WAngerme , formerly Smileage , is a Japanese idol girl group from the musical collective Hello! Project, which originally consisted of four former Hello! Pro Egg members that left Egg in 2010 and became full-time members of Hello! Project. In 2010, they won the Japan Record Award for Best New Artist. In 2011, five new girls were added to the group as part of the second generation, with two being former Egg members and three new girls. In 2014, three new members joined the group as third generation members.
WB1A4 (Korean: 비원에이포) is a South Korean boy group formed by WM Entertainment. The group debuted on April 23, 2011 with the single "O.K" from the EP Let's Fly, after being introduced to the public through a webtoon. They have released seven studio albums and seven EPs, as well as four compilation albums. The group has had considerable commercial and critical success in both the Korean and Japanese markets. They have also toured in the United States.
WBabyraids Japan was a Japanese idol group. The group disbanded after a final live show on September 24, 2018.
WBand-Maid is a Japanese rock band formed in 2013. The band combines a rock sound with a maid image modeled on Japanese maid cafés. Originally signed to Gump Records, they switched to major label Nippon Crown's sub-label Crown Stones in 2016 and later moved to new sub-label Revolver Records in 2019. The band's albums have been released internationally through JPU Records since 2016. In late 2020, the band left Revolver Records and signed with Pony Canyon.
WBy-Sexual was a Japanese visual kei punk rock band from Osaka. They were active from 1988 to 1995, when vocalist Sho left the band and they went on hiatus. In August 1996, the remaining members restarted the group under the name By-Sex with Ryo taking over vocals in addition to guitar. In February 1998, Nao left and the group disbanded.
WEbisu Muscats is the name of a series of J-pop groups mainly consisting of Japanese gravure idols and AV idols, under the Pony Canyon record label. The original group was established in 2008 as part of the TV Tokyo's variety show Onegai! Muscat which first aired in April 2008. Their first single, released in 2010, reached number 8 in sales on Oricon’s singles chart. They held their first live show in July 2010 in Shibuya, Tokyo.
WFireHouse is an American rock band which formed in Richmond, Virginia before moving to Charlotte, North Carolina, where they were signed to Epic Records in 1989. The band reached stardom during the early 1990s with hit singles like, "Reach for the Sky", "Don't Treat Me Bad," and "All She Wrote," as well as their signature power ballads, "I Live My Life for You," "Love of a Lifetime," and "When I Look Into Your Eyes." At the 1992 American Music Awards, FireHouse won the award for "Favorite New Heavy Metal/Hard Rock Artist."
WFishmans are a Japanese band formed in 1987 in Minato, Tokyo. They are known for their unique psychedelic sound and the distinctive vocals of the late lead singer Shinji Sato, as well as the drum playing of Kin-Ichi Motegi and rocksteady basslines of Yuzuru Kashiwabara. Fishmans remained relatively underground and disbanded with the sudden death of Shinji Sato in 1999, but later accumulated an international cult following largely driven by their popular acclaim on internet discussion boards. In a 2019 article for The Japan Times, James Hadfield wrote that their albums Aerial Camp and Long Season "are now undisputed landmarks in the Japanese rock canon."
WKyoko Fukada is a Japanese actress and singer. She is represented by the agency Horipro. In Japan, her name is sometimes contracted to the nickname Fukakyon (深キョン). She won the award for Best Actress at the Yokohama Film Festival for Kamikaze Girls.
WAstrud Gilberto is a Brazilian samba and bossa nova singer. She became popular in the 1960s after her performance of the song "The Girl from Ipanema".
WBillie Keith Hughes was an American recording artist, songwriter, musician, and record producer. He is best known for his successful artist career in Japan, lead vocalist of his band Lazarus and his collaboration with Roxanne Seeman writing songs for Philip Bailey, Phil Collins, Bette Midler, The Jacksons, The Sisters Of Mercy, Wink, and for his songs in film and television. He has two Emmy nominations.
WGlenn Hughes is an English bassist and singer, best known for playing bass and performing vocals in funk rock band Trapeze and in the Mk. III and IV line-ups of Deep Purple, as well as briefly fronting Black Sabbath in the mid-1980s. He is known by fans as "The Voice of Rock" due to his soulful and wide-ranging singing voice.
WJeri Keever "Bunny" Hull is an American songwriter, musician, and author. Her catalog includes music, film and television projects. She is a recipient of 20 Gold and Platinum Certifications, a Grammy Award and two nominations, an Emmy nomination, a GMA Dove Award, a BMI Performance Award, and multiple Parents' Choice Awards.
WIdoling!!! was a Japanese TV show with attached female idol group created by Fuji TV. The concept of the group was to watch as the girls grow as idols and experience various things. Idoling's main source of exposure was their TV show, which aired several new episodes every week on FUJI TV ONE, with more than 1000 episodes broadcast since October 30, 2006. Over the years of the show, Idoling!!! released 7 studio albums, 24 singles, collaborated with other idol groups, released DVD specials and gave many live performances and concerts. The group officially disbanded on October 27, 2015, with the graduation of all remaining members.
WJang Keun-suk is a South Korean actor and singer. He is best known for starring in the Korean television dramas Beethoven Virus (2008), You're Beautiful (2009), Mary Stayed Out All Night (2010), Love Rain (2012), Pretty Man (2013), The Royal Gambler (2016) and Switch (2018).
WYoshino Kimura is a British-born Japanese actress, voice actress and singer. She appeared on an episode of the Showtime series Masters of Horror. Kimura won the "Rookie of the Year" prize at the 21st Japan Academy Awards for her appearance in Shitsurakuen.
