Kazuya Kamenashi
亀梨和也 | |
|---|---|
| Also known as | Kame, K², 亀梨P, Kazuya (Kamenashi-Producer) |
| Born | February 23, 1986 |
| Origin | Edogawa, Tokyo, Japan |
| Genres | J-pop |
| Occupation(s) | Singer–songwriter, actor, TV host, producer, radio host and model |
| Instrument(s) | Vocals, guitar, harmonica, drums |
| Years active | 1998–present |
| Labels | J-One Records |
| Website | Johnny's Net J-One Records |
Kazuya Kamenashi (亀梨 和也, Kamenashi Kazuya), often called Kame (カメ), is a Japanese idol, singer–songwriter, actor, television personality, producer,[1] radio host and occasional model. Born and raised in Edogawa, Tokyo, he joined the Japanese talent agency, Johnny & Associates, at the age of 12 and was drafted as a member and co-lead vocalist of the popular J-pop group KAT-TUN in 2001. The group officially debuted in 2006, and has since achieved a string of chart successes with all five albums and 17 singles reaching number 1 on the Oricon charts.[2][3] He is also one half of the temporary group, Shūji to Akira, whose only single, "Seishun Amigo", became the best-selling single of 2005 in Japan.[4]
Kamenashi has also established himself as an actor with award-winning roles in Nobuta wo Produce, the second season of Gokusen, Kami no Shizuku, Yamato Nadeshiko Shichi Henge and has regularly appeared in various television dramas since 2005.[5] He formerly co-hosted KAT-TUN's late-night NTV variety/talk show, Cartoon KAT-TUN to its end in March 2010, is a radio host with his own program aired by Nippon Cultural Broadcasting and is a sportscaster for Going! Sports & News which is aired by NTV every Sunday night.
Early life
Born in Edogawa, Tokyo on February 23, 1986, Kamenashi is the third child of his parents. He has two older brothers, Yūichirō and Kōji, and one younger brother, Yūya. He also has two sisters-in-law and a niece from his second brother's marriage and a nephew from his first brother's marriage. His given name comes from a character from the manga, Touch, written by a Japanese manga artist, Mitsuru Adachi.[6] Coincidentally, bandmate Tatsuya Ueda was also named after the twin brother of Kamenashi's namesake.[6] An avid baseball fan and player like the character he was named after, Kamenashi once represented his country in the junior world league as shortstop though he had to give up the sport professionally due to lack of spare time after he was accepted into Johnny's Entertainment despite having the support of Johnny Kitagawa, the agency's president, to pursue both careers.[7]
Recording career
Pre-debut
During the audition stages for the agency, he was in the same interview group as KAT-TUN bandmate, Yuichi Nakamaru and former member Jin Akanishi.[7] Made up of five other members (Jin Akanishi, Junnosuke Taguchi, Koki Tanaka, Tatsuya Ueda and Yuichi Nakamaru) at its inception, Kamenashi was the "K" of KAT-TUN and was later dubbed the KA when Akanishi left the band in 2010. He is one of the more popular members of the group. Although he is the youngest of the six, he is often considered their unofficial frontman because of his skill in public speaking. He often acts as MC for KAT-TUN on television programs and concerts.
Though the group was originally chosen and formed as backup dancers for Kōichi Dōmoto of KinKi Kids in 2001, their unexpected popularity led the talent agency to allow them to expand into a separate group. However, they were not allowed to make their official debut in the Japanese music industry until 5 years after their formation. Nakamaru later indicated that over time, the group had become increasingly worried that they would never be an established act and he, along with Kamenashi and Akanishi, went to their agency's president to air their grievances. However, they received assurances that the agency had big plans for the group and were told to keep the faith.[8]
Solo ventures
In 2005, Kamenashi co-starred in the television school drama, Nobuta wo Produce, with Tomohisa Yamashita of NEWS. The opening theme for the show, "Seishun Amigo (青春アミーゴ)", was released as a single under the name Shūji to Akira ("Shūji and Akira"), after the names of their respective characters. "Seishun Amigo" was a massive hit debuting at number 1 upon its release on November 2, 2005 and sold more than 1 million copies in less than 4 weeks. It went on to spend 34 weeks in the Oricon weekly singles chart and became the best-selling single of 2005 in Japan. The song also continued its lengthy chart run into early 2006 and became the third best-selling song of 2006.[4]
Though not a consistent lyricist, Kamenashi has written several songs often under the pen name K².[5] He wrote and performed a song entitled "Kizuna" for the second season of Gokusen which was one of the B-sides on the "Seishun Amigo" single and penned a song called "Special Happiness" and recorded it as a duet with bandmate, Junnosuke Taguchi.[5] During KAT-TUN's 2009 summer arena tour, he debuted a song which he co-wrote with Satomi and Yuka Kawamura entitled "Aishiteiru Kara (愛しているから)" in Ginowan, Okinawa on July 22, 2009 and performed it live with guitar accompaniment throughout the tour.
