Avex
 

Will avex trax hire any singer that is a diffrent race?

(I'm sorry if this is in the wrong forum.)

..do you mean someone of another race who sings japanese or.. ?

Yeah, Somebody a diffrent race who can sing in japanese.

Well they hired Beni Arashiro (whatever the hell she is). I'm guessing they would have to speak at least some Japanese though if they want to be specifically marketed only in Japan.

What if the person was African-American?
Japanese people don't have anything against americans right?
Oh! And is Beni Arashiro american?

It probably all depends on how much money you're going to make them and if it'd be a good business move :)

Hmmmm Okay...
A few more questions.
Does Jade from sweetbox have a record deal with avex trax?
Does anybody know any artist that aren't asain and have a record deal with avex trax besides Beni Arashiro?

WHOA SHIZNIT! I had no idea Crystal kay was black!
Heartsdales looks asian though.
Well not because I am black. I was just really curious. I've been wanting to know.
Thank you everyone for answering my questions! I really appreciate it. ^_^

OLIVIA Lufkin

I don't think it matters if the person is African-American or anything. I think it'd actually be better because a lot of people would pay attention to the fact that somebody of a different race is singing in Japanese. I believe Beni is American and Japanese. Crystal Kay is African-American and Korean. I think one of the guys in Def Tech is American. Plus, there is a lot of Koreans such as BoA, VERBAL from m-flo, and Younha having successful careers in Japan.

And of course, how could I forget her? :headache

avex distributes a lot of American artists's Japan releases, like Aaliyah, Hillary Duff and Jesse McCartney (sp?).

Take a look at their artist rosters and judge for yourself:

Japanese
Western Style
Asian

Well, for a fact Crystal Kay is black and she's VERY successful in Japan. Her last album sold over 500,000 or something. She also sang the ending theme to FUll Metal Alchemist "Mother Child" which was a hit.

Wow there so much I don't know about other singers...
I've heard of Crystal Kay though but I had NO idea she was black...
That's cool how she made a song for full metal alchemist. ^_^

Note: I know this post might piss some people off, but my conclusions are my own and from years of personal experience. Nothing is permanent, but at this point in time, this is the way I've seen things.


I sure wish I knew Avex's hiring pattern. I've auditioned for them before (via mail, and even flying to Tokyo to do it in person), but I never hear anything. I speak 4 languages, have a mass supply of music I've written/composed/arranged, I dance hip-hop, and at 19 I have 8 years of performing experience in theatre and music. I'm 100% aware of my downfalls, and I'm not perfect. But still, in the American industry (the toughest in the world) I can pull my own weight.

Avex, though, I just can't crack. I don't know what it is, I can't even get a proper interview. The entire Asian market is very, very crooked from an American performer's standpoint. Arashiro Beni, who would be kicked to the floor in a second at any NY or LA audition, somehow has a record deal with the most powerful representation in Asia.

When I was in Tokyo, I would watch a lot of talent shows and things like that on TV. And Pony Canyon had an audition -- and these girls could not sing. They were absolutely terrible. But the judges would praise them like they had just witnessed the birth of a star. It was the most bizarre thing.

I asked my friends in Japan, of varied ages and backgrounds, what they thought. And they all seem to say the same thing: Asia likes cute, bubbly, Asian girls. At least to start in Japan. "Western" culture and music are huge in Japan, but that's because they don't come from Japan (i.e. they're not J-Pop, not speaking Japanese, etc.). Thye're 100% foreign and exciting.

So I've come to a seemingly truthful conclusion that, although skill doesn't account for much in the world of Japanese entertainment, it's important to be atleast part Asian. Crystal Kay is half. Arashiro Beni is half. VERBAL is half Japanese, half Korean, but all Asian. I'm not saying you can't be of another race and make it in the Japanese music scene (Heaven knows, because I'm trying to), but it's been my experience that nobody will be willing to let that happen. You've just gotta keep fighting to find someone that will take a chance on you.

That's what the whole business comes down to, though. Fighting w/o resigning to popular opinion, until someone takes a chance on you. There are NO open doors in showbusiness. Not even any open windows. There's no sure-fire way to get in. You just have to keep ready until someone already-on-the-inside takes a step out of the house, so to speak, and enables you to impress them enough to let you in.

In this day and age, no company can flat out refuse you because of your race. It's political suicide, even if the company has general racist feelings. But you should still expect to be rejected from every possible angle: race, height, weight, cuteness factor, eye color, and yes even talent (hopefully these days that still counts for something).

So whether or not Avex accepts people of other races shouldn't matter. If you wanna audition for them and show them: "Hell yeah, I'm here, I'm not Japanese, but I have something to blow you away with that you can't refuse," then by ALL means go in there and kick their asses.

:shimmy

FAITO~!

evolusean, your stories about Avex are so interesting. :yes

Write us a book. :laugh

i dont think i thas to do with your heredity, it has to do with your like-ability and the "it" factor. (not saying you dont have it.)

Well, .. I guess it kind of does have to do with race. There are some artists that sign future stars under their label .. but I don't know if it's because they have the same skin color or what?

Does skin color matter when it comes to singing? We all have different singing styles, and I have to say this (I may offend some but ..) but high pitched singing is really annoying and hurts my ears, and I sure as hell would not want to sign someone with a voice like that.

One of my penpals in Japan said that HYDE from L'Arc~en~Ciel .. his songs are considered depressing, which from my POV, the songs he writes are somewhat depressing, but not absolutely downright sad.

I'm a 3-Asian nationality mixed girl .. and I'd love to test out AVEX .. for fun .. to see if it's really true. Or drag along my bestfriend who looks Mexican (even though she's Vietnamese and American, lol.) .. to see what they say.

AVEX is owned by big people, so they are the ones that are in charge of choosing who they want.

i think beni arashiro is japanese, she is okinawan right?
hmm..i think avex will still focus on singer in japan only