Aoi Teshima

Aoi Teshima 葵 手嶌
Born	(1987-06-21) June 21, 1987 (age 37)[1] Kasuga, Fukuoka, Japan[2]
Occupation(s)	Singer, voice actress
Instrument	Vocals
Years active	2006–present
Labels	Rendezvous, Yamaha
Website	AoiTeshima.com

Aoi Teshima (手嶌葵, Teshima Aoi, born June 21, 1987) is a Japanese singer and voice actress from Kasuga, Fukuoka.^[3] She is known for singing and acting in several Goro Miyazaki movies including Tales from Earthsea and From Up on Poppy Hill.

Early life

Aoi Teshima was born on June 21, 1987, in Kasuga, Fukuoka, Japan. From an early age, she was influenced by her parents' liking for classic musical films, such as The Wizard of Oz, The Secret Garden, The Little Prince, and Breakfast at Tiffany's.^[2] Of that, Teshima has attributed the song, Moon River, along with the music of Ella Fitzgerald, Louis Armstrong, and Billie Holiday as the basis for her love for Jazz music, and as major influences on her musical style.^[4][5] In junior high school, Teshima found herself moved by Bette Midler's 1979 song, The Rose, her amateur cover of which became the trigger of her debut as a singer.^[6]

Career

After graduating junior high, Teshima enrolled at the C&S Music School in Fukuoka, to acquire the qualifications of high school and junior college while simultaneously developing her singing abilities. There, she began a music career as an amateur in 2003.^[4] In 2003 and 2004, she participated in the musical event DIVA, held in Fukuoka, as part of the Yamaha Music-sponsored Teen's Music Festival.^[1]

In March 2005, she performed at the Japan-Korea Slow Music World event in South Korea, where her performance was favourably received amongst the audience, attracting the attention of anime director Gorō Miyazaki.^[7] The Studio Ghibli music producer, Toshio Suzuki, was reportedly very impressed when he listened to her demo version of “The Rose” at the recommendation of Miyazaki.^[1][6]

On June 7, 2006, the release of “Theru's Song (テルーの唄, 'Terū no Uta')” became her major debut. The song was the theme of the Gorō Miyazaki directed film, Tales from Earthsea, in which she also voices the character Theru.^[8] This song debuted at #5 on the Oricon charts, with the number of CD shipments numbering at about 300,000, along with music downloads recorded at about 650,000 downloads, which was the largest for the theme song of the Studio Ghibli series at the time.^[9]

She was featured singing two songs in the Nintendo Wii game, Fragile Dreams: Farewell Ruins of the Moon, called “Light (光, 'Hikari')” and “Warmth of the Moon (月のぬくもり, 'Tsuki no Nukumori')”.^{[citation needed]} In 2011, she once again collaborated with Gorō Miyazaki on his second feature, From up on Poppy Hill (2011), singing “Summer of Goodbye”, the main theme of the movie and other songs in the film, as well as voicing the character Yuko.^[10][11]

On September 30, 2012, she was presented with the Citizens Cultural Award of Kasuga City.^[12]

On February 10, 2016, she released the first single from her 10th album, Ren'dez-vous, titled “Letter to Tomorrow (明日への手紙, Asu e no Tegami)”. This song was used in the Japanese drama Love That Makes You Cry, and charted at top on the Billboard Japan Hot 100 chart.

Personal life

Teshima has described herself to be 'stubborn and strong-willed',^[4][6] and added that she is also camera-shy.^[13]

Discography

Original albums

Title[14]	Album Information	Oricon albums charts [15]	Sales [16]
Gedo Senki Kashū (ゲド戦記歌集) Tales from Earthsea Song Collection	Released: July 12, 2006 Label: Yamaha (YCCW-10028) Formats: Compact disc, digital download, rental CD	20	55,000
Haru no Kashū (春の歌集, Spring song collection)	Released: February 7, 2007 Label: Yamaha (YCCW-10028) Formats: Compact disc, digital download, rental CD	38	14,000
Niji no Kashū (虹の歌集, Rainbow song collection)	Released: July 23, 2008 Label: Yamaha (YCCW-10049) Formats: Compact disc, digital download, rental CD	78	5,900
Kokurikozaka kara Kashū (コクリコ坂から歌集) From up on Poppy Hill song collection	Released: July 6, 2011 Label: Yamaha (YCCW-10156) Formats: Compact disc, digital download, rental CD	33	24,000
Ren'dez-vous[17]	Released: July 23, 2014 Label: Victor Entertainment (VICL-64074)	125

Cover albums

Teshima's cover albums are sung in English.

Title[14]	Album Information	Oricon albums charts [15]	Sales [16]
The Rose: I Love Cinemas	Western film theme songs Released: March 5, 2008 Label: Yamaha (YCCW-10044) Formats: Compact disc, digital download, rental CD	48	15,000
La Vie en rose: I Love Cinemas	Western film theme songs Released: October 7, 2009 Label: Yamaha (YCCW-10102) Formats: Compact disc, digital download, rental CD	65	6,000
Christmas Songs	Western Christmas songs Released: November 24, 2010 Label: Yamaha (YCCW-10119) Formats: Compact disc, digital download, rental CD	127	3,900
Miss Aoi – Bonjour, Paris![18]	Paris-themed songs Released: December 12, 2012 Label: Rendezvous (RDV-0008)
Cheek to Cheek~I Love Cinemas~[19]	Western film theme songs Released: December 19, 2018 Label: Victor Entertainment (VIZL-1503/VICL-65075)

