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38-720: Both Ami and Yumi were scouted by Sony-affiliated talent agencies and put together in the mid-1990s. Most of their work was produced or co-written by Okuda Tamio and Andy Sturmer , formerly of the bands Unicorn and Jellyfish , respectively. The duo's first single, Asia no Junshin (1996), sold one million records. They gained mainstream success in Japan in 1998 following the release of their album, Jet and continued with several more full-length releases (totaling 15 million sales in Japan). In 2004, an animated series featuring animated versions of themselves, Hi! Hi! Puffy AmiYumi , premiered on

76-464: A better performer. The band eventually disbanded, leaving only Ami under Sony's employment. She was encouraged to stay despite lacking a band and a clear musical direction. Yoshimura had learned of the Chotto Sokomade talent search underway by Sony Music Artists at the age of 18. After passing the company's audition, Yumi moved on her own from Ōsaka to Tōkyō, where she eventually met Ami by chance in

114-770: A cover version with Cyndi Lauper of her hit "Girls Just Wanna Have Fun". They also performed their songs "Hi Hi" and " Red Swing " on the show. They came back to the US in 2006 for their Splurge Tour, and also toured with Tally Hall for the Super-Ultimate Awesome Exploration tour the same year. In January 2017, they announced their Not Lazy tour to hold place in April. That same month, the band made an appearance at Anime Boston for autograph signings. On November 19, 2004, an animated series featuring cartoon versions of Ami and Yumi, titled Hi! Hi! Puffy AmiYumi , premiered on

152-538: A great opportunity to introduce the music to a new audience. When we toured, after the Cartoon Network show started, so many little kids came to our show. We always wanted as many people as possible to listen to the music. The duo then made an appearance and performed in the 2005 Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade where they were also represented by their own Hi! Hi! Puffy AmiYumi float and balloon. On January 16, 2006, Puffy AmiYumi were appointed goodwill ambassadors to

190-413: A sinister land developer who tries to tear down beloved places for his own selfish needs; the evil Talent Suckers (voiced by Nathan Carlson and Corey Burton ), a vampire rock trio from Transylvania ; and Atchan (voiced by Rob Paulsen ), a caricature of Atsushi (lead singer of the punk band New Rote'ka) who speaks in third-person and thinks he is a superhero. The animated Puffy AmiYumi travel all over

228-540: Is a list of albums published under the names Puffy/Puffy AmiYumi and their release dates. Tamio Okuda Tamio Okuda ( 奥田 民生 , Okuda Tamio , born 12 May 1965 in Hiroshima ) is a Japanese singer, songwriter, and producer. He started his career in 1986 as a member of the band Unicorn . After Unicorn broke up, Okuda moved on to a solo career in 1994 with the single "Ai no Tame ni". He has written and composed many songs for various artists, particularly Puffy . He

266-482: Is an American animated series created by Sam Register and produced by Renegade Animation and Cartoon Network Studios , which aired on Cartoon Network from 2004 to 2006. The series stars fictionalized and animated versions of the Japanese pop rock group Puffy AmiYumi . The series premiered on November 19, 2004, and ended on June 27, 2006, with a total of three seasons and 39 episodes. During its short-lived run,

304-460: Is considered by both Ami and Yumi as "the godfather of Puffy". Ami had previously met Tamio at a Sparks Gogo concert, and he had produced her then-unreleased solo CD. He was eventually signed on to produce the duo's first studio album, titled AmiYumi . Their debut single, "Asia no Junshin", launched a big craze known to some as “Puffy-mania.” Asked if they were surprised by the attention after its success, Yumi told an interviewer "... everything that

342-609: Is signed to Sony Music Japan . He was ranked number 25 in a list of Japan's top 100 musicians, provided by HMV Japan in 2003. His band Unicorn was also ranked at number 61. Unicorn reunited in 2009. He appeared in the 2011 Batsu game on Gaki no Tsukai . He performed his song "Ai no Tame ni" with alternate lyrics to recap all that went on in the New Years' special. On July 11, 2018, Okuda, Kazuyoshi Saito , Yohito Teraoka (Jun Sky Walkers), Takashi Hamazaki (Flying Kids), Yo-King (Magokoro Brothers) and Tortoise Matsumoto announced

