Tomoko Kawase Kawase Tomoko, born February 6, 1975 is a Japanese singer, songwriter, producer, actress, and model from Kyoto. She is the lead singer of the alternative rock band The Brilliant Green. She also has a solo career under the alter-ego pseudonyms Tommy february6 and Tommy heavenly6.
Biography
Her debut solo album Tommy february6 peaked at No. 1 on the Japan Oricon chart. The album was certified Platinum by the Recording Industry Association of Japan, as well as her second studio album Tommy Airline. She has released eight solo albums. Her songs appeared in various anime including Paradise Kiss, Mobile Suit Gundam 00, Soul Eater, Pokémon, Gin Tama, and Bakuman. Two of her songs were used in the 2004 film adaption of Kamikaze Girls. From 2001 to 2009, she released music through Defstar Records, a division of Sony Music Japan. In 2010 she was signed to Warner Music Japan.
She has appeared on the cover of Marquee magazine nine times, and has also been featured on the cover of JGM and NewsMaker. She modeled for Italian fashion house Fiorucci, and hosted the MTV Japan show Breakdown. She mentored and produced music for the pop-duo Amoyamo. In 2005, an official Blythe doll of Kawase was released.
She has been cited as an influence to other pop artists, such as Kyary Pamyu Pamyu and Charli XCX.
Life and career
1995–2001: The Brilliant Green
In 1995, after bassist Shunsaku Okuda and guitarist Ryo Matsui heard her sing in an amateur talent contest, Kawase was asked to join The Brilliant Green as the lead vocalist. The first two releases from The Brilliant Green were the non-album singles “Bye Bye Mr. Mug” and “Goodbye and Good Luck”, which received moderate success. Their break came in 1998 when their third single, “There Will Be Love There” was chosen as the theme song for the popular Japanese drama Love Again, and as a result went straight to the top of the charts. After scoring another number one hit with “Tsumetai Hana”, they released their self-titled debut album which sold over one million copies in just two days. On the back of this success their first national tour, titled “There Will Be Live There,” sold out across Japan in only three minutes.
In 2013, Kawase started releasing music from all her personas in commemoration of the Brilliant Green’s 15th anniversary.
2001–2009: Tommy february6 / Tommy heavenly6 – Solo career under DefStar Records
In 2001, Kawase joined DefStar Records and launched her solo career under the character of Tommy february6 (named from a combination of her nickname and birth date) with “Everyday at the Bus Stop”. Vastly different from the pop rock sound of The Brilliant Green, Tommy february6’s persona and sound are inspired by and derived from British and American 1980’s synthpop, including a cover of Strawberry Switchblade’s “Since Yesterday”. Kawase’s original intention with Tommy february6 was to create a character who was far from innocent, though cute in both sound and appearance; Tommy february6 was designed to be someone who was true to her feelings despite the cutesy nature of her outward character and did as she wanted (and as such, Tommy february6 is seen repeatedly in music videos drinking alcohol from flasks, bars, etc.) Kawase’s second single under the name was Kiss One More Time, and third single under the name was “Bloomin’!” (a song that was also used in a commercial for cosmetic company, Shiseido). Finally, on her birthday, Kawase released her eponymous debut album: Tommy february6.
In October 2002, Tommy february6 released a photo and journal book titled Tommy february6 + Hawaii. It is presented in a mock travel guide format, including features such as restaurant reviews, sightseeing hotspots and cultural information. In keeping with the character’s outwardly cute personality, crude outline sketches of animals and fairies litter the pages (as seen on the cover) alongside thought bubbles gracing many of the pictures, which have the distinct appearance of doodles. One after the release of Tommy february6, Kawase released her fourth single under the name, titled “Je t’aime je t’aime”. At this point, the original concept started to disappoint her and Kawase began to feel that the character could no longer maintain its purity. On the day she released her fifth single “Love Is Forever”, she also released her debut single as Tommy heavenly6 “Wait Till I Can Dream”. Kawase would later explain that Tommy heavenly6 was born from a dream that Tommy february6 had, in which she embraces all the elements of her personality she had previously been repressing.
In 2003, she created the pop group, Tommy Angels. The group only had one single, “You’ll Be My Boy”, which was released on December 17, 2003, and had a top chart position of No. 78 on the Oricon Top 200 Weekly Peak chart. Kawase wrote the lyrics for the song (with the music by Malibu Convertible), and also produced the track. The group disbanded after this single.