Commercial success with KAT-TUN
KAT-TUN's vast fanbase made it one of Japan's most prominent J-pop idol groups by 2006 and the group officially debuted on March 22, 2006 with their single "Real Face", which debuted at number 1 on the Oricon weekly singles charts selling over more than 700,000 copies before going on to sell more than a million units by the end of the year.[9] Their debut album, Best of KAT-TUN, featuring songs made popular during their live performances and some which were written for the album, sold more than 500,000 copies in its first week and also topped the Oricon album chart.[10] Two singles from KAT-TUN's second album, "Signal" and "Bokura no Machi de", debuted at number 1 upon their releases selling more than 400,000 units in July and December 2006 respectively in the first week.
Two weeks before the release of the album, the group's late-night talk show, Cartoon KAT-TUN, began airing on April 4, 2007 and was broadcast weekly on Wednesday nights on NTV. The variety show ended its third season on 24 March 2010. Their sophomore record, Cartoon KAT-TUN II You, was released on April 18, 2007 and continued their chart-topping act when it debuted at number 1 with more than 270,000 copies sold. KAT-TUN's extraordinary run on the charts continued when singles from KAT-TUN's third album, "Yorokobi no Uta", "Keep the Faith" and "Lips" all debuted at number 1 in June 2007, November 2007 and February 2008 respectively selling more than 1 million units altogether before the group's third album, KAT-TUN III -Queen of Pirates-, was released in June 2008. Their third original album again peaked at number 1 upon its release moving more than 240,000 copies in its first week.
The group's seventh and eighth singles, "Don't U Ever Stop" and "White X'mas" continued their success on the music charts when it both debuted at number 1 selling 381,672 and 250,106 copies respectively. Their next two singles, "One Drop" and "Rescue" also debuted at number 1 in February 2009 and March 2009, respectively, as did their fourth studio album, Break the Records -by you & for you-. As of May 2009, KAT-TUN has sold over 6 million records in just over three years.[11]
Acting career
Kamenashi made his acting debut in October 1999 in the fifth season of 3 nen B gumi Kinpachi Sensei as Akihiko Fugakawa. Unlike most Japanese television dramas, the series ran for 23 episodes and ended in March 2000. He later reprised his role in the epilogue special episode which aired in 2001. Kamenashi also began appearing on stage in supporting roles of musicals, Show Geki Shock, Shock is Real Shock, Dream Boy and Dream Boys from 2001 to 2004. In late 2004, he took over the lead role in Dream Boys from Hideaki Takizawa and played the lead character in later seasons of the musical in January 2006, September 2007, March 2008, September 2009 and October 2009.
Kamenashi only returned to the small screen as an actor four years later in 2005 starring opposite Yukie Nakama and former bandmate Jin Akanishi in the second season of Gokusen as Ryū Odagiri, a troubled high school student. The show remained popular with viewers finishing its run with an average viewership rating of 27.8% and was awarded "Best Drama" while Kamenashi was awarded "Best Supporting Actor" at the 44th Television Drama Academy Awards. Additionally, he also won "Best Supporting Actor" for his performance at the 8th Nikkan Sports Drama Grand Prix.[5] He also co-starred with Juri Ueno the same year in the special television movie of Kinda'ichi Shōnen no Jikenbo taking over the role of Hajime Kinda'ichi from Jun Matsumoto who last portrayed it in 2001. Kamenashi capped the year with his lead role of Shūji Kiritani in Nobuta wo Produce which won him further acting accolades when he was named "Best Lead Actor" at the 47th Television Drama Academy Awards.[5] The show also won "Best Drama" at the 9th Nikkan Sports Drama Grand Prix.[citation needed]
In 2006, Kamenashi starred in Fuji TV's romance drama, Suppli, with Misaki Ito and was the lead character in NTV's two-part TV movie, Yuuki, based on a true story of a man who died at 23 years old after being diagnosed with an illness which began with the partial collapse of his cranial bone resulting in a subsequent battle with seven types of incurable diseases. This tanpatsu was highly rated with an average viewership rating of 22.7%. Kamenashi also starred opposite Haruka Ayase and bandmate Koki Tanaka in romance drama, Tatta Hitotsu no Koi, the same year. He only made one guest appearance in 2007 in the ninth episode of Tanaka's comedy series, Tokkyu Tanaka 3 Go, before taking on the lead role of Kōsaku Hatanaka in the live-action adaptation of manga, 1 Pound no Fukuin, in 2008.