Compilation albums

Year	Album Information	Oricon albums charts [15]	Sales [16]
Collection Blue	Released: November 9, 2011 Label: Yamaha (YCCW-10162) Formats: Compact disc, digital download, rental CD

Singles

Release	Title	Notes	Chart positions			Oricon sales [16]	Album
			Oricon singles charts [15]	Billboard Japan Hot 100* [20]	RIAJ digital tracks* [21]
2006	"Therru no Uta" (テルーの唄, Terū no Uta, "Therru's Song")	Gold certification for cellphone downloads[22]	5	—	—	228,000	Ged Senki Kashū
2007	"Kishi o Hanareru Hi" (岸を離れる日, "The Day I Push Off from the Shore")	Digital release	—	—	—	—	Haru no Kashū
	"Kiseki no Hoshi" (奇跡の星, "Miracle Star")		32	—	—	4,000	Niji no Kashū
2008	"Kazoku no Fūkei (CM Version)" (家族の風景 (CMバージョン), "Family Scene")	Digital release	—	—	—	—
	"Niji" (虹, "Rainbow")		110	—	—	2,900
	"Can't Help Falling in Love"	Elvis Presley cover, digital release	—	—	—	—	Collection Blue
	"Hikari/Tsuki no Nukumori" (光/月のぬくもり, "Light/Warmth of the Moon")	Digital release	—	—	—	—
2009	"Tsurezure Yōbi" (徒然曜日, "Boring, Regular Day")	Digital re-release	—	—	—	—	Haru no Kashū
	"La Vie en rose"	Édith Piaf cover, digital release	—	—	—	—	La Vie en rose
	"Kono Michi" (この道, "This Road")	Digital release	—	—	—	—	Collection Blue
2010	"Ima o Ikite" (いまを生きて, "Live for Today")		—	—	—	—
	"Because" (Yoko Kanno x Aoi Teshima)		—	—	—	—
	"Ryūsei" (流星, "Meteor")		—	—	—	—
2011	"Sayonara no Natsu (Kokurikozaka kara)" (さよならの夏～コクリコ坂から～, "Summer of Farewells (From Up on Poppy Hill)")		22	13	11	27,000	Kokurikozaka kara Kashū
2016	"Asu e no Tegami" (明日への手紙, "Letter for Tomorrow")		16	1	1
2021	"Tadaima" (ただいま, "I'm home")
*Japan Hot 100 established February 2008, RIAJ Digital Track Chart established April 2009.

References

1. "Aoi Teshima Biography - 手嶌葵 バイオグラフィ". aoiteshima.com. Retrieved January 16, 2016.
2. 株式会社ローソンエンタテインメント. "手嶌 葵 本人によるアルバム紹介！". www.hmv.co.jp (in Japanese). Retrieved 2022-11-16.
3. "【インタビュー】不安や寂しさに寄り添いたい、手嶌葵 自身にも重ねた「東京」". MusicVoice. 24 November 2017. Archived from the original on 20 April 2019.
4. Nakamura, Hirokaku (11 June 2008). "So-net Music: 手嶌葵 インタビュー". So-net Music. Archived from the original on 11 May 2011. Retrieved 16 November 2022.
5. Imaizumi, Koichi (11 June 2008). "塩谷哲・手嶌葵インタビュー". Bunkamura.^{[dead link‍]}
6. "あの歌の主をいよいよお披露目！「ゲド戦記」挿入歌CD発売記念記者会見". Toho. 5 June 2006. Archived from the original on 22 October 2007.
7. "主題歌・音楽について". 映画『コクリコ坂から』公式サイト. Archived from the original on 13 March 2017.
8. "Ghibli Adapts Kokuriko-Zaka Kara Shōjo Manga (Update 4)". Anime News Network. Retrieved January 16, 2016.
9. "キャラアニ.com: DVD: ゲド戦記". キャラア". キャラアニ.com. 19 September 2008.^{[dead link‍]}
10. "Ghibli's N. American Arrietty BD to Have U.S. & U.K. Dubs (Updated)". Anime News Network. Retrieved January 16, 2016.
11. "Aoi Teshima to Perform Ronia the Robber's Daughter's Theme Song". Anime News Network. Retrieved January 16, 2016.
12. "市報かすが 平成24年11月1日号" (PDF). Kasuga City Government. 1 November 2012.
13. テレビ東京『みゅーじん』、2007年10月14日。
14. "AOI Teshima Official Website | Discography ディスコグラフィー".
15. "アーティスト： 手嶌葵". Oricon. Retrieved July 8, 2011.
16. "オリコンランキング情報サービス「you大樹」". Oricon. Archived from the original on July 16, 2011. Retrieved July 8, 2011. (subscription only)
17. "Ren'dez-vous | 手嶌葵".
18. "Miss AOI-Bonjour, Paris! | 手嶌葵".
19. "Cheek to Cheek ～I Love Cinemas～ | 手嶌葵".
20. "Hot 100｜JAPAN Charts｜Billboard JAPAN" (in Japanese). Billboard. Archived from the original on 2011-06-04.
21. 有料音楽配信チャート (in Japanese). RIAJ.
22. レコード協会調べ 11月度有料音楽配信認定 ＜略称：11月度認定＞. RIAJ (in Japanese). December 20, 2006. Retrieved July 8, 2011.

External links

• Official website (in Japanese)
• Aoi Teshima profile at Oricon (in Japanese)