title: Bangerz

text: The seventh track "Love Money Party" features Big Sean, and incorporates a "grimy, haunted-house beat". Jason Lipshutz from "Billboard" noted that Cyrus appeared more comfortable with rapping in the recording, compared to an earlier performance on the Mike Will Made It single "23". "#GetItRight" is a "stylish breeze" that sees the inclusion of "whistling [...] and a chopped guitar lick". It was described as being reminiscent of "Twisted" by Usher and "Kickin' In" by Adam Lambert, all three of which were produced by Pharrell Williams. Cyrus stated that "Drive" was inspired by "needing to leave someone but not really wanting to completely cut yourself off from the relationship." The track was described as "a sad-Kanye-esque track" and her comments were assumed to reference her engagement to Hemsworth by the media. The tenth track "FU" features French Montana, and according to Catucci, blends "starry Adele-style sass and a French Montana verse into expertly inlaid dubstep wub-wubs". He went on to describe "Do My Thang" as a "ripping dance track", while Lipshutz recognized influences from "gooey synthesizers and snapping percussion". "Maybe You're Right" incorporates drum instrumentation with "hints of gospel influence", and was also questioned to be addressing Hemsworth. The thirteenth and final track "Someone Else" combines hip hop and synthpop styles, and lyrically discusses Cyrus' evolving public image.


title: Bangerz

text: "We Can't Stop" was released as the lead single from "Bangerz" on June 3, 2013. It received generally mixed reviews from music critics, who were ambivalent towards its production and lyrics. The song peaked at number 2 on the US "Billboard" Hot 100, tying it with "Party in the U.S.A." as Cyrus' highest-peaking single in the country at the time. Internationally, it enjoyed varying success across Europe and Oceania, and peaked at number one in New Zealand. The accompanying music video was released on June 19, 2013, and was noted for depicting an increasingly provocative Cyrus, an effort begun with her third record "Can't Be Tamed" (2010). With 10.7 million views in its first day, the clip briefly held the Vevo record for the most views in 24 hours, before being surpassed by "Best Song Ever" by One Direction. It was also the fastest video to reach 100 million views, having done so in 37 days.


title: Bangerz

text: "Wrecking Ball" was released as the album's second single on August 25, 2013. The song peaked atop the "Billboard" Hot 100, becoming Cyrus' first single to do so in the United States. It additionally peaked within the top-twenty of several international singles charts, and reached at number 2 in Australia and New Zealand. The accompanying music video was released on September 9, 2013, and garnered significant media attention for showcasing a nude Cyrus. With 19.3 million views, it broke the Vevo record for the most views in 24 hours, and additionally became the fastest video to reach 100 million views, having done so in 6 days. The first-day viewing record was later surpassed by the visuals for "Anaconda" by Nicki Minaj in August 2014, which received 19.6 million views, upon its premiere. On December 4, 2013, "Wrecking Ball" returned to the peak position of the "Billboard" Hot 100 with assistance from online streaming of a viral Chatroulette parody video, and consequently became the largest gap between number-one sittings in "Billboard" history. On the same month, the music videos for "Wrecking Ball" and "We Can't Stop" were announced as the first and second most-viewed videos on Vevo in 2013, respectively.


title: Bangerz

text: "Adore You" was released as the third and final single from "Bangerz"; it was serviced to contemporary hit radio stations on December 17, 2013. It received generally favorable reviews, with critics appreciating its mid-tempo production, although they criticized the use of Auto-Tune in its vocals. The accompanying music video was leaked on the evening of December 25, and was officially premiered on the morning of December 26. The clip depicts Cyrus suggestively posing in a bed and a bathtub, and is interspersed with night vision footage that appears to simulate a sex tape. Prior to being officially released as a single, the song debuted at number 42 on the "Billboard" Hot 100; it peaked at number 21. The remix for "Adore You", was produced by Cedric Gervais, and premiered online on February 13, 2014; it was officially released on Beatport through his label Spinnin' Records on March 3.


title: Bangerz

text: Cyrus first performed "We Can't Stop" on "Jimmy Kimmel Live!" on June 26, 2013, and on "Good Morning America" the following day. In August 2013, she became the subject of widespread media attention and public scrutiny following a controversial performance and duet with Robin Thicke at the 2013 MTV Video Music Awards at Barclays Center in New York City. The performance began with Cyrus performing "We Can't Stop" in bear-themed attire. Halfway through the act, Cyrus stripped down to a skin-colored two-piece outfit as Thicke joined her on state to perform "Blurred Lines". Cyrus subsequently touched Thicke's crotch area with a giant foam finger and twerked against his crotch. An article published in "The Hollywood Reporter" described the performance as "crass" and "reminiscent of a bad acid trip". Media attention of the performance largely overshadowed the attention that was given to other major events of the night, such as the reunion of NSYNC and performances by Lady Gaga and Katy Perry. The performance was described by "XXL" critic B. J. Steiner as a "trainwreck in the classic sense of the word as the audience reaction seemed to be a mix of confusion, dismay and horror in a cocktail of embarrassment", while the BBC said Cyrus stole the show with a "raunchy performance". The performance generated 306,100 tweets per minute on Twitter, breaking the record for the most tweeted-about event in the history of the social network; the previous record, held by the Super Bowl XLVII halftime show featuring Beyoncé, generated 268,000 tweets per minute. According to "Forbes", Cyrus' performance resulted in a gain of over 213,000 Twitter followers, 226,000 likes on Facebook, and 90,000 downloads of her new promotional single, "Wrecking Ball", within days of the controversial performance. This amounted to a total 112% increase in Cyrus' social media activity.


title: Bangerz

text: In September 2013, Cyrus sang "We Can't Stop" on "Schlag den Raab" in Germany (September 7), "Le Grand Journal" in France (September 9), and "" in England (September 13). On September 21, she performed twice at iHeartRadio Music Festival in Las Vegas, in the afternoon at festival village and in the evening at MGM Grand Garden Arena. During both shows she sang "We Can't Stop" and, for the first time, "Wrecking Ball". Despite generating media attention for a provocative wardrobe, the performance was considered to be "fairly tame considering the VMAs." On October 5, Cyrus served as the host and musical guest during an episode of "Saturday Night Live". She appeared in several sketches, including a parody of "We Can't Stop" titled "We Did Stop (The Government)", referencing the federal government shutdown, and performed an acoustic version of "We Can't Stop" and "Wrecking Ball". The following Monday, Cyrus performed both singles on "Today" as part of their Toyota Concert Series. She held an album signing on October 8 at Planet Hollywood in Times Square, and also appeared on "Late Night with Jimmy Fallon" and "The Ellen DeGeneres Show" later that month, also singing both singles there.


title: Bangerz

text: "Bangerz" was additionally promoted through the documentary "", which premiered through MTV on October 2; it covered the production of the project and the lead-up to its release. In November, Cyrus traveled to Europe again to sing both "We Can't Stop" and "Wrecking Ball" at the 2013 MTV Europe Music Awards in Amsterdam on November 10; she garnered media attention for smoking a joint of marijuana on-stage while accepting the Best Video Award for the latter single. During her trip, she also performed "Wrecking Ball" on "Wetten, dass..?" in Germany (November 9), BBC Radio 1's Live Lounge in London (November 12), and the 2013 Bambi Awards in Germany (November 14). On November 17, she performed "Wrecking Ball" on "The X Factor" in London. After being criticized for delivering a lackluster vocal performance, Cyrus was placed under "vocal rest" by her doctors in preparation of the Bangerz Tour. On November 24, Cyrus performed "Wrecking Ball" at the 2013 American Music Awards; a digitally animated cat projected on the screen behind her lip-synced the lyrics alongside Cyrus. In December, she performed at Jingle Ball concerts in Los Angeles (KIIS-FM Jingle Ball), Saint Paul, Atlanta, New York City, Washington, D.C., Tampa and Sunrise. She was expected to perform in Boston during the series, although her flight from New York City was cancelled due to Winter Storm Electra and was therefore unable to attend.


title: Bangerz

text: Cyrus also performed "#GetItRight" and "Wrecking Ball" on "Dick Clark's New Year's Rockin' Eve with Ryan Seacrest" in Times Square on December 31; she had previously been expected to perform at the Fontainebleau Miami Beach with Pharrell Williams. On January 25, 2014, Cyrus sang "#GetItRight" during Clive Davis' party the evening before the 56th Annual Grammy Awards; after an unenthusiastic response from the audience, she performed a cover version of "Jolene" by Dolly Parton which received a more favorable reception. An episode of "MTV Unplugged" starring Cyrus premiered through MTV on January 29. She performed acoustic versions of "Adore You", "SMS (Bangerz)", "4x4", "Wrecking Ball", "#GetItRight", "Drive", "Do My Thang", and "Rooting for My Baby". Cyrus also performed a cover version of "Jolene", while Madonna appeared as a surprise guest that evening to sing a medley of Cyrus "We Can't Stop" and her own "Don't Tell Me". An uncensored version of the special was released online on February 6, and included an additional cover version of "Why'd You Only Call Me When You're High?" by the Arctic Monkeys. Cyrus performed "Wrecking Ball" during the 2014 World Music Awards in Monte-Carlo on May 27. Cyrus participated in the Summertime Ball at Wembley Stadium in London on June 21, where she sang "SMS (Bangerz)", "4x4", "Love Money Party", "Wrecking Ball", "We Can't Stop" and "Party In The USA".


title: Bangerz

text: During her appearance on "Today" on October 7, Cyrus first mentioned her intentions to tour in 2014. On October 26, she made a surprise appearance on another episode of "Saturday Night Live" to officially announce the Bangerz Tour. It was promoted by the American entertainment company Live Nation Entertainment, which was reported to be paying Cyrus $500,000 per presentation. The first leg of the tour visited North America and was originally scheduled to include thirty-eight shows, for which Swedish duo Icona Pop and American recording artist Sky Ferreira were announced as its opening acts.


title: Bangerz

text: Tickets for the North American leg became available for purchase on November 16; it began at the Rogers Arena in Vancouver on February 14, 2014, and was originally planned conclude on April 24 at the Nassau Veterans Memorial Coliseum in Uniondale, New York. However, several showings were postponed after Cyrus experienced an allergic reaction to medication on April 15. The rescheduled North American dates saw the inclusion of two additional performances; they began on August 1 at the Nassau Veterans Memorial Coliseum in Uniondale, and concluded on August 14 at the United Center in Chicago. The second leg of the tour visited Europe and included eighteen shows, for which tickets became available for purchase on December 13. It began on May 6 at The O2 Arena in London, and concluded on June 22 at the Ziggo Dome in Amsterdam. The two-hour television special "Miley Cyrus: Bangerz Tour" was filmed during Cyrus' performances in Spain and Portugal, and was broadcast on July 6 on NBC in the United States. The tour resumed on August 1 at Nassau Coliseum in Uniondale and concluded on October 23 at the Perth Arena in Perth, Australia.


