ZARD

ZARD was a Japanese pop rock group formed in 1991. Izumi Sakai was its lead vocalist, core member, and public face, and the early lineup also included guitarist Fumihito Machida, bassist Hiroyasu Hoshi, drummer Kousuke Michikura, and keyboardist Kimitaka Ikezawa. The project began as a vehicle for Sakai and made its major-label debut on B-Gram RECORDS with "Good-bye My Loneliness". ZARD became one of the highest-selling artists in Japan, with more than 38 million records sold by 2023. Among its biggest hits were the million-selling singles "Makenaide", "Yureru Omoi", and "My Friend", and from "HOLD ME" to "ZARD BEST 〜Request Memorial〜" the group recorded nine consecutive million-selling albums. ZARD's work was also closely tied to anime. "My Friend" was used as the ending theme for "Slam Dunk", "Don't you see!" as the ending theme for "Dragon Ball", and the group performed multiple themes for "Meitantei Conan", including "Unmei no Roulette Mawashite (運命のルーレット廻して)" and "Hoshi no Kagayakiyo (星のかがやきよ)". After Izumi Sakai died on May 27, 2007, posthumous releases and commemorative projects continued from remaining recordings, including the 25th-anniversary best album "ZARD Forever Best 〜25th Anniversary〜" in 2016 and a 30th-anniversary project launched in 2020, followed by remastered original albums in 2021.