Chris Hart (musician)
| Chris Hart | |
|---|---|
| Born |
25 August 1984 San Francisco, California, United States |
| Origin | Japan |
| Genres | J-pop |
| Occupation(s) | Singer |
| Instruments | Vocals, Guitar |
| Years active | 2003-present |
| Labels | Universal Sigma (Universal Music Group) (2013-present) |
| Associated acts | May J. |
| Website | chris-hart.net |
Chris Hart (クリス・ハート Kurisu Hāto?, born August 25, 1984) is an African-American singer who gained popularity as a J-pop artist in Japan.
Chris was born August 25, 1984 to musician parents in the San Francisco Bay Area, his parents separated when he was 2. He developed an interest in Japanese music, language, and culture beginning age 12 after taking a Japanese class at his school. He was moved by the kindness of the people he met in Japan the next year during his summer vacation. He majored in music and Japanese in college, and took jobs in an airport and with a Japanese cosmetics company to maintain his connection. From his teens until moving to Tokyo, Japan at age 24, Hart performed in Japanese as lead vocalist for the band Nikita w/Metallic Beasts, before starting his own solo rock band, LYV. During his time as LYV, Hart wrote all lyrics and music in Japanese. Upon moving to Japan, Hart took a job working on vending machines. Chris has an older sister and a younger half-brother.
In 2003, Hart was vocalist of a Visual-Kei/JROCK band, NIKITA w/Metallic Beasts.
In 2007 Hart began a solo band called LYV. He released a digital album titled "Voyager".
In 2011, Hart was a part of the vocal unit, Triple Trip. They released one digital single titled "NEW WORLD". Hart is also credited for lyrics of the English version of the Tsukuba Daigaku theme song, "Imagine The Future".
In 2012, a YouTube video Hart made was noticed by executives for the Nippon Television show Nodo Jiman Za! World, a reality contest which features non-Japanese singing Japanese songs, and he was invited to compete in the show. He appeared at least twice in 2012. Producer Jeff Miyahara noticed Hart's performance, and asked to produce him.
In 2013 his cover of the Yusaku Kiyama song "Home" reached number 8 in Japanese sales on the Oricon Singles Chart. His album of cover songs, released soon after, reached third, selling over 300,000 copies.
Hart released an original collaboration single "Yume Ga Samete" with JPOP Legend, Matsuda Seiko for their label, Universal Sigma's 10th anniversary.
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