Watabiki Miwa aka Chara is a Japanese singer, actress and TV personality. Her stage name Chara is a nickname given to her by a teacher at primary school (in Japanese 'charachara' means 'scatterbrained'). Chara has been a high-profile and prolific musician and songwriter since her debut single 'Heaven' in 1990. This was released by Sony Music Japan after receiving a demo tape of the young singer's work.
The 1990s was a rich period for Chara, as she was not only the first female artist to appear on the cover of Japan's 'Rock On Japan' magazine but also starred in her first movie, 'Iwai Shunji', in 1994. This was followed in 1996 with another starring role, but also a smash hit single, with the theme tune to the movie 'Swallowtail Butterfly'. The song was released under the name Yen Town Band and went to number one in the Japanese charts. In 1998 she formed the band Mean Machine with whom she played the drums. She continued to release singles and highly regarded albums throughout the '90s and into the 2000s, including a collaboration with Smashing Pumpkins' James Iha, and even releasing a covers album of her own songs in 2004. She split from Sony Music in 2004 having finally released a Mean Machine LP in 2001.
On through the new millennium Chara formed a number of bands and continued to record music independently before signing with A&M/Universal Music in 2006 with the single 'Sekai'. Chara continues to write and record, releasing two studio albums, 'Sympathy' and 'Baby Bump' in 2019.