380-766: The Walt Disney Animation Japan animated production, the Marvel Productions animated series, the Studio Ghibli animated production, and the Rankin/Bass animated series. Other inspirations included old MGM and Warner Bros. cartoons, as well as Hanna-Barbera and Mirisch / UA cartoons, UPA shorts, and the works of Jay Ward . Some of the show's crew members included various writers from Nickelodeon 's CatDog , including Steven Banks , Kit Boyce and Robert Lamoreaux. Sam Register originally pitched

418-469: The 2000 South by Southwest festival in Austin , TX. Soon after their SXSW performance, attorneys for Sean "Puffy" Combs sent the band a cease and desist letter asking them to change their name. After adopting the new name "Puffy AmiYumi", they told Entertainment Weekly : Yumi: It doesn't bother us at all. We respect the fact that Puff Daddy is Puffy in the U.S. Ami: The bottom line is that we don't know what

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456-515: The Cartoon Network aesthetic -- but nothing new", and called it "bright and loud and sensational". Hi Hi Puffy AmiYumi debuted on Cartoon Network on November 19, 2004, at 7:30 PM ET/PT with two half-hour episodes. The show charted double-digit increases with Girls 6–11 in ratings and delivery for Cartoon Network's Fridays programming block. During the following week, the show became the network's top-rated hit for kids 6–11. It also increased Cartoon Network's audience among that age group by 49% over

494-569: The Japanese pop duo Puffy AmiYumi , but with different appearances and exaggerated personalities. They travel around the world on their customized tour bus along with their well-intentioned yet greedy manager Kaz Harada (voiced by Keone Young ). From rocking out at a concert to hanging out in their hometown of Tokyo , the duo take the world by storm with their musical talent, trend-setting style, and humor, dishing out lessons in J-pop justice and establishing

532-456: The Sony Music offices. Both felt alone within the large Sony organization and were not confident in their abilities as solo artists. Although Ōnuki had recorded a solo CD under the guidance of former Unicorn frontman Okuda Tamio , which later become half of solosolo, she and Yumi requested Sony pair them as a duo. Producer and American pop musician Andy Sturmer christened them as " Puffy ", and

570-432: The US's Cartoon Network . Although their characters were voiced by different voice actresses, the singers portrayed themselves for short live-action segments taped in Japan. When Ōnuki was in high school, she sang for a band called Hanoi Sex that participated in a Sony SD Audition and passed, becoming employees of Sony Music Entertainment. She later took vocal lessons and attended a professional school to learn how to become

608-535: The United States as part of the Japanese government's campaign to encourage tourism in Japan. Puffy AmiYumi also performed cameo voiceovers in episode 9 of the 2011 anime series, Bunny Drop , airing on July 8, 2011. They also performed the opening theme to the anime. Puffy AmiYumi has collaborated with producer Tamio Okuda and American singer-songwriter Andy Sturmer . The duo's vocals have been compared to American vocal sister group The Roches . The following

646-451: The United States' Cartoon Network on their Friday-night block, Fridays . Despite both of them being voiced by American actresses (although Janice Kawaye , who plays Ami, is of Japanese descent), the real Puffy AmiYumi star in short live-action segments video-recorded in Japan. The series also featured some of the duo's best songs around the time. Yumi said in an interview with LiveDaily : Yumi: The Cartoon Network show has given us

684-400: The channel, until Register officially became the president of Cartoon Network Studios on August 28, 2020. The show had been acknowledged and referenced several times, even outside of Cartoon Network themselves. These also come in the form of parodies, albeit rare. Hi Hi Puffy AmiYumi premiered in the United States on Cartoon Network on November 19, 2004. After ending on June 27, 2006,

