Kami (musician)

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Kami
Birth name神村 右京 (Ukyou Kamimura)
Also known asKami
Born(1972-02-01)February 1, 1972
Kyoto, Japan
Genres
Occupation(s)Musician
Instrument(s)Drums
Years active1989–1999
Labels
  • Nippon Columbia
  • Midi:Nette

Ukyou Kamimura (神村 右京, Kamimura Ukyou, February 1, 1972 – June 21, 1999),[1] better known by his stage name Kami, was a Japanese musician best known as drummer for the visual kei rock band Malice Mizer. He died on June 21, 1999, in his sleep of a subarachnoid hemorrhage at the age of 27.

Biography

Early life

Kami was born in the city of

high school. Early influences of Kami included many of the British new wave bands, including Culture Club and Duran Duran
. Between this time, Kami devoted his after-school hours to practicing his favorite hobby, tennis, as he was fond of exercise.

Music career

At the beginning of his high school years, Kami was invited into a friend's band. Initially, his interest was in being a guitarist; after practicing for a short time, he decided to return to the drums. At some point, Sakura became his drum mentor.[2]

Kami's fondness for drumming began to evolve, and a personal drum kit became a necessity. Thus, he took up a part-time job and subsequently saved up the necessary money.[

Memoire
, his first inclusion on a publicly released album.

Death

On June 21, 1999, a subarachnoid hemorrhage killed Kami in his sleep at the age of just 27 years old. His funeral was held the same day[citation needed] with only his band members, Mana, Közi, and Yu~ki attending as well as his parents and a few close friends. Gackt, who had just launched his solo career, was on tour at the time and did not hear about the death of his close friend until about a week later.

In the months before his death Kami had taken to composing music, including "Unmei no Deai" and "Mori no Naka no Tenshi". These would later be released on the

Beast of Blood" single. Malice Mizer's "Saikai no Chi to Bara" was written by Mana
for Kami after his death.

As for the other members of Malice Mizer, Gackt wrote two songs in memory of Kami that were both released on his Mars album: "Emu ~For My Dear~" and "U+K". Közi and Yu~ki co-wrote Közi's solo single, "Memento," and dedicated it to Kami. Mana has also stated that one of the songs in his Moi dix Mois album, Nocturnal Opera, is dedicated to him.

Personal life

One of Kami's most popular trademarks was his hair, which had grown so long that he could actually sit on it. However, in 1998 he cut it off and changed his hairstyle. He constantly claimed that this was because his hair always got in the way while drumming. Kami had many hobbies and interests, such as tennis and buying lottery tickets. He was interested in Takeda Shingen and attended the Takeda Shingen Festival every year. He had a fondness for butterflies which can be found in many pictures and the Au Revoir music video.

Band history

  • 3PMayonnaise (3Pマヨネーズ) – 1989–1991
  • Kneuklid Romance – September 1992 – March 1993
  • Malice Mizer – March 17, 1993 – June 21, 1999

References

  1. ^ "【MALICE MIZER】KAMIのプロフィール|死因はくも膜下出血だった|ヴィジュアリズム宮殿". ヴィジュアリズム宮殿 (in Japanese). Retrieved 2022-06-26.
  2. ^ "【ライヴレポート】MALICE MIZER<25th Anniversary Special>、「Kamiも降臨しています」". BARKS (in Japanese). Retrieved 2019-07-15.

External links