title: Bangerz

text: "Bangerz" received generally positive reviews from music critics. At Metacritic, which assigns a normalized rating out of 100 to reviews from mainstream critics, the album received an average score of 61, which indicates "generally favorable reviews", based on 21 reviews. Writing for AllMusic, Heather Phares provided a favorable review, opining that it "accomplishes [the] mission" of "[selling] Cyrus as an independent woman", further commenting that the incorporation of several genres within the project "introduces Miley as an A-list pop star." Jason Lipshutz of "Billboard" complimented the album for being "fiercely individual", but stated that the "dramatic breakup songs" became repetitive. Lipshutz stated that the album is "neither the best nor worst pop album" released in 2013, and stated power ballad songs like "Wrecking Ball" would increase her career longevity. Nick Catucci of "Entertainment Weekly" described "Bangerz" as being "utterly fresh" and a "pop blitz from a hip hop blue print", and stated that Cyrus had visibly transitioned from her former persona established by the Disney Channel.


title: Bangerz

text: Mikael Wood from the "Los Angeles Times" noted that the album favored a "grittier, hip-hop-inspired vibe" instead of the "glossy electro-pop" from her previous material, and further opined that "We Can't Stop" "still astounds; it might be the calmest, most clear-eyed rebel yell since Janet Jackson's 'Control.' An album beyond its years." "Rolling Stone"s Jon Dolan complimented the album's "wide-ranging production", labeling it a "Rihanna-meets-Gaga-meets-Pink-meets-Britney party grenade of a record". Writing for "Fact", Tom Lea provided a more mixed review of "Bangerz", calling it a "hot mess of country, Southern hip-hop and more", but concluded that the record contained "more—ahem—bangers than clangers." Caroline Sullivan from "The Guardian" shared a similar sentiment, but also concluded that the overall record held "more hits than misses". John Murphy of "musicOMH" described the tracks as being "rather run of the mill material", but nonetheless complimented Cyrus' promotional efforts for making the record "one of the most anticipated pop albums of the year". Caitlin White from "Consequence of Sound" praised the album saying that "though gawky and unwieldy, this is a portrait of a woman with fierce, interesting instincts".


title: Bangerz

text: Kitty Empire from "The Observer" was more negative of "Bangerz", stating that the project "feels stitched together in the dark, and the attention-seeking begins to grate." Elysa Gardner for "USA Today" described the record's composition as "mediocre" and consisting of "competent, mostly generic tunes". Jessica Hopper from "Spin" was also more negative of the record, remarking that it is a "precise album that flits between bombastic and turgid" and "is very fun".


title: Bangerz

text: On his list of the ten best albums of 2013, Nick Catucci from "Entertainment Weekly" placed "Bangerz" third, complimenting Cyrus' ability for "cutting-edge rap [...], a soulful voice capable of showstoppers [...], and an underappreciated emotional directness". "The Guardian" ranked "Bangerz" thirty-fourth on their list of the forty best albums, commenting that it "[winds] people up for commercial, rather than transgressive, ends" despite initially commenting that "the attention-seeking begins to grate". "Rolling Stone" placed "Bangerz" at number twenty-seven on their list of the fifty best albums, writing that Cyrus "[brought] depth and vulnerability to one hell of a party [...] amid all the foam-finger hub-hub". Ann Powers from NPR ranked the record tenth on her list of ten records, suggesting that it "should earn her entry into every celebration of pop this year", while the Associated Press ranked it ninth for being "banging". Joey Guerra from "Houston Chronicle" listed "Bangerz" as the fourth-best record of the year, calling it a "fun, feisty pop album that produced two of the year's biggest, best singles" and summarizing that "with one flick of her tongue, Cyrus easily outdoes recent fare from Gaga, Katy and Britney." FACT Magazine ranked "Bangerz" forty-ninth on their list of the fifty best albums of 2013, stating that "in a year where few albums from pop music’s big names lived up to potential (step forward Gaga, Britney and Jay-Z), Miley Cyrus undoubtedly ruled the roost".


title: Bangerz

text: Billboard listed "Bangerz" at number ninety-one on their list of the 100 best albums of the 2010s pointing that "with this pivotal album release, Cyrus took control of her public persona, surprising less with her provocative antics than with her constant artistic evolution." Consequence of Sound ranked "Bangerz" twentieth on their list of the 25 best pop albums of the 2010s.


title: Bangerz

text: In the United States on the issue dated October 16, "Bangerz" debuted at number one on the "Billboard" 200, with first-week sales of 270,000 copies. In doing so, Cyrus attained her fifth non-consecutive number-one album in the country. The figure includes her first and second studio albums "" (2007) and "Breakout" (2008), in addition to the soundtracks "Hannah Montana" (2006) and "" (2009), in which Cyrus was credited as her former titular character Hannah Montana. Furthermore, the record sold 168,000 more copies than her previous effort "Can't Be Tamed" (2010), and became the best-selling debut week for a female artist in 2013 at that point. Three weeks later, this feat was surpassed by Katy Perry after her fourth studio album "Prism" (2013) debuted at number one with first-week sales of 286,000 copies. In December, both women were surpassed by Beyoncé after her fifth studio album "Beyoncé" (2013) was unexpectedly released on the iTunes Store and debuted at number one on the "Billboard" 200 with three-day sales of 617,000 copies. During its second week of release, "Bangerz" dropped to number two with sales of 72,000 copies, and dropped to number four in its third week after moving 53,000 units. As of February 2014, "Bangerz" has sold one million copies in the United States, and has been certified platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA). On June 20, 2018, the album was certified 3× Platinum by the RIAA denoting 3 million album-equivalent units. It also debuted at number one on the Canadian Albums Chart, where it was eventually certified double platinum, and entered the Top 100 Mexico chart at number three.


title: Bangerz

text: "Bangerz" charted moderately throughout Europe. In the United Kingdom, the record and her track "Wrecking Ball" both debuted at number one on their respective charts in the same week, making Cyrus the first artist of 2013 to achieve a "chart double" in the country. The album was later recognized with a silver certification. It also reached the peak position in Ireland, Norway, and Scotland. Furthermore, it respectively debuted at numbers two and three in Spain and Italy. The album peaked at number four on the Ö3 Austria Top 40 and the Swedish Sverigetopplistan. It also debuted at number four on the Portuguese Albums Chart. The album also reached number six on the Dutch MegaCharts, number seven on the Swiss Music Charts, number eight on the Hungarian MAHASZ, and number three on the Danish Hitlisten and number nine on both the French Albums Chart and the German Media Control Charts. In Belgium, the record respectively peaked at numbers eight and nineteen in Flanders and Wallonia. The album reached number 23 on The Official Finnish Charts, and debuted at number 45 on the Polish ZPAV. In South America, "Bangerz" charted at number one on the Argentinian CAPIF chart and the Brazilian ABPD chart. The record experienced similar success in Oceania, where it debuted in the peak position of the Australian ARIA Charts and reached number two in New Zealand. In the latter country, it was certified gold.


title: Bangerz

text: "Bangerz" and its promotional events have been largely credited with establishing a sexually provocative image for Cyrus. Zack O'Malley Greenburg from "Forbes" noted that her performances, music videos, and public behavior received "plenty of condemnation along with all the attention" in the lead-up to the record; he suggested that this was intentionally done so "[parents will] never again buy any products related to Cyrus–or her former alter-ego, tween sensation Hannah Montana." John Murphy from "musicOMH" stated that Cyrus' performance at the MTV Video Music Awards became ""the" seismic event that ensured we'd never recall 2013 without thinking of her", further opining that the anticipation it built for "Bangerz" made it "impossible not to admire her PR operation."


title: Bangerz

text: Andrew Unterberger of "Billboard" felt that "Bangerz" developed the maturing image for Cyrus that her third album "Can't Be Tamed" (2010) failed to accomplish. He suggested that she had "no true backup plan" for creating a new public persona in 2010, and stated that she "now feels firmly in control of her music and her image" in 2013. Marlow Stern from "The Daily Beast" shared a similar sentiment, stating that Cyrus "is completely in control of what she’s doing" after her recent controversies, which he described as "pure artistic calculation born out of mild desperation", and has successfully done "just about anything to gain our attention". Zack O'Malley Greenburg of "Forbes" commented that despite widespread criticism of "chasing YouTube views and record sales at the expense of her image", the "new Cyrus" appears "marketable as ever." Writing for "Glamour", Mickey Woods compared the promotional "era" for "Bangerz" to those of Britney Spears' and Christina Aguilera's third and fourth studio albums "Britney" (2001) and "Stripped" (2002), respectively, in that "both albums by these legends were wildly experimental", adding that Cyrus' project "will probably be retrospectively deemed iconic, maybe even classic." Mark Jacobs of "V" likened the album to "Control" (1986) by Janet Jackson, in that Cyrus was "an artist coming into her own" in a fashion similar to Jackson.


title: Bangerz

text: Patrick Ryan of "USA Today" commented that Cyrus' collaborations with Mike Will Made It contributed to his new-found prominence, stating that Mike Will Made It's position as an executive producer has helped him "[jump] to the forefront as an interesting character [...] in an era where a lot of producers have fallen behind the scenes again". From a commercial standpoint, however, Suzanne Cowie of Babble suggested that Cyrus' opening-week sales figures and subsequent decline supported the idea that the studio album format is reaching its end, having used her example to exemplify that "consumers are only interested in the single". She further opined that they do not "[have] the time to sit and listen through to an album in its entirety", and credited the rise of digital downloads with promoting a less engaging listening process, where consumers "[have not] connected in any way with the band/singer and their hopes for the record."


title: Bangerz

text: In December 2013 MTV named Cyrus as their Best Artist of 2013, for which criteria including "Bangerz"s sales were taken into consideration. James Montgomery from MTV News elaborated on the network's decision that Cyrus "[declared] her independence and [dominated] the pop-culture landscape", adding that "she schooled—and shocked—us all in 2013, and did so on her own terms." In early December 2013, Cyrus was listed in the top ten finalists for "Time" Person of the Year, the only enterteiner in the list, though she lost to Pope Francis; she was also listed on Barbara Walters' "Most Fascinating People of the Year". "Billboard" staff called Cyrus the "Most Talked About Pop Star" of 2013, and also recognized the controversial evolution of her career as the "Top Music Moment" of the year, elaborating that she was a "maelstrom that expanded and grazed nearly every aspect of pop culture in 2013." Cyrus was also the most-searched person of the year on Google, with Leah Chernikoff of "Elle" writing that "most folks, even famous ones, only strike Internet gold like that once in a lifetime (or maybe once a year), but Cyrus hit it again—and again—in 2013."


title: Yoshiki (musician)

text: , known as Yoshiki, is a Japanese musician, songwriter, composer and record producer. He is best known as the leader and a co-founder of the visual kei rock band X Japan, for which he is the drummer, pianist and main songwriter. He has been described by "Billboard" as a "musical innovator" and named "one of the most influential composers in Japanese history" by "Consequence of Sound". Yoshiki's solo career includes several classical studio albums and collaborations with artists such as George Martin, Bono, will.i.am, Jennifer Hudson, St. Vincent, Stan Lee, Roger Taylor and Brian May of Queen, Gene Simmons and KISS, Nicole Scherzinger, and Sarah Brightman.


