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(born January 13, 1968), better known by her stage name Chara, is a Japanese singer-songwriter, actress and video jockey. She debuted in 1991 with the single ''Heaven''. She is most well known for her song "Swallowtail Butterfly (Ai no Uta)", the theme song for the 1996 Shunji Iwai film ''Swallowtail Butterfly'' (in which she starred), her 1997 hit single "Yasashii Kimochi", and her collaboration with Judy and Mary vocalist Yuki, "Ai no Hi Mittsu Orange".〔(【引用サイトリンク】 url=http://www.oricon.co.jp/artists/s/4686/ )〕 Chara later formed a band with Yuki, called Mean Machine. She is known for her unique whisper voice vocal technique while singing.〔(Yahoo!ミュージック - ミュージックマガジン - スカパラ×Chara対談＆映像 )〕 ==Early life== Chara grew up in Kawaguchi, Saitama. She started learning the piano from age four, and starting composing songs in elementary school.〔(【引用サイトリンク】 url=http://www.barks.jp/artist/?id=52002009&m=bio )〕 In her first year of elementary school, she performed a song she had written, , at a school piano recital.〔, accessed through 〕 She originally received her nickname ''Chara'' in junior high school. Her nickname started as , a type of sausage that rhymes with her maiden name, ''Watabiki''. This was later changed to ''Charabiki'', adding in (an onomatopoeic word for someone who talks continuously),〔(【引用サイトリンク】 url=http://dictionary.goo.ne.jp/leaf/jn/125400/m0u/%E3%81%A1%E3%82%83%E3%82%89%E3%81%A1%E3%82%83%E3%82%89/ )〕 before settling on ''Chara'', after a teacher called her this.〔Chara. . Tokyo:Kadokawa Bunko, 1995. Print, p. 204.〕 She was so well known by this name that not even some of her friends knew her real name.〔 She continues to use this name as she believes it brings out her inner child. After finishing high school, Chara went to Tokyo to a vocational school, majoring in music and specialising in piano. However, she dropped out one year into her two-year degree.〔Chara 1995, p. 67.〕 From 1984 onwards, she worked as a keyboardist in several different unsigned bands.〔 During this time, she found part-time work as a roller-skating waitress.〔Chara 1995, p. 94.〕 In 1988, to get a chance to sing her own compositions, she decided to become a band vocalist instead.〔Chara 1995, p. 92.〕 Her first live performance was at the Shinjuku Ruido live house in 1990.〔 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア（Wikipedia）』 ■ウィキペディアで「Chara (singer)」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
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