Exile (Japanese band) facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Exile
Exile in Taiwan in January 2020
Background information
Also known as	J Soul Brothers (1999–2001)
Origin	Tokyo, Japan
Genres	J-pop R&B dance house
Years active	2001–present
Labels	LDH Rhythm Zone
Members	Exile Hiro Toshio Matsumoto Exile Makidai Exile Usa Exile Atsushi Exile Akira Exile Takahiro Kenchi Tachibana Exile Tetsuya Exile Nesmith Exile Shokichi Exile Naoto Naoki Kobayashi Takanori Iwata Alan Shirahama Mandy Sekiguchi Sekai Taiki Sato
Past members	Shun Keiji Kuroki

Exile (also written as EXILE) is a very popular Japanese boy band with 19 members. Hiro is the group's leader. He used to be in another band called Zoo. Exile releases their music through Avex Group's label, Rhythm Zone.

In 2003, the first six members of Exile started their own company called LDH. This company has helped many other successful music groups and solo artists get started. Exile is the main group of this company.

Overall, Exile has sold more than 15.6 million albums!

History of Exile

How Exile Started

The group's leader, Hiro, was first part of a pop group called Zoo. After Zoo broke up in 1995, Hiro started a new group in 1999. This group was called J Soul Brothers. In 2001, they changed their name to Exile. Later, in 2007, Hiro helped create another group that also used the name J Soul Brothers.

First Success and New Singers

Atsushi and Shun became the main singers of Exile. Atsushi really liked the American R&B group Boyz II Men.

In November 2003, Exile made a new version of Zoo's famous song "Choo Choo Train." This song helped their third album, Exile Entertainment, become very popular. The album sold over one million copies! They even performed "Choo Choo Train" on a big TV show called NHK Kōhaku Uta Gassen.

At first, Exile's music was influenced by R&B. But later, their style became more like pop music. In 2004, their song "Real World" was their first song to reach number one on the Oricon music charts. In July 2005, they worked with the Japanese rock band Glay on a song called "Scream." This song also hit number one and sold more than 500,000 copies.

In December 2005, they released "Tada...Aitakute," and in March 2006, they released "Yes!" Both of these songs also reached the top of the Oricon charts. However, Shun left the group in March 2006 to become a solo singer. Exile then looked for a new singer. Takahiro joined the group in September 2006. He had originally wanted to be a hairdresser!

On February 14, 2007, Exile released "Michi." This was their first number-one song since Takahiro joined. Their album Exile Love became the best-selling album in Japan in 2008. It sold almost 1.5 million copies. Their album Exile Ballad Best sold nearly one million copies in its first week. This made it the best-selling album in its first week for 2008. It has now sold over two million copies. Their song "Ti Amo" was downloaded over one million times as a full-track ringtone. They also won a big award, the Grand Prix Award, at the 50th Japan Record Awards for "Ti Amo."

Growing Even Bigger: New Members and Hiro's New Role

In 2009, Exile's song "The Next Door" was used as the theme song for the Japanese version of the video game Street Fighter IV. An English version of the song, "The Next Door -Indestructible-," was used for the game's international release. This English version was on their single "The Hurricane (Fireworks)" and featured American rapper Flo Rida.

On March 1, 2009, Exile and another group called Nidaime J Soul Brothers announced they would join together. This made Exile a bigger group with 14 members. Their first album with all 14 members, Aisubeki Mirai e, came out on December 2, 2009. They won the Grand Prix Award again for the second year in a row for their song "Someday" at the 51st Japan Record Awards.

In April 2010, Exile started their own TV talk show called EXE. It was shown in Japan and Taiwan. In July 2010, Exile had their first stadium tour called Exile Live Tour 2010 Fantasy. They won their third Grand Prix Award in a row at the 52nd Japan Record Awards for the song "I Wish For You." This song was also used for the 2010 FIVB Volleyball Women's World Championship.

Starting in 2011, Exile began to perform in other Asian countries. They were special guests at an awards show in Hong Kong. They also performed in Beijing, China, which was their first live show outside Japan. On September 14, 2011, Exile released "Rising Sun." This popular song helped support recovery efforts after the 2011 Tōhoku earthquake and tsunami. In November 2011, Exile started their second big dome tour. Exile was one of the top-selling music artists in Japan in both 2011 and 2012.

On January 1, 2012, Exile released their ninth album, EXILE JAPAN/Solo. This album was number one on the Oricon Albums Chart for three weeks in a row, which was a new record for the group. In June, Exile won Best Video of the Year at the MTV Video Music Awards Japan. This was their fourth win at these awards.

On April 3, 2013, HIRO, the leader of EXILE, announced that he would stop performing with the group at the end of 2013. He said he would still be the leader and producer of the group. On the same day, EXILE released their song "EXILE PRIDE ~Konna Sekai wo Aisuru Tame~." This song became Exile's first single to sell over one million copies. It also won the group their fourth Japan Record Award. Exile was the first artist to win this award four times! In April, Exile had their third dome tour.

A New Chapter: Fourth Generation Members

Exile members at the 2014 MTV Video Music Awards Japan

In April 2014, Exile started a new chapter with new members. Five new members joined the group after a big audition. These new members were Takanori Iwata, Alan Shirahama, Mandy Sekiguchi, Sekai Yamamoto, and Taiki Sato. Their first song as the new Exile was "NEW HORIZON," released on July 23, 2014. In September, the new Exile started their first tour. On March 25, 2015, they released their tenth album. They started another national tour in September 2015.

On June 22, 2015, three members—Toshio Matsumoto, ÜSA, and MAKIDAI—announced they would stop performing with the group by the end of the year. Their last song with the group was "Ki・mi・ni・mu・chu." On December 31, 2015, Matsumoto Toshio, ÜSA, and MAKIDAI officially retired as performers during a New Year's TV show. However, ÜSA continued to perform with another group, and MAKIDAI continued his music career as a DJ.

On August 17, 2016, Exile released their song "Joy-ride ~Kanki no Drive~." This song was used as the theme song for Fuji television's coverage of the 2016 Summer Olympics in Rio.

On July 25, 2018, Exile released a new album called Star of Wish. In September, they started their fifth dome tour.

Exile Band Members

Since Exile started, some members have joined, and some have left. As of 2021, AKIRA is the member who has been active the longest. HIRO is no longer a performer, but he is still Exile's leader and producer. He sometimes appears in Exile's music videos and events. There are currently 13 active members in the group.

Performers

Vocalists

Vocalists and Performers

Former Members

Timeline of Members

Exile's Music (Discography)

Albums

Studio Albums

Best-of Albums

Other Albums

Singles

Songs with Other Artists

Other Songs

Awards and Nominations

See also

In Spanish: Exile para niños

• Japan Record Award
• MTV Video Music Awards Japan
• List of best-selling music artists in Japan