722-485: The duo, who have been immensely popular in Japan since making their debut, and is the second television show to be based on the band after Pa-Pa-Pa-Pa-Puffy , which aired in Japan from 1997 to 2002. The group now has its own U.S. albums, including a 2004 companion album to this program, and was known to viewers of Cartoon Network in the U.S. for performing the theme to the Teen Titans animated series. During production of

760-573: The formation of a supergroup called the Curling Sitones ( カーリングシトーンズ , Kāringu Shitōnzu ) . Each member is a multi-instrumentalist with all of them at-least being able to provide vocals and guitar and, like the Traveling Wilburys , each uses a pseudonym featuring "Sitone". They formed for a concert on September 23, 2018 at Zepp Tokyo celebrating Teraoka's 25th anniversary as a musician. Hi Hi Puffy AmiYumi Hi Hi Puffy AmiYumi

798-518: The idea of Puffy AmiYumi having their own television series on Cartoon Network , and afterwards, Renegade Animation developed a test short on April 22, 2003, in hopes of making the channel greenlight the show's production. Renegade Animation originally, at first, created other Cartoon Network pilots before Hi Hi Puffy AmiYumi ; two of which feature Captain Sturdy ; one in 2001, entitled "Back in Action", and

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836-449: The international language of "cool" along the way. Secondary characters include: Jang-Keng (voiced by Grey DeLisle) and Tekirai (voiced by Janice Kawaye), the duo's pet cats who enjoy tormenting Kaz; Harmony (voiced by Sandy Fox ), a six-year-old girl who is the self-proclaimed "Number One Fan" of Puffy AmiYumi and (later) Kaz and constantly stalks them; Eldwin Blair (voiced by Nathan Carlson),

874-408: The other in 2003, entitled "The Originals", but they were ultimately rejected, and Renegade Animation then started working on Hi Hi Puffy AmiYumi starting with its pilot on April 22, 2003. The pilot was not broadcast, but was initially successful, and got the green-light from Cartoon Network. Finally, it was shown in non-full version as a preview on Cartoon Network DVDs and VHS tapes. The entire pilot

912-456: The rear cabin of the bus while traveling. Occasionally, the rear door has been opened to receive packages delivered by a boy on a scooter. During the first season, the show included live-action clips of the real Ami and Yumi making childish commentary (in English and non-subtitled Japanese) at the beginning and end of each episode. They only performed short clips at the beginning of the show during

950-418: The respective countries), and many episodes feature one or more of the duo's songs playing in the background, along with music by Andy Sturmer . Though the characters speak English, the script intersperses their vernacular with Japanese speech, especially when the characters react to events that they find to be surprising. Calling out "Tasukete!" instead of "Help!" is commonly used. According to Register,

988-446: The second and third seasons. Starting with the second season, the duo was sometimes shown holding title cards introducing the cartoon segments. At the end of the episode "Sitcomi Yumi", Ami and Yumi watched television and saw the animated Kaz with the real Ami and Yumi. All of the live-action clips were produced by Freegate, Ltd. The real PUFFY performs the cartoon's theme song (which is also in Japanese, German, Spanish, and Portuguese in

1026-434: The series was nominated for an Annie Award three times. Merchandise based on the series has also been produced, such as video games, home media releases, toys, and clothing. Hi Hi Puffy AmiYumi follows the adventures of two best friends: the peppy, optimistic, cheerful, girly girl Ami Onuki (voiced by Janice Kawaye ); and the cynical, sarcastic, grumpy tomboy Yumi Yoshimura (voiced by Grey DeLisle ). Both are based on

1064-448: The series, DeLisle learned some Japanese from Kawaye and Young, both of whom speak the language fluently. The cartoon was one of the few cartoons at the time produced entirely in the United States, with a number of characters designed by famed Canadian artist Lynne Naylor , who also designed characters for other Cartoon Network shows, including Samurai Jack , Foster's Home for Imaginary Friends , and The Powerpuff Girls , which got