WAkiko Yoshida is a Japanese singer and songwriter performing under the stage name Kokia. Her most well known songs are "Arigatō..." and "The Power of Smile" (which topped at No. 8 in the singles chart). She is also recognized for her numerous contributions to anime/game soundtracks, the most notable being "Ai no Melody/Chōwa Oto " for the film Origin: Spirits of the Past, "Follow the Nightingale" for the game Tales of Innocence, and "Tatta Hitotsu no Omoi" for the anime Gunslinger Girl: Il Teatrino.
WChristopher MacFarlane, better known as Macka B, is a British-born Jamaican reggae artist, performer and activist with a career spanning thirty years and one of Britain's most influential dancehall DJs.
WRita Marcotulli is an Italian jazz pianist and composer.
WKeiko Matsui , is a Japanese keyboardist and composer, specializing in smooth jazz and New-age music.
WSuzuko Mimori is a Japanese actress and singer. She is represented by HiBiKi Cast. She voiced Umi Sonoda in Love Live! and Hikari Kagura in Revue Starlight. Her nickname is Mimorin.
WYukiko Okada was a Japanese singer and actress, active in the mid-1980s. After winning a nationwide television show at age 15 in 1983, she debuted as an idol in 1984. Her death by suicide two years later led to a number of copycat suicides, a phenomenon that would bear her name.
WHanako Oku is a pop singer famous in her native Japan for her piano ballads. She rose to fame after performing the end-title track for the Madhouse film The Girl Who Leapt Through Time in 2006. She was signed to a major record label the preceding year.
WPavement is an American indie rock band that formed in Stockton, California, in 1989. For most of their career, the group consisted of Stephen Malkmus, Scott Kannberg, Mark Ibold (bass), Steve West (drums) and Bob Nastanovich. Initially conceived as a recording project, the band at first avoided press or live performances, while attracting considerable underground attention with their early releases. Gradually evolving into a more polished band, Pavement recorded five full-length albums and ten EPs over the course of their decade-long career, though they disbanded with some acrimony in 1999 as the members moved on to other projects. In 2010, they undertook a well-received reunion tour, with another reunion tour across Europe and the United States scheduled for 2022.
WThe Pillows are a Japanese alternative rock band formed in 1989. The group has released 22 studio albums, several EPs and compilations, and over 40 singles. Outside Japan, they are best known as the group responsible for the soundtrack to the FLCL OVA series.
WRe:Stage! is a Japanese multimedia franchise by Pony Canyon and Comptiq. It features character designs and illustrations by artist Tsubasu Izumi, series composition and story by "team yoree.", and music by Kohta Yamamoto. The story revolves around female junior high school idols who aim to become a top in Prism Stage, a nationwide tournament where many middle school idols compete and become top idols. These girls are divided into several units. Their stories are serialized in monthly Comptiq and short stories are released online via the official website.
WAriana Clarice Richards is an American painter and former actress. She is best known for her role as Lex Murphy in the blockbuster film Jurassic Park. Richards won several Young Artist Awards for her acting as a child, but as an adult has focused primarily on her art career.
WMikuni Shimokawa is a Japanese pop singer and songwriter. She is best known for her songs used for anime theme music, particularly the opening and ending themes of the Full Metal Panic! series. In addition to her vocal talents, Shimokawa can also play the piano. She is a former member of the girl group Checkicco.
WSound Horizon is a Japanese musical group with composer Revo as the leader and only permanent member. They describe themselves as a "fantasy band" and have released works that closely resemble classical suites. Their songs often revolve around historical events and classic fairytales. When creating music based on other people's stories, the band uses the name Linked Horizon.
WSS501 is a South Korean boy band consisting of five members: Kim Hyun-joong, Heo Young-saeng, Kim Kyu-jong, Park Jung-min and Kim Hyung-jun. They debuted in 2005 with the EP Warning, which included their first number one song, "Never Again".
WSug was a Japanese visual kei rock band formed in 2006. The band has released two EPs, five full-length studio albums, and several singles. Until 2009, the band was signed to "Indie PSC", a subdivision of PS Company. As of 2010, they have signed onto a major label, Pony Canyon. The band's tagline in promotional work is "Heavy Positive Rock".
WAya Ueto is a Japanese actress, singer and television personality. In 1997, Ueto participated in the seventh Japan Bishōjo Contest, where she won the special jury prize. Soon thereafter, Ueto joined the talent agency Oscar Promotion and began taking singing, dancing and acting lessons. In 1999, she formed the girl group Z-1 with three fellow Japan Bishōjo Contest participants. The group disbanded in 2002 and later that year, Ueto signed with Pony Canyon and released "Pureness", her debut single as a lead artist. She has since released five studio albums which have spawned ten Oricon top-ten singles.
WWeather Girls is a group of Japanese idols from Taiwan. Originally, the group is formed in 2010 and acted as weather forecasters on television and the internet for Taiwan and the United States. After attracting attention in Japan, seven of its members, one for each day of the week, are selected to debut as an idol group in Japan in 2012. They are the first Taiwanese girl group to come to Japan.
WVanness Wu is a Taiwanese-American actor, entertainer, singer, director, and producer. He is a member of the Taiwanese boyband F4 and the Korean Mandopop duo Kangta & Vanness.
WHideyuki Yokoi , known professionally as Zeebra , is a Japanese hip hop recording artist and DJ who made his first appearance in 1995. Zeebra is a former member of the hip-hop group King Giddra, which also included DJ Oasis and K Dub Shine, and the older brother of fellow hip hop recording artist SPHERE of INFLUENCE. He went on to pursue a solo career shortly after in 1997, and signed with the Future Shock record label.