title: Yoshiki (musician)

text: In 1999, at the request of the Japanese government, he composed and performed a classical song at a celebration in honor of the tenth anniversary of Emperor Akihito's enthronement. Yoshiki also composed the theme for the 69th Golden Globe Awards as well as for several anime and film soundtracks including "Attack on Titan" and "Saw IV".


title: Yoshiki (musician)

text: Yoshiki was born on November 20, 1965 in Tateyama, Chiba Prefecture, as the elder of two brothers in a musically oriented family. His father was a tap dancer and jazz pianist, his mother played the shamisen, while his aunt played the koto. He began taking piano lessons and music theory at age four. He then became interested in classical works by Ludwig van Beethoven and Franz Schubert. In elementary school, he played the trumpet in the brass band, and around age ten started composing songs for piano. This period was a decisive point in his life. He was 10 years old when his father committed suicide; he found relief in rock music. After discovering the music of American hard rock band Kiss, he started learning to play drums and guitar. Yoshiki was also influenced by works from Led Zeppelin, Iron Maiden, Sex Pistols, David Bowie, Queen, The Beatles, Charged GBH and Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky. Soon with his childhood friend Toshi formed a band called Dynamite in 1977. Dynamite changed its name to Noise a year later.


title: Yoshiki (musician)

text: When Noise disbanded in 1982, Yoshiki and Toshi formed a new band, which they named X while they tried to think of another name, but the name stuck. In 1986, Yoshiki founded his own independent record label, Extasy Records, in order to distribute the band's music. On December 26, 1987, the band participated in an audition held by CBS/Sony which led to a recording contract in August of the following year. The band's breakthrough came in 1989 with the release of their second, and major debut, album "Blue Blood", which reached number six on the Oricon chart and charted for more than 100 weeks. In 1990, the band received the "Grand Prix New Artist of the Year" award at the 4th Japan Gold Disc Awards. In 1991 they released their hit million-selling album "Jealousy", and were the first Japanese metal band to perform in Japan's largest indoor concert venue, the Tokyo Dome. The following year they announced the renaming of the band to X Japan in order to launch an international career with an American album release, however, this ultimately did not happen.


title: Yoshiki (musician)

text: That same year he began his first solo activities outside X. Collaborating with Tetsuya Komuro for the rock unit V2, with a concert on December 5 at the Tokyo Bay NK Hall and the single "Haitoku no Hitomi ~Eyes of Venus~/Virginity" (背徳の瞳〜Eyes of Venus〜) in January 1992, which reached number two on the chart. On December 12, Yoshiki released his first album, the classical compilation "Yoshiki Selection", which includes classical works, and its sequel followed six years later.


title: Yoshiki (musician)

text: In 1992, he bought a recording studio complex in North Hollywood, California, US. Extasy Recording Studios would become where recordings for nearly all his projects take place, until he sold it in the 2010s. In the early 1990s through his record label would debut million-selling bands Glay and Luna Sea. He began learning about jazz improvisation and orchestration.


title: Yoshiki (musician)

text: On April 21, 1993 he released his first original solo album, the classical studio album "Eternal Melody", which was performed by the London Philharmonic Orchestra and produced by the Beatles producer George Martin. Besides including orchestral arrangements of X Japan songs, it contained two new songs as well. The album reached number 6 on the charts. On November 3, the singles "Amethyst" and "Ima wo Dakishimete" (今を抱きしめて) were released and reached number five and three respectively on the charts. The later single was a karaoke adaptation of the second orchestral song from the first single, but name credit went to TBS as it was the theme song to one of their dramas, recorded by the lead actors under the group name NOA. In 1994, it was the 35th annual best-selling single and won the "Excellence award" at the "36th Japan Record Awards.


title: Yoshiki (musician)

text: In 1994, Yoshiki worked with Queen drummer Roger Taylor on a song he composed, "Foreign Sand", for which Roger wrote the lyrics. They performed the song at The Great Music Experience event in May, partly backed by Unesco, which featured many other Japanese and Western musicians. The single was released in June, and reached the top fifteen in Japan, and 26th in the UK. That same month, the Kiss tribute album "" was released, for which Yoshiki contributed an orchestral arrangement of "Black Diamond" played by the American Symphony Orchestra.


title: Yoshiki (musician)

text: With X Japan's popularity increasing, Yoshiki and the band collaborated with Mugen Motorsports and sponsored racer Katsumi Yamamoto, who drove for team "X Japan Racing" in the 1995 season of Formula Nippon. In the 1996 season, they sponsored Ralf Schumacher with both him and the team winning the championship. In 1997, Toshi decided to leave the band, claiming the success-oriented life of a rock star failed to satisfy him emotionally. The band's dissolution was officially announced in September 1997. X Japan performed their farewell show at the Tokyo Dome on December 31, 1997, making it the last of five consecutive New Year's Eve shows in that stadium. Soon afterwards, in May 1998, the band's lead guitarist Hide died, and Yoshiki withdrew from the public scene, as he was battling suicidal thoughts and eventually sought the help of a psychiatrist.


title: Yoshiki (musician)

text: Yoshiki remained active as a producer for bands such as Dir En Grey, and contributed a cover song for the 1999 Hide tribute album, "Tribute Spirits". On November 12, at the Tokyo Imperial Palace a celebration in honor of the tenth anniversary of Emperors Akihito enthronement was held and at the request of the Japanese government, Yoshiki composed and performed the song "Anniversary".


title: Yoshiki (musician)

text: In the beginning of the 21st century, he expanded his record label with sub-divisions, "Extasy Japan" and "Extasy International" in collaboration with Warner Music, and produced several artists. In 2000, he collaborated with 7-Eleven on a series of TV commercials, for which he provided the songs "Blind Dance" and "The Other Side" by his solo musical project Violet UK. Two years prior, he contributed the song "Sane" for the 1998 film "In God's Hands". The project idea was born in 1991, when Yoshiki was recording in his studio, initially doing sessions with Mick Karn and Jane Child, but it was postponed. The music involves a fusion of trip rock, breakbeat, and classical piano strings.


title: Yoshiki (musician)

text: In September 2002, he joined the dance-oriented pop group led by Tetsuya Komuro, Globe. Though his only contribution was the single "Seize the Light" and, after recording an album, they went on hiatus with Yoshiki not rejoining them afterwards. On December 3 and 4, he held symphonic concerts with the Tokyo Philharmonic Orchestra, at Tokyo International Forum. Featuring female singers Daughter and Nicole Scherzinger, they performed older orchestral arrangements and songs created for Violet UK, such as "Unnamed Song", which was composed to mourn the victims of the September 11 attacks, and "I'll Be Your Love", which was released the following year as the debut single for American-Japanese singer Dahlia and later used as the official theme song of the world's fair, Expo 2005.


title: Yoshiki (musician)

text: In 2003 and 2004, he provided the theme songs "Kimi Dake Dakara" and "Sekai no Owari no Yoru ni" for NHK's 50th anniversary commemorative broadcast and the 90th anniversary of Takarazuka Revue. In 2004, he helped produce the South Korean rock band The TRAX, and his composition "Tears" was used as the theme song for the film "Windstruck", becoming the first Japanese song to be featured in a Korean film after World War II. In 2005, a second classical solo album titled "Eternal Melody II" was released on March 23. The next day, Yoshiki conducted the Super World Orchestra in the opening ceremony of the World's Fair in the performance of a classical version of "I'll Be Your Love." At the end of the same month, a DVD recording of his previous symphonic concert was released. In December, the Violet UK song "Sex and Religion" was released via the iTunes Store, and soon afterwards "Mary Mona Lisa" unofficially via Myspace.


title: Yoshiki (musician)

text: In 2006, Yoshiki appeared at the Otakon convention on August 6, where it was publicly announced that he would be forming a band named S.K.I.N. with rock singer Gackt, soon afterwards they were joined by Sugizo. At the JRock Revolution Festival on May 25, 2007, which was organized by Yoshiki, it was announced that Miyavi was joining. There were high expectations for the band, like to be the first Asian band to conquer the world charts, beginning with America, and to lead a rock revolution and starting a new era of rock and roll, by opening the market for Japanese in the Western music industry. But after their debut performance on June 29, 2007, at the Anime Expo in Long Beach, all activities were stopped.


title: Yoshiki (musician)

text: That same year he co-produced the soundtrack for the 2007 film "Catacombs", which included the Violet UK song "Blue Butterfly" and was released by his Extasy Records International. On October 22, 2007, X Japan's living members reunited and appeared together for the first time in over 10 years at a public filming of the promotion video for their new single "I.V.", which was created for the American horror movie "Saw IV" and played during the end credits but was not included on the soundtrack album. On September 20, 2007, at a "Catacombs" preview in Japan, it was announced that Yoshiki would be producing the 2008 rock musical "Repo! The Genetic Opera" and its soundtrack, along with composing one extra track for it. In 2009, he contributed the theme song "Blue Sky Heaven" for the 30th anniversary of a Nippon Television program, and for the Japanese historical fantasy film "Goemon" he wrote the Violet UK song "Rosa", which was released on April 29 via iTunes. That year he again collaborated with Mugen Motorsports and racing car constructor Dome for the Super GT series championship. In July 2009, he had to undergo surgery for a slipped disc in his neck, and was told by doctors to refrain from heavy drumming. His neck is so severely damaged that Yoshiki's management has said that it, "would force a professional rugby player to retire."


title: Yoshiki (musician)

text: In 2010, Yoshiki with Toshi appeared and performed at Japan Expo in Paris on July 4. In October, he fainted in his hotel room on X Japan's tour, and was subsequently diagnosed with hyperthyroidism. He teamed up with Toshi again on January 24–25, 2011, at the first expensive high-end dinner show for their project ToshI feat Yoshiki, where an orchestra was utilized and later a live album released of the show. On March 6, Yoshiki co-organized with fashion producer Jay FR (from the fashion festival "Tokyo Girls Collection") a fashion and music event "Asia Girls Explosion" at Yoyogi National Stadium. At the event many special guest models walked the runway, Yoshiki's own kimono line that he designed, and both X Japan and Violet UK performed. On May 27, "Yoshiki Radio" was launched on Sirius XM's Boneyard station. The hour-long program hosted by Yoshiki, aired the first Sunday of every month at 9 p.m. ET. On July 21, at San Diego Comic-Con International, Yoshiki unveiled the comic book series "Blood Red Dragon", which was created in collaboration with American comic book legends Stan Lee and Todd McFarlane and stars a superhero version of himself.


