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Hi Hi Puffy AmiYumi
by Tina Whelski

You may recognize the chart-topping Japanese pop duo Puffy AmiYumi best as cartoons but their career success beyond the two-dimensional world is anything but imaginary.

Their TV show Hi Hi Puffy AmiYumi airs Tuesdays at 8 p.m on Cartoon Network and opens with a song you can’t miss, “Hi Hi” with that ridiculously catchy chorus: “Hi Hi Puffy AmiYumi show/Hi Hi Puffy Ami Yumi show” repeated a gazillion times. Based on the J-pop stars’ fantasized rock star lives the show follows them as they jam with aliens on an international space station, get chased by their No. 1 fan, and learn new dance moves for a Japanese dance competition. In one episode make-believe manager Kaz even creates a pair of life-sized Puffy dolls so that the girls can be in two money-making places at once! It’s then up to the girls to stop the creepy dolls before they take over the Puffy girls’ world. Hmm. Not a bad idea Kaz, considering Puffy AmiYumi’s real lives are not so far removed from “all” of that fantasy. Puffy AmiYumi have sold millions of records, including the first single they ever released in 1996 “Asia No Junshin” which launched Puffy-mania. Since then, they have hosted a television variety show (Pa-Pa-Pa-Pa-Puffy), headlined arena-sized concerts, and inspired action-figure dolls and even a line of shoes. All of their singles has been licensed for high-profile commercials for products such as motor scooters, cosmetics, computers, and soft drinks. You also heard their song “Friends Forever” in the Scooby-Doo 2 soundtrack.

The Japanese idorus (idols) celebrate their tenth anniversary next year, impressive longevity when you realize that the girls were actually strangers to one another until brought together by a record label and a management company. In 1995 Tokyo-bred Ami Onuki and Osaka native Yumi Yoshimura had each learned about talent searches underway in Tokyo. Ami sent her demo to Sony; Yumi auditioned for a management company; the next thing they knew, the unlikely friends were blending voices, creating hit after hit and launching a cultural phenomena.

The group’s latest CD, the Hi Hi Puffy AmiYumi Soundtrack, was produced by Tamio Okuda (formerly of the platinum Japanese rock band Unicorn) and Andy Sturmer (formerly of American rock band Jellyfish).

What is the plot of Puffy AmiYumi’s next real-life adventure? The duo kicks off an East Coast tour this month to perform songs like “Joining a Fan Club,” “Planet Tokyo,” “Love so Pure” and “Koregawatashino Ikirumi chi” before a crowd of screaming fans.

*Speaking through a translator the girls gave WomanRock a heads up on what they’re up to.

WOMANROCK: What differences do you find between how Japanese and American audiences receive your live performances?

AMI: In the states it’s normal to have dance parties and to express yourself in body language. The cultural differences are not so different, but we can feel more movement in the American audience.

WOMANROCK: Everyone may not be familiar with the term J-pop. How do you describe it and is that where you feel your music fits?

YUMI: J-pop is actually Japanese pop. In that category there are a lot of other categories. It’s just a big way to say Japanese music. If the audience who listens to Puffy thinks it belongs in J-pop, that’s what we feel. We want to leave it up to the audience to categorize it.

WOMANROCK: What is it like having a cartoon based on your pretend rock n’ roll adventures?

YUMI: When we watch it, we watch it as cartoon Ami and Yumi. We don’t really portray ourselves in it. It’s so exaggerated and if we were really portraying our normal lives, it wouldn’t be that interesting as a cartoon (laughs).

WOMANROCK: You’re no strangers to television. You also hosted a television variety show in Japan a while back called Pa-Pa-Pa-Pa-Puffy?

AMI: That was like five years ago. It was fun and it was good for us because our music could be portrayed to a new variety of people who haven’t heard our music, so it was a good opportunity for us.

WOMANROCK: If you had to guess what makes you so relatable to your fans, what do you think it is?

AMI: Can you tell us? (laughs). We really want to know.

WOMANROCK: You were strangers to each other until you were brought together by a record label and a management company. Musically you hit it off, but personally how did you get to know each other?

AMI: In the beginning we were so different so we didn’t think we’d hit it off. Once we started to become friends we hit it off right away though.

WOMANROCK: Your debut single in 1996 “Asia No Junshin” launched Puffy-mania. Were you surprised by the sudden attention at what you had created?

YUMI: We didn’t expect it. A famous producer and musician in Japan, Tamio Okuda, was the producer for our first song and just everything that was put together for that song all came together and made it happen, but we didn’t expect it. It was luck.

WOMANROCK: You’ve had three CDs now. How did you approach this last album as an artist.

AMI: We don’t write the songs ourselves. We write a lot of the lyrics. When we choose the songs, we always imagine how they will be performed at the concerts. That’s our main thing. We love to have fun doing our songs.

WOMANROCK: What do you like to write about?

YUMI: It really depends on the song and how we feel at that moment. There’s not really one thing that we’re influenced by. It’s just when we’re on the spot writing it together, we put our minds together. There’s nothing in particular we want to show or portray or anything like that.

WOMANROCK: Who are some of your favorite American bands?

AMI: Red Hot Chilli Peppers, Nirvana, and of course Jellyfish because Andy Sturmer is one of our producers.

WOMANROCK: What are your plans for the future?

YUMI: In the near future is obviously the East Coast tour and actually next year is our ten year anniversary together, so we want to do something together. We’re in the process of thinking of that.

Find out more about Puffy AmiYumi at www.puffyamiyumi.com .

Tina Whelski is Editor of Womanrock.com. She is also a columnist and feature writer for The Aquarian Weekly/East Coast Rocker www.theaquarian.com , Managing Editor of Starpolish.com www.starpolish.com , and contributes to The Hollywood Reporter www.hollywoodreporter.com , Modern Drummer www.moderndrummer.com . Music Connection www.musicconnection.com and Good Times magazine www.goodtimesmag.com . Additionally she consults for Fearless Music TV www.fearlessmusic.com .