In 2009, Kamenashi was cast in a live-action adaptation of a wine-themed manga, Kami no Shizuku, as the leading actor.[12] Voters awarded him, his co-stars (Riisa Naka and Seiichi Tanabe) and the drama a near clean sweep of the winter edition of the Nikkan Sports Drama Grand Prix Awards in March 2009.[13] He made a guest appearance as a doctor on the third episode of TBS drama series, Mr. Brain, opposite senpai Takuya Kimura.[14] Kamenashi also made his film debut on July 11, 2009, reprising his role of Ryū Odagiri, now a trainee teacher in Gokusen The Movie.[15][16] The movie earned half a billion yen in its opening weekend landing at the top spot of the box office and stayed in the top ten for six consecutive weeks.[17][18] It later ranked at number 16 on Japan's 2009 yearly box office results raking in 33,963,369 USD at the end of its run.[19]
In 2010, he was cast in the leading role of Kyohei Takano for a live-action adaptation of popular manga, Yamato Nadeshiko Shichi Henge, which aired on NTV. It was named Best Drama by voters of the 13th Nikkan Sports Drama Grand Prix Awards in March 2010 while Kamenashi and his co-star, Aya Omasa, were also awarded Best Actor and Best Supporting Actress respectively.[20]
In 2011, he is cast in the supernatural adventure drama, Yokai Ningen Bem. He plays the lead role along with Anne Watanabe and Suzuki Fuku as Bemu, Bella and Bero. The cast and drama dominated the 15th Nikkan Drama Grand Prix Awards by winning Best Drama, Best Actor, Best Supporting Actor and Best Supporting Actress. He has also won his role in Bemu as Best Actor in the 71st Drama Academy Awards along with Anne who won for Best Supporting Actress. The drama placed second just behind Kaseifu no Mita.
Other endeavors
Radio
Kamenashi joined the rest of his bandmates as a radio host on April 4, 2008 when he launched a twenty-minute radio segment, Kamenashi Kazuya Kase by Kase, which aired every Friday night in two parts. He also appeared on Masaharu Fukuyama's radio show, Tamashii no Radio, as a guest on April 29, 2009. He has a new radio show called 'Kamenashi Kazuya Hang Out' that airs every Saturday morning.
Modeling & Fashion
Kamenashi walked the runway in 2008 for Hermès' men's autumn/winter 2008 collection in Tokyo.[21] In 2010, Kamenashi won the annual Best Jeanist award with more than 29,000 votes in the men's category, almost triple that of second runner-up, Masaki Aiba. This is his fifth consecutive win and is thus promoted into the hall of fame, making him Eternal Best Jeanist and ineligible for future runs.[22]
Baseball
- Kamenashi was as a junior captain for four consecutive years of the J2000 Team for Johnny's Baseball Tournament from 1999 to 2004.
- Kamenashi won three consecutive years the title "The World's No1 Artist Baseball Player" organized by the WBC (2005-2006-2007) and was finalist two times (2004 & 2008).