1102-450: The show began airing on Cartoon Network in English with Japanese subtitles in 2005. A dubbed version began airing on TV Tokyo 's Oha Suta block on October 6, 2005, and started to air on January 8, 2006, on Cartoon Network Japan . In Germany, the show aired on Cartoon Network Germany with all episodes. It premiered in 2005 on the Cartoon Network's block of Kabel eins . The show stopped airing there after two seasons in 2006. The reason

1140-444: The show continued to rerun until December 22, 2006, where it aired in reruns and occasionally as one of the few non- Cartoon Cartoons to air in reruns on The Cartoon Cartoon Show before being removed from the network's schedule. Since Cartoon Network is available worldwide, the show has been dubbed into multiple languages and aired on Cartoon Network worldwide. In Canada, the series premiered on YTV on September 5, 2005. In Japan,

1178-512: The show nominated for the coveted Annie Award. The pilot used a combination of Macromedia Flash and traditional cel animation . Each program was 30 minutes long (with commercials) and featured three seven-minute segments. The visual style of the show is anime-influenced . The show takes inspiration from various works animated in Japan, such as Pokémon , Digimon , the Sunbow Productions animated series based on Hasbro properties,

Puffy AmiYumi - Misplaced Pages Continue

1216-411: The target audience of the show is children from 6 to 11 years old. However, it also has a cult following of teen and adult fans of the real-life Ami Onuki and Yumi Yoshimura who make up the Japanese pop duo Puffy AmiYumi . Register, who was a fan of the band, wished to spread its fame to other parts of the world and thus created the series. The series features the adventures of animated versions of

1254-430: The word “puffy” means. We were given our name by somebody else (Andy Sturmer) six years ago, and we really don't have a clue. After their show, Pa-Pa-Pa-Pa-Puffy ended production in 2002, Puffy focused on performing in the United States. Several of their previous Japanese albums were released for the US market and they recorded theme songs for the animated series Teen Titans and SD Gundam Force . They have also done

1292-413: The world in their tour bus. While appearing the same size as a regular bus on the outside, it appears to have enough internal space to house the girls' rooms (including full-sized beds), Kaz's room, their equipment, televisions, and computers, among other things. In the episode "Domo", Kaz refers to an upstairs area. It also seems capable of running on autopilot, as Kaz, Ami, and Yumi are sometimes sitting in

1330-653: Was abandoned in January 2010. As of December 2023, the show airs on Tooncast at 2:30am and 2:30pm respectively. While the show has had a limited release on DVD in America, the entire series was released on HBO Max in the Latin America area. The release includes both the Spanish and original English tracks. The Los Angeles Times wrote that the show is "modern, in its retro, Asian-tinged way -- in other words, right in line with

1368-546: Was found by series' director, Darrell Van Citters , and was uploaded to Vimeo on April 5, 2018. The series was officially announced at Cartoon Network's upfront on February 26, 2004. It was originally planned to premiere in December 2004, but was later moved up to November 19. On October 2, 2006, the show's crew announced on their blog that Cartoon Network had cancelled Hi Hi Puffy AmiYumi after three seasons and 39 episodes due to management shakeup, leading Sam Register to leave

1406-475: Was put together for that song all came together and made it happen, but we didn't expect it. It was luck." On July 13, 2005, their song Song of Origin ( はじまりのうた , Hajimari no Uta ) was used as the ending theme of the eighth Pokémon film: Pokémon: Lucario and the Mystery of Mew . Puffy made their first appearance in the United States as part of Music Japan's "An Evening with Japan's All-Stars" showcase at

1444-514: Was that Cartoon Network Germany launched and most of the shows moved there. In Poland, the show aired on Cartoon Network Poland from 2005 to 2006. In Australia, the show premiered on April 3, 2005. It stopped airing on Cartoon Network Australia in November 2008. The third season was never shown there. From August to November 2009, the Australian channel 9Go! showed the last season instead and

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