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Dragon Ash

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Dragon Ash (ドラゴンアッシュ) is a J-Hip-Hop and J-Rock fusion group under Victor Entertainment and led by Furuya Kenji. They are an icon in Japan and were one of the first groups to create J-Hip-Hop. They brought a western flavor to Japanese music and helped to turn rap music into a mixture of reggae, rap, rap-rock, punk, Spanish, and R&B influences.

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Dragon Ash promoting Tsunagari SUNSET (2008)
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Dragon Ash promoting Tsunagari SUNSET (2008)


Members

Information

The group was originally formed by high school friends Furuya Kenji and Makoto Sakurai. They held auditions for band members, and hired on bassist Ikuzo Baba who was 29 at the time and had some experience in the music business. Dragon Ash began playing live in 1996, and in 1997 signed on with Victor Entertainment. They added another high school friend, DJ BOTS, which led their sound away from punk to more “mixture-kei” (punk combined with hip-hop). Their debut album,Mustang! did well, and was particularly popular in indie/alternative circles. They became more popular after the releases of Grateful Days and I ♥ HIP HOP in 1999. Dragon Ash use various samples from many American rock bands, inluding The Smashing Pupkins and The Arrows. They became even more popular outside Japan when their song Shizuka na Hibi no Kaidan Wo was choosen to be the ending theme for the popular Japanese movie, Battle Royale. With VIVA LA REVOLUTION album the band won more fans who grew up with rock and hip-hop sounds. It was heard everywhere, and was one of the most popular albums in 1999. In 2001 they released Lily of da valley and did nearly as well. It contained a somewhat harder and powerful sound.

During 2003 Dragon Ash surprised many by announcing a new line-up, which included three new members, Hiroki on guitar, and dancers DRI-V and ATSUSHI. Some fans and critics didn't like the change, feeling that Dragon Ash being a serious band did not need “back dancers”. On July 23rd, 2003 after over two years without a new album, Dragon Ash finally released HARVEST, which further pushed the envelope, and as a result received somewhat mixed reviews. While Dragon Ash may no longer be the sensation that they were in 1999, the group remains widely respected, and their new releases much anticipated. They already won two MTV Awards: one for "Best Rock Video" with Fantasista in 2002 and another for Best buzzASIA Japan with Ivory in 2007.

Discography

Albums

Mini Albums

Compilation Albums

Split Albums

Singles

LPs

DVDs

Collaborations

External Links

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