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Someone non-Japanese a successful Japanese singer?

Peachgirldb

後輩
2 Jul 2003
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I've got a little Japanese heritage through my mother, I can speak some Japanese which I am still studying and improving and I've been training in voice and dance..so my question is...how likely do you think it is that in a few years that I could go to Japan and start a career and be successful? I'm not dying to be famous or anything, I just think the music industry in Japan is bound to be better than here....
 
Mhhhh.... that's a strange question.... but your success depends on a lot of things, for example:
-your talent, that's #1 how wonderful 😍 or freaky :mad: is your voice??
-how will your style fit into the temporary fashion or can you compare it to the actual trend? If you don't have the style the time affords, it looks bad... -or you are something really new and show your own "revolutionary" style... (I didn't mean if you are beautiful or not!)
-...
- But that's just my opinion...
-do you have a tape or did you make a CD, yet?
 
I don't have any recent recordings...though I need to make some soon. Maybe if I can get some up online you can tell me if you think my voice is good enough?

I'm willing to flex with trends in Japan, it's all just dress-up to me, I don't mind because it's not so sleazy as America.

I've got a strong will and I'll do what it takes! I just want some opinions as to how people will think that I will do. ^_^;
 
Sounds promising.

Actually, in Japan a good voice is not that important. If you look cute and you can sing a few notes, producers and stylists will do the rest.

Of course you also need a record company to pay for the marketing campaign and that's where your biggest obstacle lies. Just like anywhere else in the world, the music-industry in Japan is in a downward spiral. Record companies are currently reluctant to invest in new talent, so it will probably be hard to convince them to sign you up.

Perhaps you'd have more chance starting off on a small independant label. It might not get you famous overnight, but at least you could actually release some material. But these labels usually only take on real talent.

Let us know when you have some demo's ready. It's always good to hear a new voice.
 
Okay..here is a small clip of me singing Ai no Bakayarou by Goto Maki..it's not very good because my microphone is bad and I'm still learning this song...but here it is:

www.geocities.com/peachgirldb/ainobakayarou.zip

Well, tell me what you think!
 
Ah, and before people start complaining that the link doesn't work: It's Geocities, so you have to copy and paste the link into a new browserwindow.

Your voice isn't bad at all. If this is homerecording, then i'm looking forward to hear what you can do in a real studio.
You certainly can hit the right notes, although you seem to have trouble with higher notes.

It doesn sound a bit nasal sometimes, but i'm guessing you're trying to keep the volume down. I'd love to hear a sample at full strength.
 
Yeah, I do have trouble with the higher notes, I have a somewhat fuller voice than a lot of J-singers. But I could probably pass with a little studio polishing.

It's also not as good because I'm having to sit down to sing because this room is so cramped >.<:sorry:

I'll try and make a better version soon...
 
A new version is at:

www.geocities.com/peachgirldb/baka2.zip

Again, copy and paste. ^_^; This one is more like my natural voice, instead of emulating Maki...but the high notes still suck.
 
I guess it's always better to sing in your own voice. Should be easier to control anyway.

Don't worry too much about those high notes. If you work with a good producer, that person will know what your good and bad points are and will try to produce the songs exactly in a way that fits your skills. That said, it never hurts to take singing lessons, to enhance those skills.

Now, i think it's not that hard to sing a Maki Goto song, since she's not really a very skilled vocalist. Record companies can find singers like that in any Japanese karaoke-bar, so they won't bother signing up someone from abroad.
You do have the advantage of having a perfect English pronunciation, so that would already put you on par with Hikaru Utada (Grew up in New York) and Olivia Lufkin (Half Japanese, half American), but that might not be enough.

Are you able to sing like Misia for instance? She's got a very deep soul voice. Try listening to her single Everything and see if you can do something like that.
 
You could start by getting involved with a live band that plays regularly in Tokyo. There are several around.
 
Twisted, I've tried out the song you recommended, and while I don't feel it's my best stuff, I think I did it justice. And besides, I've only just started to learn it. So here's my first try:

www.geocities.com/peachgirldb/everything.zip

Copy and paste and love me with criticism. ^_^
 
Right, nice first try, but it sounds like you're whispering into the microphone. Misia doesn't whisper.

You're lungs can hold a lot more air than you're using now.
Imagine you're on the podium in the Tokyodome, the microphone doesn't work and you still want to reach the people in the back. You don't start screaming, but you use more volume. Don't force your vocal cords though.
 
Re: How likely is it that someone non-japanese will have success as a Japanese singer

Originally posted by Peachgirldb
I've got a little Japanese heritage through my mother, I can speak some Japanese which I am still studying and improving and I've been training in voice and dance..so my question is...how likely do you think it is that in a few years that I could go to Japan and start a career and be successful? I'm not dying to be famous or anything, I just think the music industry in Japan is bound to be better than here....
What Himura and Twisted said are correct...
And at least one thing that you don't have to worry about is your bi-racial heritage... Twisted mentioned Olivia Lufkin... theres also Sowelu, who is half Irish.. (I like her new single, "Fortune" :)) and also Crystal Kay, who is half African. Thats all I can think of for now... They have had good success, so I think that shows that the Japanese accept their singers very well, as long as the singer speaks Japanese nicely and naturally.
 
Yes, winampman gets it on the point. and on the other hand, you have to become "louder", as some others said before. but it sounds cute^^
 
Right, right..I definitely need some kind of lessons in using more of my lung strength. I don't have very good lungs ^_^;; Like for instance...I can't do things like run and breathe at the same time. 😭

But I'm sure I can do something about it. If I'm not good enough, I won't give up, I'll just get better!:box:
 
Indeed, it's certainly something you can learn. I actually have a book that explains how to do it, but so far i've been too lazy to practice. Then again, i'm not a singer, i only want to develop my voice for my radioshow.

Try singing something from Korean singer BoA. I think your voice sounds a lot like hers.

Do we have any other talents on the board? Maybe we can set up a musical project of some sort. Everyone could record their part and i'll mix the end result into a slick sounding track.
 
You know what? I really like BoA, and her music, but I just don't think I sound very good when I'm singing her stuff.
 
Originally posted by Peachgirldb
I don't have any recent recordings...though I need to make some soon. Maybe if I can get some up online you can tell me if you think my voice is good enough?

I'm willing to flex with trends in Japan, it's all just dress-up to me, I don't mind because it's not so sleazy as America.

I've got a strong will and I'll do what it takes! I just want some opinions as to how people will think that I will do. ^_^;

I listen to Japanese & Korean music because it is so much better than English. I also would love to be a successful jpop singer, so I understand how you feel. therefore I support u completely. 👏
 
i really wanna be a japanese singer~~ but i wont be goin to japan till like ...4 years later but im makin plans now ..BUt sadly im a chinese and dont no any japanese at all.but i got pretty good prounounciation....how do i start gettin into the music industry?soMEonE HELP -_-;;
 
Best thing to do is to write songs, form a band around you and start performing live. Participate in talentscouts. That's about the best way to gain experience.

Then it's time to record those songs and send off demos to all the recordcompanies in Japan (or wherever you want to make it big). Don't send in stuff that's half finished and make the package of your demo look good. After that it's all a matter of luck.

Most likely you'll never hear from those recordcompanies, so keep performing live. You might get scouted. And keep sending in new demos, once you've written new material. Just because the recordcompany didn't like your first demo, doesn't mean they won't like the second or third.
 
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