2010 Musical Guest

Mari Iijima

MARI IIJIMA is an accomplished singer and songwriter who released numerous Top-10 albums through Victor Entertainment Japan and Warner Music Japan. She wrote all of the music for her critically acclaimed debut album Rosé, which was produced by renowned composer Ryuichi Sakamoto. Throughout her career Mari has worked with the music industry's greatest musicians including Alan Parsons Project, Toto, and members of the John Mayer Band.

Her 2004 release, Wonderful People was a smash hit and stayed on the top of an Indie album chart for over 5 consecutive weeks. Mari has won several awards including the FM Osaka Best New Artist Awardand the Japan Audio Society Golden Jubilee Awardtwo years in a row, which is voted on by both Japanese & American judges. She was also nominated for the 2000 Los Angeles Music Awards’ Best Pop Artist Award for her first independently released album, No Limit. At the 2006 Just Plain Folks Music Awards, Mari won a Best Song Award for her song “Unspoken Love” from her album, Wonderful People.

In addition to singing and songwriting, Mari has also appeared in film, television, and on radio in both Japan and the U.S. In 2004, Mari starred in the short feature film GREEN TEA-R and also wrote and performed the film’s theme song, “Petal”. GREEN TEA-R won the top honor of Grandprix at the Takarazuka Film Festival in Japan, Silver Screen Award at US International Film & Video Festival, and was shown at the Berlin Film Festival.

Recently, Mari reprised the role of Lynn Minmay in the animated series SUPER DIMENSION FORTRESS MACROSS, making her the first actor to voice the same character in both English and Japanese.

In November of 2006, Mari released her 20th studio album, Uncompromising Innocence, which she wrote, arranged, and produced, with collaborative contributions from David LaBruyere (John Mayer Band, Sugarland), Michael Chaves (John Mayer Band, Low Millions, Mandy Moore), and Mick Karn (Japan, Dali's Car).

In 2007, Mari received proof of entry for the 50th Grammy Awards Provided Entries for 'Swim,' a track on her 2006 album, Uncompromising Innocence. Her listed entries are for the Best Female Pop Vocal Performance category and the Best Instrumental Arrangement Accompanying Vocalist(s) category.

She released her 21st studio album, Echo, in September of 2009.

On Saturday, July 17, 2010 at 8pm, Mari will be treating MechaCon attendees to a very special musical concert you won't want to miss! It's open to all attendees, so be sure to check it out!

You can find out more about Mari on her website, www.marimusic.com.