B'z

For their self-titled debut album, see B'z (album).
B'z
Koshi Inaba (left) and Takahiro Matsumoto performing in 2012
Koshi Inaba (left) and Takahiro Matsumoto performing in 2012
Background information
OriginJapan
Genres
Years active1988–present
LabelsBertelsmann–BMG Japan (1988–1995)
Being Inc.–Vermillion (1995–present)
MembersTak Matsumoto
Koshi Inaba
Websitebz-vermillion.com

B'z (Japanese: ビーズ, Hepburn: Bīzu) is a Japanese rock duo consisting of guitarist, composer and producer Takahiro "Tak" Matsumoto and vocalist and lyricist Koshi Inaba,[2][3] known for their energetic hard rock tracks and pop rock ballads.[1] B'z is one of the best-selling music artists in the world and the best-selling in their native Japan by certifications, having released 49 consecutive No. 1 singles, 25 No. 1 albums, and 3 No. 1 EPs on the Oricon music charts, and have sold more than 100 million records worldwide.[4][5][6][7][8]

In 2003, HMV Japan ranked them at number 30 on their list of the 100 most important Japanese pop acts.[9] In 2007, B'z became the first music act from Asia to have their handprints and signatures put up on Hollywood's RockWalk.[10] In 2008, they were awarded a Guinness World Record for "Best-selling album act in Japan", which also notes them to be the best-selling act in Japan overall.[11]

  1. ^ a b Cite error: The named reference AllMusicBio was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  2. ^ 佐伯明『B'z ウルトラクロニクル』ソニー・マガジンズ、2003年。ISBN 4-7897-2101-9
  3. ^ 新型光「B'zはなぜこれほど売れるのか ちょっと真面目に考えてみた Archived March 4, 2016, at the Wayback Machine」 R25、2005年12月15日。（参照：2007年5月1日。）
  4. ^ Culross, Mikey Hirano (October 11, 2017). "Meeting of the Masters". Rafu Shimpo. Retrieved December 1, 2017.
  5. ^ "B'z got their 22nd No. 1 album, ranked No.1 in history and dominates all the 6 main ranking sections" (in Japanese). Oricon. June 24, 2008. Archived from the original on October 16, 2008. Retrieved November 14, 2008.
  6. ^ "B'z、前人未到のシングル・アルバム通算8000万枚突破" (in Japanese). Oricon. August 2, 2011. Retrieved November 20, 2018.
  7. ^ "B'z、通算28作目のアルバム首位 歴代1位記録を更新" (in Japanese). Oricon. December 5, 2017. Retrieved November 20, 2018.
  8. ^ "B'z celebrate 30 years in music business with Tokyo exhibition". Asahi Shimbun. April 23, 2018. Archived from the original on November 20, 2018. Retrieved November 20, 2018.
  9. ^ "Top 100 Japanese pops Artists – No.30". HMV Japan (in Japanese). November 1, 2003. Retrieved January 15, 2013.
  10. ^ "Duo B'z enters L.A. Rockwalk". The Japan Times. November 21, 2007. Retrieved November 14, 2008.
  11. ^ "Best selling album act in Japan". Guinness World Records. March 12, 2008. Retrieved November 21, 2018. The best selling album act in Japan is a hard rock duo B'z (Japan) who has sold more than 42 million albums by 2008. They have also sold more than 34 million singles which makes them the best selling music act in Japan overall