title: Yoshiki (musician)

text: In 2012, Yoshiki composed the theme song for the 69th Golden Globe Awards, and on January 15, 2013, the theme was officially released through iTunes in 111 countries, with all proceeds being donated to charities chosen by the Hollywood Foreign Press Association. A wax figure of Yoshiki was unveiled at Madame Tussauds Hong Kong wax museum in May 2012. In 2013, Yoshiki's figure was moved to the Tokyo location. On August 27, 2013, the third classical studio album "Yoshiki Classical" was released. It debuted as the #1 overall classical seller in Japan, and the #2 in the United States iTunes Store chart. In celebration of its release, a special live performance was held at the Grammy Museum.


title: Yoshiki (musician)

text: On March 14, 2014, at the South by Southwest festival in Austin, Texas, Yoshiki performed a duet piano piece during his concert at the Qui Restaurant; one part played by him, and the other played by a hologram of himself. On April 25, Yoshiki started his first classical world tour in Costa Mesa, California, and continued throughout the world, visiting San Francisco, Mexico City, Moscow, Berlin, Paris, London, Shanghai, Beijing, Bangkok, Taipei, Tokyo and Osaka. The tour setup featured Yoshiki on piano, several strings as cellos and viola, and vocalist Katie Fitzgerald from Violet UK. Performances included classical versions of songs he composed, as well depending on the venue, some famous composers like Tchaikovsky. For an upcoming Japanese 3D CG animated film "", Yoshiki contributed theme song "Hero" and it was unveiled on the tour. In October 2014, Yoshiki performed a concert at Madison Square Garden with X Japan. It was the group's largest U.S. headlining performance. In November 2014, Yoshiki debuted the official Hello Kitty theme song, "Hello Hello", at the first Hello Kitty Con. He was the guest of honor at Stan Lee's Comikaze Expo.


title: Yoshiki (musician)

text: In April 2015, Yoshiki was a guest speaker and performer at the New Economy Summit (NES). In July, he performed at the Hyper Japan Festival in London, together with Toshi. Yoshiki performed with a string quartet at the 2016 Sundance Film Festival. The "We Are X" film, a documentary on X Japan and Yoshiki, premiered at Sundance and was selected for the World Cinema Documentary Competition. In November 2016, he won the "Asian Icon Award" at the Classic Rock Roll of Honour Awards in Tokyo. In 2016, he embarked on another classical world tour, with performances in Tokyo and Osaka, and a Hong Kong show that had to be cancelled due to the promoter's mistake and rescheduled as a free concert on December 30.


title: Yoshiki (musician)

text: Yoshiki's second solo classical tour commenced in Osaka Castle Hall on December 5, 2016, with three days at the Tokyo International Forum on December 6, 7 and 8, a performance at Hong Kong's AsiaWorld-Expo scheduled for December 29 and Carnegie Hall, New York on Jan 12 and 13. The Carnegie Hall performances included the Tokyo Philharmonic Orchestra. The Tokyo concerts in December were an acclaimed success but the Hong Kong Concert on December 29 had to be canceled two hours before the show. The cancellation was due to an oversight by the promoter in applying for the entertainment license necessary to perform the show. However the date was fulfilled on the following day, December 30, by Yoshiki performing for free with ticket holders being refunded, the first time for a major music artist to do such a thing in Hong Kong. The concerts in Carnegie Hall on January 12 and 13 were successful sellout shows. Yoshiki also included in the show a surprise performance of "The Star-Spangled Banner" after a heartfelt speech about his personal pursuit of the American Dream.


title: Yoshiki (musician)

text: In January 2017, Yoshiki performed two sold-out concerts at Carnegie Hall in New York. In March 2017, Yoshiki performed with a 4-piece string quartet at Hong Kong's Asia Film Awards. In April 2017, Yoshiki debuted a special collaboration T-shirt with rock group KISS titled "YOSHIKISS". During these performances, he lost sensation in his left hand and was rediagnosed with cervical foraminal stenosis. In May 2017, it was announced that Yoshiki would undergo emergency cervical artificial disc replacement surgery in Los Angeles on May 16, resulting in the cancelling of his schedule for May, and future events being possibly cancelled or rescheduled based on discussions after his surgery. The surgery was successful, with his surgical wound expected to take six weeks to heal, and for him to make a 90% recovery in six months. However, the recovery period for the pain in his hand is unknown.


title: Yoshiki (musician)

text: In July 2017, Yoshiki performed six concerts with X Japan. He also performed a series of seven Evening with Yoshiki dinner shows in Osaka, Nagoya, and Tokyo. In October 2017, Yoshiki completed a 10-country tour of Europe promoting the X Japan documentary "We Are X".


title: Yoshiki (musician)

text: In 2018, Yoshiki released the song "Red Swan" featuring Hyde, as the opening theme of the third season of the "Attack on Titan" anime, reaching #1 on the iTunes rock charts in 10 countries. In September, it was announced that Yoshiki would feature on Sarah Brightman's album "Hymn", with a newly recorded version of his composition "Miracle". The digital single version of "Miracle" hit the top 10 on classical charts in 15 countries, and Yoshiki was announced as a guest performer on Sarah Brightman's Hymn World Tour in 2019 in selected cities in the US and Japan. On New Year's Eve in 2018, he performed in the traditional TV show, "Kouhaku Uta Gassen", where, for the first time in the show's history, he was a member of both the Red and the White teams, teaming up with Hyde for a performance of "Red Swan" and then joining Brightman for "Miracle".


title: Yoshiki (musician)

text: In January 2019, it was announced that Yoshiki will partner with The H Collective to compose the score and theme song for the fourth installment of Vin Diesel's "xXx" film series and create the theme for the animated feature film "Spycies". In February 2019, Yoshiki appeared as the featured pianist on Hyde's single "Zipang", and in March 2019, New York-area PBS station WNET Thirteen premiered a one-hour version of his 2017 Carnegie Hall concert. The "Yoshiki: Live at Carnegie Hall" special began airing on PBS stations nationwide in November.


title: Yoshiki (musician)

text: In November 2019, YouTube Originals announced the documentary series "Yoshiki - Life Of A Japanese Rock Star" would premiere on the streaming platform in March 2020. In December 2019, Yoshiki appeared on stage with Kiss during their End of the Road World Tour, playing piano for "Beth" and drums for "Rock and Roll All Nite" at Tokyo Dome and Kyocera Dome Osaka. They later collaborated for a televised New Year's Eve performance of "Rock and Roll All Nite" under the name "YoshiKiss" on NHK's 70th "Kouhaku Uta Gassen".


title: Yoshiki (musician)

text: In January 2020, Yoshiki wrote and produced the debut song "Imitation Rain" for male vocal group SixTones, which launched at number one on the Oricon chart and the Billboard Japan Hot 100 chart, and sold 1.3 million physical copies in its first week.


title: Yoshiki (musician)

text: In March 2020, Yoshiki collaborated with Bono, Will.i.am, and Jennifer Hudson to create "#SING4LIFE", a song written and compiled remotely by the four musicians to lift spirits during the COVID-19 pandemic. In August 2020, St. Vincent and Yoshiki teamed to create a classical arrangement of her song "New York". In September 2020, "Disney - My Music Story: Yoshiki" premiered on the Disney+ service, featuring Yoshiki's new arrangements of themes from Disney films "The Lion King" and "Frozen". In November 2020, Yoshiki's photobook "XY" with images by American photographer Melanie Pullen, placed number one in the Oricon weekly book chart.


title: Yoshiki (musician)

text: Yoshiki's online concert presented by YouTube Originals titled "Under the Sky", with Marilyn Manson, The Chainsmokers, Nicole Scherzinger, Lindsey Stirling, the Scorpions, Hyde, Sugizo, Sarah Brightman, SixTones, and St. Vincent was postponed from its December 2020 premiere due to post-production delays caused by COVID-19. On December 31, 2020, Yoshiki performed a virtual collaboration of X Japan's song "Endless Rain" on "Kouhaku Uta Gassen" with Roger Taylor and Brian May of Queen, Sarah Brightman, Babymetal, SixTones, Lisa, and Milet. In October 2021, Yoshiki gave a virtual piano performance of "Miracle" for BMW Japan's 40th anniversary event.


title: Yoshiki (musician)

text: In October 2022, Yoshiki and NTV premiered the talent competition show "Yoshiki Superstar Project X", which ranked number 1 in Hulu Japan's domestic variety show category. On November 11, a new supergroup project called The Last Rockstars was announced, featuring Yoshiki, Hyde, Miyavi, and Sugizo.


title: Yoshiki (musician)

text: When asked what the albums were the most influential for him, Yoshiki named "Led Zeppelin IV" by Led Zeppelin, "Alive!" by Kiss and "Killers" by Iron Maiden. Yoshiki stated he loved "the punkish elements" of the albums by Iron Maiden and that their work got him into punk rock. He was into punk rock bands from the United Kingdom and Japan such as The Exploited, Chaos UK, Discharge, GISM, and Gauze around 1984. He also cited the Sex Pistols, The Clash, and G.B.H. as his favorite bands.


title: Yoshiki (musician)

text: Yoshiki has also named Schubert's "Unfinished" Symphony and Beethoven's 5th Symphony as influences. His favorite classical composers also include J. S. Bach, Schoenberg, Berg, Tchaikovsky, Mozart, Rachmaninoff, and Chopin.


title: Yoshiki (musician)

text: He named John Bonham as his biggest drumming inspiration and cited Cozy Powell as the reason he started to play double bass drums. He also likes Peter Criss, Shuichi Murakami, from T-Square, and Minato Masafumi from Dead End. He picked George Winston, Keith Jarrett, Vladimir Horowitz, and Mishiba Satoshi from Kinniku Shōjo Tai as his favorite pianists. The Köln Concert by Keith Jarrett inspired him to learn jazz theory and improvisation. He also studied jazz piano under Dick Marx and Shelly Berg.


title: Yoshiki (musician)

text: Yoshiki started his charitable work as a result of losing his father to suicide at a young age, saying he wanted to support children who have had traumatic experiences like he did.


title: Yoshiki (musician)

text: In 1995, in response to the Kobe earthquake, Yoshiki held an X Japan's Christmas Eve charity concert in Osaka, and presented the certifications of new pianos to students whose schools were damaged during the earthquake.


title: Yoshiki (musician)

text: In 2009, he invited 200 young orphans to attend two X Japan's concerts in January in Hong Kong, and donated money to a charity organization for orphans. On March 29 and 31, he visited a town in the province of Sichuan, China, which was devastated by the earthquake in 2008, and donated musical instruments to the schools in the area. He again invited children from the local orphanages in Taipei, Taiwan, to be the special guests in the X Japans's concert on May 30. In 2010, he founded Yoshiki Foundation America, a California non-profit, public benefit corporation with tax-exempt status as a section 501(c)3. On July 1, the foundation hosted a free benefit fan event for charity at Club Nokia, Los Angeles. Beneficiaries included the Grammy Foundation, Make-A-Wish Foundation, and St. Vincent Meals on Wheels. In 2011, to provide aid to the victims of March 11's Tōhoku earthquake and tsunami, the Foundation in association with Yahoo! Japan organized the Japan Relief Fundraising Auction, and all the benefits were sent to the Japanese Red Cross. Yoshiki auctioned one of his Kawai Crystal Grand CR-40 pianos, and with restructuring verification system by Yahoo! Auctions, because offers reached high as $20 million, it got sold for $134,931.


