Mineko Fujishima

Mineko Fujishima

Musician and vocalist. From an early age, she became aware of her desire to sing for a living, and became familiar with music when she joined an instrumental music club at primary school and started learning to play the organ on her own. In the fifth grade, she discovered Western music, and from the Western hit charts of the 1980s onwards, she became interested in British and American pops, rock, soul music, new wave, jazz and world music. One of her desert island albums was Fairground Attraction's The first of a million kisses. Strong influences on her current style of singing include 70s SSW (Singer Song Writer) such as Laura Nyro and Joni Mitchell. After moving to Tokyo for university and playing in several bands, in 1997 they made their major label debut on Sony Records with Swinging Popsicle, a three-piece guitar pop band, which won over listeners influenced by the 'Shibuya-kei' movement of the 1990s and the 'Shimokitazawa-kei' that followed. In the 2000s, they released albums in South Korea and the US, and performed in four countries including Mexico. They have also provided music for game theme songs, and are expanding not only to fans of Shibuya-kei and Shimokitazawa-kei, but also to fans of games and anime. In November 2016, she started a five-piece band called Alma-Grafe, featuring her soulful side as a vocalist. In June 2017, they released their first single "Leave the train waiting line" on 7-inch single from Miobell Records. This was followed by the release of new song 'Blue Lagoon Universe' on the label's compilation album IMAGINE THE FUTURE in March 2018. In March 2018, Swinging Popsicle released a compilation of their work from their Sony Music days, GOLDEN BEST Master "TIME TRAVEL" - Sony Music Years Selection, on released by Sony Music Direct. The following year, in 2019, they released "24 Hours / I just wanna kiss you" in 7-inch single format on Miobell Records. In 2020, she also started working as a four-piece band Grenfelle, and released their first single "KEEP IT GOIN'" on RECORD STORE DAY in 2021. The single was sold in record shops in seven countries and the coupling was selected by Toru Hashimoto (SUBURBIA), popular for his Free Soul and Cafe Apres-midi series, after listening to a demo of "KEEP IT GOIN'". More than 20 years after her debut, she is still consistently active. In addition, she has provided lyrics for Fumiya Fujii, Tearliner and TARU in South Korea, and in recent years has participated in the chorus of works by GOATBED and others, and her beautiful yet powerful, one-of-a-kind voice is appreciated from many directions.