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History
GLAY (グレイ) is a rock/pop band originally formed in Hakodate, Hokkaido, Japan in 1988. They have since risen to become the 3rd best-selling artist of all time in the country. Primarily considered a classic rock band, they have also arranged songs using elements from a wide variety of genres, including punk, electronic, R&B, folk, reggae, gospel, and ska. In 1999 they were awarded the Guinness Record for largest single concert attendance in Japan for their outdoor expo "Survival" which exceeded 200,000 participants. They are often compared to The Beatles in terms of their diverse musical style, broad appeal, band history, and cultural significance.
GLAY started in 1988, when they were in high school, with TAKURO as the guitarist, TERU as the drummer and a bassist who quit when they decided to head to Tokyo. They needed a vocalist, so TERU made a tape of his singing to give to TAKURO and was immediately recruited for the part. On the search for another guitarist, HISASHI was asked to join but turned down the offer, as he was already part of a locally well-known heavy punk/rock band called 蟻 (Ari), which better suited his taste in music. When Ari disbanded, HISASHI accepted TAKURO's offer and became the lead guitarist of GLAY. By the time of TAKURO and TERU's graduation, GLAY had become more popular in their hometown of Hakodate and were playing in full live houses. Following HISASHI's high school graduation in 1990, the three of them moved to Tokyo to try and further expand their musical career. However things did not seem to improve for them in Tokyo. Their gigs only attracted a few people, and sometimes none at all.
