Shinichi Osawa was originally the producer and bassist for the popular Japanese musical group Mondo Grosso, which formed in
Kyoto in 1991 on the
For Life Records label. However, in 1995, after the group disbanded, Osawa concentrated more on his own material, collaborating with many artists such as
Monday Michiru,
Amel Larrieux,
UA,
Chara,
Dragon Ash and even
Ayumi Hamasaki. During his collaborative work in 1997, he became a solo producer, releasing the
R&B-infused
acid jazz and house album
Closer. He made a move from For Life Records to Sony Music Associated Records in 1999, where he began his own label. Throughout the years, Osawa acted as a producer for artists such as Bird and
Eri Nobuchika. His 2000 album
MG4 displayed the diversity of his production, fusing jazz and house. It featured the hit song 'Life,' featuring Bird. In 2003 he released
Next Wave, a more traditional house album. Osawa provided the hypnotic array of techno music on the popular
PlayStation Portable game
Lumines in 2004. He did not reappear as a composer for its sequel. In 2007, Osawa signed to record label
Avex Trax. Feeling that, in comparison to his previous albums, the sound reflected more closely his DJ sets and performances (performed under his real name), Osawa released his
electro house album
The One under the moniker of 'Shinichi Osawa' rather than 'Mondo Grosso.' "Our Song" was the initial single released in Japan, followed by the Chemical Brothers cover Star Guitar. Under his real name, Osawa has received more international attention, creating acclaimed remixes of
Felix da Housecat's "Radio" and
Digitalism's "Pogo." He also performed at
Electric Daisy Carnival, which was his first performance in America. He is also featured in Clazziquai's Robotica album in a remix for Prayers by Christina Chu. In 2008, he remixed #1-hit song Startin' by Japanese pop sensation
Ayumi Hamasaki. The mix appeared on the album
Ayu-mi-x 6 -GOLD-. In October 2008, following a release of "Star Guitar" as a single by
Data Records,
Southern Fried Records made a digital release of "The One" in the UK. A physical release is scheduled for January 2009. In November 2008, "Our Song" appeared on
the 16th version of
Konami's DJ simulation series
Beatmania IIDX, alongside several other songs by Avex's
House Nation group. Osawa is currently involved in
Ravex, a collaboration with fellow
Avex DJs
Tomoyuki Tanaka and
Taku Takahashi established to mark 20 years of
Avex. Their debut album
Trax was released on April 8, 2009, and follows the release of the singles "I Rave U" and "Believe in LOVE" featuring
BoA. Osawa released
SO2, the second album under his given name, on June 16, 2010 digitally and June 30 on CD/DVD. In 2009, Osawa collaborated with Takeshi Kobayashi to form the duo Bradberry Orchestra. With the lead single "LOVE CHECK," Bradberry Orchestra released their first album "
Vol.0" on March 16, 2011 in Japan through Avex. Songs from the album have been used to promote Sony's
Xperia phone as well as
SEGA's
Yakuza Of the End. Currently, Osawa hosts a bi-monthly online radio show called Date Line with fellow DJ Masatoshi Uemura on block.fm. In 2017, he released the Mondo Grosso song "Labyrinth". The music video, starring actress
Hikari Mitsushima, has over 37million views on
YouTube as of January 2024. Along with Australian artist RHYME, Osawa is half of the duo RHYME SO. They released their single "Fashion Blogger" in March 2020. In 2021, Osawa and RHYME opened The Nuts Exchange, a
vegan cafe in
Shibuya that serves Australian-Japanese fusion food. == Representation ==