Albums: Lonely in Gorgeous, Tommy february6, Tommy airline

In 2001, 川瀬智子 (Tomoko Kawase) (born February 6, 1975, in Kyoto, Japan) launched her solo career under the name of Tommy february6, a character named from a combination of her nickname and birthdate. Vastly different from the japanese rock / japanese pop sound of the brilliant green for which she is also lead singer, Tommy february6's persona and sound are that of a generic Stock Aitken Waterman style 1980s pop icon. Her eponymous debut album was released on the day of her 27th birthday.

Kawase's original intention with Tommy february6 was to create a character who was far from innocent, though she appeared that cute in both sound and appearance; Tommy february6 was designed to be someone who was true to her feelings despite the cutesy nature of her outward character, do as she wanted (and as such, Tommy february6 is seen repeatedly in music videos drinking alcohol from flasks, bars, etc.) Unfortunately, the original concept started to disappoint her, and Kawase began to feel that the character could no longer maintain its purity. After a performance as Tommy february6 in 2003, Kawase took off her glasses and donned a much more alternative look to create Tommy heavenly6, a brand new character with a modern rock sound. Kawase would later explain that Tommy heavenly6 was born from a dream that Tommy february6 had, in which she extrovertly embraces all the elements of her personality she had previously been repressing.

This is reflected in the promotional video for Tommy heavenly6's first single, Wait Till I Can Dream, wherein Tommy february6 drinks from a hip flask and falls asleep, only to be woken by Tommy heavenly6. Musically, she's the polar opposite of Tommy february6, and possesses an image most people would consider more dangerous, but Kawase claims that Tommy heavenly6 is far more pure and true to her heart than Tommy february6 is. Kawase claims that the invention of Tommy heavenly6 occurred due of her disappointment in Tommy february6's character, but far from being a replacement, Kawase chose to keep the two characters' careers separate.

During 2003 and 2004, Tommy heavenly6 released only two singles, whilst Tommy february6 went on to release her second full album, Tommy Airline. It would be in August 2005 (nearly exactly two years after her first single) that Tommy heavenly6 would finally release her third single, which was shortly followed by her own long awaited eponymous debut album. In 2006/2007 Kawase has had a very busy period, releasing five new singles and a new album, Heavy Starry Heavenly as Tommy heavenly6.

She finished this productive phase with the Heavy Starry Tour, four live performances as Tommy heavenly6 during March 2007. She incorporated most of her songs into this live format, pleasing her army of fans with an hour and a half show, complete with her now regular backing band. On June 1st 2007 The Brilliant Green announced they would be returning with a new single, so it will be interesting to see if Tommy continues with her solo projects in the future, we'll just have to wait and see.

In addition to her own solo singing career, Kawase has produced and written songs for the idol group Tommy☆angels, as well as making a protege of former soloist Asuka Hinoi. Kawase has also made an appearance as the voice of Pikki in the anime series Piroppo, briefly modelled for Italian fashion house Fiorucci and for a period of time hosted Break Down, an MTV show. She also worked as a producer on the Takashi Fujii single, entitled OH MY JULIET.

/Source: en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tommy_february6

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