US Asian Music Project

This site is a slowly growing resource of Asian, South Pacific, and Asian American recording artists who have entertained US audiences since 1960. Artists are categorized by the decade they first started getting noticed in the US. They are listed in alphabetical order under the following grading system to identify the impact they have made on the music scene:

Top 40 - Artists that have had least one Top 40 single or album listed on the Pop, R&B, World, Dance, or other charts.

Hot 200 - Artists who have had a minimum of one song or album on the Billboard 200 chart or specialized chart.

Bubbling Under - Artists who have never hit the US charts, but have been featured in US publications or have had some kind of recognition in the US.

Song and Dance - Musical performances by talented Asian actors.

B-Sides - This is a small, featured spot to give attention to Asian recording artists of the past who did not try to break into the US market, as well as for American artists who made it big in Asia, but who are mostly unknown in the US.

The Tigers

The Tigers were one of Japan's most popular band of the Group Sounds era. The group featured Kenji Sawada as their lead singer, and were signed by Watanabe Productions.

The group was first named Funnys and was formed in 1966. They changed their name to "The Tigers" on their first TV performance on 15 November 1966. They appeared in several Japanese movies in the late 1960s.

On 24th Jan. 1971, The Tigers held their last concert The Tigers Beautiful Concert at the Nippon Budokan. After The Tigers broke up, Sawada formed the first Japanese supergroup, PYG, in 1971.

They reunited in 1981.

If you you like to add to this list, please send in your suggestions of bands and singers whose albums or singles have hit US Billboard's Top 200. If you know of any well known Asian/Asian American actors who have videos of themselves singing or dancing, send them in as well.

If you would like to suggest a band or singer who was only known in Asia and who were active in the music industry prior to the year 1999, I can give them a temporary spot in the B-Sides section if you have a picture and some information about them.

Email: usamp@larryhovis.net

Link to us (right click and save):

US Asian Music Project

With the recent interest in Asian and Asian American history, I thought that it was time to use my expertise in retro pop music and chart history to come up with a comprehensive list of Asians, Pacific Islanders, and Asian Americans who have made some sort of impact on the American music scene. Back before the internet, you only heard about overseas Asian bands through music publications. Billboard magazine was the best resource to see who was toping the charts in Japan. Your local record store would carry imports mostly from the UK and Japan, and you really had to dig deep and know your stuff back then to get your hands on Asian pop music.

During the 1960s, Western music began to have a heavy influence in many parts of Asia, including (but not limited to) Singapore, Japan, Korea, and Vietnam. Young people were putting together rock and roll groups, growing their hair long, dressing in mod style, and creating music that was influenced by the Beatles, the Rolling Stones, and Motown.

The 60s were also a time when Asians began making headway on to the US charts and media. One of the first was Japanese singer Kyu Sakamoto, whose hit "Sukiyaki" made it to #1 in 1963. Asian-Americans like Larry Ramos of The Association, child prodigy Yo-Yo Ma, and Billy Hinsche of Dino, Desi, and Billy were featured on popular music and variety shows that appealed to young people during that time.

With the event of the internet, access to both bands and fans is much easier than it was years ago. Bands overseas who very few Americans would have heard of otherwise, can now reach out to millions worldwide with just one music video on YouTube. Likewise, fans, worlds apart can now find one another and share the latest news about their favorite overseas or US Asian group.

Asian American artists like Far East Movement and Bruno Mars are making an impact on the modern music scene, but big name Asian American music artists are still few and far between. Some Americans such as Leehom Wang have opted to try their luck in Asia and have been very successful there, while having only a cult following in their home country.

I am hoping that this much under-researched subject will gain interest and that the fans out there will use their music knowledge to help this list to grow.

Updates

03/12/12 M.I.A., Jay Sean, and Yolande Bavan added.
02/23/12 Pauly Fuemana of OMC added to 1990's Top 40 category. B-Sides updated.
02/01/12 Big Phony added to 2000's Bubbling Under category
12/22/11 Native Guns added to 2000's Bubbling Under category
12/20/11 Shonen Knife added to 1980's Bubbling Under category
12/19/11 The 5.6.7.8's added to 2000's Bubbling Under category.
12/13/11 A bunch of new additions to the 2000's category. B-Sides updated.

B-Side Feature

The Tigers on their visit to London in the 1960's.

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