Quick Facts
Biography
Tomiko Van (伴 都美子, Ban Tomiko, born January 9, 1979), is a Japanese pop singer and occasional actress, as well as a member of the band Do As Infinity (DAI), along with Ryo Owatari and Dai Nagao, that has resumed activities after their 2005 split.
Career
Do As Infinity
Beginnings as solo artist
Tomiko Van began as a solo artist while she was with Do As Infinity with the song "Again", which appeared on the charity album Song Nation, and later in 2003 with the song "Drive me nuts", which was recorded for trance DJs project Cyber X. Van also appeared in six commercials for the Japanese hair product company Lavenus.
Official solo career
2005
After Do As Infinity disbanded on September 29, 2005, Avex Trax, Van's label, announced that the singer was going solo.
2006
In 2006, Van made her debut as a solo artist with her album Farewell. Singles were not released prior to her album, released in March 2006. Her first official single as a solo artist, "Flower", was released in June of the same year, and made the weekly top ten of the Japanese charts. Two other singles followed that year, "Senkō", in September, and "Yumeji", a late November release.
2007
2007 started out with Van's first cover album titled Voice: Cover You With Love. The album was Van's only release that year. Tomiko van also acted in a movie Heat Island
2008
In 2008, Van's third album and second cover album, Voice 2: Cover Lovers Rock, was released in March. In this album, she covered songs performed by male artists, such as Spitz and Masaharu Fukuyama. Despite her one-year hiatus from the music scene, the album charted at number 10 on the first day of release. Van's fourth solo single, "Tokyo Biyori", was released on June 18, 2008. Her second original album, Van, was released in December 2008.
On September 29, 2008, Do As Infinity officially reunited as a band, and released a four-track single on June 17, 2009.
Personal life
Van married a man four years her junior in September 2012, first publicly announcing her marriage at a Do As Infinity concert at Shibuya AX in Tokyo on September 29. As of 2016 she is the mother of two children.
Discography
Singles
| Information | Sales |
|---|---|
"Flower"
| 24,230 copies sold |
"Senkō"
| 13,860 copies sold |
"Yumeji"
| 10,237 copies sold |
"Tokyo Biyori"
| 10,500 copies sold |
Albums
| Information | Sales |
|---|---|
Farewell
| 45,409 copies sold |
Voice: Cover You With Love
| 14,581 copies sold |
Voice 2: Cover Lovers Rock
| 7,979 copies sold |
Van.
| 8,852 copies sold |
Music videos
| Year | Song | Director |
|---|---|---|
| 2006 | "Flower" | Masaki Ookita |
| "Hold Me..." | Ten Shimoyama | |
| "Farewell" | Naoto Kumasawa | |
| "Senkō" (閃光, Flash of Light) | Hiroshi Usui | |
| "Yumeji" (夢路, Dream Road) | Wataru Takeishi | |
| 2007 | "Yoru ni Kizutsuite" (夜に傷ついて, Hurt in the Night) | Wataru Takeishi |
| 2008 | "Cherry" | Ryuuji Seki |
| "Tokyo Biyori" (東京日和, Tokyo Weather) | Ryuuji Seki |
Featured and collaborative releases
- "Drive Me Nuts" (Cyber X feat. Tomiko Van)
- "Truth'94 -Meets Tomiko Van-" (cover version of TRF's original song)
- "Again" (various artists album, Song Nation, an Avex project consisting of collaborations between many different Avex artists)
- "Music Flower" (Kohey Tsuchiya & various artists)
- "Velvet" (Kikkawa Kouji)