Generasia would not be possible without tokyograph and all the wonderful people who've contributed over the past 15 years. Thank you!

Suzuki Ami

Revision as of 07:13, 30 May 2009 by CrypticTokyo (talk | contribs) (modified bio a bit...)
Suzuki Ami (Reincarnation)

Suzuki Ami is a Japanese pop singer, actress, and DJ who became quite famous in the late 1990's. She was then under Sony Japan's sub-label TRUE KiSS DISC; however, she was blacklisted by the music industry in September 2000 after her parents tried to sue her management company. Suzuki returned to the music scene as an indie artist, and then was picked up by avex trax. Her music had a heavy dance edge to it, and her voice has been compared to that of globe's vocalist Keiko or Hamasaki Ayumi.

Profile

  • Name: Suzuki Ami (鈴木亜美, written 鈴木あみ pre-avex)
  • Nickname: Ami～Go (あみ～ゴ), Ami-chan (亜美ちゃん)
  • Birthday: February 9th, 1982
  • Birthplace: Zama, Kanagawa Prefecture, Japan
  • Blood Type: A
  • Height: 159 cm (5'2½")

Biography

In September of 2000, Suzuki was blacklisted by the music industry following a lawsuit, which some regarded as an attempt to gain money — however, the "truth" (from what is factually known) is that Suzuki seeked to get out of her management contract with AG Communications because the president, Yamada Eiji, had been implicated with others in an elaborate tax evasion scheme. However, AG Communications did not want to release Suzuki from her contract, as she was heading toward the peak of popularity (which meant plenty of revenue). Thus, the reasoning behind Suzuki and her parents filing the lawsuit to nullify her contract was that they felt this potential scandal would have a negative impact on their daughter's career. The courts agreed and the suit was won, but that turned to be bittersweet, as what Suzuki and her parents were trying to avoid became reality when Suzuki's career was effectively ruined.

One of the "issues" that arose to light was that the Suzuki family had desired access to AG Communications' financial records in order to determine if the company had been properly compensating Suzuki (for television appearances, photo shoots, magazines, endorsements, etc). That is where the money is made, and it made sense for the family to be concerned, as there are some executives that are guilty of concealing money from the taxation bureau and have nothing to stop them from under-reporting the compensation for the artist(s) involved for the appearances he or she had been booked for.

"Geinou Jimusho" (芸能事務所; entertainment agency) provide the direction to media outlets, content producers, and the networks from which the shows' producers make their programming decisions from (for example, those who make appearances on shows like Music Station: performers are not picked and invited by Music Station producers/executives, it is actually those artists' agencies who dictate the appearances on that show). The "talents" have a contract which specifies their cut when appearance fees apply, but the details of what content producers are paying to the agency and/or agencies may be privy only between those two and not the talent(s). AG Communications refused the request to reveal that information, so the Suzuki family went back to court; however, they were denied this motion.

In a Japan Times article, it is mentioned that there are links to government officials and politicions via their secretaries. In other words, there was much more to the story which, if revealed, could have implicated more individuals and unmasked other connections. The cynical of the public felt this was one of the primary reasons that this second lawsuit was dismissed: because it represented a broader scope of corruption. Related to this incident, Yamada was only fined and never had to do any jail time for what was a criminal act.

A cardinal rule in the Japanese entertainment industry is to "not make waves", which is precisely what all of the legal proceedings did. The end result was "murahachibu" (村八分; ostracism), or what is known as blacklisting. Until 2004, no other agency in Japan wanted to touch Suzuki, for fear of repercussions and backlash by those who have something to "hide". Sony Music Entertainment Japan, however, did not drop her quite so quickly — her contract with them ended December of 2004 (Suzuki and Sony Music had been negotiating the termination of her contract prior, which had been mutually agreed upon, as Sony Music felt they could no longer effectively promote her music, given all the negative publicity). There were a few valid legal disputes, mainly surrounding copyrights for anything she had written, but both parties finally reached an out-of-court settlement in November 2003.

On January 1st, 2005, Max Matsuura of avex trax had just signed Suzuki before her Sony Music contract expired. Her first single with avex, titled Delightful, was released on March 24th, 2005. Suzuki released eight more singles before her first collaboration single with Buffalo Daughter. Since then, all of her singles have been collaborations with other artists.

In this Japan Times article, Suzuki talks in more depth about her rise to fame, blacklisting, and about her 10th year commemorative album Supreme Show.

Discography

Albums

Other Albums

Singles

VHS / DVDs

Box Sets

Books

External Links

v • d • e
Suzuki Ami
Songs · Images
Studio Albums AmiSnowPromo.jpg
Mini-Albums
Best Albums
Remix Albums
Singles
Digital Singles
Video Releases
Official Website
Retrieved from "http://www.generasia.com/w/index.php?title=Suzuki_Ami&oldid=14037"