Matsushita Yuya

At the age of 12, Yuya Matsushita was determined to become a singer. His desire drove him to do research at bookstores and began taking classes on a dance scholarship at Caless Vocal & Dance School in Osaka. His dance training educated him in a variety of music styles, primarily gospel and western, but he soon after became interested in street dancing and began honing his skill through intense practice.

In 2004, he formed SUGER, a dance/vocal group with Caless classmate Shota Shimizu, among others. Following the formation of SUGER, Yuya met producer Jin Nakamura, who wrote foolish foolish, which was inspired by his first impression of the young artist.

In October of 2005, Yuya visited New York City by himself. The trip became a turning point in his life and prompted him to make the decision to pursue music. Against his parents' wishes he dropped out of high school to focus on his dreams. That same year, Yuya recorded foolish foolish, the song Nakamura wrote. He was one step closer to realizing his dream.

Following his decision to launch his solo career, Yuya quit SUGER and, in 2007, signed with Epic Records Japan to start preparations of his major debut. Soon after, Yuya returned to New York and spent his time shooting photos and video for his debut single, foolish foolish.

In November of 2008, Yuya's first single, foolish foolish debuted in Japan. It would be the first of many, and by 2009, he released two additional singles in January and August respectively. That year, he also debuted on the stage in the theatrical production of "Kuroshitsuji." and hit the big screen, performing in the movie "Kanashii Boyfriend."

By early 2010, Yuya found his dreams coming to fruition. His February single, Trust Me, was featured in the anime "Durarara!!", and subsequently reached tenth place on the Oricon music charts. He appeared in two more movies that year: "Toki wo Kakeru Shoujo" and "Hikari, Sono Saki e," as well as the musical production "Korushitsuji -The Most Beautiful DEATH in The World-."

On June 2, his first full length album, I AM ME was released. Just days later, it was released in Korea, with his single Bird released in Taiwan. By mid-summer, Yuya held a solo tour trekking across Japan in July, and in August, Bird was featured in the anime version of "Kuroshitsuji."

In January of 2011, Yuya broke into television, starring in the television drama "Quartet." His single Paradise, was used as the theme song for the drama. In late May, Yuya performed overseas for the first time at the anime convention FanimeCon in California.

Having finished filming his upcoming drama, Ashita no hikari wo tsukame, the show will be aired in early July and Yuya will soon after hit the road for his 2011 tour, ~Super Drive~, which will take him to seven cities across Japan. The tour will start on August 6 at Shibuya AX and finish on September 25 at Zepp Tokyo.