title: Yoshiki (musician)

text: In 2014, Yoshiki Foundation America partnered with the MusiCares Foundation in an auction for a private dinner with Yoshiki. The auction awarded the two highest bidders each with a dinner and raised $62,000 for the Grammy Foundation and MusiCares. In 2017, Yoshiki Foundation America donated $100,000 to Hurricane Harvey relief efforts through the MusiCares Foundation. In 2018, the YFA organization donated 10 million yen to assist victims of flooding in Japan, and an additional 10 million yen to assist recovery from the 2018 Hokkaido Eastern Iburi earthquake.


title: Yoshiki (musician)

text: In April 2019, Yoshiki donated $87,900 to Korea for a forest fire accident in Gangwon-do, Korea. In June 2019, Yoshiki visited the Frost School of Music at the University of Miami where he made a $150,000 donation and held a masterclass for students, where he advised the future musicians to "play every concert as if it is your last." Yoshiki's efforts were recognized by the renaming of the Frost School of Music Dean's office as "Yoshiki Dean's Suite". In August 2019, Yoshiki donated 10 million yen to support victims of the Kyoto Animation arson attack, and $100,000 to the Earth Alliance Amazon Forest Fund to prevent destruction of the Amazon Rainforest. In September 2019, Yoshiki donated 10 million yen to support disaster relief in his hometown of Chiba after it was struck by Typhoon Faxai, and later volunteered for manual labor at the recovery site when he returned to Japan. In October 2019, Yoshiki donated an additional 10 million yen to assist recovery in Japan from Typhoon Hagibis. In December 2019, Yoshiki was named as one of Forbes Asia's 30 Heroes of Philanthropy for his contributions to "disaster relief, orphanages and treatment for children with bone-marrow disease."


title: Yoshiki (musician)

text: In January 2020, Yoshiki donated $50,000 to the Australian Red Cross to aid bushfire victims and $50,000 to the Rainforest Trust's Conservation Action Fund. In March 2020, in response to the COVID-19 outbreak, he donated $100,000 to the Recording Academy's MusiCares Foundation COVID-19 relief fund, and $24,000 to several Meals on Wheels locations in Southern California. That same month, the musician also donated 10 million yen to the Japan Red Cross in commemoration of the ninth anniversary of the Great East Japan Earthquake. In April 2020, Yoshiki donated 10 million yen to Japan's National Center for Global Health and Medicine. In May 2020, Yoshiki explained his charitable activities to "The Japan Times": "If you have a certain influence with people, I think it’s better for you to announce it. By doing so, you can provide awareness of the situation, as well as inform people about charitable organizations supporting the cause, and people may get inspired by your actions as well," said Yoshiki. "The goal is to do as much good as we can for others."


title: Yoshiki (musician)

text: In March 2021, the Japanese government awarded Yoshiki the Medal with Dark Blue Ribbon for his charity work through Yoshiki Foundation America. That same month, Yoshiki and MusiCares announced the formation of a $100,000 annual grant to help music creators and industry professionals with programs for depression, anxiety, suicide prevention and awareness, and other mental health concerns. In March 2022, Yoshiki helped raise over $9 million USD for humanitarian relief efforts in Ukraine after announcing his own donation to the fundraiser initiated by Hiroshi Mikitani, CEO of Rakuten. In November of the same year, Yoshiki continued his support for the people of Ukraine with a donation of 10 million yen to the United Nations agency International Organization for Migration (IOM) for its emergency relief operations in Ukraine and neighboring countries.


title: Yoshiki (musician)

text: In 2011, Yoshiki debuted Yoshikimono, a line of rock-inspired kimono, at the Asia Girls Explosion fashion event in collaboration with Tokyo Girls Collection. Yoshiki created the fashion brand to pay tribute to his parents who ran a kimono shop when he was growing up. The collection debuted its first fashion show during the finale of the 2015 Mercedes-Benz Fashion Week in Tokyo, and was invited to open Amazon Fashion Week Tokyo 2017. Yoshikimono opened Tokyo Fashion Week 2020 S/S with the brand's third collection, which featured kimono designed around characters from the anime series "Attack on Titan" and the comic book series "Blood Red Dragon," co-created by Stan Lee"."


title: Yoshiki (musician)

text: In August 2017, Yoshiki was chosen for the cover of "Vogue Japan", as the first Japanese male to do so.


title: Yoshiki (musician)

text: In October 2018, Yoshiki was the featured model for the Yves Saint Laurent YSL Beauty Hotel opening event in Tokyo, participating in a female makeup demonstration applied by Yves Saint Laurent's beauty director Tom Pecheux.


title: Yoshiki (musician)

text: In September 2020, Yoshiki was featured on the cover of fashion magazine "Numero Tokyo", and in October 2020, Kodansha announced Yoshiki's fashion photo book "XY", shot at the Paramour Estate in Los Angeles.


title: Yoshiki (musician)

text: In October 2021, French fine crystal manufacturer Baccarat debuted a 180th anniversary version of its Harcourt glass at Paris Fashion Week 2022 designed by Yoshiki.


title: Yoshiki (musician)

text: Yoshiki has launched several business ventures, including music recording, entertainment, wine, energy drinks, fashion, finance, and lifestyle products.


title: Yoshiki (musician)

text: In 1986 Yoshiki founded Extasy Records in Japan with money he received from his mother when she sold her business, later established Extasy Japan and Extasy Records International, around 2000. He also founded Japanese record label Platinum Records in April 1992 as an affiliate of PolyGram.


title: Yoshiki (musician)

text: In 1992, Yoshiki purchased One On One Recording, a recording studio complex in North Hollywood from Jim David, renaming it Extasy Recording Studios after his own record label in 1999. He sold the studio in 2012, and it later became 17 Hertz Studio. In April 1998, he bought Brooklyn Recording Studios, which housed the Los Angeles offices of Maverick Records, from owners Madonna and Freddy DeMann. He renamed it One On One South before using it as the headquarters of Extasy Records International. In 2013, Yoshiki bought The Pass, a Los Angeles recording studio previously known as Larrabee East.


title: Yoshiki (musician)

text: On May 15, 2000, Yoshiki invented a method for reproducing mp3 music and holds a patent for compressed music data playback technology.


title: Yoshiki (musician)

text: In 2009, with California winemaker Michael Mondavi, Yoshiki launched a wine brand titled "Y", which consists of a Chardonnay and a Cabernet Sauvignon from a 2008 vintage.


title: Yoshiki (musician)

text: In 2015, the Yoshiki Channel was launched on Niconico Video, a Japanese video platform. The channel streams exclusive live shows and distributes links for movies and magazines.


title: Yoshiki (musician)

text: Yoshiki has partnered with researchers to investigate music as therapy. Yoshiki also has branded MasterCard and Visa credit cards, and is an investor in Green Lord Motors.


title: Yoshiki (musician)

text: In May 2022, Yoshiki formed a business partnership with Coca-Cola Japan to create the energy drinks "Real Gold X" and "Real Gold Y", themed after Yoshiki's connection to rock music and classical music, respectively.


title: Yoshiki (musician)

text: In August 2022, French Champagne house Pommery announced a collaboration with Yoshiki as the brand's first co-release with a celebrity artist.


title: Yoshiki (musician)

text: Yoshiki said he considers himself a groove drummer. He normally wears a neck brace when playing the drums; as a result of his years of "headbanging" while drumming, he injured his neck and had to undergo surgery. In 2015, Yoshiki stated he is more of a songwriter than a drummer.


title: Yoshiki (musician)

text: Tama Drums created a custom-made acrylic drum set for Yoshiki to use on stage, the ArtStar series. Yoshiki admitted that the clear acrylic shells are great for appearances, allowing the stage lights to color his drums with varying hues, but are not ideal sound-wise. He explained that the clear drums are difficult to play because they do not have the usual responsiveness of wooden shells and are not very durable; as they require much more physical pounding to deliver a good sound and that causes the heads to be essentially ruined after only a single concert. Yoshiki's live kit uses two kick drums, and centers the 14" snare drum directly in front of him. He usually works with five tom drums: three rack toms with diameters of 12", 13", and 14", and two floor toms with diameters of 16" and 18". However, in the studio he uses a limited made titanium kit from Kitano drum called Tama Artstar II "Titan Body" with Evans coated heads.


title: Yoshiki (musician)

text: Yoshiki usually performs on a Kawai Crystal II Grand Piano CR-40A. Kawai also makes a Yoshiki-model grand piano of traditional wooden design.


title: Yoshiki (musician)

text: He has a constant numbness of two fingers on his left hand that he says makes it difficult to play piano. He also suffers from chronic tendonitis on his right hand, which may cause him to be unable to play musical instruments in the future.


title: Heat pump and refrigeration cycle

text: Thermodynamic heat pump cycles or refrigeration cycles are the conceptual and mathematical models for heat pump, air conditioning and refrigeration systems. A heat pump is a mechanical system that allows for the transmission of heat from one location (the "source") at a lower temperature to another location (the "sink" or "heat sink") at a higher temperature. Thus a heat pump may be thought of as a "heater" if the objective is to warm the heat sink (as when warming the inside of a home on a cold day), or a "refrigerator" or “cooler” if the objective is to cool the heat source (as in the normal operation of a freezer). In either case, the operating principles are similar. Heat is moved from a cold place to a warm place.


title: Heat pump and refrigeration cycle

text: According to the second law of thermodynamics, heat cannot spontaneously flow from a colder location to a hotter area; work is required to achieve this. An air conditioner requires work to cool a living space, moving heat from the interior being cooled (the heat source) to the outdoors (the heat sink). Similarly, a refrigerator moves heat from inside the cold icebox (the heat source) to the warmer room-temperature air of the kitchen (the heat sink). The operating principle of an ideal heat engine was described mathematically using the Carnot cycle by Sadi Carnot in 1824. An ideal refrigerator or heat pump can be thought of as an ideal heat engine that is operating in a reverse Carnot cycle.


title: Heat pump and refrigeration cycle

text: Heat pump cycles and refrigeration cycles can be classified as "vapor compression", "vapor absorption", "gas cycle", or "Stirling cycle" types.


title: Heat pump and refrigeration cycle

text: The vapor-compression cycle is used by many refrigeration, air conditioning and other cooling applications and also within heat pump for heating applications. There are two heat exchangers, one being the condenser, which is hotter and releases heat, and the other being the evaporator, which is colder and accepts heat. For applications which need to operate in both heating and cooling mode, a reversing valve is used to switch the roles of these two heat exchangers.


