Chitose Hajime

元ちとせ

She hails from Amami Ooshima and performs in a style unique to that region, characterized by distinctive falsetto effects.
Chitose Hajime was identified as a talented folk singer at a young age. She secured victories in numerous folk song competitions, issued two traditional folk albums via an indie label, and received interest from many record labels. Instead of continuing in music, she chose to study to become a beautician. However, Hajime suffered severe allergic reactions to many of the chemicals used in that profession. She left school and seriously reconsidered a career in music.
In 2001, she released a self-titled mini-album on the indie label Office Augusta. The album consisted of covers of older songs, but it was so well received that Hajime was encouraged to release another mini-album. In August 2001, Chitose released her second mini-album with Augusta Records, titled Kotonoha (コトノハ). This release included 5 original tracks.
In 2002, she released her first major label single on Epic Records - "Wadatsumi no Ki" (ワダツミの木). It was the third best-selling single of the year, surpassed only by Hikaru Utada's "traveling" and Ayumi Hamasaki's "H". Three months later, she released a new single, "Kimi wo Omō" (君ヲ想フ?). While also quite popular, it did not achieve the same level of success as her debut single, although it did help establish her as a permanent artist.
Her first major album, Hainumikaze (ハイヌミカゼ), followed later that year. It sold 800,000 copies, charted for 57 weeks, and was the 16th best-selling album of the year.
She released 3 more singles before her second major album, Nomad Soul (ノマド・ソウル), came out in 2003. Shortly after a concert tour, and the release of a live album and DVD in 2004, Hajime announced that she would be taking a break from the music scene to get married and have a child. Her first pregnancy ended in miscarriage, but she successfully gave birth to a girl on January 20, 2005.
She returned to the music industry in November 2005 with the single "Kataritsugu Koto" (語り継ぐこと), which served as the ending theme for the anime BLOOD+. The single was a hit, reaching #12 on the Oricon charts. She followed this success with her next comeback single, "Haru no Katami" (春のかたみ), the ending theme for the anime AYAKASHI - Japanese Classic Horror. This single sold 6050 copies in its first week and remained on the charts for a total of 7 weeks. A third single was released before her next album. The single, "Ao no Requiem" (青のレクイエム), was the theme song for the Studio GAGA film Hatsukoi. It featured 1 extra track and charted for 3 weeks. The following week, Hajime released her third original major album, Hanadairo (ハナダイロ). The album was available in both a regular edition and a limited edition. The limited edition included a 13th track, "Shinda Onna no Ko" (死んだ女の子) with Ryuichi Sakamoto), as well as a DVD containing the music videos for "Kataritsugu Koto" and "Haru no Katami".
Studies have revealed that her particular style of singing, including aspects of traditional Amami-Ōshima music, has a relaxing effect that has been observed in electroencephalograms taken from the brains of people listening to her singing.