Shortly after this came the second studio album under the Tommy february6 name, titled: “Tommy Airline”. After “Tommy Airline” came the release of Tommy heavenly6’s second single “Hey My Friend”, and the release of Tommy february6’s single “Lovely: Yume Miru Lovely Boy”, used as the ending song for the 7th Pokémon film. In August 2005 (nearly two years after her first single), Tommy heavenly6 finally released her third single, “Ready?”, which was shortly followed by her own long-awaited eponymous debut album. After the release of Tommy february6’s “Lonely in Gorgeous”, Kawase decided to focus on the Tommy heavenly6 persona.
In 2006 and 2007 Tommy heavenly6 released five new singles which led to her second album Heavy Starry Heavenly. She finished this productive phase with the Heavy Starry Tour: four live performances as Tommy heavenly6 during March 2007. She incorporated most of her songs into this live format, which lasted for an hour and a half, complete with her now regular backing band, and even her bandmates from The Brilliant Green made guest appearances for some songs. Kawase still kept the Tommy february6 persona through cameos on Tommy heavenly6’s music videos, like “Lollipop Candy Bad Girl” and “I Love Xmas”.
In 2008 Tommy february6 was featured on a compilation album We Love Cyndi, covering “All Through the Night” by Cyndi Lauper. On February 25, 2009, Kawase released two best-of albums under both the Tommy aliases, Strawberry Cream Soda Pop Daydream (as February6) and Gothic Melting Ice Cream’s Darkness Nightmare (as heavenly6). Both albums collected the Tommy singles and certain album tracks, as well as having a new track each.
In April 2009, Tommy heavenly6 released a new concept album, titled I Kill My Heart, which was composed mostly by Chiffon Brownie. Two of the promotional songs for her third album were accompanied by music videos that had two versions each: one as Tommy heavenly6 and one as Tommy february6. After the release of I Kill My Heart, both Tommy heavenly6 and Tommy february6’s contracts with DefStar Records expired, and were not renewed.
2010-2020: Warner Music Japan era
In 2010 Tommy february6, Tommy heavenly6, and The Brilliant Green were all picked up by Warner Music Japan. Finally in December 2010, Kawase announced via her Twitter page the possibility for a third studio album under the Tommy february6 persona. Tommy february6’s official website with Warner Music Japan is still stated as “coming soon”. In August 2011, Tommy stated via Twitter she was working on demos for both Tommy heavenly6 and Tommy february6. In September 2011, a statement was posted on Tommy heavenly6’s official site saying Tommy february6 would return February 6, 2012. Tommy february6 was featured in Tommy heavenly6’s music video for I’m Your Devil (Halloween Remix).
On November 11, 2011 Tommy announced during an interview with J-Wave Circus Circus she is in the process of recording a double album featuring both Tommy february6 and Tommy heavenly6, set for release in 2012. Warner released a press release on December 1, 2011, stating the album’s release date as February 29, 2012. The album’s title was later revealed to be “february & heavenly”. The album debuted at No. 7 on the Oricon albums chart.
In September 2012, Tommy announced she would be releasing a Halloween EP titled “Halloween Addiction”. Which would feature both of her previous “Halloween singles” as well as a new one. In December 2012, Tommy announced she would be releasing a special Valentine’s Day single through Tommy february6 titled, “Be My Valentine”. In April 2013, Tommy announced a new English single, “Runaway”, and a new album, Tommy Candy Shop, for release in June 2013.
Kawase released her second solo EP, Tommy’s Halloween Fairy Tale October 14, 2015.
In 2017, Kawase returned with the promotional single Kitty Ninja from Tommy february6, along with a remixed version of “Living Dead Diner Girls” from Tommy heavenly6, available exclusively to members of her fan site. On October 17, 2018 Kawase released two new singles, “Ice Cream Devils” as Tommy heavenly6 and “Cupcake Angels” as Tommy february6.
Personal life
Tomoko Kawase was born on February 6, 1975, in Kyoto, Japan. On November 22, 2003 Kawase announced her marriage to The Brilliant Green’s fellow member and bassist, Shunsaku Okuda. Due to her marriage, her legal name changed to Tomoko Okuda. However, she is still credited as Kawase Tomoko.