title: Heat pump and refrigeration cycle

text: At the start of the thermodynamic cycle the refrigerant enters the compressor as a low pressure and low temperature vapor. Then the pressure is increased and the refrigerant leaves as a higher temperature and higher pressure superheated gas. This hot pressurised gas then passes through the condenser where it releases heat to the surroundings as it cools and condenses completely. The cooler high-pressure liquid next passes through the expansion valve (throttle valve) which reduces the pressure abruptly causing the temperature to drop dramatically. The cold low pressure mixture of liquid and vapor next travels through the evaporator where it vaporizes completely as it accepts heat from the surroundings before returning to the compressor as a low pressure low temperature gas to start the cycle again.


title: Heat pump and refrigeration cycle

text: Some simpler applications with fixed operating temperatures, such as a domestic refrigerator, may use a fixed speed compressor and fixed aperture expansion valve. Applications that need to operate at a high coefficient of performance in very varied conditions, as is the case with heat pumps where external temperatures and internal heat demand vary considerably through the seasons, typically use a variable speed inverter compressor and an adjustable expansion valve to control the pressures of the cycle more accurately.


title: Heat pump and refrigeration cycle

text: The above discussion is based on the ideal vapor-compression refrigeration cycle, and does not take into account real-world effects like frictional pressure drop in the system, slight thermodynamic irreversibility during the compression of the refrigerant vapor, or non-ideal gas behavior (if any).


title: Heat pump and refrigeration cycle

text: In the early years of the twentieth century, the vapor absorption cycle using water-ammonia systems was popular and widely used but, after the development of the vapor compression cycle, it lost much of its importance because of its low coefficient of performance (about one fifth of that of the vapor compression cycle). Nowadays, the vapor absorption cycle is used only where heat is more readily available than electricity, such as industrial waste heat, solar thermal energy by solar collectors, or off-the-grid refrigeration in recreational vehicles.


title: Heat pump and refrigeration cycle

text: The absorption cycle is similar to the compression cycle, but depends on the partial pressure of the refrigerant vapor. In the absorption system, the compressor is replaced by an absorber and a generator. The absorber dissolves the refrigerant in a suitable liquid (dilute solution) and therefore the dilute solution becomes a strong solution. In the generator, on heat addition, the temperature increases and with it the partial pressure of the refrigerant vapor released from the strong solution. However, the generator requires a heat source, which would consumes energy unless waste heat is used. In an absorption refrigerator, a suitable combination of refrigerant and absorbent is used. The most common combinations are ammonia (refrigerant) and water (absorbent), and water (refrigerant) and lithium bromide (absorbent).


title: Heat pump and refrigeration cycle

text: Absorption refrigeration systems can be powered by combustion of fossil fuels (e.g., coal, oil, natural gas, etc.) or renewable energy (e.g., waste-heat recovery, biomass combustion, or solar energy).


title: Heat pump and refrigeration cycle

text: When the working fluid is a gas that is compressed and expanded but does not change phase, the refrigeration cycle is called a "gas cycle". Air is most often this working fluid. As there is no condensation and evaporation intended in a gas cycle, components corresponding to the condenser and evaporator in a vapor compression cycle are the hot and cold gas-to-gas heat exchangers.


title: Heat pump and refrigeration cycle

text: For given extreme temperatures, a gas cycle may be less efficient than a vapor compression cycle because the gas cycle works on the reverse Brayton cycle instead of the reverse Rankine cycle. As such, the working fluid never receives or rejects heat at constant temperature. In the gas cycle, the refrigeration effect is equal to the product of the specific heat of the gas and the rise in temperature of the gas in the low temperature side. Therefore, for the same cooling load, gas refrigeration cycle machines require a larger mass flow rate, which in turn increases their size.


title: Heat pump and refrigeration cycle

text: Because of their lower efficiency and larger bulk, "air cycle" coolers are not often applied in terrestrial refrigeration. The air cycle machine is very common, however, on gas turbine-powered jet airliners since compressed air is readily available from the engines' compressor sections. These jet aircraft's cooling and ventilation units also serve the purpose of heating and pressurizing the aircraft cabin.


title: Heat pump and refrigeration cycle

text: The Stirling cycle heat engine can be driven in reverse, using a mechanical energy input to drive heat transfer in a reversed direction (i.e. a heat pump, or refrigerator). There are several design configurations for such devices that can be built. Several such setups require rotary or sliding seals, which can introduce difficult tradeoffs between frictional losses and refrigerant leakage.


title: Heat pump and refrigeration cycle

text: The Carnot cycle is a reversible cycle so the four processes that comprise it, two isothermal and two isentropic, can also be reversed. When a Carnot cycle runs in reverse, it is called a "reversed Carnot cycle". A refrigerator or heat pump that acts according to the reversed Carnot cycle is called a Carnot refrigerator or Carnot heat pump, respectively. In the first stage of this cycle, the refrigerant absorbs heat isothermally from a low-temperature source, , in the amount . Next, the refrigerant is compressed isentropically (adiabatically, without heat transfer) and its temperature rises to that of the high-temperature source, . Then at this high temperature, the refrigerant isothermally rejects heat in the amount (negative according to the sign convention for heat lost by the system). Also during this stage, the refrigerant changes from a saturated vapor to a saturated liquid in the condenser. Lastly, the refrigerant expands isentropically until its temperature falls to that of the low-temperature source, .


title: Heat pump and refrigeration cycle

text: The merit of a refrigerator or heat pump is given by a parameter called the coefficient of performance (COP). The equation is:


title: Heat pump and refrigeration cycle

text: The COP of a heat pump (sometimes referred to as coefficient of amplification COA) is given by the following equations, where the first law of thermodynamics: formula_5 and formula_6 was used in one of the last steps:


title: Heat pump and refrigeration cycle

text: Both the COP of a refrigerator and a heat pump can be greater than one. Combining these two equations results in:


title: Heat pump and refrigeration cycle

text: This implies that will be greater than one because will be a positive quantity. In a worst-case scenario, the heat pump will supply as much energy as it consumes, making it act as a resistance heater. However, in reality, as in home heating, some of is lost to the outside air through piping, insulation, etc., thus making the drop below unity when the outside air temperature is too low. Therefore, the system used to heat houses uses fuel.


title: Art Alexakis

text: Arthur Paul "Art" Alexakis (born April 12, 1962) is an American musician best known as the singer-songwriter and guitarist of the rock band Everclear. He has been a member of several notable bands, in addition to his own work as a songwriter for other artists. Alexakis founded several record labels throughout his career, and worked as an A&R representative for major record labels between and during his own musical projects. Later he became a political activist, and lobbied for special concerns which included drug awareness policies, and support of the families of the military.


title: Art Alexakis

text: Alexakis was born in Los Angeles, the youngest of five children. Soon after his father left the family (when Art was five years old), financial difficulties forced his mother to relocate the family to the Mar Vista Gardens housing project in California, located on the west side of Los Angeles in Del Rey. Alexakis was physically and sexually abused by older children in his neighborhood.


title: Art Alexakis

text: His brother George died of a heroin overdose when Alexakis was 12. That same year, Alexakis's 15-year-old girlfriend committed suicide. Not long after her death, Alexakis attempted suicide by filling his pockets with sand and lead weights and jumping off the Santa Monica Pier. Later, he said that the vision and voice of his brother George compelled him to survive. Alexakis started shooting up when he was 13, mostly taking crystal methamphetamine. He became addicted to heroin and cocaine, and he survived a cocaine overdose when he was 22. He quit drugs cold turkey in June 1989.


title: Art Alexakis

text: While living in Los Angeles in the '80s, Alexakis was in a band called Shakin' Brave. Shakin' Brave featured a rather rough rock sound, but never really rose above the sea of music in Southern California. Alexakis and his first wife Anita relocated to San Francisco.


title: Art Alexakis

text: While living in San Francisco, Alexakis stumbled upon a genre of music known as "cowpunk", a style merging two prevalent forms of music with which he grew up — the tunefulness of country and the distorted guitars/fast tempo of rock and roll. Inspired, Alexakis established Shindig Records. He spent several years with his cowpunk band, the Easy Hoes that formed in the late '80s and released one album, "Tragic Songs of Life", in 1989.


title: Art Alexakis

text: Alexakis's next project began as a solo album but grew into a group project under the name Colorfinger. This band released the album, "Deep in the Heart of the Beast in the Sun" as well as an EP, "Demonstration". Only the full-length album was made available for sale. Both were released on Alexakis's Shindig Records. A few songs originally performed by Colorfinger were made into Everclear songs, such as "Why I Don't Believe in God", "Invisible," "The Twistinside", "Heartspark Dollarsign", and "Hateful".


title: Art Alexakis

text: Following a move to Portland, Alexakis placed an ad in "The Rocket" seeking a bass player and a drummer to form a new band. Alexakis had two respondents, Craig Montoya and Scott Cuthbert. The trio became the first incarnation of Everclear. After Cuthbert was replaced by Greg Eklund, the band spent the better part of a decade as a dominant act on alternative rock radio. The band scored three platinum albums in "Sparkle & Fade", "So Much for the Afterglow", and "".


title: Art Alexakis

text: The instability and personal turmoil Alexakis experienced throughout his life would directly inspire his lyrics. "Father of Mine" and "Why I Don't Believe in God" described his difficult youth, while "Heroin Girl", "Strawberry", and "Color Pit" touched upon his drug addictions. Everclear's breakthrough album, "Sparkle & Fade", deals with the themes of escape and redemption that pervaded his life upon leaving San Francisco.


title: Art Alexakis

text: While finding success as a musical act and songwriter, Alexakis took on other projects within the music industry. For several years, he served as an A&R representative for Capitol Records. In 1996, he produced Frogpond's album, "Count to Ten".


title: Art Alexakis

text: In the early 2000s, Alexakis established his own label, Popularity Recordings, as a subsidiary of Artemis Records. He produced the label's first release, the 2002 album "Volume" by Flipp. The label closed in 2003.


title: Art Alexakis

text: Alexakis dabbled in songwriting with other artists, including co-writing and duetting the song "At the End of the Day" released on Marion Raven's 2005 and 2007 albums, "Here I Am" and "Set Me Free", respectively.


title: Art Alexakis

text: In October 2008, Alexakis entered the studio with the Minneapolis-based band Apparently Nothing (previously a Madison band and later renamed to The Usual Things) to produce their debut album, tentatively titled "The Middle Coast".


title: Art Alexakis

text: From March 2017 through February 2019, Alexakis hosted a weekly radio show on Sirius XM's 1990s alternative and grunge music channel, Lithium (Channel 34).


title: Art Alexakis

text: In 2000, Alexakis made brief appearances in the Heather Graham comedy "Committed". He played the lead role in the 2006 short film "Room to Breathe" and had parts in "Rid of Me" (2011) and "Rogue River" (2012).


title: Art Alexakis

text: In 2014, he had a role as a tattoo artist in the biographical drama film "Wild" starring Reese Witherspoon.


