Melody
Melody in March 2008
Melody in March 2008
Background information
Birth nameMelody Ishikawa
Also known asMelody Ishihara
Born (1982-02-24) February 24, 1982[1]
Honolulu, Hawaii, US
GenresJ-pop
Occupation(s)Singer, television host
Instrument(s)Vocals
Years active
  • 2003–2008
  • 2023-present
LabelsToy's Factory

Melody Ishikawa (born February 24, 1982),[1] known mononymously as Melody, stylized as melody., is a Japanese American J-pop singer. She debuted in February 2003 with the song "Dreamin' Away", under Toy's Factory. In October 2008, Melody announced on her blog ending her career as a music artist to focus on pursuing a career as a fashion designer.[2]

Biography

Melody was born to Japanese parents in Honolulu, Hawaii. When she was young, she would occasionally watch shows that involved J-pop, and she has also listed Celine Dion, TLC, and Destiny's Child as inspirations. She took ballet and piano, as well as vocal training. When she was 16, she worked as a Hawaiian model for Japanese commercials.[3] While she was a high school student at Punahou, she had a secret audition with record producer Tetsuya Komuro, who was forming an international unit, but when they wanted her to join the next day, she negotiated to wait until she graduated.[4] At the age of 19, she moved to Japan to pursue a singing career.[5] After some time with Komuro's company, where she was allocated to various groups in development, she eventually left and signed with Toy's Factory.[4]

Her debut song, "Dreamin' Away", was released in February 2003 where it peaked at number 33 on the Oricon weekly charts and stayed charted for eight weeks. In June, she released the single "Simple as That" along with a cover of "Over The Rainbow" from The Wizard of Oz; the latter was used in a commercial for Mitsubishi Motors. The single reached number 19 on Oricon. In October, she was a featured artist along with Ryohei in m-flo's song "Miss You",[3][6] which reached number eight on Oricon.[7]

She is also known for singing the single "Realize" which was the theme song for a TV drama series called Dragon Zakura, which debuted sixth on the Oricon charts. Her single "Lovin' U" was used in a Raycious commercial in 2006. The single included "Our Journey", which was the theme song for the 2006 movie Gen Yu Den starring Rena Tanaka, who also co-wrote the lyrics to the song. Melody made an appearance in a Japanese Subaru Forester commercial in 2007, in which her single "Finding My Road", was used as promotion. In April 2007, she started hosting the English-language Japanese music show J-Melo on NHK World TV. Her single, "Love Story", written by her sister Christine (KURIS), was used in the drama series Kodoku no Kake – Itoshikihito Yo in the summer of 2007.

She was cast as Yumi in the Electronic Arts video game Need for Speed Carbon.[8] The song "Feel the Rush", which was remixed by Junkie XL, was also used in the game.[9]

Her fourth album Lei Aloha was released on April 9, 2008 and had one preceding single, "Haruka: Haruka". In September 2008 was announced that Melody would no longer be the host of J-Melo. Japanese singers May J. and Shanti would take her place. On October 8, 2008, Melody released her first compilation album The Best of melody. ~Timeline~. On October 22, she announced on her blog that she would be retiring as a J-pop singer in January 2009 and would be pursuing a career in fashion design.[2]

In 2012, she announced a children's music project Gold Belle, with sister Christine Saimo.[5] She found it difficult to teach her kids English while living in Japan so they put together the project to give children a fun way to learn. Saimo produced the music and they released the album Kid's Melodies in December 19, under their own record label, EverDream.[4]

Personal life

Melody (third from left) with husband Miyavi, Angelina Jolie and Brad Pitt at the premiere of Unbroken

Melody has three sisters: Christine Saimo, who goes by KURIS in the Japanese music industry and who also resides in Tokyo; and Harmony and Rhythmy, who live in the United States.[10] On March 14, 2009, Melody married Japanese musician and actor Miyavi (Takamasa Ishihara). The couple has three children, Lovelie "Aily/Aspen" (born July 29, 2009, in Japan), Jewelie Aoi (born October 21, 2010, in Japan), and Skyler Kakeru (born February 24, 2021, in the United States).[11][12][13] From 2014 to 2021, Melody and her family were living in Los Angeles, California, having moved to the area during the release of Miyavi's film Unbroken.[14] After the birth of their son Skyler, the family returned to Japan and currently live in Tokyo.

Discography

Studio albums

Compilation albums

References

  1. 1 2 "melody. – プロフィール" [melody. profile]. Toy's Factory (in Japanese). Archived from the original on August 27, 2008. Retrieved October 11, 2013.
  2. 1 2 ｍｅｌｏｄｙ．引退！デザイナーに転身. Sponichi (in Japanese). October 22, 2008. Archived from the original on February 9, 2009.
    • "melody. announces retirement". Tokyograph. October 21, 2008. Archived from the original on October 14, 2013.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: unfit URL (link)
  3. 1 2 "Melody profile". Toy's Factory. February 2007. Archived from the original on August 21, 2009.
  4. 1 2 3 Kamasami Kong (December 8, 2012). "The Tokyo Metpod | Great Story! She Gave Up a J-pop Career to Pursue Children's Songs". The Tokyo Metpod (Podcast). Metropolis. Retrieved October 12, 2013.
  5. 1 2 "Gold Belle | Official Music, Photos, Videos & Show Dates". GoldBelle.BandPage.com. Archived from the original on October 12, 2013. Retrieved October 12, 2013.
  6. ↑ "m-flo loves melody. & 山本領平インタビュー" (in Japanese). Archived from the original on October 19, 2013. Retrieved June 23, 2011.
  7. ↑ "Miss you m-flo". Oricon style. Retrieved June 23, 2011.
  8. ↑ "melody. sings for racing game – Tokyograph". Retrieved April 20, 2010.
  9. ↑ "Need for Speed Carbon Soundtrack Burns Rubber". September 20, 2006. Retrieved March 8, 2016.
  10. ↑ Christine [@xKURISx] (May 14, 2013). "Yeah, Melody & I are in Tokyo, Harmony & Rhythmy are back in the states" (Tweet). Retrieved October 16, 2013 – via Twitter.
  11. ↑ "Miyavi and Melody: Wed in shotgun marriage". Japan Today. March 28, 2009. Retrieved October 11, 2013.
  12. ↑ "Miyavi's second daughter is born!". Tokyohive. October 21, 2010. Retrieved October 11, 2013.
  13. ↑ "Miyavi announces the name of his second daughter". Tokyohive. October 30, 2010. Retrieved October 11, 2013.
  14. ↑ "Miyavi, on His Unbroken Experience". The New York Times. December 20, 2014.
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