Abe Mao

Abe Mao promoting Pop (2010)

Abe Mao (阿部真央) is a Japanese pop singer signed to Pony Canyon. She released four acoustic songs on iTunes before making her debut in January 2009 with the album, Free.

Profile

• Name: Abe Mao (阿部真央)
• Date of Birth: January 24, 1990
• Hometown: Oita, Oita Prefecture, Japan
• Blood Type: A
• Likes: Orange, green, chocolate, Asano Tadanobu, Tsuchida Teruyuki, Yanagiba Toshiro, rice, being alone, people
• Dislikes: Caterpillars, black beans, insects, rain, studying, mathematics
• Personality: Has difficulty in falling asleep and waking up, shy, doesn't like to lay down and pity herself, has migraines, enthusiastic, independent
• First Composed Song: "My Baby" in her first year of high school
• First CD Purchased: Hamasaki Ayumi's "UNITE!"
• First Live Performance Attended: SKIN-HEADz live in the summer of her second year of high school with her friends
• Favorite Artists: Avril Lavigne, SKIN-HEADz, Midori, HOT SPRING, Sum 41, Hoobastank, ASIAN KUNG-FU GENERATION, RADWIMPS, RIP SLYME, Murashita Kozo

Information

Abe Mao promoting "MY BABY" (2008)

Abe Mao promoting Free (2009)

Abe Mao began playing piano when she was in third grade, and by junior high, she decided she wanted to be a singer. When she was high school, she dropped piano and started playing guitar. During the summer of her second year of high school in June 2006, the manager of a music store recommended that Abe should participate in Oita's YAMAHA TEENS' MUSIC FESTIVAL 2006. She won, with her song "Haha no Uta". The following November, she participated in the same competition at the national level and was awarded an encouragement prize. She graduated from high school in Spring 2008 and proceeded to move to Tokyo.

In October, Abe's song "want you DARLING" was used as the theme song for the drama Tetsudo Musume ~Girls be ambitious!~. She also released an acoustic version of her song "MY BABY" on iTunes, which was featured as the single of the week. Soon, Abe gained feature coverage on MySpace and au one music. Her popularity slowly rose, achieving high ranks on BARKS, Google, and mixi. In one day, her MySpace received 20,000 listens.

In January 2009, Abe released her debut album, Free. The album ranked #17 on the weekly Oricon chart. Later, she embarked on her first live tour, Abe Mao Live No.0, in March, starting in her home of Oita and stretching across seven prefectures in Japan. Since then, she has released two singles, "Tsutaetai Koto / I wanna see you" and "Anata no Koibito ni Naritai no Desu", of which two of the three A-sides were previously released as acoustic versions on iTunes before her debut. An unreleased song called "15 no Kotoba" has been chosen as the theme song for the 2010 movie version of the novel Hanbun no Tsuki ga Noboru Sora.

Discography

Albums

• [2009.01.21] Free (ふりぃ)
• [2010.01.27] Pop (ポっぷ)

Singles

• [2009.05.27] Tsutaetai Koto / I wanna see you (伝えたいこと)
• [2009.08.05] Anata no Koibito ni Naritai no Desu (貴方の恋人になりたいのです)
• [2010.01.13] Itsu no Hi mo (いつの日も; Someday)
• [2010.06.09] Lonely (ロンリー)
• [2010.11.13] 19-sai no Uta (19歳の唄; 19 Years Old's Song)

===Download Exclusive=== (Indie Live Acoustic Gutiar Versions)

• [2008.08.06] Anata no Koibito ni Naritai no Desu (AG ver.) (貴方の恋人になりたいのです)
• [2008.09.03] Hitomishiri no Uta (AG ver.) (人見知りの唄)
• [2008.10.08] MY BABY (AG ver.)
• [2008.11.12] I wanna see you (AG ver.)

External Links

• Official Website
• Pony Canyon Profile
• Official MySpace