RADWIMPS

The five-piece Japanese band Radwimps formed while the original members were in high school in 2001. Childhood friends Yojiro Noda and Akira Kuwahasa were joined by Yusuke Saiki, Kei Aso and Akio Shibafuji to form the band. Their original success was as winners of the Yokohama High School Music Festival with the song 'Moshi Mo' (2002) which they then released as their first single. Their first album, the self-titled 'Radwimps' was released in 2003, followed by their second single 'Kiseki'. They embarked on a three-month tour of Japan, but then took a break to concentrate on their studies. In 2004, Saiki, Aso and Sibafuji left the band and were replaced by Yusuke Takeda and Satoshi Yamaguchi.

In 2005 the band released their second album 'Radwimps 2' and the single 'Hatten Tojo' and embarked on another nationwide tour, this time for five months. In 2006 they signed for the Toshiba label and released their third album 'Radwimps 3: Mijiato Ni Motte Ikiwasureta Ichimai' which reached number 13 in the Japanese Oricon Albums Chart. The album had a more experimental feel and was certified Platinum. Their success continued with album number four, 'Radwimps 4: Okazu No Gohan' (2006) which reached number five in the Japanese Albums Chart and produced the top 20 singles 'Futarigozo', 'Yushinron' and 'Setsuna Rensa'. The success of these hits led the band's earlier singles to start selling more copies and charting for the first time, their debut album reaching gold sales.

In 2008, the band reached number one in the Japanese Singles Charts for the first time with the single 'Order Made'. It came from the album 'Altocolony No Teiri' which reached number two in the Japanese Albums Chart. The single 'Manifesto' followed in 2010 reaching number two. Their next single release 'Keitai Denwa' (2010) from the album 'Zettai Zetsumai' (2011) reached number three. Other popular singles from this album were 'Dada' which was their second number one single and 'Kyoshinsho' which reached number two. A number two album followed with their seventh album 'Batsu to Maru to Tsumi' (2013).

Radwimps enjoyed their first number one album success in 2016 with the soundtrack to the film 'Kimi No No Wa' which was the highest grossing anime in Japanese film history on its release in 2016. The single 'Zenzenzense' from the album also reached number one in the Japanese Singles Chart and 'Sparkle' reached number four. This was followed by two more number one albums, 'Human Bloom' in 2016 and 'Anti Anti Generation' in 2018. In 2019 they released the soundtrack to the anime film 'Weathering With You' including the single of the theme tune 'Grand Escape'.