title: Art Alexakis

text: Alexakis was interviewed on "Space Ghost Coast to Coast"; the interview never aired, although it is briefly glimpsed on Episode 60, "Lawsuit". In 2002, Alexakis appeared in two episodes of "The Chris Isaak Show". In 2006, he appeared on an episode of "Ned's Declassified School Survival Guide" on Nickelodeon as a music teacher named Mr. Gibson (a reference to Gibson guitars).


title: Art Alexakis

text: In August 2006, Alexakis appeared on "The O'Reilly Factor" discussing the music video for "Hater", the first single from Everclear's "Welcome to the Drama Club".


title: Art Alexakis

text: In 2000, Alexakis testified before Congress in support of HR 1488, the Compassion for Children and Child Support Enforcement Act. Through ACES, the Association of Children for the Enforcement of Support, President Geraldine Jenson and Nancy Pelosi sponsored this bill. The law passed.


title: Art Alexakis

text: Alexakis was a delegate for the 2004 Democratic National Convention representing Oregon's 3rd congressional district after campaigning for John Edwards during the 2004 Democratic presidential primaries. He and Everclear recorded the Woody Guthrie standard "This Land Is Your Land", which he performed at several political events.


title: Art Alexakis

text: Alexakis is also a gay rights activist. In 2010, he expressed his support for gay marriage and opposition to Proposition 8, "I don't think Prop 8, gay marriage or the things your community lobbies for are political issues. We are Americans; that's where it ends. If Lady Justice is supposed to be blind, then why not towards your community? It is going to happen; it's happening, and I think it is a great thing." In the same interview, he reflected on the gay rights movement in the 1970s by saying, "I went to San Francisco to see the Sex Pistols in 1978. I was barely 16 and I went with this neighbor of mine, who my mom didn't know was gay, but I knew was gay. I went to Castro with a whole group of gay guys and saw a side of the culture that I had never seen before. I was aware of Harvey Milk before most people were. It was a great experience."


title: Art Alexakis

text: Alexakis has also been involved in drug awareness programs, including the taping of public service announcements for the Office of National Drug Control Policy.


title: Art Alexakis

text: Along with Everclear, he has performed for U.S. soldiers in Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, Hawaii, and Abu Dhabi. He has also performed for Snowball Express, which organizes events for military families who lost loved ones in the war.


title: Art Alexakis

text: During his younger years, Alexakis was an atheist. In an August 2000 interview with "Spin", Alexakis stated he had since become Christian. Speaking about his then-fiancée Stephanie Greig, he said, "She's a Christian, and I'm a Christian—my ex isn't—and so I was like, it's okay to be a Christian. I'm not like a born-again... Well, I guess I "am" born-again, in a way. But I don't knock people over the head with it. I just kind of use my spirituality to make my life better."


title: Art Alexakis

text: On March 26, 2019, Alexakis announced that he had been diagnosed with multiple sclerosis in a letter to fans posted on the band's website. Alexakis says he was diagnosed with relapsing-remitting MS following a car accident three years prior.


title: American Chopper

text: American Chopper is an American reality television series that airs on Discovery Channel, produced by Pilgrim Films & Television. The series centers on Paul Teutul Sr. (frequently called "Senior"), and his son Paul Teutul Jr. (also known as "Paulie" or simply "Junior"), who manufacture custom chopper-style motorcycles. Orange County Choppers is in Newburgh, New York. The contrasting work and creative styles of the father-and-son team and their resulting verbal arguments were the series' hallmark until 2008 when an explosive argument led to Paul Jr.'s termination and departure to start a competing chopper company, Paul Jr. Designs.


title: American Chopper

text: The series originally aired on Discovery Channel beginning in March 2003. In December 2007, the series moved to Discovery's sister channel TLC, starting off with an 18-hour marathon. Its first TLC season premiered in January 2008. Season 6 began in April 2009 but the series was canceled by TLC in February 2010. In July 2010, TLC announced that the Teutuls would return in a new series, "". Senior vs. Junior premiered on TLC but was soon moved to Discovery halfway through the first season. Discovery Channel announced that the show would end with "The Chopper Live: The Revenge" show on December 11, 2012 after 10 years.


title: American Chopper

text: The OCC fabricators and mechanics such as Paul Teutul Jr., Rick Petko, Nick Hansford, Christian Welter, and former employees Vincent DiMartino (who left OCC to start V-Force Customs in 2007), and Cody Connelly (a BOCES student intern who has since joined DiMartino's business), create dozens of custom motorbikes. Michael Teutul, usually referred to as "Mikey", serves as the shop's custodian and webmaster, and provides comic relief to the show. He has been seen doing metal work occasionally, as one of his early jobs was working at Orange County Ironworks. Also featured occasionally is Danny Teutul, the second oldest child, who succeeded Paul Sr. as the owner of Orange County Ironworks. Danny visits to do contracted work for the OCC facilities. The show also documents their personal and promotional activities ranging from magazine photo shoots to family holidays and custom bike shows.


title: American Chopper

text: During season 3, Discovery Channel sponsored a contest in which four winners received OCC motorcycles. Custom bike features were specified by the winning fans, who sent in videos expressing their reasons for wanting a bike. The contest winners were (in episode order): Jeff Clegg ("Corporal Punishment"), Susan Morisset ("Female Snake Bike"), Joseph McClendon ("Custom Hog"), Bryan King ("Vertebrate Trike").


title: American Chopper

text: Following regular disagreements with his father, Paul Jr. was fired from the shop in late 2008. In January 2009, TLC served a notice of default due to Paul Jr.'s absence. Paul Jr. then returned to OCC briefly as a contractor, but left finally in April 2009 in order to start his own design firm, Paul Jr. Designs. Paul Sr. then exercised a contractual option to purchase Paul Jr.'s 20% share in OCC, and subsequently filed a lawsuit to force the buyout. The case remained ongoing while a valuation of OCC was performed.


title: American Chopper

text: On December 14, 2010, Paul Jr. won his appeal of a lower court ruling forcing him to sell his 20% ownership of OCC to Paul Sr. Paul Jr.'s appeal asked that the agreement to sell be ruled invalid, so Paul Jr. will continue to own 20% of OCC until a fair selling price is agreed to. Paul Jr. has also filed a counter-suit laying out massive fraud on Paul Sr.'s part in dealing with Paul Jr.'s interests at OCC. The suit seeks $100 million in damages along with court-ordered controls over the company's finances to prevent further fraud.


title: American Chopper

text: After a one-year non-compete clause ended, Paul Jr. opened a motorcycle design company in April 2010. TLC then commissioned a 7th season titled "" which features both OCC and Paul Jr. Designs.


title: American Chopper

text: As of May 26, 2009, OCC is the defendant in a legal action filed by artist Justin Barnes, who alleges that his original designs were copied on merchandise without his permission and appropriate compensation.


title: American Chopper

text: In July 2009, Cody Connelly sued OCC and Paul Teutul Sr., seeking damages for misappropriation of likeness, breach of contract and fraud. He claimed the show used his likeness in posters, coloring books and other merchandise after he left it in 2007. Connelly also claimed that he never received "the old school chopper" that he helped design, though Paul Teutul Sr., said it would be his in one episode of the show.


title: American Chopper

text: On February 6, 2010, TLC announced that American Chopper's season finale scheduled for February 11 would also mark the end of the series, stating, "The Teutuls will always be a part of the Discovery family and we congratulate them on a tremendously successful series run." On April 7, TLC announced the Teutuls would return for a new series.


title: American Chopper

text: The new series, "", chronicles the aftermath of Paul Jr.'s departure from OCC and his construction of a new custom chopper company across the street from younger brother Dan's Orange County Iron Works. It premiered August 12, 2010 on TLC.


title: American Chopper

text: In December 2010, "Senior vs. Junior" was moved to the Discovery Channel, the network "American Chopper" originally debuted on. In Canada "American Chopper" started on January 8 on TLC and moved to Saturday nights at 10 p.m.


title: American Chopper

text: On February 7, 2011, Paul Teutul Jr. announced that "American Chopper: Senior vs. Junior" had been renewed for a second season and would return spring 2011.


title: American Chopper

text: On November 21, 2012, Eileen O'Neill, president of Discovery Network, announced the show had been cancelled. The final episode aired December 17, 2012.


title: American Chopper

text: "American Chopper: Senior vs. Junior" is a reality television spin-off which premiered on the TLC channel on August 12, 2010. The show chronicles the rivalry between Orange County Choppers (OCC) owned by Paul Teutul Sr. and his son Paul Teutul Jr.'s newly opened motorcycle business Paul Jr. Designs (PJD). The second season continued with brand new episodes that aired on Monday, August 29, 2011 at 9pm EST on Discovery Channel. The third season began on February 13, 2012. The fourth season premiered, September 3, 2012. November 16, 2012, the Discovery Channel announced the cancellation of the show. The final episode aired December 17, 2012. Paul Teutul posted a picture of himself with his father and brother Mike all posing in front of the Teutel bike that junior and senior built during season 4.


title: American Chopper

text: The cast makes an appearance on Season 2, Episode 3 "American Chopper Gun", of "Sons of Guns" where the crews collaborate on a dragon-themed gun. This episode coincides with "American Chopper: Senior vs. Junior" Season 2, Episode 2 "Big Guns".


title: American Chopper

text: "Orange County Choppers" is the second spin-off series of the "American Chopper" franchise. The show ran for one season on CMT with a 2-hour "pilot" and eight episodes between August 18, 2013 and January 11, 2014.


title: American Chopper

text: The series features Paul Teutul Sr. and his team as they fabricate some of the most complicated choppers of their careers. Evan Favaro is hired as Creative Director and proves his leadership ability and building skills at the shop.


title: American Chopper

text: On December 11, 2014, Discovery Channel aired an "American Chopper" special under the title "American Chopper: Shaq Bike", which featured the building of a chopper for former NBA star Shaquille O'Neal. It focused on the original Orange County Choppers business, with no sign of Paul Jr., though Michael Teutul (listed as a vice president) did appear and interact with his father. While there were a few new family members and fabricators, the crew at the shop appeared to be the same as the cast of the "Orange County Choppers" series, including Evan Favaro. According to Paul Sr., the Shaq "Man of Steel" bike is the biggest in OCC history. The specs: 48-inch handlebars, 6-inch rake, 23-inch front wheel and 20-inch rear wheel on a stretched frame.


title: American Chopper

text: A revival of the series aired in the spring of 2018 on Discovery Channel. According to the series Facebook page, the new season premiered on May 28, 2018 at 10 p.m. ET/PT on Discovery Channel.


title: American Chopper

text: A preview of the first episode of season 11 entitled "Welcome Back" aired on March 1, 2018. The episode featured the return of the Teutuls after ten years of their rocky father-son partnership, catching up to speed with Senior and Junior's separate lives and motorcycle businesses. At Orange County Choppers, Paul Sr. gets a two bike deal with Okada Resort in Manila, Philippines. Meanwhile, Paul Jr. works on a bike for Buffalo Chip Campground in Sturgis, South Dakota. Both come together when Junior asks his father to restore their Yankees bike which had been vandalized and then sold at an auto salvage auction.