- Kamenashi threw the first pitch at the Pacific League opening ceremony for the 2009 baseball season at a match in Chiba City featuring the Chiba Lotte Marines against the Fukuoka SoftBank Hawks on July 19, 2009.[23][24]
- Kamenashi participated in the Central League's Yomiuri Giants 23rd FanFiesta 2009 on November 23, 2009 and led his team to victory. He participated during the 1st innning as short stop and for the 2nd & 3rd innings as pitcher. He belonged to the Black Rose Variety Team led by SMAP's Nakai Masahiro against the Giants Select Members Team.[25][26]
Discography
Filmography
Movies
| Year | Title | Role |
|---|---|---|
| 2013 | Ore Ore (It's Me, It's Me) | Hitoshi Nagano |
| 2009 | Gokusen The Movie | Ryū Odagiri |
| 2007 | Yuuki | Yuuki |
Television dramas
| Year | Broadcast | Title | Role |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1999 | TBS | 3 nen B gumi Kinpachi sensei 5 | Akihiko Fukagawa |
| 2005 | NTV | Gokusen 2 | Ryū Odagiri |
| NTV | Kindaichi Shōnen no Jikenbo | Hajime Kindaichi | |
| NTV | Nobuta wo Produce | Shūji Kiritani | |
| 2006 | Fuji TV | Sapuri | Yūya Ishida |
| NTV | Yuuki | Yūki Sanda | |
| NTV | Kuitan SP | Cameo appearance | |
| NTV | Tatta Hitotsu no Koi | Hiroto Kanzaki | |
| 2007 | TBS | Tokkyu Tanaka San Go | Toru Shibahara (Guest; Episode 9) |
| 2008 | NTV | 1 Pound no Fukuin | Kōsaku Hatanaka |
| 2009 | NTV | Kami no Shizuku | Shizuku Kanzaki |
| TBS | MR. BRAIN | Dr. Masakazu Wakui (Guest; Episode 3) | |
| 2010 | TBS | Yamato Nadeshiko Shichi Henge | Kyohei Takano |
| 2011 | TBS | 3 nen B gumi Kinpachi sensei FINAL | Akihiko Fukagawa Guest) |
| 2011 | NTV | Yokai Ningen Bem | Bem |
Musicals
| Year | Title | Dates | Role Type |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2001 | SHOCK | December 1, 2001 - January 27, 2002 | Supporting Role |
| 2002 | SHOCK | June 4, 2002 - June 28 | Supporting Role |
| 2003 | SHOCK is Real Shock | January 8 - February 25 | Supporting Role |
| 2004 | DREAM BOY | January 8 - January 31 | Supporting Role |
| 2004 | DREAM BOY | May 8 - May 23 | Lead role |
| 2005 | Hey! Say! Dream Boy | April 27 - May 15 | Lead role |
| 2006 | Dream Boys | January 3 - January 29 | Lead role |
| 2007 | Dream Boys | September 5 - September 30 | Lead role |
| 2008 | Dream Boys | March 4 - March 30 | Lead role |
| 2009 | Dream Boys | September 4 - October 25 | Lead role |
| 2011 | Dream Boys | September 3 - September 25 | Lead role |
| 2012 | Dream Boys | TBA | Lead role |
Commercials
| Company | Year | Product |
|---|---|---|
| Lotte | 2003–2009 | Crunky Chocolate |
| 2003–2009 | Plus X (Gum) | |
| Otsuka Pharmaceutical Co. | 2005 | Oronamin C |
| Nintendo | 2005 | Dance Dance Revolution |
| Kadokawa Shoten | 2005 | The Television |
| Rohto Pharmaceutical Co. | 2005 | Rohto Zi: |
| 2005 | V Rohto Cool | |
| SKY Perfect | 2006 | SKY PerfecTV! |
| NTT DoCoMo | 2005–2006 | FOMA902i |
| 2006 | FOMA new9 | |
| 2006 | FOMA903i | |
| 2007 | FOMA903iTV | |
| KFC | 2007–2008 | Black Pepper Chicken |
| Panasonic | 2010-2012 | LAMDASH Electric Shaver |
| 2010-2012 | DOLTZ electric toothbrush | |
| AOKI | 2010-2012 | AOKI 3D Slim Suit |
| Suzuki | 2011-2012 | SOLIO car |
| MTI | 2012 | entag! mobile gaming site |
| KIRIN | 2012 | Gogo no Kocha Espresso tea |
Radio programs
- Kamenashi Kazuya Kase by Kase aired by Nippon Cultural Broadcasting; April 4th, 2008 – September 30th, 2011.
- Kamenashi Kazuya Hang Out FM NACK5; October 1st, 2011 - present
Television programs
- Going Sports and News aired by Nippon Television; April 3, 2010–present
- Dramatic Game 1844 aired by Nippon Televisionas Baseball Special Supporter; April 12, 2011–present
Awards
 | This section needs additional citations for verification. (December 2008) |
| Years | Awards |
|---|---|
| 2005 | |
| 2006 | |
| 2007 |
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| 2008 |
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| 2009 |
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| 2010 | |
| 2011 |
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| 2012 |
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References
- ^ Regularly a producer for special editions of Nippon Television Network's program, Zoom In!![1], since 2006 and since January 10th of 2009, his name officially appears in the final credits of the program.
- ^ Charts: KAT-TUN, GReeeeN still hot, Tokyograph
- ^ Charts: Johnny's all around, Tokyograph; retrieved on May 31, 2009
- ^ a b Seishun Amigo, Jpop Stop; retrieved on August 11, 2009.
