is the bass player

Bassist

A bass player, or bassist is a musician who plays a bass instrument such as a double bass, bass guitar, keyboard bass or a low brass instrument such as a tuba or sousaphone. Different musical genres tend to be associated with one or more of these instruments...

 and backing singer of the Japanese

Japanese people

The are an ethnic group originating in the Japanese archipelago and are the predominant ethnic group of Japan. Worldwide, approximately 130 million people are of Japanese descent; of these, approximately 127 million are residents of Japan. People of Japanese ancestry who live in other countries...

 rock

Rock music

Rock music is a genre of popular music that developed during and after the 1960s, particularly in the United Kingdom and the United States. It has its roots in 1940s and 1950s rock and roll, itself heavily influenced by rhythm and blues and country music...

 band Asian Kung-Fu Generation

Asian Kung-fu Generation

, typeset as ASIAN KUNG-FU GENERATION, is a Japanese rock band formed in Yokohama, Japan in 1996. For nearly its entire career, the band has consisted of vocalist Masafumi Gotō, guitarist Kensuke Kita, bassist Takahiro Yamada, and drummer Kiyoshi Ijichi...

. Yamada met fellow band members Masafumi Gotō

Masafumi Goto

is the lead vocalist, main songwriter and rhythm guitarist of the Japanese rock band Asian Kung-Fu Generation. Masafumi met fellow band members Kensuke Kita and Takahiro Yamada while attending a music club of Kanto Gakuin University. The three formed Asian Kung-Fu Generation in 1996, with drummer...

 and Kensuke Kita

Kensuke Kita

is the lead guitarist and backing singer of the Japanese rock band Asian Kung-Fu Generation. Kensuke met fellow band members Masafumi Gotō and Takahiro Yamada while attending a music club of Kanto Gakuin University. The three formed Asian Kung-Fu Generation in 1996, with drummer Kiyoshi Ijichi...

 while attending a music club of Kanto Gakuin University

Kanto Gakuin University

is a private university located in Kanazawa-ku, Yokohama, Japan. The school's official English name is Mabie Memorial School.-History:It traces its roots to The Baptist Theological Seminary of Yokohama established by Albert Arnold Bennett, a missionary of the American Baptist Missionary Union, in...

. The three formed Asian Kung-Fu Generation in 1996, with drummer Kiyoshi Ijichi

Kiyoshi Ijichi

is the drummer of the Japanese rock band Asian Kung-Fu Generation. Ijichi credits the origin of his drumming ability to playing in marching bands in junior high....

 joining the band shortly after.

While Masafumi acts the main songwriter

Songwriter

A songwriter is an individual who writes both the lyrics and music to a song. Someone who solely writes lyrics may be called a lyricist, and someone who only writes music may be called a composer...

 of the band, Yamada has provided lyrics for certain songs. He retains a degree in literature

Literature

Literature is the art of written works, and is not bound to published sources...

 and his favourite bands are The Beatles

The Beatles

The Beatles were an English rock band, active throughout the 1960s and one of the most commercially successful and critically acclaimed acts in the history of popular music. Formed in Liverpool, by 1962 the group consisted of John Lennon , Paul McCartney , George Harrison and Ringo Starr...

, Oasis

Oasis (band)

Oasis were an English rock band formed in Manchester in 1991. Originally known as The Rain, the group was formed by Liam Gallagher , Paul "Bonehead" Arthurs , Paul "Guigsy" McGuigan and Tony McCarroll , who were soon joined by Liam's older brother Noel Gallagher...

, The Smashing Pumpkins

The Smashing Pumpkins

The Smashing Pumpkins are an American alternative rock band that formed in Chicago, Illinois in 1988. Formed by Billy Corgan frontman and James Iha , the band has included Jimmy Chamberlin , D'arcy Wretzky , and currently includes Jeff Schroeder Mike Byrne , and Nicole Fiorentino The Smashing...

, and Pet Shop Boys

Pet Shop Boys

Pet Shop Boys are an English electronic dance music duo, consisting of Neil Tennant, who provides main vocals, keyboards and occasional guitar, and Chris Lowe on keyboards....

. The band once had the opportunity to meet the Gallagher brothers while opening for a tour Oasis once held in Japan. The brothers turned out to be quite nicer than they expected. Noel Gallagher

Noel Gallagher

Noel Thomas David Gallagher is an English musician and singer-songwriter, formerly the lead guitarist, backing vocalist and principal songwriter of the English rock band Oasis. He is currently fronting his solo project, Noel Gallagher's High Flying Birds.Raised in Burnage, Manchester with his...

in particular reportedly told AKG to, "Keep rocking."