Mihimaru GT were an urban and pop music group signed to Universal Music Japan and managed by Tearbridge Productions, a subsidiary of Stardust Promotion and Avex.
History Mihimaru GT was a Japanese duet made up of composer, lyricist and vocalist Miyake as well as lyricist and vocalist Hiroko. The group was formed due to the joint management of the two members during their solo careers. Before forming Mihimaru GT, each member had a relatively quiet career, with little to no major hits.
To remind each other that the success of the group comes from the hard work and contributions of both members, the name Mihimaru GT was created for the band, taking the first two letters in each members' first name and adding "maru", or "perfection", to the end of it, as well as the initials for Miyake's favorite video game—Gran Turismo.
Unlike many other groups, Mihimaru GT often recorded songs featuring only one of their members, though because of each members' background, they were both involved with every song in some way. Hiroko was usually responsible for the main melody of the song, whereas Miyake was featured in the rap that may appear in a song. The band is known for its urban and pop-oriented songs, as well as slow ballad oriented songs. They were signed to one of the largest independent music labels in the world.
Prior to 2006, they have had an average career, with their singles ranking no higher than #16 on the Oricon charts. In 2006, however, their single, "Kibun Jojo" became the commercial song for Dariya's "Palty" and music.jp's commercial theme, as well as the ending theme for the variety program "Sukibara". The triple tie-up gave them considerable media exposure, and more people began to take notice of them. On May 5, 2006, they performed on the popular music show Music Station and was featured on the "Young Guns" corner. The appearance on the show boosted their popularity and made "Kibun Jojo" onto the #7 spot on the Oricon charts.
From then on, their sales peaked and eventually bottomed out, though "Itsumademo Hibiku Kono Melody/Magical Speaker" managed to reach as high as #3 on the Oricon charts.
The song "H.P.S.J." was featured as the third ending song for the anime Bobobo-bo Bo-bobo; "Kibun Jojo" itself has been covered in rhythm action games such as Taiko: Drum Master, Moero! Nekketsu Rhythm Damashii Osu! Tatakae! Ouendan 2 and you can dance to the song in Happy Dance collection for Nintendo Wii.
On November 7, Mihimaru GT released a hip-hop re-arrangement/cover of Kylie Minogue's "I Should Be So Lucky" as a double A-side single (the other A-side being Ai Kotoba.) The song, "I Should Be So Lucky", was used as the ending theme for the Japanese drama Abarenbou Mama (Wild Mama) which stars Aya Ueto.
"Girigiri Hero" is featured in the movie Shaoulin Shojou.
"Switch" was used for the 2009 World Table Tennis Championship in Japan.
The duo's most recent single, Masterpiece was used as a main theme for the TV animation Yu-Gi-Oh! Zexal.
In April 2011, the duo performed with Korean singer Park Jung Min at an UN Charity Concert in Yokohama, Japan to aid victims of the 2011 Tōhoku earthquake and tsunami.Chosun Ilbo SS501's Park Jung-min to Perform in UN Charity Concert in Japan 25 April 2011. Retrieved 2011-10-26
In 2013, the group went on indefinite hiatus, intending to focus on their individual activities.mihimaru GT announces indefinite hiatus
Discography
Singles #InformationCopies sold1st / Debut SingleReleased: July 30, 2003 Format: CD5" Oricon Top 200 Weekly Peak: #1561,9722ndReleased: April 28, 2004 Format: CD5" Oricon Top 200 Weekly Peak: #3238,5973rdReleased: July 28, 2004 Format: CD5" Oricon Top 200 Weekly Peak: #509,4864thH.P.S.J.: Mihimaru Ball Mix/So Merry Christmas Released: November 17, 2004 Format: CD5" First double A-side Oricon Top 200 Weekly Peak: #504,7075thReleased: April 6, 2005 Format: CD5" Oricon Top 200 Weekly Peak: #376,6866thLove is… Released: September 7, 2005 Format: CD5" Oricon Top 200 Weekly Peak: #268,5047thReleased: November 11, 2005 Format: CD5" Oricon Top 200 Weekly Peak: #1634,4208thReleased: March 15, 2006 Format: CD5" Oricon Top 200 Weekly Peak: #296,1879thKibun Jōjō (気分上々↑↑) Released: May 6, 2006 Format: CD5" Released