- ^ a b c d e Kamenashi Kazuya, Jpop Stop; retrieved on August 11, 2009.
- ^ a b Cartoon KAT-TUN Episode 43; aired on NTV on 2008-01-30.
- ^ a b Shōnen Club interview: Kazuya Kamenashi
- ^ "Episode 55 - Cartoon KAT-TUN, NTV"; aired April 23, 2008
- ^ Real Face, Jpop Stop; retrieved on August 18, 2009.
- ^ Best of KAT-TUN, Jpop Stop; retrieved on August 11, 2009
- ^ KAT-TUN music profile, Jpop Stop; retrieved on August 11, 2009.
- ^ Kamenashi leads "Kami no Shizuku" drama adaptation, Tokyograph, Sports Hochi; retrieved on November 13, 2008.
- ^ Drama Grand Prix: "Kami no Shizuku" wins winter, Tokyograph; retrieved on May 31, 2009.
- ^ Kamenashi given guest role on "Mr. Brain", Tokyograph; retrieved on June 10, 2009.
- ^ Kamenashi comes back for "Gokusen", Tokyograph; retrieved on June 10, 2009.
- ^ More "Gokusen" cast details, Tokyograph; retrieved on June 10, 2009.
- ^ "Gokusen" movie earns half a billion in opening weekend, Tokyograph; retrieved on July 14, 2009.
- ^ [asianmediawiki.com/2009_Japanese_Box_Office "2009 Japanese Box Office], Asian Media Wiki; retrieved on January 13, 2011.
- ^ 2009 Japan Yearly Box Office Results, Box Office Mojo; retrieved on December 27, 2010.
- ^ Nikkan Sports Drama Grand Prix, Nikkan Sports; retrieved on January 13, 2011.
- ^ Men's Non-No magazine, published by Shueisha, December 2008 issue, page 83.
- ^ Koda, Kazuya Kamenashi enter Best Jeanist "hall of fame"
- ^ Template:Jp icon ＫＡＴ－ＴＵＮ・亀梨、始球式で西岡と対決, Sankei Sports; retrieved on July 20, 2009.
- ^ Template:Jp icon [2], Tsuyoshi Nishioka's official blog; entry dated 2009-07-19; retrieved on July 22, 2009.
- ^ Template:Jp icon 巨人が亀梨打てず、ＳＭＡＰ中居軍に黒星, Nikkan Sports; retrieved on November 23, 2009.
- ^
- ^ Template:Jp icon 「三つどもえの混戦を抜け亀梨和也が初受賞」, Television Drama Academy Awards; retrieved on June 21, 2011.
- ^ Template:Jp icon 「第8回日刊スポーツ・ドラマグランプリ（ＧＰ）」, Nikkan Sports; retrieved on July 1, 2010.
- ^ Template:Jp icon 「アカデミー史上に残る接戦を制して亀梨がV」, Television Drama Academy Awards; retrieved on June 21, 2011.
- ^ Template:Jp icon THE 20th JAPAN GOLD DISC AWARD 2006, Japan Gold Disc Award; retrieved on June 21, 2011.
- ^ a b c d e Template:Jp icon Past Records for Best Jeanists Award, Best-Jeans.com; retrieved on June 21, 2011.
- ^ Template:Jp icon Hall of Fame for Nikkan Sports Drama Grand Prix Award, Nikkan Sports; retrieved on June 21, 2011.
Translation of part of the article from Nikkan Sports [2009年11月23日14時20分] "Giants unable to hit Kamenashi's pitches loses against SMAP's Nakai's team." The Giants FanFesta was held on the 23rd in Tokyo Dome and the Giants Select Members Team lost against SMAP's Nakai Masahiro's(37 years old) Black Rose Team. The game had 3 innings. KAT-TUN's Kamenashi Kazuya (23 years old) sealed the powerful line up with his good strong batting & pitching . In the last inning, the Giants sent in player Shinozuka, Coach Yoshimura, and lastly their #1 draft rookie outfield player Hisayoshi Chono(25 years old, could not hit any of Kamenashi's pitches) against player Kamenashi but they could not reach a 2-3 and lost. One of his recent dramas he appeared in was a live-action based on a manga and anime called Yamato Nadeshiko Shichi Henge. He plays one of the main protagonist; Kyohei along with actress Oomasa Aya, playing Nakahara Sunako.