title: American Chopper

text: On July 28, 2020, it was announced that a TV special titled "American Chopper: The Last Ride" would premiere on August 4, 2020. The 2-hour special featured Senior and Junior who, over a decade, finally collaborate on building a bike together. This is the first time in series history that Orange County Choppers and Paul Junior Designs come together for one client. For one last time at the old OCC shop, they build a chopper for ABC Supply Company, the largest roofing and siding company in the U.S. However, they only have eight weeks to complete the bike because their original garage in Montgomery, NY is planned to be demolished.


title: American Chopper

text: Due to its popularity during the first seasons, "American Chopper" inspired two video game titles. The first was American Chopper by Activision Value, released for the PlayStation 2, PC and Xbox on November 23, 2004. The second, American Chopper 2: Full Throttle by Creat Studios was released for the Nintendo GameCube, PlayStation 2, and Xbox on November 16, 2005.


title: American Chopper

text: A video pinball arcade game made by Incredible Technologies, Inc. reached on-site play testing but was never released.


title: American Chopper

text: A series of memes were made using frames from the argument between Paul Teutel Sr. & Paul Teutel Jr. in season 6 episode 1. The meme format features captions placed over the two men in certain frames during their argument. The captions usually show some common argument in the current culture.


title: American Chopper

text: "American Body Shop", an improvisational comedy shown on Comedy Central from July 8 to September 19, 2007, is a parody of "American Chopper".


title: American Chopper

text: "Azeroth Choppers" was a weekly web series moderated by Blizzard Entertainment that featured Paul Teutul Jr. and his Paul Jr. Designs (PJD) team. The web series was shown between April 17 and June 5, 2014. It showcased the two motorcycle builds based around each of two factions, Alliance and Horde, in the MMORPG "World of Warcraft".


title: 1982 invasion of the Falkland Islands

text: The Invasion of the Falkland Islands (), code-named Operation Rosario (), was a military operation launched by Argentine forces on 2 April 1982, to capture the Falkland Islands, and served as a catalyst for the subsequent Falklands War. The Argentines mounted amphibious landings and the invasion ended with the surrender of Falkland Government House.


title: 1982 invasion of the Falkland Islands

text: Governor Rex Hunt was informed by the British Government of a possible Argentine invasion on 1 April 1982. At 3:30 pm that day he received a telegram from the Foreign and Commonwealth Office stating:


title: 1982 invasion of the Falkland Islands

text: The Governor summoned the two senior Royal Marines of Naval Party 8901 to Government House in Stanley to discuss the options for defending the Falklands. He said during the meeting, "Sounds like the buggers mean it."


title: 1982 invasion of the Falkland Islands

text: Major Mike Norman was given overall command of the Marines due to his seniority, while Major Gary Noott became the military advisor to Governor Hunt. The total strength was 68 Marines and 11 sailors from the Antarctic patrol ship "Endurance"s survey team, commanded by RN Lieutenant Chris Todhunter. That number was greater than would normally have been available because the garrison was in the process of changing over – both the replacements and the troops preparing to leave were in the Falklands at the time of the invasion.


title: 1982 invasion of the Falkland Islands

text: This was decreased to 57 when 22 Royal Marines embarked aboard HMS "Endurance" to join the 13-man British Antarctic Survey (BAS) team under base commander Steve Martin to observe Argentine soldiers on South Georgia. The Royal Navy and author Russell Phillips state that a total of 85 marines were present at Stanley.


title: 1982 invasion of the Falkland Islands

text: Their numbers were reinforced by at least 25 Falkland Islands Defence Force (FIDF) members. Graham Bound, an islander who lived through the Argentine occupation, reports in his book "Invasion 1982: Falkland Islanders at War" that the higher figure of 40 members (including 15 ex-FIDF members) of the FIDF reported for duty at their drill hall. Their commanding officer, Major Phil Summers, tasked the volunteer militiamen (including his son Brian Summers) with guarding such key points as the telephone exchange, the radio station and the power station. Skipper Jack Sollis, on board the civilian coastal ship "Forrest", operated his boat as an improvised radar screen station off Stanley. Four other civilians, former Royal Marines Jim Fairfield and Anthony Davies, a Canadian citizen, Bill Curtiss and Rex Hunt's chauffeur, Don Bonner also offered their services to the governor. Rex Hunt himself was armed with a Browning 9 mm pistol.


title: 1982 invasion of the Falkland Islands

text: Prior to the main Argentine landings, nine of the British sailors present were placed under the command of the Chief Secretary, Dick Baker, and rounded up 30 Argentine nationals living in Port Stanley and placed them in protective custody next to the Police Station. He recalls:


title: 1982 invasion of the Falkland Islands

text: The Argentine amphibious operation began in the late evening of Thursday 1 April, when the destroyer disembarked special naval forces south of Stanley. The bulk of the Argentine force was to land some hours later from the amphibious warfare ship near the airport on a beach previously marked by frogmen from the submarine . The operation had been called "Azul" (Blue) during the planning stage, but it was finally renamed "Rosario".


title: 1982 invasion of the Falkland Islands

text: "Rosario" began with the reconnaissance of Port William by the submarine ARA "Santa Fe" and the landing of 14 members of the near Cape Pembroke, including the commander of this elite unit, Lieutenant-Commander Alfredo Raúl Cufré. The reconnaissance mission began as early as 31 March, when the trawler "Forrest" was spotted through the periscope at 10:00 p.m. off Port Stanley. The next day, "Santa Fe" learned that the authorities in Stanley were aware of the Argentine plans, so a change was necessary. Instead of landing right on Pembroke, the commandos would initially take a beach nearby.


title: 1982 invasion of the Falkland Islands

text: The commandos left "Santa Fe" at 1:40 p.m. and from the beach headed towards Pembroke peninsula in Zodiac boats. They reached Yorke Bay at 4:30 a.m. on 2 April. After planting beacons for the main landing, they took over the airfield and the lighthouse without encountering significant resistance. After the British surrender at Port Stanley, this team was given the task of gathering the Royal Marines and taking them into custody.


title: 1982 invasion of the Falkland Islands

text: On the night of 1–2 April 1982, "Santísima Trinidad" halted off Mullet Creek and lowered 21 Gemini assault craft into the water. They contained 84 special forces troopers of Lieutenant-Commander Guillermo Sánchez-Sabarots's 1st Amphibious Commandos Group and a small party under Lieutenant-Commander Pedro Giachino, who was second-in-command of the 1st Marine Infantry Battalion and had volunteered for the mission to capture Government House. Argentine Rear Admiral Jorge Allara, through a message radioed from "Santisima Trinidad", had requested from Rex Hunt a peaceful surrender, but the request was rejected.


title: 1982 invasion of the Falkland Islands

text: Giachino's party had the shortest distance to go: two and a half miles due north. Moody Brook Barracks, the destination of the main party, was away over rough terrain. Sánchez-Sabarots, in the book "The Argentine Fight for the Falklands", described the main party's progress in the dark:


title: 1982 invasion of the Falkland Islands

text: "It was a nice night, with a moon, but the cloud covered the moon for most of the time. It was very hard going with our heavy loads; it was hot work. We eventually became split up into three groups. We only had one night sight; the lead man, Lieutenant Arias had it. One of the groups became separated when a vehicle came along the track we had to cross. We thought it was a military patrol. Another group lost contact, and the third separation was caused by someone going too fast. This caused my second in command, Lieutenant Bardi, to fall. He suffered a hairline fracture of the ankle and had to be left behind with a man to help him. We were at Moody Brook by 5.30 a.m., just on the limits of the time planned, but with no time for the one hour's reconnaissance for which we had hoped."


title: 1982 invasion of the Falkland Islands

text: The main party of Argentine Marines assumed that the Moody Brook Barracks contained sleeping Royal Marines. The barracks were quiet, although a light was on in the office of the Royal Marine commander. No sentries were observed, and it was a quiet night. Sánchez-Sabarots could hear nothing suggesting any action at Government House nor from the distant landing beaches. Nevertheless, he ordered the assault to begin. Sánchez-Sabarots's account continued:


title: 1982 invasion of the Falkland Islands

text: "It was still completely dark. We were going to use tear-gas to force the British out of the buildings and capture them. Our orders were not to cause casualties if possible. That was the most difficult mission of my career. All our training as commandos was to fight aggressively and inflict maximum casualties on the enemy. We surrounded the barracks with machine-gun teams, leaving only one escape route along the peninsula north of Stanley Harbour. Anyone who did get away would not be able to reach the town and reinforce the British there. Then we threw the gas grenades into each building. There was no reaction; the barracks were empty."


title: 1982 invasion of the Falkland Islands

text: The noise of the grenades alerted Major Norman to the presence of Argentines on the island, so he drove back to Government House. Realising that the attack was coming from Moody Brook, he ordered all troop sections to converge on Government House to enable the defence to be centralised. Around this time, most of the Falkland Islands Defence Force received similar orders and fell back to Drill Hall. Sergeant Gerald Cheek from the FIDF recalled: "We were requested to phone in to HQ whenever possible, and when I made the routine call at 06.00 hours Phil Summers informed me that the Governor had said FIDF members were not to engage with the enemy under any circumstances, and they were to surrender when ordered to do so without offering any resistance."


title: 1982 invasion of the Falkland Islands

text: Although there were no Royal Marine witnesses to the assault, British descriptions of the state of Moody Brook barracks afterwards contradict the Argentine version of events. After the Royal Marines were allowed to return to barracks to collect personal items. Norman describes walls of the barracks as riddled with machine gun fire and bearing the marks of white phosphorus grenades – "a classic houseclearing operation". The Argentines maintain that the barracks were damaged in an air attack by Harriers from No. 1 Squadron RAF on 12 June 1982—involving Flight Lieutenant Mark Hare and Wing Commander Peter Squire—that killed three conscripts and wounded their commander.


title: 1982 invasion of the Falkland Islands

text: There was a more pressing action on the eastern edge of Stanley. Twenty LVTP-7A1 Argentine tracked amphibious armoured personnel carriers from Lieutenant-Commander Guillermo Cazzaniga's 1st Amphibious Vehicles Battalion, carrying D and E Companies of the 2nd Marine Infantry Battalion (BIM-2) from Puerto Belgrano, had been landed from the tank landing ship ARA "Cabo San Antonio" at Yorke Bay, and were being watched by a section of Royal Marines under the command of Lieutenant Bill Trollope. Two Argentine-built landing craft also took part in the landings later that morning and would fall into British hands at the end of the fighting in June.


title: 1982 invasion of the Falkland Islands

text: The armoured column drove along the Airport Road into Stanley, with three Amtracs in the vanguard, and, near the Ionospheric Research Station, at exactly 7:15 a.m., was engaged by a section of Royal Marines with anti-tank rockets and machine guns. Lieutenant-Commander Hugo Santillán later wrote an official post-battle report.