in two formats: CD-only and CD+DVD Considered their "big break" single due to highest peak on Oricon charts Oricon Top 200 Weekly Peak: #7130,63110thReleased: July 12, 2006 Format: CD5" Oricon Top 200 Weekly Peak: #1916,76011thReleased: August 16, 2006 Format: CD5" Released in three formats: CD+DVD (Itsumademo Hibiku kono Melody version), CD+DVD (Magical Speaker Version), and CD only Oricon Top 200 Weekly Peak: #358,01812thReleased: February 28, 2007 Format: CD5" Released in three versions: CD+DVD Mihimaru version, CD-only Doraemon version, and regular CD-only Oricon Top 200 Weekly Peak: #657,93413thReleased: April 4, 2007 Format: CD5" Released in two versions: CD+DVD and CD-only Oricon Top 200 Weekly Peak: #726,42814th Released: August 15, 2007 Format: CD5" Released in two versions: CD+DVD and CD-only Oricon Top 200 Weekly Peak: #538,96315th Released: November 28, 2007 Format: CD5" Released in two versions: CD+DVD and CD-only Oricon Top 200 Weekly Peak: #844,000+16thdiverge Released: January 30, 2008 Format: CD5" Released in two versions: CD+DVD and CD-only Oricon Top 200 Weekly Peak: #620,450 17thReleased: April 30, 2008 Format: CD5" Released in two versions: CD+DVD and CD-only Oricon Top 200 Weekly Peak: #432,26918th, collaboration with SoffettReleased: July 2, 2008 Format: CD5" Released in two versions: CD+DVD and CD-only Oricon Top 200 Weekly Peak: #715,57419thReleased: October 22, 2008 Format: CD5" Released in two versions: CD+DVD and CD-only Oricon Top 200 Weekly Peak: #422,52420thSwitch Released: June 17, 2009 Format: CD5" Released in two versions: CD+DVD and CD-only Oricon Top 200 Weekly Peak: #719,37421stReleased: July 8, 2009 Format: CD5" Released in two versions: CD+DVD and CD-only Oricon Top 200 Weekly Peak: #1211,77122ndReleased: September 23, 2009 Format: CD5" Released in three versions: CD-only, CD+DVD, Limited Edition Oricon Top 200 Weekly Peak: #811,02423rdLove Letter Released: February 10, 2010 Format: CD5" Released in two versions: CD+DVD and CD-only Oricon Top 200 Weekly Peak: #148,14624thReleased: April 21, 2010 Format: CD5" Released in two versions: CD+DVD and CD-only Oricon Top 200 Weekly Peak: #186,62025thReleased: June 8, 2011 Format: CD5" Released in three versions: CD-only, Limited Edition A(CD+DVD), Limited Edition B Oricon Top 200 Weekly Peak: #205,42826thReleased: August 3, 2011 Format: CD5" Released in three versions: CD+DVD and CD-only Oricon Top 200 Weekly Peak: #362,998
Albums #InformationCopies sold1stMihimarhythm Released: September 8, 2004 Format: CD5" CD+DVD version released on 2007-02-28 for a limited time. Oricon Top 200 Weekly Peak: #1646,0542ndMihimalife Released: December 21, 2005 Format: CD5" CD+DVD version released on 2007-02-28 for a limited time. Oricon Top 200 Weekly Peak: #1858,4303rdMihimagic Released: September 13, 2006 Format: CD5" CD+DVD version released on 2007-02-28 for a limited time. Oricon Top 200 Weekly Peak: #2279,892CompilationMihimania: Collection Album (Mihimania ～コレクション アルバム～) Released: November 15, 2006 Format: CD5" Limited to 100,000 copies Oricon Top 200 Weekly Peak: #1049,249BestThe Best of Mihimaru GT Released: May 2, 2007 Format: CD5" Released in CD+DVD and CD-only formats Oricon Top 200 Weekly Peak: #1383,2204thMihimarise Released: May 28, 2008 Format: CD5" Released in CD+DVD and CD-only formats Oricon Top 200 Weekly Peak: #1133,3442nd CompilationMihimaniaII: Collection Album (MihimaniaII ～コレクション アルバム～) Released: November 19, 2008 Format: CD5" Released in CD+DVD and CD-only formats Oricon Top 200 Weekly Peak: #1613,2912nd BestThe Best of Asia Released: September 23, 2009 Format: CD5" Released in CD-only formats Oricon Top 200 Weekly Peak: #915,7825thMihimalogy Released: February 24, 2010 Format: CD5" Released in CD+DVD and CD-only formats Oricon Top 200 Weekly Peak: #628,0903rd BestMihimaballads Released: June 16, 2010 Format: CD5" Released in CD+DVD and CD-only formats Oricon Top 200 Weekly Peak: #426,9316thMihimalight Released: September 7, 2011 Format: CD5" Released in CD+DVD and CD-only formats Oricon Top 200 Weekly Peak: #1212,480
References
External links Official Mihimaru GT website Official Universal Music Japan profile mihimacafe forum Official mihamaru GT blog