2008032223 SUDOC: 143874292 NDL: 00849100

Persondata
Name	Sheena, Ringo
Alternative names
Short description	Japanese musician
Date of birth	November 25, 1978
Place of birth	Fukuoka, Fukuoka, Japan
Date of death
Place of death